I am SO excited to introduce November’s Southern Bride of the Month to y’all. Madelynne was a familiar face to the Southern Weddings ladies already, since she’s one of our lovely readers who comment the most (we love when you join the conversation!), and then she completely captured us when we read about her darling engagement story and fabulous wedding plans. I hope you enjoy! And married ladies, make sure you take a minute to answer Madelynne’s question at the end — as an engaged lady, as well, I’m interested to hear your answers, too!
Hi! What’s your name?
Sarah Madelynne Miller (on Twitter here)
What’s your fiancé’s name?
Corey Wayne Moulton (on Twitter here)
What do y’all do for a living?
We graduated in May from Auburn University (War Eagle!) and are both working as Intern Architects in Atlanta, GA.
Personal photo
How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story.
We met in the summer of 2007 both trying to get into the highly competitive undergrad Architecture program. Luckily, we both got in! Our first semester following acceptance into the program, we happened to live in the same apartment complex and sat across from each other in our studio class. Needless to say, we were inseparable. We ate meals together, went to class together, studied together, and pulled all-nighters together. Fast forward 6 months of being in the “friend zone.” I took my big sister’s advice, and told Corey I was in love with him on my birthday, 11/11/07. We have been together ever since!
Photo by Chris and Adrienne Scott
Now tell us alllll about the proposal.
Corey really wanted me to have a ring I would love, so we started looking at rings in June 2010, with the anticipation of getting engaged in the summer or fall of 2011. We looked in Birmingham, Atlanta, and Tuscaloosa, but we both knew we found THE ring around August while visiting my sister in Tuscaloosa.
I had driven to Auburn at the end of January 2011 to visit Corey and interview at the college’s internship fair. That year, I was doing an off-campus thesis 2.5 hours away, so I took every opportunity I could to see him. I had some interviews scheduled after he finished his, so he headed back to his apartment while I continued my interviews. After dinner, we came home and sat on the couch so I could watch The Bachelorette. I got out my iPhone and started going through my wedding blogs on Google Reader. He frantically ran into his bedroom and I thought, “What is his problem?!” He came back out and sat down and I said, “Look Corey, there’s a blog post on here about a girl with the same name as me AND it’s the wedding colors I love!” I scrolled down further and there was a picture of HIM holding the ring! By the time I realized what was going on, he was on one knee in front of me!
It turns out he planned the WHOLE proposal the day before – he had made a faux wedding blog with pictures of us in it, hacked into my Google Reader, and subscribed me to the blog so it’d show up on my account. It was perfect and I wouldn’t change one thing – except maybe take pictures!! He decided to have one element of surprise by proposing to me way ahead of when I expected him to, and I was very surprised!
The ring is by Sylvie Collection, and is an oval cut diamond with a diamond halo around it.
When’s the big day?
April 14, 2012
Yellow shoe inspiration from Madelynne’s Pinterest! Yellow toenails photo by 1313 Photography via Style Me Pretty, yellow heels photo by Marianne Wilson via Wedding Chicks
Where might you two be tying the knot?
Downtown Birmingham, AL. I am from Birmingham.
How did you pick your ceremony and reception venues? What do you love most about each space?
I insisted on getting married in a beautiful church and was determined to find one. As it turns out, my grandmother married my late grandfather in an amazing church downtown called Third Presbyterian Church. That realization made that decision very, very easy. I have always admired the love she has for him, even though he died over 30 years ago. It’s so symbolic that I can get married the same place they did!
The reception venue is an amazing art gallery downtown called Matt Jones Gallery. I wanted a space with an industrial/loft feel to it. Corey is an incredible artist, so the art gallery seemed fitting and the place is around the corner from some of Birmingham’s best bars, so people can continue the party after we leave. It was the only place I visited and I knew as soon as I walked in that it was the place!
Private photo of Madelynne and Corey’s art gallery space being set up!
Who or what has been most inspiring in the wedding planning process?
My mother and sister are a constant source of inspiration for me; they are basically my creative assistants. The biggest inspirations are definitely blogs; I follow 25 different ones, no exaggeration. My favorites are Southern Weddings and Style Me Pretty.
Has your vision for your wedding changed or evolved over the course of your engagement? If so, how?
Not at all. I always wanted a contemporary, eclectic vibe with the main colors being yellow, grey, green, and white. I had a 2 day stint early in the process where I decided to change my colors to orange and grey instead of yellow and grey, but that didn’t last.
Lovely gray and yellow wedding inspiration (photo by Julie Harmsen)
Which part of your wedding are you most invested in?
Pictures, but I know Stephen DeVries is going to be amazing. Music is important to me, too, so I booked Odie based out of Birmingham. He’s an awesome singer/songwriter Corey and I saw over 3 years ago. The night we saw him perform, I said to Corey I wanted to book him for our reception one day, and we did! I booked both vendors within weeks of getting engaged.
