Google+ Southern Wedding of the Week: Sarah + Ryan, Part I - Southern Weddings

Southern Weddings

Sarah looks so happy to be getting married in these pictures from Paul + Mecheal Johnson that I have to wonder: is it the perfectly picturesque location (Carillon Beach) and sunny day or just the handsome groom waiting for her at the end of the aisle?  (I’m sure that gorgeous gown the barefoot bride wore for her big day didn’t hurt either…) Regardless, Sarah + Ryan’s oceanfront ceremony, replete with ladies in aqua-colored Melissa Sweet frocks and gents in seersucker, has us hardcore swooning for summer.  Come back for a second swoon session later on, will ‘ya?

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story.  It was the summer of 2006.   Ryan and I were working in different design firms in Cambridge, MA. One afternoon, my friend, Iliya, asked if I wanted to go to an architecture league softball game after work.  I had never been to a league softball game, but decided to go.  The team met at their local pub, “The Cellar” for a beer before heading to the field, where I was briefly introduced to Ryan.  A few minutes later, Ryan left to bring the bats and balls to the field. As he left, I looked down and noticed that he had on black dress socks with his baseball uniform, which I found rather unusual, but charming.  Later, at the game, we started talking, but both thought the other was dating the friend we came with.  It wasn’t until a week later that we met again at an Industry Party held at the Fish Pier in Boston’s Seaport District.  The party was packed with people, but somehow Ryan found me in the crowd, and we’ve been together ever since…
Describe the proposal.
Ryan proposed while vacationing with our families at the Atlantis in the Bahamas.  On Friday, the whole family went out for dinner together.  Afterwards, Ryan asked me if I wanted to go for a walk on the beach.  As we made our way to the beach, I could sense that Ryan was nervous, but I figured it was because a storm was brewing on the horizon.  As we walked along together in the sand, I broke hands from Ryan for a second to brush the hair from my face.  When I went back for his hand, I turned to find him on one knee with the ring in his fingers.  I was so surprised I could barely breathe. He told me all the reasons he loved me and ended with a simple, “Will you Marry Me?” I said, “Yes!” and started to cry.  We kissed and shortly after made our way to the Sea Glass Bar at the Cove to celebrate with champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries. 
Three adjectives that describe the day are:
Elegant, light and natural. 
Our favorite detail of the wedding was:
The table cards.  I had Val Cole hand calligraph them here in Nashville.  Each card had a design from our invitation, which indicated what they ordered.  (Beef, Fish, Chicken, Vegetable) They were a beautiful final touch to the tables.  She also did some hand-calligraphed table numbers, which were beautiful as well.
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: 
Over my birthday in September, I flew to New York for the long weekend.  My best friend (and bridesmaid), Karen, and I visited a couple high-end bridal salons and found several contenders.  The second day of dress shopping, we woke up early for the first appointment of the day at the Bridal Garden.  We found a beautiful silk taffeta dress with a crinkle chiffon empire waist.  Around the empire waist was a silk taffeta sash that tied in a bow in the back.  The dress was light-weight, which was key for a beach wedding, and simply elegant.  The dress was perfect!


Written with love by Southern Weddings
2 Comments
  1. avatar kim Box reply

    You can’t go wrong with these two photographers. Always beautiful, there images will forever be in style.

  2. avatar Dognbird reply

    What a gorgeous wedding – sheer elegance!

Southern Weddings reserves the right to delete comments which contain profanity or personal attacks or seek to promote a business unrelated to the post.  And remember: a good attitude is like kudzu – it spreads.  We love hearing your kind thoughts!

Reply to:
close
Top