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This morning I came into the office and a copy of The DIY Bride, An Affair to Remember (from the creator of the DIY Bride blog, y’all!) was on my desk! You bet I spent some time flipping through it.

It was great timing, then, to write this post! Sydney + Lucas went homemade all the way with their Front Porch Farms wedding. With family and friends surrounding and supporting them, they unleashed their creativity on the Southern details. The result is a warm gathering with the rustic details we adore. Big thanks to Cali Ashton Photography for sharing!

Can you believe that the bright flowers placed in mason jars around the wedding site were ordered from Sam’s Wholesale? They arrived fresh, pretty and ready for presentation! Though I’m always a fan of mason jars full of flowers, my favorite part of the wedding comes during the ceremony, when Sydney + Lucas made an impromptu dance floor. Read on for details!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. Our familes’ relationship precedes ours. Our sweet grandparents have been best of friends for years and together they led the youth group and youth camps at our church when they were young parents. Fast forward many years later when I was youth pastor at our church. I needed some male volunteers for an event and I remembered Lucas and asked him if he would like to help. He accepted and we soon became good friends and bonded over our mutual love of the TV show “The Office.” Love shortly followed! Hooray!
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Joyful, breathtaking and spirit-filled!
In what month did you get married? The beautiful autumn month of October
How many guests attended your wedding? 150
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: Our personalities were weaved in and out of everything. I loved toasting with the Mason Jar Wine Glasses I made.
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? Sweet tea, BBQ and a handmade quilt Lucas’ grandmother made for our special day that lay on a porch swing – how much more Southern can you get?
Describe your wedding flowers: We wanted simple yet beautiful flower arrangements. We ordered through Sam’s Wholesale website and were pleasantly surprised at how fresh and gorgeous they were. We threw them in mason jars, antique vases and milk jugs. Southern perfection!
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? My husband and I are very creative people and so it was a challenge harnessing that creativity and making decisions. With the help of our loved ones, we were able to unleash our creativity and showcase who we are through all of the décor and details!
What range did your wedding budget fall into? Less than $10,000
What is the one thing you are most happy you splurged on? The Venue. Kathy Best at Front Porch Farms did an excellent job providing the most beautiful setting and professionalism when it came to accommodating our needs.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? During our ceremony, we had just finished the love letter portion where we put letters in a box to each other to be opened on our 25 wedding anniversary. Our acoustic musicians were playing background music during this time so instead of awkwardly waiting for them to finish, we ended up slow dancing. It was such a spontaneous moment that was so meaningful, so “us” and so special.
What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? Unleash your creativity! Do not be afraid to be creative in how you spend your money – be thrifty and learn how to use local thrift stores for décor and details! Also, Pinterest is a wonderful place to gather your inspiration and ideas.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? We LOVE creating a home and making it our sanctuary. Lucas just made me a complete bed from reclaimed barn wood – talk about how to make a Southern woman swoon! We hope to continue to grow our handmade home décor business and enjoy each other before we decide to have little ones for a few years.

Photographer: Cali Ashton Photography // Planner: Kathy Best of Front Porch Farms // Venue: Front Porch Farms // Wedding Cake Baker: Publix Bakery // Caterer: Jim N Nicks BBQ // Linens: handmade burlap table runners // Hair stylist and Makeup Artist: Amanda Morgan (615.812.7452) // Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Target // Accessories: Not Too Shabby Designs

Love this wedding? You might like these, too!
Miranda + Blake’s Front Porch Farm Engagement Party here and here
Melissa + Eric’s peach, green and gray wedding here and here.

nicoleyang Written with love by Nicole
9 Comments
  1. avatar Desiree reply

    Well, first off, I wanted to comment on the super (ha) boutonnieres ~ I have so many grooms who could just care less about them. It’s nice to give a manly punch to traditional flowers. Then, I wanted to comment on how adorable the bridesmaids wheat bouquets were & how simply and lovely the table-scapes were.

    Then…my mouth dropped when I read “less than $10,000”. From now on, in my professional career as a wedding planner, I will be referring this wedding to all my brides who complain about low budgets. I always say, “anything can be done with enough creative imagination & inventiveness”. This bride proves this point…and then some. Major kudos to her & I wish the couple many years of happy marriage!!

    ugh. Im obsessed.