Have you picked your dress yet? How’d that go? What will you be wearing on the big day?
I found my dress 12 days after getting engaged, kind of on accident. Mom and I went to a consignment shop near our house one Friday. I had heard they had wedding dresses, so we stopped there to see how the selection was. I was browsing through the racks and there was a never been worn Carolina Herrera gown pretty close to my size and it was 75% off. It didn’t impress me on the hanger, nor was it even close to what I pictured myself in, but I tried it on and it fit beautifully and I cried. I looked elsewhere the next day, but I really couldn’t get it out of my mind. Mom went and picked it up 3 days later. It doesn’t match anything else about my wedding, but I really don’t care! I must mention my shoes while I’m at it – they are Kate Spade’s “Crown” and the same chartreuse color as one of the bridesmaid’s dresses! What a find!
Madelynne’s favorite hairstyle (photo by Cary Hazlegrove)
Who is your favorite vendor you’ve booked so far?
Chris and Adrienne Scott, Photographers did our engagement pictures in Nashville (Corey’s hometown) and they were a blast to work with. They are two of the most fun and laid back people that happen to take awesome photos. I’m also very excited about our future letterpress invites, which will be printed by The Aerialist Press. Our wedding photographer, Stephen DeVries, has been my dream to book since he photographed a girl from my high school’s wedding in 2009.
Do you have a favorite Etsy store you’d love to tell us about?
EmersonBindery makes beautiful handmade guest books that are reasonably priced. MollyGeeClothing made me a beautiful garter to match my hairpiece I found at The Villager in Auburn, which she also designed. DawnsCraftStore made a precious wedding dress hanger that my future mother-in-law gave me as an engagement gift.
Madelynne and Corey’s guestbook
Tell us about the one that got away. Is there one dream thing or vendor you wish you could have fit into your budget?
It’s amazing, but I have been able to find almost everything I want for the right price. You just have to research, a lot! I guess I would most want a videographer to capture the highlights of the day.
What has been the best part of wedding planning? The worst part?
The best part is seeing all of my ideas come to fruition. My mother sewed some amazing yellow chevron tablecloths for the bride and groom’s tables. I’m also very excited about the paper products Aerialist Press will be printing. Corey designed the chevron save the dates that we are printing locally and will be designing the invites and response cards as well. I love the LulaKate bridesmaid’s dresses too! Three different colors and all different silhouettes!
Bright bridesmaid dresses that partially inspired M + C’s (photo by Anne Marie Photography via Southern Weddings)
What do you wish you would have known at the beginning of your engagement?
How stressful guest lists would be! If I could, I’d invite twice as many people as we are, and we are already inviting around 250!
Any plans for a honeymoon? Where do you want to go and what will you do?
We are going to Secrets Maroma Beach in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We had a few strict rules for the honeymoon: 1. Ocean 2. Fruity drinks with umbrellas (yes, Corey wanted that too) 3. Do absolutely nothing.
Madelynne’s dream cake (photo by Meg Perotti and cake by My Sweet & Saucy via Grey Likes Weddings)
Any advice you’d like to pass along to fellow brides?
Remember what the wedding is REALLY about: a holy sacrament to unite two people forever. At the end of the day, it’s you and him standing before God making a vow to each other and nothing else matters.
Now it’s your turn to ask for advice – is there anything you’d like to poll the SW readers on?
For those who are already married, what details about your wedding stand out most in your mind? Or do you remember anything at all? I’m afraid it’ll all be a big blur!
Thank you so much for joining us today, Madelynne! I’m so glad we got to know better! Readers, if you’d like to apply to be a Southern Bride of the Month, check out this post for all the details! If you’ve already emailed me, you’re still in the running for future months!
The Southern Bride of the Month header was designed by our Assistant Art Director Sierra, with illustration by Curious & Company!
In my bouquet, I want lots of yellow with some green, white, and a tiny bit of red mixed in there! I want billy balls, cabbage roses, succulents, spider mums and big yellow peonies. I also want some poppies for a splash of red, and cotton, cuz I’m southern, of course!
Madelynne Miller: I want a yellow or grey seersucker wrap too! With little buttons!
I tweeted about this contest too! @smaddogmiller
I’m so excited about my flowers because I went into my floral appointment thinking “I don’t know much about flowers, I hope this isn’t going to be a disaster,” and it was GREAT. The woman I worked with totally helped me out and my green, black, silver, white wedding will now include: big white hydrangea, white enemones, white roses, silver brunia berry, dusty miller, and black privey berry with camellia leaves. A lot of this is still over my head, but I’m BEYOND excited about the mix in texture and the coordination with what I thought might be a difficult color scheme!
omgeeee! so excited about this giveaway. my bouquet is going to be whites and off whites of ranunculus (my fave), garden roses, spray roses, hydrangeas, lambs ear, berries, lisianthus, and peonies if the lovely ladies at tre bella can get them! i am too excited about this! i really love the nature of the white bouquet..
for my maids though, they will have an orange and peach mix of the same type of flowers, which i am also totally excited about. gotta love a little extra color!
oh and i tweeted for you lovely ladies!
