Southern Weddings

More reception details!  Just to catch you up, we’ve got florals by The Treasured Petal, a wedding dress by Ulla Maija, hair and makeup by Joyce Luck, linens by Elegant Designs Specialty Linens, a magnolia-trimmed wedding cake and a groom’s cake (GO DUKE!) by the Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel.  The stunning reception took place at the Ritz Carlton (ceremony at the Mariners Church in Irvine), and, if you’ll remember, the planning was done by the one and only Angel Swanson.  Another HUGE thank you to Trista Lerit for letting us share your work on the blog — it’s been hugely inspiring!

Describe your wedding flowers: Our talented and sweet florist, Kristin, did such a great job carrying out our wintry Southern theme by filling the ceremony and reception with lush white florals, branches, magnolia leaves, pinecones, rosemary and cinnamon sticks in wooden boxes and julep cups. The arrangements were huge and stunning!
Describe your wedding cake: Our wedding cake had sugar magnolia flowers and leaves delicately placed along the different tiers. It was so beautiful! We even saved some of those magnolia flowers!
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day: Our personal vows. We decided early on that we wanted to write our own vows, but because of our hectic schedules leading up to the wedding day, we both did not end up writing them until hours before the wedding! Mike’s vows were so touching and were words that I will never forget. I even asked him for the notebook paper he wrote them on!
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? We are slowly unpacking Mike’s stuff and plan on doing some home improvement and decorating our first place together. We look forward to spending time with each other as husband and wife, and eventually getting a house with a big yard for our Boston terrier, Sammie.

Okay, a confession: this Southern Wedding of the Week is not actually Southern.  As in, it took place in California.  The groom, however, is Southern, and Jen and Mike, today’s couple, infused a real Southern sensibility into their soiree. 

So that’s why they’re a SW of the Week.  But to answer a larger question that a few of you may be wondering, why, in general, does Southern Weddings feature weddings that, well, didn’t take place on Southern ground?  The answer’s pretty simple, really — we believe wedding inspiration can come from all corners of the globe, and certainly all corners of the country.  The modern Southern bride wants to combine one part region-less, oh my gahhh beautiful inspiration with one part old-school Southern tradition, and we’re here to inspire both halves of that equation.  Plus, so many of the best wedding vendors are willing to travel these days, and we wouldn’t want you to miss out on the chance to work with one of them.  (Sidenote: remember Lindsey + Drew’s wedding?  It took place in South Carolina, but they hired uber-talent Leo Patrone to be their photographer.  Leo is based in Utah, but Lindsey found him through SW.  Just sayin.’)

We’ll be back with more soon!

Three words that describe the day are: Fun, family and friends.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: We had so many favorites. Mike’s favorite was his groom’s cake. Mike wanted something to reflect his love of Duke basketball and Auburn football, so I surprised him with a cake of Cameron Indoor Stadium and Jordan Hare Stadium. My favorites included my wedding gift from Mike, which was his grandmother’s engagement ring, and also the bridesmaids’ dresses.  Each bridesmaid wore a unique navy dress from Vera Wang gold shoes and matching rings.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: When I first started looking for a dress, the only think I knew was that I preferred a dress that wasn’t strapless and didn’t have a sweetheart neckline. Of course, I ended up with both. I went to Saks in Beverly Hills and the bridal consultant pulled a Ulla-Maija for me. Once I put it on and showed it to my mom, my great aunt and my bridesmaid Jenny, I had a feeling it was the one. I didn’t try on any more dresses after that!