  2. avatar Linda at Cedarwood Weddings reply

    We love this wedding! The bridal party attire is so unique. Great job – congrats to everyone involved.

  3. avatar Southern Weddings Magazine | Featured « Cali Ashton Photography reply

    […] Magazine for featuring Sydney & Lucas’ wedding from this past October!  Check it out here.  We love when our brides are rewarded for their […]

  4. avatar Katie reply

    LOVE the dress! Anyone know the designer?

    • avatar Sydney Hutson reply

      Katie: I’m the bride featured. My dress is Allure Bridals design # 8634 in Champagne. :)

  5. avatar inspired : 2.12.12 | beka stays reply

    […] so many fun details in this tennessee wedding […]

  6. avatar Southern Weddings Magazine | Featured » nykandcaliweddingphotography.com reply

    […] Magazine for featuring Sydney & Lucas’ wedding from this past October!  Check it out here.  We love when our brides are rewarded for their […]

  7. avatar Ways To Use Mason Jars | little love notes reply

    […] Hanging mason jar with hanging flowers – Cali Ashton Photography via Southern Weddings 2: Mason jar with floating candle – BHG.com 3: Mason jar with flowers – Examiner.com 4: […]

  8. avatar Leigh Pearce Weddings Blog » Cake Topper Ideas | Asheville North Carolina Wedding Planner reply

    […] Ruffled | Southern Weddings […]

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Do you ever have those days when you realize you need more words in your vocabulary? I, for instance, get in the habit of saying “awesome” or “perfect” when I could be saying things like “jaw-dropping” and “impeccable.” (Confession: I just used a thesaurus for that last word. That’s how bad it is! They don’t even pop into my head!)

Today, I could have used the word “sweet” to describe Holly + Chase’s wedding, but when I sat back and broke it down, there was much more to the feelings I have about their Alabama wedding. Looking through these photos from Rylee Hitchner makes me feel like I’m home. You know, that feeling you get when you know exactly how long it takes for the water to get hot, where the glasses and spoons are, and the sound of the back door creaking as your friends walk in.

Don’t you feel right at home in these photos? I love that good family friends of Holly + Chase let them use their home to host this wedding. It was also the spot where Chase popped the question, making it one of the couple’s favorite details. “Not only was the home a warm, charming and picturesque piece of art in itself, the family that lives there are the kindest of friends, and their home had truly been a haven to us both at different points apart and then together as we began to fall in love.”

We love how Holly described the Southern elements of her wedding. “I think what makes the South so iconic is it’s preservation of a sense of real community and that was a shining theme in our wedding. More than the beautiful Alabama home, more than the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in the background, more than the homemade biscuits and cornbread, the most important Southern element was the way our families, friends and neighbors banded around us, offering their creative talents to make our wedding beautiful.”

