Friends! I’m so happy to welcome our Southern Bride of the Month for April! All of our Southern Brides are special to us, but we have a special connection to Miss Whitney because in 2011, she was one of our reader models in V4’s South Carolina Polo Prep editorial! Here she is on the left in those famous striped skirts :)
A Bryan Photo
Please help me welcome her to the blog… again! :)
Hi! What’s your name?
Whitney Anne Rosenkampff
What’s your fiancé’s name?
John William Perry, but he goes by Will
How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story.
Our story begins our senior year of high school, when Will began coaching our senior girls’ powderpuff team. (Really, it started much earlier, when my mom pointed Will out at our middle school awards show as “the smart guy I should date” and when Will told his mom that I was the most beautiful girl at school.) The very first thing my dad ever said when he met Will was, “Hey, you’re the kid who toilet papered our house!” Who knew, five years later, he would be talking to the same man about marrying his daughter. We both were accepted early admission to UGA, and even though it took some convincing for Will to drop his allegiance to Georgia Tech, we both started in Athens the following August. Many Sanford stadium games, formals, and Varsity hot dogs later, we graduated from our beloved alma mater in May, then moved to Augusta in the fall when Will started medical school and I began my first job as a nurse. We love to cook, travel to our nearby Charleston, eat whole buckets of popcorn at the movies, sing the wrong words to songs in the car, see who can eat the most oysters at happy hour, have lots of medical discussions and spend weekends with our friends on the lake!
Engagement session by Twin Hearts!
Now tell us alllll about the proposal.
The plan was for me to come to Athens, go shopping all day with my best friend, and celebrate our belated birthdays before she moved to Texas for two months. While we were shopping, Kelsey told me that she had left my birthday present at our sorority house (we were both AOII at UGA) but her sister, Taylor, was going to bring it by on her way to class. Seeing as it was a short walk from downtown Athens, I agreed to meet up. We met Taylor near the Founders Garden, and she wished me happy birthday as she handed me the bag. I grabbed the card out of the present, opened it, and read “Forever and Ever Quidnunc, Turn Around.” Will has always called me Quidnunc, since we started dating almost six years ago. I knew when I read it that no one would have written that besides Will. I immediately turned around and saw him standing there with a small box in his hand. I started crying and Kelsey started crying and grabbed a camera to snap pictures. He lead me into the garden and proposed, shopping bags in hand and all. After the proposal, Will had my whole family waiting to eat dinner at our favorite restaurant. What makes it even more special is that we got engaged the same day my mimi and papa were married, and they are a couple I have always looked up to as a model of love, devotion, and timelessness.
When’s the big day?
June 14, 2014
Where might you two be tying the knot?
The Hill in Athens, GA
How did you pick your ceremony and reception venues? What do you love most about each space?
We chose to have both our ceremony and reception at The Hill in Athens, GA. We knew two things going into our wedding planning: we wanted our wedding to be in Athens, our favorite place in the world, and we wanted it to be outside. I had researched a couple places before we went to go look at The Hill, but once we arrived we knew it was the place for us. Owned by Lee Epting, the man behind Epting Events, it is a collection of beautiful old houses restored by Lee himself among gorgeous landscapes and gardens. We also love that our families are able to stay in the houses all weekend, too. Our ceremony spot, the Sunken Garden, is just breathtaking, green and peaceful and surrounded by brick walls. Our reception will be in a large tent in front of the house framed by big trees. I love the fact that our venue allows us to mix a bohemian garden feel with a classic Southern tent wedding. We’re going to have garden string lights, a big band, a black and white dance floor, and a classic Southern feast that includes smoked beef brisket and fried chicken (of course!)!
A ceremony at the Sunken Garden by Twin Hearts!
Tell us a little bit about the wedding you’re planning: style, theme, feel, colors?
I tell everyone I am going for a “bohemian inspired classic Southern wedding” – I want guests to feel they’re in a dreamy garden with soft colors. We’re going to compliment our beautiful setting with creams, blushes, green, and touches of black. The groomsmen will be in sharp black tuxes with cream rose boutonnieres, and my bridesmaids are wearing a long dress with oatmeal-colored lace on top and a cream bottom. I chose to go with simple baby’s breath bouquets for the bridesmaids. My bouquet is going to be full of peonies, hydrangeas, cream anemones, and dusty miller. Epting Events has some amazing pieces we are using in the wedding, like handmade bars from old homes that we are combining with touches from our own home, like my mom’s typewriter.
Dress on the right from Sarah Janks
Who or what has been most helpful and/or inspiring in the wedding planning process?
We are using Chancey Charm Events, and our planner Marilisa has been great — we are so blessed to have her! My mom has also been so much fun and such a help. I am the only girl, so this is our time to shine, and we have had a great time planning everything. Also, my maid of honor and best friend, Kelsey, has been wonderful at keeping my worries at bay and helping me plan out every detail.
