Southern Weddings

David + Linda Murray of David Murray Weddings certainly had a dream setting when it came to photographing Meredith + Ben’s soiree at the Montaluce Winery & Estates.  The bridesmaids’ rich plum-colored gowns from Melissa Sweet perfectly accented the dark + romantic hues of the Georgia-based vineyard, and we love the subtle wine-themed accents (cork place card holders, anyone?!) the couple wove into their celebration.  I’ve been on the lookout for subtle and sophisticated wedding cakes for my upcoming wedding (any suggestions, friends?) and have to give two thumbs up for Meredith + Ben’s simple four-tiered swiss-dot cake from The Frosted Pumpkin, complete with a strand of lilac and cream roses from Bold American Events & Catering.  The bride’s embellished drop-waist gown is a Judd Waddell masterpiece from Bridals by Lori. 

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story.  In June of 2005, I joined a mixed doubles tennis team for some socializing and exercise.  Little did I know that I would meet my future husband!  I didn’t make it easy for Ben, though.  Sitting on the sidelines watching our teammates play, Ben and I would talk and, every once and a while, he would ask me to hang out with him and some of our teammates.  I would like to say that I was playing hard to get, but really I was just oblivious to what I’ve come to find were Ben’s attempts to “woo” me.  After months of disappointment (according to Ben), I finally agreed to hang out with him after a tennis match.  After an evening of NFL playoff football and Trivial Pursuit, I realized this guy would be fun to hang out with outside of tennis.  Fortunately, I guess Ben felt the same way because it wasn’t too long before he asked me if I would like to play tennis with him one Friday evening.  Always the ultimate competitors, Ben and I battled it out at the Chastain Park tennis courts on a chilly February evening.  Before the first serve, Ben suggested that we place a bet to make the evening a little more interesting: the loser had to pay for dinner.  Little did I know that this was part of a much-debated plan with Ben’s sister (and my future bridesmaid!), Sarah.  Should Ben let me win?  Anyone that knows me knows O am one of the most competitive people you will ever meet.  No way was I going to let Ben “let” me win.  I talked a big game, but Ben destroyed me… I think I won maybe 3 games.  Love must have been blooming, though, because I still agreed to join Ben at a romantic, post-tennis meal on the patio of a local Mexican restaurant.  After a few margaritas and chips and salsa, I was hooked. 
Describe the proposal. The first week of February 2009, Ben and I went to the Bahamas on an incentive trip with Ben’s company.  We spent four great days enjoying fabulous meals, swimming with dolphins and getting pampered at the spa at the Cove Atlantis.  Many months before, Ben and I had decided to spend an extra night on the island, after the “work stuff” was over.  On the last night of our trip, we went to a beautiful beachside restaurant (where they filmed part of Casino Royale) and enjoyed some champagne and island fare.  It was pretty cold that night, so Ben suggested we just head back to our room and watch a movie.  Sounded good to me!  Back at the room, I opened the door to a room covered with roses.  Rose petals on the floor, rose petals on the bed, ose petals on the desk.   I spotted a card addressed to me on the bed alongside a long stem red rose.  I opened it and started reading some of the sweetest words Ben had ever written to me.  As I turned around to give him a hug and thank him, he got down on one knee.  I immediately put my hands to my face and started crying.  (Ben says this is exactly what my mom did when he asked her permission to marry me.)  When he asked if I would marry him, I was crying so hard that I couldn’t say anything, just nod.  I wanted to make it perfect, so I made him ask me again so that I could give him a proper “yes.”  Yes!  Yes!  Yes!  We popped the bottle of Dom Perignon that we had been saving for a special occasion (and Ben had lugged all the way to the Bahamas), and I stared at the most beautiful ring I have ever seen.
Three adjectives that describe the day are:

Meredith: Romantic, exciting and perfect.

Ben: STD – Solid, tight and dominant.