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. Having known each other for about five years, I don’t know that we would have started dating if we hadn’t bumped into each other several times in the span of a couple days. After those few, fortunate run-ins in the summer of 2010, we ended up spending tons of time together right before Chase left for a summer in Ireland and before I moved to South Carolina for a new job. While Chase was overseas, I made the decision to move to Uganda for six months and, no hard feelings involved, knew we probably wouldn’t date. Somewhere in those fall months before I left, we found ourselves talking all the time anyway. We fell fast, making for a very long six months apart while I was in Uganda! Chase flew to see me for 7 days in March, I got home in May and we were engaged in June. It was the best kind of whirlwind!
Describe the proposal. After I returned from Uganda, I started working at a local shop back in Alabama. Saturdays were usually slow, and one Saturday in particular it was so slow that my boss gave me the afternoon off. When I got off work, my friend suggested that we, along with some other friends, ride out to our friends’, the McMurtrie’s, house to pick blueberries, even though they weren’t quite in season yet. I was glad we were going to our friend’s house because Chase had planned to fish on their pond that afternoon. When we arrived, my friends ran out to the blueberry bushes while Robin McMurtrie and I walked out to the pond where Chase and Robin’s husband Tommy were fishing. When we got there, Tommy excused himself and Robin followed. Chase had slyly captured my Bible and read me a passage of scripture that he and Tommy had been talking about and then told me to read a note he had left me between the pages. It was a little note scribbled on a small piece of notebook paper telling me a few things he loved about me. Then, he told me there was another note in the front page. I flipped to it and saw Chase had crossed out “Holly Hereth” and written “Holly Stephenson?” From there, Chase was on one knee! We walked back to the house where friends and family were waiting to surprise me and to celebrate!
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Simple, effortless and joyful!
In what month did you get married? October
How many guests attended your wedding? 200
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: Well, it was the first one I tried on! I didn’t have much of an idea of what I wanted besides the fact that I wanted something simple with lace. I didn’t even know what to look for on the hanger. My mom actually found my dress. When I tried it on, it just felt like me. After putting on just two others, I was ready to put the first back on. I loved the simple fit, the low back and the scalloping lace over the shoulders.
Describe your wedding flowers: My wedding flowers were actually one of my favorite surprises of the wedding! A sweet friend of mine, Lindsay Rae, offered to arrange them for me. Being such the creative spirit that she is, I knew I could I send her a few photos of bouquets and let her run with it. She made the most beautiful, spilling bouquet for me and the sweetest little arrangements for my bridesmaids, not to mention the boutonnieres for the fellas and the table arrangements.
Describe your wedding cake or dessert: Our wedding cakes were made by all kinds of loving hands! My friend Grace made the biggest portion of the cake, a delicious spice cake with cream cheese frosting roughly smeared to hold the layers together. Days before the wedding, I started to get nervous that there wouldn’t be enough, so my friend Cassidy helped me make a chocolate stout cake to add to the mix. The cakes we put on display were small and simply decorated with foliage from the landscape. We served guests slices from sheet cakes that no one ever saw!
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? I think the biggest challenge came in remembering that the purpose of our wedding was to marry each other. Of course I wanted the day to be lovely, but letting go of my ideal in a lot of areas shifted my focus and let me enjoy the beauty, charm and sanctity of it all. After all, have you ever enjoyed something you’re micromanaging? Probably not.
What range did your wedding budget fall into? Less than $10,000.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Dancing with my bridesmaids right before we walked down the aisle to Motown in our dressing room, and then dancing with Chase to the same songs at the reception.
What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? Forget every wedding you’ve ever been to, and don’t think about the resources you don’t have. If you have a bride, a groom, a pastor and a few friends or family members who love you, you have everything you need to make the sweetest, most magical and meaningful wedding.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? We now live in Nashville where we eat chocolate ice cream every night, listen to all the live music we can afford and love being married! We’re most looking forward to going to seminary in a few years, traveling together and eating big Saturday breakfasts every Saturday for the rest of our lives!

Photographer: Rylee Hitchner Photography // Planner: Lindsay Rae ([email protected]) // Venue: McMurtrie Home // Florist: Lindsay Rae ([email protected]) // Wedding Cake Baker: Grace Henderson, Cassidy Gibson // Caterer: Lyn’s Gracious Goodness // Rentals: Mullins Special Occasions // Linens: Barron’s Rental Center // Lighting: Steve Metz // Bride’s Dress: Jessica by Robert Bullock from The Something Blue Shoppe // Bride’s Hair Accessories/Veil: Hairpiece from Out of Hand // Bride’s Shoes: Sundance Catalog // Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Modcloth

Out of Hand is a member of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Do you love this wedding? You might like these, too:
Ashley + Ross’s simple white + kraft wedding here and here.
Meredith + John’s Alabama farm wedding here and here.
Meghan + Chris’s homemade farm wedding here and here.

nicoleyang Written with love by Nicole
13 Comments
  1. avatar Laura reply

    This wedding makes me happy. I pray God’s blessings on this sweet couple.

  2. avatar Kelly Cummings (Spindle Photography) reply

    I love the bride laughing in the photo with the bridesmaids! Lovely photos Rylee!

  3. avatar Emily reply

    Oh, I love that photo with the girls all in a row under the blanket! Reminds me of my sisters :)

  4. avatar Madelynne Miller reply

    This is one of those weddings that is beautiful on its own, but truly enhanced by the story told with it. I LOVE her advice. What a wise lady.

  5. avatar rylee hitchner reply

    thank you for this feature, girls!
    i love the entire post.

  6. avatar holly stephenson reply

    yes, thank you! Rylee captured the day so perfectly. I’m so honored y’all think it was as sweet and homey as we did!

