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During a beach-side bike ride on one of my and Brandon’s first vacations together, we explored the construction site that is now Alys Beach. We were even able to walk through the half-built homes as they were being constructed, and now, every time I see a wedding there, it brings back such sweet memories of our dating life. With their favorite wedding detail being their venue, and Emily and Reed’s plans to vacation there each year for their anniversary, I’m positive those future trips will be filled with joyous memories of their beautiful wedding on the Central Park Green! Playing off the modern white architecture, Emily and Reed worked with Lauren Chitwood Events to bring in rustic driftwood and succulents combined with lush peonies and protea. That gorgeous custom driftwood arch had guests talking for months!

Thank you kindly to Amy Campbell for sharing Emily and Reed’s wedding with us!

I found my dress in Nashville at B. Hughes. I had previously looked in Birmingham, where my sister lives, and liked a few dresses, but knew I couldn’t make any decisions until I visited this shop. I tried on a strapless Reem Acra dress and knew it was the one for me. I felt so pretty in it and didn’t want to take it off. I still love it a year later!

Did you write your own vows? If so, what was your favorite phrase, verse or line? We didn’t write our own vows, but did speak to our officiant about the flow and words we wanted him to use during the ceremony. The vows were very simple, but those words are so meaningful. While saying my vows to Reed, I started crying. I’m not a big crier, so I started laughing at myself for crying. It was a sweet moment we’ll both remember forever.
What readings, if any, did you have at your ceremony? My best friend, Maggie, read Colossians 3:12-14. This was a verse Reed and I kept reading during our premarital exercises. I love the words in this verse and thought it would be special for her to read it.

I grew up going to the beach near Sandestin and Seaside, Florida. Every wedding I’d seen along Highway 30A was so beautiful, and we loved the idea of getting married at the beach. We looked at multiple venues in Rosemary Beach and Alys Beach, and the Central Park Green at Alys Beach was the exact look I wanted. The small green is surrounded by trees and a breathtaking modern pool and restaurant. It turned out to be a perfect venue and I couldn’t have been happier!

Describe your wedding flowers. Lauren and I discussed many different looks, but we ultimately decided to mix the rustic look of driftwood and succulents with peonies and protea. She sent me examples of what she thought I would like, and after seeing a photo that included a gorgeous driftwood arch, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Lauren and her florist created one for our wedding and it was the most beautiful arch I’ve ever seen. It was so memorable–people talked about it months after the wedding.

What was one way you saved money or cut costs at your wedding? We saved money by trimming down the guest list. Initially, we wanted around 300 guests, but after talking with our planner, Lauren, we decided to invite 170. It was hard to exclude some people but in the end it felt intimate and was a great size for the venue.

How did y’all meet? Tell us your love story. We both went to college at Ole Miss. I always knew who he was and had a crush on him, so a mutual friend introduced us after I told him I thought Reed was cute. For a few months after meeting, we would see each other around Oxford and always seemed to get into long conversations. He finally asked me out on a date, and we dated for five years before getting married.
Tell us all about the proposal! Reed and I went to my parents’ house in Mississippi for Thanksgiving. We all decided to cook outside because the weather was so nice. Reed had planned everything with my family beforehand, and to give him time to propose, they all snuck back into the house. Due to lack of sleep from working the night before, I didn’t even notice their attempts to leave us alone. While we were outside talking, my sisters and my mom attached the ring to our dog, Daisy, and then let her back outside. Daisy immediately ran up to us, sat down, and I noticed the ring tied around her neck with a bow. Reed got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. We spent the night celebrating with my family and calling friends to tell them the news.
When did y’all get married? June 13, 2015
How many friends, family members, and loved ones attended your wedding? 170
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: Our favorite detail of our wedding was the venue. After getting married there, we now want to go back to Alys Beach every year! It’s the most beautiful place I’ve been in the United States.
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? My husband and I are both from Mississippi and he is a passionate Ole Miss football fan. One of my favorite memories of the night was when Reed took the mic onstage, spouted Ole Miss football statistics, and led our mostly Mississippi reception in the Hotty Toddy cheer.
How did you plan for your marriage while planning your wedding? Our wedding officiant, Gary Wingo, introduced us to a premarital workbook, “Before You Say I Do.” This helped us prepare for marriage and discuss things we otherwise may not have discussed. As a result, we grew closer and learned how to handle certain situations should they arise.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? Originally, Reed and I were going to marry on May 16, 2015. After we set the date, we had trouble finding vendors who were available that day. After a few minor meltdowns, we decided to change our wedding date to June 13. I’m so happy we did, because everything worked out perfectly.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? The most memorable moment for me was seeing Reed for the first time. Having my dad walk me down the aisle to my husband was such a great feeling. When I finally saw Reed and he had a big smile on his face, it was the exact moment I’d pictured for my entire life. The ceremony was definitely my favorite part of the whole wedding day.
What’s next for you as a couple? What memories are you looking forward to making together? We are enjoying life in Nashville as a family of three (we have a French bulldog named Willis). I have so much fun with Reed, even when we’re doing simple, daily activities. I hope we continue having fun together, and maybe one day add to our little family.