Tell us about finding your wedding dress: My mom and matron of honor went with me to Bridals by Lori a few weeks after Ben and I got engaged, and I was on a mission.  With less than 6 months before the wedding, I knew I had to make quick work of finding a dress.  We looked through rows and rows of dresses… all beautiful but nothing jumped out at me.  Then my matron of honor spotted one on a mannequin.  It was a stunning strapless Cinderella-like ball gown with lace and Swarovski crystal embellishments on the sweetheart neck line and waist.  I hesitated because I felt badly about asking them to take it off of the display.  My matron of honor was not going to let that stand in the way of me trying on that dress.  Thank goodness for her insistence.  The stunning dress from the mannequin was the first dress I tried on, the 10^th dress that I tried on, and the last dress that I tried on.  It was “the dress” and I loved it!
Describe your wedding flowers: Simple but unique, and exactly what I had envisioned.  It was as if our event designer (Steve Bales…a genius) peered into my mind and created exactly what I imagined.  I love purple, so there was lots of it.  My bouquet was primarily Sterling roses accented with stephanotis, chocolate cosmos and chocolate fern curls.
Describe your wedding cake: Delicious and elegant.  Our cake was “death by chocolate:” our-tiers of chocolate cake filled with chocolate ganache.  The white butter cream icing was accented with platinum ribbon, Swiss dots and a cascade of Sterling roses and Picasso calla lilies.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? When Ben took my hand and said his vows with complete sincerity and love.
What’s next for you as a couple?  What are you looking forward to in the future? We are currently looking to sell our condos and buy a home in Atlanta.  In the long term, we are looking forward to starting a family, playing a little tennis and enjoying our life together.

Congratulations, Meredith + Ben!  We wish you a lifetime of tennis… and happiness, of course.

There are three things in this North Carolina celebration giving me a more-than-mild case of wedding envy: the bride’s flirty turquoise pumps, her ultra-feminine pink and white rose bouquet and her dress… her lovely lace-embellished, illusion-strapped Pronovias dress.  (Pronovias happens to be one of my very favorite designers, and I knew before I asked that this beauty had to be from their collection.)  Christian Louboutin gets the credit for Kilbi’s hot heels (natch) and A Beautiful Event created the bride’s romantic + sweetly understated bouquet.  Of course, we can’t forget to brag a little about Kellie Kano for capturing this serene seaside wedding on Bald Head Island!

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story. Boy meets girl walking into the hotel. Boy is girl’s boss. Boy drinks lots of coffee and is a pretty funny dude. They are fast friends. Life is full of surprises and they realize they are more than friends. Boy and girl go on dates. They drink wine and laugh. Alot. Girl sees boy combing little girl’s hair. Girl melts. Girl and boy realize they are meant for each other. Boy proposes in the dead of winter at the beach and girl spends next 10 months planning (and driving him crazy!). They say ‘I do’ on a magical day and dance the night away. Boy and girl honeymoon Down Under and have the time of their lives. Boy and girl start on their journey of ‘happily ever after,’ loving every second…
Describe the proposal (As told by the Groom) Originally, I had planned to propose to Kilbi at Lake Tahoe on an upcoming ski trip. I hadn’t quite figured out the time and location, but thought that it would be a beautiful setting to ask her to marry me. However, a series of events and my suspicion that Kilbi was catching on to my plan called for a change of plans.

We had visited Bald Head Island over New Year’s and had really fell in love with the island. Over the previous couple of months, we had looked at somewhere very similar to get married, called Palmetto Bluff. So when we visited Bald Head, the unique feel and layout of the island was perfect for a smaller and more special wedding, which was exactly we wanted. After returning from the island, we made inquires as to what dates were available for a wedding at Bald Head Island. Fortunately, there were still a few dates left in the Fall, which was exactly when we wanted to get married!  We planned to go to BHI to look at the chapel and other wedding locations the following weekend. She had discussed visiting BHI with her mother, wanting her to go, but her mom wanted to see some “hardware” prior to making wedding plans. If momma is not happy, then nobody is happy :). I knew I had to act smoothly and swiftly because I wanted to make sure that we would be able to get our date at BHI for this year. I wanted this special day to be perfect for Kilbi, just as she had always wanted. My mind was set and I did not want to wait a moment longer to marry her.

With her parents’ help, we devised a plan for Kilby and I to head to the beach for the weekend and for her parents to join us later that night. (My parents, who were already down at the beach, were also part of the plan.)  I had my mother make dinner reservations for Kilby and me at a quaint restaurant on the water. After a nice dinner and some conversation over a bottle of wine, I tried try to throw her off track with discussion of the ideas to visit BHI to make plans for our wedding. At this point, there still was no ring so that plan had been put on the back burner and was a bit of a sore subject. However, little did she know I was about to change that very quickly!

Out of nowhere I pulled the ring from my pocket and asked Kilbi if she would marry me. I think my quick change of direction threw her off-guard.  She was in total shock!  All I remember is her crying and freaking out from sheer excitement. Her reaction, which we both laugh about now, was better than I could have ever imagined. All of our plans and thoughts of spending our lives together had now become a reality. We were getting married on November 21, 2009 and the rest is history…

Kellie Kano is a Southern Weddings sponsor.

Written with love by Lara Casey