How have you involved your “community” (friends, family, etc.) in the wedding planning process?
It was important to us to keep things local to reflect our love for Athens. Our wedding planner is local to Athens. Our photographers, Twin Hearts Photography, are Athens based. Epting Events is based in Athens. My papa is saying a blessing before we all eat. My brother is playing all of our ceremony music. I have all my cousins as junior bridesmaids.
Has your vision for your wedding changed or evolved over the course of your engagement? If so, how?
Our vision has become more focused over time. At the beginning, you think, wow, I have to fit every idea I have ever seen into one six hour time slot! Yikes!! Eventually, I had to put my blinders on and really think about what would best reflect Will and I.
What part of wedding planning, if any, has made you the most anxious?
I think most of my anxiety has come from Pinterest. At one point, I promised myself I wouldn’t look at anything else — I love my wedding style, but get overwhelmed by too many ideas.
What wedding-related decision have you been the most indecisive on?
Flowers, oh my goodness. I have gone back and forth on my bridesmaids’ bouquets and my bouquet. My florist, Ginger Bradshaw from Ginger Lily Events, is absolutely an angel! She keeps up with my Pinterest board and together we have found a beautiful mix within our budget.
Bouquet photo on the left by Laura Ivanova via Elizabeth Anne Designs and bouquet photo on the right by Kay English from Kelly + Ted’s wedding
Which part of your wedding have you been most intentional about planning?
The most intentional and intimate part of our wedding will be the ceremony and the music. Will and I are being married by one of my dad’s best friends who also happens to be family friends with Will’s parents. I have Will’s three sisters as my bridesmaids and Will has my two brothers as his groomsmen. All of our ceremony music will be done by my brother — it’s important to us that each song be something that reflects where Will and I come from, so guests shouldn’t be surprised if they hear everything from need2breathe to Jack White! I want people to be able to feel like they are part of our family during the whole thing.
Tell us about the one that got away. Is there one dream thing or vendor you wish you could have fit into your budget?
A couple of months ago my dad hosted a charity event for his company and had this amazing 20-piece band play. They had three horns, a guy who sang like Louis Armstrong, three string players, four singers… let’s just say they blew us away! That would be my dream band. Yes, it would have cost my whole budget to hire them, but a girl can dream!
Have you picked your dress yet? How’d that go? What will you be wearing on the big day?
Yes!! It was my absolute favorite part of planning so far! My mom, mimi and I went to three stores. At the first store I found one I loved, but wanted to try more. At the second store I also found a beautiful dress, but then I happened to Google “different wedding dress stores in Atlanta” and found Kelly’s Closet. As soon as we walked in, I was in love with the vintage cuts, beautiful beading, and cap sleeve goodness from their designers. I ended up choosing a beautiful Claire Pettibone gown that I knew was the one as soon as I tried it on. It is ethereal and feels heavenly! When I put it on I feel like a bohemian bride perfect for the garden ceremony.
Photo on the right by Jose Villa via Once Wed
Do you have a favorite Etsy or independent store you’d love to tell us about?
My wedding has been dubbed the “Etsy Wedding” — we are even registered on Etsy! We used Puddleduck Paper Company for Will’s “Will you be my groomsmen” cards. Will ordered beautiful hand carved bottle openers for his groomsmen from Uncorked Originals, and Tammy from Fancie Strands created a beautiful headband for me to wear at our reception.
What do you wish you would have known at the beginning of your engagement?
Don’t wish your engagement away — it’s the best time, enjoy it.
Any plans for a honeymoon? Where do you want to go and what will you do?
Yes! We somehow found time between Will’s medical school and my nurse practitioner school. We are going to St. John and staying at The Westin. It was important to us to be able to get out and explore, so we are renting a jeep and planning to drive around to all the different bays.
Engagement session by Twin Hearts
What are you most looking forward to about marriage?
Being able to share each day with my best friend. I feel so lucky that God found this awesome man for me to spend my life with, and I can’t wait to begin this chapter as our own little family. We are excited about cooking in our new kitchen, saving our money to travel to Europe one day, and being parents to our sweet black lab! Once we found this kind of love, having a life with each other is the most exciting thing we can think of.
Where do you hope to be on your fiftieth anniversary?
Our dream is to renovate an old house, somewhere in the Lowcountry on the water, and fill it with kiddos and dogs!
Now it’s your turn to ask for advice – is there anything you’d like to poll the SW readers on?
When you go to weddings, what do you look forward to the most? Is it the ceremony, or the band, or the food? I’d love to know!
Thank you so much, Whitney! Readers, interested in being featured as a future Southern Bride of the Month? Take a peek at this page for all of the details!
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