These are so gorgeous! My flowers are all whites & light green! Hydrangeas..tulips…white roses and ranunculus! My bouquet is being wrapped in twine..My bridesmaids are just simple light green hydrangeas wrapped in twine!
Oh my goodness gracious! I am SO excited about this giveaway and I’m crossing my fingers {and toes} that I win! {eek!}
My bouquet will be peach cabbage roses, white peonies and hopefully a few of those adorable tiny wild flower daisies, that I picked on the side of the road when I was little. I’m hoping to wrap it with some lace from my grandmothers dress or veil and finishing it off with a big satin bow. :o)
My bouquet is going to be made up of local flowers from the farmer’s market. There will be sunflowers, because those are my favorite, and hopefully milkweed will be available still. I also want to incorporate purple. It will most likely be wrapped with either burlap or black ribbon with a brooch. I would love to add a bouquet tile to honor my grandmothers.
I am doing all peonies. with grey bouquet wraps. I had an adorable pictures of my grandparents put into a charm to attach to my bouquet. I love the idea of adding something special that you can keep and treasure long after the big day.
Just wanted to say god luck to all and that Paloma’s Nest is AMAZING! I was lucky enough to win the Southern Wedding Ring Bearer Bowl contest from them and it is one of the details I am most excited about for my wedding.
I am so excited about this give away! I adore Paloma’s Nest! My fiance and I are even using one of the ring bowls by them! My bouquet is one of the things I’m most excited about! I will have white hydrangeas, tied together with burlap and twine! But the best part, in my eyes, is what I’m including on the bouquet, which is small picture frames of loved ones of mine and my fiance’s who have passed, so that they will be able to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day! I wouldn’t have it any other way! I wil definitely be crossing my fingers that I win this gorgeous bouquet tile!
-Emily
I also tweeted about this giveaway! So, so excited!
-Emily
Wow! In love! with Palomas Nest! My bouquet was inspired by SW and my family! I am having peonies, david austin roses, billy balls, Lisianthus, Ranunculus, mixed succulents and dusty miller! All tied together with beautiful ribbon and lace that my grandmother (who passed away last year) collected for me, that she wanted to make my wedding dress out of. I know she would be proud :)
Just tweeted from all the way Down Under :) love xxx
Well, well, I do think this Palomas Nest bouquet tile is exactly what I need to complete my bridal bouquet! My daddy passed away when I was 16 so I have known for a long time I would include a “charm” on my bouquet in his memory. I have two items in mind: 1) a gold locket he gave me for Christmas the year before he passed; and/or 2) the angel pin every member of our family wore while he was sick. I think the bouquet tile would be a great way to put in words what those “charms” mean to me. My dad’s cousin is doing my floral design (all the way from Birmingham!) and we have decided to use big, fluffy white peonies, with a few pale, pale coral garden roses, and Queen Anne’s lace from my mom’s farm. I also think the Palomas Nest bouquet tiles would be cool on each of the bridesmaids’ bouquets, with their name or a quote or a bible verse or something of significance to me and that BM. Hmmmm…..I like where this thought is going….!!
I tweeted it! @lucyclement
[…] We have some AMAZING giveaways coming up, as well as one going on right now: don’t forget to enter to win a Paloma’s Nest bouquet tile! xo Emily November 18, 2011 | view Emily's blog 0 […]
These are beautiful and sweet! .I have been excited about my flowers from the beginning and cannot wait to see it all come together. My overall vision of the flowers we have decided to call: natural, “organized randomness” and modern romanticism. I literally cannot wait to see them. I am having a late Feb wedding so the flowers are those that are available at the very very early part of spring. It could snow…it could be warm. We will see! My colors are navy, white, and chartreuse but mostly whites for the flowers. My bouquet will have white anemones, white sweet peas (my favorite!)), white duchess peonies (amazing!), fever few snowballs, white “Football” Mums, and some green foliage. I think it will be a sweet, a little whimsical, and completely romantic. We are wrapping them in simple Navy ribbons so these tiles would be perfect to add! My bridesmaids have bouquets that are similar but with a little more of the green in them. Bells of Ireland, mini hydrangeas, viburnum with some kale for that natural part of my vision.
I plan on having an all pink bouquet with soft, romantic flowers like peonies, garden roses, and sweet pea! My wrap is going to be a piece of kimono fabric that I brought back with me from Japan where my fiance and I spent several years during our dating years.
[…] When we post giant winner round-ups! We announced the winners of our Peachtree Lane giveaway, our Paloma’s Nest giveaway, our giant V4 Bow Tie giveaway, and our V4 Southern Exits giveaway! Click here to see who won. […]