Photographer: Amy Campbell | Planner and Florist: Lauren Chitwood | Venue: Central Park Green in Alys Beach | Wedding Cake: KaraBoo Bakery | Caterer: Townsend Catering | Band: The Heather Hayes Experience | Paper Products: Dement Printing and Fresh Ink | Bride’s Gown: Reem Acra | Hair and Makeup Stylist: Ana Crane | Bride’s Shoes: “Fearne” by Jimmy Choo | Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Amsale | Menswear: Men’s Wearhouse

marissa Written with love by Marissa
1 Comment
  1. avatar Macey reply

    Everything looks like a dream! Beautiful.

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Welcome back to our newest “real bride” series, Mere Found Her Beau! If you missed last week’s post, you can meet Meredith and her fiance right here. Today, she’s back to tell us about where they’re getting married and how they chose their venues! – Emily

Our families are getting so excited about my and Beau’s special day in one of our most favorite places, and I’m excited to share the details with you all! Being in a long distance relationship and traveling back and forth between states, Florida has always been the one constant place for us. We’ve spent many happy summer weeks there with family, filled with stillness, rest, and relaxation. When it came time to chose a wedding location, Beau and I didn’t hesitate for a moment: Rosemary Beach, Florida, hands down. Well, that was our dream, of course, but lots of things had to fall into place before it could become our reality. Let’s rewind a bit, shall we?

In the summer of 2010, and Beau and I decided to go on an after dinner walk through the town of Rosemary Beach. We already knew it as a dream-like fairytale during the day, but we fell even more in love with it that night. I can remember the two of us strolling past the Eastern Green, holding hands, and allowing our hearts to dream big “what-ifs” as we discussed the possibility and hope of a future wedding:

“Ooh! What if we were married right here on this lawn? What if we had a reception out here? Oooh, yes. An outdoor reception. With twinkly lights! I love twinkly lights!” We were getting a little carried away… or maybe I was. Oh, who cares who it was :) All we knew was our hearts shared a love for a little town at the east end of 30A, and an even deeper love for one another.

Dear Wesleyann

I know I’m making this sound like we made a snappy decision, made one quick call, and BOOM: our venue search was done. That would have been lovely, but it’s not exactly how things played out. Wanting to view and discuss a few things in person before we made any final decisions, my mother and I quickly arranged a (whirlwind) weekend, made a list of our favorite venues, and flew down to Florida to continue the search for our perfect venue.

Our first visit was with Alys Beach. Amazing doesn’t even begin to describe Alys’ atmosphere… let’s go with dazzling. From the moment we met with our wedding specialist on their grounds, we were wowed as they offered us coffee, escorted us around in a futuristic white golf cart, and kindly showed us each of the available venues in their area. Based on our tour of the town, we knew a few things:

— Alys is beyond beautiful. I mean, there was a glistening sunset reflecting off the ocean in the distance just over two of their perfectly-trimmed greens (that detail alone – gracious!).
— The soft feel of the town, and the all white architecture, would have fit my wedding style perfectly.
— There was a pretty hefty minimum on weekly rentals that had to be met in order to book a green on their grounds. Since our date is during “busy season,” prices seemed to be even higher than we had imagined (not easy on a budget).
— Beau and I are getting married in July. Florida’s summer heat and humidity are not very forgiving, and without any air conditioned option, it was hard to imagine Alys as the location for our wedding and reception.

Lauren Kinsey

All three (main) greens were super lovely, but by the end of the tour, my mom and I had decided that they would visually be a great fit for our wedding, but not practically, so with that, we zoomed off to the next venue.

