Southern Weddings

What a treat we have for you today! Brooke Images sent us this colorful Florida wedding, and it’s everything you’d want a beach celebration to be, and more. Jeni + Nate wowed us with gray striped bridesmaid dresses for the ladies and sharp khaki suits for the gents, and the pink, blue and gold ribbons waving in the breeze at their beach-side ceremony were the icing on the cake. Check back for their equally-colorful reception soon!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. Nate and I met in 2002 as part of a small group of new transfer students at Principia College. We immediately became good friends and enjoyed hanging out with our group of mutual friends over the course of that fall quarter. I ended up transferring back to a different school the following quarter, several thousand miles away, but we very loosely kept in touch over the next seven years. During that time, we both graduated and moved to opposite coasts (myself in California and Nate in DC). Eventually, I fulfilled a lifelong dream of moving to Florida. Coincidentally, Nate and I both happened to also be single at this point and now living within 700 miles of each other, so we made an excuse to meet up. We hit it off right away, and within a few months, I decided to relocate to DC to be closer to Nate and to pursue a Master’s degree in Interior Design at George Washington University while he continued his job on Capitol Hill.
Describe the proposal. After a year and a half of dating, Nate proposed to me on a foggy winter evening on the back steps of the Capitol, overlooking the National Mall and Christmas tree!
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Whimsical, surreal, perfection.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The balloons! They set a perfectly joyous and playful tone.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I wanted something simple with almost no embellishment, where the design itself could stand on its own and make a statement. With only a six-month engagement, I was already behind before I even started my dress search. After trying on 100 dresses in my desired price range, I began trying on dresses outside of my price range. Suddenly, I had no problem finding dresses I loved. It just so happened that every one of these dresses was designed by Amsale. Knowing that I’d be happy with essentially any dress by Amsale, I started scouring used wedding dress websites. With almost no time left (certainly no time to order without rush fees), I made a lower offer to one seller and she graciously came down on her price.
Describe your wedding flowers: Trying to find designers/florists who understood and could execute my vision was a bit challenging. Two weeks before the wedding (yes, two!), I finally found the most amazing florist who was miraculously available and completely understood the soft, whimsical, and eclectic look that I wanted. Being on a budget, I looked at ways I could reduce my floral costs. I had an epiphany one morning to have the bridesmaids and groomsmen carry 36-inch round balloons down the aisle instead of bouquets, which so perfectly supported the feel that I was going for with the ceremony. For the reception, the flowers consisted of peonies, dahlias, garden roses, and hydrangeas in ivories, pinks, peaches, and coral, situated in an eclectic array of glass and milk glass vases and wooden boxes with painted stripes.

Photographer: Brooke Images // Planner: Christina Kopecki // Venue: The Plantation Beach Club // Florist: Shea Hopely Flowers // Wedding Cake Baker: Beaches Pastry // Caterer: The Plantation // Paper Products: Paper Source, designed by the bride // Bride’s Dress: Amsale via PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com // Bride’s Hair Accessories/Veil: Suzanne Newman // Bride’s Shoes: Classiques Entieres // Bridesmaids’ Dresses: BCBGeneration // Accessories: earrings from MontBlanc

Written with love by Emily