Southern Weddings

As someone who met my own soon-to-be husband while studying abroad in Austria, I feel a little bit like kindred spirits with Katie and Rob. They met on the airplane en route to their study abroad program and spent the first few magical months of their relationship traveling and exploring around Western Europe! Six years later, they chose their venue, the gorgeous Summerour Studio in Atlanta, because it reminded them a little bit of Florence, where they had shared their first kiss. I love the way they brought lots of Southern touches, in honor of their Georgia hometowns, to this European-style venue!

Thank you so much to Laura Leslie for sharing this beautiful wedding with us!

Rob and I grew up 12 miles from each other and went to Georgia Tech for two years together before we finally met on a flight to Europe for a study abroad trip during the summer of 2007. He gave me the middle seat so that I could sit next to a friend, and I gave him my dessert. We spent the rest of the summer traveling around Western Europe together and had our first kiss in Florence. We spent the next two years dating back in Atlanta. When Rob graduated, he moved to Texas while I finished my last year of school. When I graduated, I got a job in New York, and shortly after I moved, Rob moved back to Atlanta. We spent the next year traveling up and down the East Coast to see each other. In the summer of 2010, we both packed up our apartments and drove across the country to move into our new apartment on a palm tree-lined street in Los Angeles. That December, Rob popped the question and we moved back to Atlanta together the next summer. We got married almost six years after the day we met.

What made you choose your ceremony and reception venues? Did they have any special significance to you? Summerour Studio is not a typical Southern venue—in fact, it’s a little European, with a terracotta roof and a charming cobblestone courtyard that has grape vines crawling up the front of the studio. We loved that it reminded us of Florence, where we had our first kiss. It also has a beautiful, open, rustic interior with dark wood floors and factory windows.

We recited traditional vows, but we also asked each of our aunts to read two of our favorite poems: Pablo Neruda’s Sonnets LXIX and XVII. Like a vow, I think we will always remember lines from those poems. “So I love you because I know no other way than this: where I does not exist, nor you, so close that your hand on my chest is my hand, so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.” On the morning of our wedding, Rob surprised me with a necklace that had this line engraved on it: “through love I will be, you will be, we’ll be.”

Describe your wedding flowers. We worked with Erica Loesing, who was part of the Amy Osaba team, on the design for our wedding. She put together the most beautiful arrangements on each table using a mixture of bronze, glass, and milky white vessels, white, peach, pink, and light yellow peonies, garden roses, ranunculus, and tulips, and beautiful greenery, like flowing vines and bunches of wonderful-smelling herbs, like mint.

Since Rob and I fell in love traveling around the world and then spent a good part of the next five years moving around, we used vintage postcards from all the cities we had visited as our seating cards. Then, at their tables, guests wrote us a note—a memory, wish, or piece of advice—on the postcard. We put all the postcards in an album as our guest book.

Tell us all about the proposal! From Rob: I decided that proposing during one of our runs at Griffith Park near our house, where there’s a trail you can see the whole city from, would be perfect. As part of the celebration, I also bought tickets to a show at the Walt Disney Concert Hall for that evening. The concert hall had always been a special place to us in the city. The week I was going to propose, I told Katie I had a surprise for her that weekend. Later in the week, I suggested we go for a long run in Griffith Park in the morning, since I knew she thought the surprise was coming later. The morning of the proposal, Katie said she couldn’t go running if she was going to wrap up work before the big surprise. I tried to convince her, but didn’t want her to get suspicious. Instead, when we got to the Concert Hall, we found a place to sit down–just the two of us–and I asked her right there. I couldn’t wait another minute.
When did y’all get married? May 18, 2013
How many friends, family members, and loved ones attended your wedding? 130
Tell us about finding your wedding dress. I thought I wanted something very straight and simple. I tried on so many “almost” dresses, but we went to an appointment at Bride Beautiful to see if we could find anything we liked better. The only dress I tried on there ended up being the one! It was completely different than what I had been imagining, but I fell in love with the beautiful layering and detail. We worked with the amazing Gizzelle James to alter it perfectly!
Describe your wedding cake or dessert. Rob and I don’t love cake, but we do love ice cream! Instead of serving cake, the Honeysuckle Gelato truck parked outside and served little cups of gelato all night! We worked with the Honeysuckle team to pick our favorites from their extensive menu of Southern-inspired flavors. We chose bourbon pecan, sea salt caramel, and blueberry cheesecake with graham cracker.
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? We knew Summerour would be the perfect place for us to layer the Southern details and traditions that mean the most to us. The food, gelato, and cocktails were all Southern—one station served shrimp and grits, fried green tomatoes, biscuits, and a pimento cheese spread. We had bourbon pecan gelato and a peach sorbet. One of our cocktails was a “Southern Old Fashioned” with peach bitters. All of the details on the tables felt so soft and Southern, especially the bowls of fresh seasonal produce–peaches, crabapples, and kumquats.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Our most memorable moment of the wedding was something few guests probably even noticed. Instead of walking down the aisle to a traditional song, we chose “Stranger Things” by Local Natives. We first saw Local Natives, our favorite band, at a special show where they performed with the symphony at Disney Concert Hall, which is why that venue has always been so special to us. The opening of the song is beautiful, and to this day, whenever I hear it, I get chills as I remember exactly how I felt when I took those first steps toward Rob.

Photographer: Laura Leslie Photography / Planner: Erica Loesing / Venue: Summerour Studio / Florist: Erica Loesing of Amy Osaba / Dessert: Honeysuckle Gelato / Caterer: Bold American / DJ: JP McLeod / Bride’s Gown: Saison Blanche / Bridal Salon: Bride Beautiful / Paper Products: One Plus One Design and Julie Doan / Hair and Makeup Stylist: Raney O’Keefe / Bride’s Shoes: J. Crew / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Jenny Yoo / Men’s Attire: Jos. A. Bank suits / Groom’s Tie: J. Crew / Groom’s Shoes: Johnston and Murphy

Laura Leslie is a delightful member of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Written with love by Lisa