The second place we viewed was good ole Rosemary (we’re on a first name basis these days). Obviously, I was going in already loving this venue. When my mom and I arrived at our meeting, we were given a key to view the Town Hall and a highlighted map to view the available greens. In our previous research, we had learned that the Eastern Green was no longer available to summer brides due to wear-and-tear from the “busy season.” This was upsetting for about all of three seconds, before it clicked (again) that we were getting married in July (hot!). With that in mind, we headed to view the St. Augustine Green first, and the Town Hall second. Both were even lovelier than we remembered, but had pros and cons that we needed to reason through:

— St. Augustine Green would allow me to fulfill my dream of an outdoor, tented reception, whereas The Town Hall would provide a lovely air-conditioned venue, as well as a small courtyard to the side for something fun… say, twinkly lights, perhaps? :)
— Rosemary’s venues had the light, white architecture and feel that would nicely accentuate my wedding style, just like Alys.
— St. Augustine Green had an area to its left that was under construction, but we were assured that it had not been an issue for brides in the past and was easily blocked off by event décor, tents, etc.
— The Town Hall was quaint and lovely, but could possibly to be a little snug inside or outside during the reception with our guest count.
— Rosemary Beach had a rental requirement number higher than any of the other venues we looked at.

Lauren Kinsey

My mother and I knew two things when leaving Rosemary Beach: we were not certain that the suggested décor to hide the construction would be a style we would love, and we still felt uneasy about our guests being outside for the entire night without any indoor option. With these things in mind, we were able to cross off the St. Augustine Green, and head to our third visit: Carillon, or “the village by the sea”.

I hate to admit this, but since Carillon was more of a “spur of the moment” visit, my mother and I took our final tour into our own hands (making it more of a “trespassing browse” of Carillon, rather than a tour). As we moseyed down the main street, we began to realize how sweet this town was, complete with soft colors and a warm elegance – truly a village by the sea! Eventually, we stumbled upon the Carillon wedding chapel and green, and immediately ooh’d and ahh’d over how darling they were. The back wall of the building was mostly glass, opening up to the dune lake that sits in the middle of Carillon — very romantic. I could have easily pictured my wedding in this venue: cute and quaint, with many possible areas for those twinkle lights I envisioned. The only problem: size. Carillon was definitely too small for our guest count, an unfortunate problem that is difficult to wiggle your way out of. We quickly crossed it off our list.

Vue Photography via Southern Weddings

After many meetings, tours (and “tours”), and long chats over warm cups of coffee, we made a decision: we would be married at our dream venue, Rosemary Beach! My indecisive heart had officially found peace. Although my initial vision included a large, tented, outdoor ceremony and reception on a green, when considering all of the factors (most importantly heat!), providing adequate comfort for our traveling guests was of much greater importance to Beau and I than aesthetics. On July 11, 2014, I will be marrying my beau in the Rosemary Beach Town Hall, and I could not picture a more perfect location to choose forever with my best friend!

Where are y’all getting married? Have you ever visited this part of Florida? I’d love to hear!

Missed a post? Check them all out here:
An Introduction + Proposal

Dear Wesleyann is a delightful member of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

emily Written with love by Emily
9 Comments
  1. avatar Emily reply

    My husband and I got married at Eden Gardens along Hwy 98 and on the bay side. It was an awesome outdoor venue. BEAUTIFUL in pictures. I’d recommend for anyone considering a 30A wedding.

  2. avatar Kelsey reply

    I’m not a Southern bride (although I certainly wish I was!) but my fiancé and I are getting married one day after Meredith & Beau! Fun fact :) Congratulations, Meredith! It looks like such a beautiful place!

  3. avatar Lisa reply

    I’ve only ever driven through a little part of Florida on my way to NC from Texas, but these venue pictures have me anxious to take a real trip there! Rosemary Beach looks beautiful and oh-so-perfect for Meredith and Beau!

  4. avatar Rachel reply

    A seriously beautiful wedding venue!

  5. avatar Samantha reply

    I live in Panama City, FL. We go to the Rosemary Beach area quite often, it’s so beautiful!

  6. avatar Kristyn Monaghan reply

    Rosemary Beach is one of my favorite places! Perfect for a wedding! I hope it’s everything you imagined and more!

  7. avatar Leon Bailey reply

    Will have to take a trip to visit this venue as it is in Florida. It’s incredibly beautiful! :)

  8. avatar Southern Weddings Weekly Round-Up – Southern Weddings Magazine reply

    […] of 32–vote for your favorite Southern delicacies here. Meredith shared the story behind her wedding venue search. Emily outlined some super helpful tips for creating a wedding day timeline. We love real […]

  9. avatar KHBride reply

    I love the Jane dress! Wonderful idea!

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!

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