Southern Weddings

Welcome to Lauren + Jake’s wedding full of strawberry deliciousness and summery farm fun! According to Lauren, one of the biggest priorities when planning was to have a laid-back, Southern feel. I think the newlyweds succeeded in their mission. Not only were guests transported from the ceremony site to the reception by a wagon-hitched tractor, but they were greeted with bluegrass music, a menu of Southern fare, farm animals, cornhole and s’mores! We’re sending giant hugs to Anna Hedges who brightened our day with this wedding.

As a paper-nerd and strawberry-lover, Lauren + Jake’s simple invitation suite steals my heart. My favorite part? The handwritten feel of their return address!

Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I knew that I wanted a dress from J. Crew because I wanted something simple and comfortable. Our photographer told me about finding bridesmaid dresses for her sister’s wedding at a J. Crew clearance store near Asheville, NC. They had a few wedding dresses in my size, and I loved the first one I tried on.

I walked down the aisle to the Beatles’ “Here Come the Sun,” played acoustically by our friend Ryan. The recessional was “You Make My Dreams” by Hall & Oates.

How festive is this reception setup? Lauren handmade all 300 feet of bunting by herself!

Lack of time was our biggest obstacle. I wanted our day to include a lot of personal details, so I planned most of the wedding and made most of the decorations by myself. This wouldn’t have been such an obstacle except that I was also juggling veterinary school simultaneously.

Patterns and textures are one of my favorite parts about seeing weddings. L + J’s gingham runners and rosette napkin rings take the cake! (And who’s complaining about those baskets of strawberries next to each place setting? Not me.)

Since we got married on a farm with an old-fashioned feel, we felt that it was more appropriate to have pie than cake. Our caterer baked delicious strawberry pies that served as centerpieces for each table.

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. Jake and I met through friends when he was a senior and I was a junior in high school. We dated long distance for five and a half years during my time at college in South Carolina and my first two years of veterinary school in Knoxville, TN.
Describe the proposal. Jake proposed during a weekend visit to Knoxville. We went on a hike together and he popped the question by a lake. I’d never seen him so nervous before!
In what month did you get married? May
How many guests attended your wedding? 150
Did you decide to do a “first look”? We did a “first look” because we thought that it would ease the tension and nervousness of the day!
Describe your wedding flowers: I didn’t have anything specific in mind when I discussed the flowers with the florist, but I knew that I wanted something that looked unfussy but beautiful. She came up with a great assortment of peonies, anemones, and other local, seasonal flowers.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The s’mores! We set up a fire pit and provided roasting sticks and s’more fixings for a late night snack for our guests.
What is the one thing you are most happy you splurged on? The food was the most expensive part of our day, but it was so worth it! We’re self-proclaimed foodies, so providing a great menu to our guests was really important to us.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? A great part of our day was the send off. Our guests lit sparklers and it was so special to be surrounded by the glowing faces of the people most important to us before we left to start our new life together.
What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? Don’t think about it too much! I am a very type-A, high-stress person and I tried my best to relax during the months leading up to the wedding. I think that I enjoyed the day even more because I was able to unwind.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? We’ll be in Knoxville for two years more as I complete my time in veterinary school. We have no idea what the future holds for us, but we are looking forward to moving ahead together.

Written with love by Nicole