Southern Weddings

Do I spy another game of corn hole? Brilliant! What picnic wedding would be complete without some lawn games? This casual Kentucky wedding looks like the perfect summer soiree. Katie + Brian enlisted the help of their family and friends to make the gathering even more personal. The bride’s mom canned dilly beans for the appetizer table and picked her own mint for the mint juleps! While the newlyweds served cupcakes from Gigi’s Cupcakes and donuts from Krispy Kreme, Katie’s high school friend also made them a small cake to cut into. The personal touches make this soiree even more Southern!

See all the photos from Katie + Brian’s wedding in their Real Wedding Gallery!

What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? Well, definitely the bourbon since that’s a favorite of Brian’s and we were in Kentucky – we even used old bourbon barrels with burlap for our bar. We served local microbrewery beer and Virginia wine in honor of my home state. My mom canned dilly beans for the appetizer table and brought her own mint to be used for the mint juleps. The menu was Southern themed– pulled pork and chicken with green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy, baked beans, and coleslaw. Also, our groomsmen rocked seersucker pants and many of the guests wore hats in honor of a May wedding in Kentucky.
Describe your wedding cake: We served mini cupcakes and Krispy Kreme donuts to our guests. However, we did have a small cake to cut – my high school friend made and decorated our cake for us and even used my grandparents’ original cake topper from their wedding over 50 years ago.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? Planning everything from Michigan without a point person in Louisville – there was a LOT of emailing and we were booked solid whenever we went down for a planning weekend.
What range did your wedding budget fall into? $10,000-$25,000 for 240 people
What is the one thing you are most happy you splurged on? Our photographer! Josh from Bella Grace was amazing.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? So hard to narrow this down – definitely walking down the aisle to Brian, and on a less serious note, getting pelted with lavender buds as we boarded the trolley from the church.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? Relaxing! We’re exploring Michigan this summer and planning our Hawaii honeymoon this winter

Photographer: Bella Grace Studios // Coordinator: Allure Events // Ceremony venue: Saint Gabriel the Archangel Catholic Church // Reception venue: Historic Locust Grove // Florist: The Greenery // Wedding Cake Baker: friend // Cupcakes: Gigi’s Cupcakes // Donuts: Krispy Kreme // Caterer: Terri Williams // Paper Products: Ink Parade Paperie // Bride’s Dress: I Do Too Bridal // Bride’s Hair Accessories/Veil: Hair flower from midoridesigns, clutch from KellysKeepsakes // Accessories: Bridesmaids’ earrings by J Gorkowski Jewelry // Hair & makeup: Joseph’s Salon

Written with love by Nicole