  7. avatar Cory Weber reply

    Totally love the girls all in a row, that’s the kind of true expression a great photographer can evoke in their subjects. Nice work Rylee Hitchner Photography

  8. avatar Tim Duncan reply

    These photos are precious! The bride is so stunning! :)

  9. avatar rylee – Meagan Tidwell Design reply

    […] a year ago, my bestie, holly, was looking for a wedding photographer, so my friend kelsey hooked us up with rylee’s […]

  10. avatar HERE WE GO! – Lindsay Rae Design reply

    […] over a year ago this adventure began… I’ll never forget driving to Huntsville, AL for Holly and Chase’s wedding in a freezing cold 4-runner filled with flowers and thinking to myself, “I despise cold […]

  11. avatar rylee | Seed & Water reply

    […] a year ago, my bestie, holly, was looking for a wedding photographer, so my friend kelsey hooked us up with rylee’s […]

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The summer months are jam-packed with goodness, aren’t they? From days out by the pool to nights under the stars, you just can’t beat warm Southern summers. We are so happy that y’all have taken time out of your busy summer days to check in to see some downright gorgeous Southern weddings. June has been chock-full of amazing nuptials and equally amazing giveaways. Whether you fancy jewelry or dresses, we are determined to get you all decked out for the summer season!

First up, we wanted to introduce a little sparkle into your summer with a giveaway from Desires by Mikolay’s Bling! line. With a dash of sophistication and a big dose of shine, the Diamond Shape Filigree Earrings from Desires by Mikolay will be perfect for your big day.

We asked y’all to tell us which Bling! accessory was your favorite for a chance to win a pair of Bling! Diamond Shape Filigree Earrings. Congratulations to Kathy M., who was won over by the blue topaz cocktail ring. Isn’t that color just marvelous?

A bride is faced with many choices when planning her big day and often at the top of the list for the style-conscious are the outfits. While that gorgeous white dress is the most important concern, you want your bridesmaids to look lovely, as well. Twobirds Bridesmaid deserves a round of applause for their genius concept. Twobirds dresses can be worn in a multitude of fashions so your maids can choose for themselves which look fits their personality best.

We asked you to tell us why your maid of honor means the world to you for the chance to win two dresses from Twobirds bridesmaid. Congratulations to Suzy, who chose two matrons of honor (who now each get to wear a gorgeous Twobirds dress)!

When the time came to choose my MOH, it was a no-brainer. I chose the TWO most wonderful and beautiful women in my life to be my Matrons of Honor. I’ve always known that on my wedding day, I would have only them stand beside me and no one else. It’s been the three of us since elementary school and our bond is one of my most prized possesions. We’ve gone from trading stickers, sleepovers and ballet class to dinner parties, careers and babies and everything in between. They’ve found the men of their dreams and now that I’m about to marry mine, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude and love for these women and I know how fortunate I am. This wedding completes a chapter for us, in that we will all have found our counterpart and I would love nothing more than to gift them with these beautiful dresses.

Last week, we introduced you to one of the best Southern collaborations I’ve seen. Your beau will be the envy of all of his friends when he dons a Collared Greens bow tie, and you’ll be the belle of the ball when you carry a gorgeous clutch from Oatmeal Lace. Did we mention that the two of you will match beautifully? These are the perfect accessories for all of those summer weddings you’ve been invited to.

We asked y’all to tell us how you like to accessorize when you attend weddings (as a guest, of course). Congratulations to Miss Caitlin, who sounds like a real stunner:

My wedding guest accessories usually consist of jumbo sized pearls, a hair flower clip or headband, a cute clutch bag (like the one in this giveaway – wink, wink), and naturally, some fabulous heels (you have to make your calves look ahhmazing)!

Caitlin, be sure to send us some pictures of you and your man with your new Southern accessories! We’d love to see them!

Also, Oatmeal Lace and Collared Greens are each offering a special 10% discount to all of our lovely readers! Just enter the code “SWLOVE” at checkout!

Whew! It has been simply wonderful to share all of these amazing giveaways with you. Lucky winners, I will be contacting you by email in the next few days! We love our fabulous readers and we are so glad that you love us, too! Make sure you keep reading — there are more giveaways to come!

Written with love by Whitney
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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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