Southern Weddings

After envisioning her wedding gown ever since she and Josh started talking about marriage, Christy chose to make her own. Together with her mama, they started with her mother’s wedding skirt as a base and added everything to it for a finished product that was as meaningful as it was gorgeous! Christy’s dress wasn’t the only thing that was a labor of love. Everything from their eclectic mix of chairs collected from their families, to the plethora of specialty deserts made by close family and friends were carefully planned to help Christy and Josh’s wedding feel like a big ol’ family get-together!

Big SW hugs to Jennefer Wilson for sharing this sweet day with us!

I was not interested in our flowers in the least until I consulted with Briley from Oh Deery Florals. Her passion for what she does and the organic, earthy, effortless look of her work drew me instantly. She created spectacular bouquets of peach garden roses, coral charm peonies, light pink dahlia, white astilbe, succulents, seeded eucalyptus, dusty miller, and white ranunculus, in addition to a special toss bouquet of lavender. The boutonnieres were made up of a succulent, white ranunculus, and seeded eucalyptus. She also created centerpiece collections that we combined on tables with the succulents we gave as favors.

What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? From Christy: For me, it was our first look and the time we got alone together. After setting up and getting ready all day, Josh was the only person in the world I wanted to be around. My joy in that moment cannot be put into words; we were so overwhelmed with joy! From Josh: My favorite moment of the wedding was the first look. Not seeing her that whole day and the anticipation building made for an amazing moment where I looked upon my wife-to-be, and for the first time, it actually hit me that I was about to marry the prettiest girl I had ever seen.

Our favorite detail of the wedding was: My favorite detail was the group of mismatched chairs we used for the ceremony and reception. That was one aspect of the wedding I wouldn’t budge on, and I’m so glad I didn’t. So many guests said it was their favorite detail of the wedding too, and it gave the decor such a relaxed and cozy feel.

Did you write your own vows? If so, what was your favorite phrase, verse or line? Yes, we wrote our own vows. Writing to each other has been a large part of our relationship, so we wanted our vows to be in our own verbatim. We didn’t use mics to say them–we only wanted our bridal party and our families sitting in the first few rows to hear them because we know they will be the most active in keeping us accountable to our vows.

What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? To me, one of the biggest aspects of the South is hospitality. We wanted our wedding to feel like a large and comfortable family get-together in a relative’s backyard. Our venue, Penn Farm, was thick with Southern charm and contributed greatly to our backyard feel, thanks to its farmhouse, barn, windmill, and overhanging trees. An eclectic mix of chairs that we collected from family and rented contributed to our homey, backyard feel. We had close family and friends bring a plethora of specialty desserts to create a Southern dessert potluck for our dessert bar. At the reception, we had a number of backyard games for guests to enjoy.

How did y’all meet? Tell us your love story. We were in the same small group during our welcome week of college, but God knew we both still had a lot of growing to do. We reconnected a few years later when Josh worked in the fine arts office of our university, and since I was a music major, I went into the office often. I soon noticed he was a lot friendlier to me than the other students who would go into the office, but since I had a boyfriend at the time, I avoided him for the rest of my college career. Then, I found myself seated two seats away from him at graduation. I wasn’t dating anyone by then, and I found myself really enjoying my conversation with this guy I had avoided for years. Lo and behold, we found out through Facebook that we would be at the same conference in Atlanta a few weeks later, and we were able to meet up there. It wasn’t until I heard him open up at the conference about his passion for church planting that I thought we could have a future together. We went on a date the day after we got back to Dallas, and a few short months after that, I knew Josh was the man I wanted to love for the rest of my life.
Tell us all about the proposal! From Josh: Christy always used to tell me about a field that she had always wanted to run through. She had driven past it for years, but never stopped. I had planned to take her to the field on a Saturday to propose, but she figured it out. So instead, the day before that Saturday, we went to the field and I proposed. She was so surprised!
When did y’all get married? May 31, 2014
How many friends, family members, and loved ones attended your wedding? 150
What made you choose your ceremony and reception venues? Did they have any special significance to you? Getting married outside in a field under a large, shady tree was my dream. Finding a venue became a family effort–both of our families searched everywhere for the perfect “wedding field with a tree” for us. After one long day of field searching, my family and I went to Cedar Hill State Park, which I thought was an unlikely candidate, but I was growing desperate. As we rounded a bend for Penn Farm, I started crying when I saw the field in front of me. (The same way most girls cry when they see their wedding gown. I know, weird.) We later found out that Penn Farm also has the most picturesque white clapboard farmhouse and wooden barn that we used to house the reception.
What readings, if any, did you have at your ceremony? Josh’s dad officiated our ceremony, and he read from 1 Corinthians 13 and Ruth 1:16-17.
Describe your wedding cake or dessert. Josh’s grandmother baked our wedding cake: her famous chocolate chip pound cake. Neither of us even got a piece because we forgot to cut the cake, but we ate plenty when we went to visit her later that summer.
If you are comfortable responding, what range did your wedding budget fall into? $10,000-$25,000
What was one way you saved money or cut costs at your wedding? We really wanted a DJ, but after finalizing other details that were more important to us, we realized it wouldn’t be in our budget. We decided to use a few Spotify playlists for different styles of reception and dance floor music, and we couldn’t have been more pleased! It was free, and played any songs we wanted.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you most looking forward to about married life? I am most excited about combining my life with my best friend. Getting to live every day with Josh is the greatest gift. Josh: The thing I look forward to most about married life is being able to build a new life with Christy. We have a clean slate, we can go anywhere, and we can do anything. The adventure that that brings is so exciting, and I can only imagine what the future will hold.

Photographer: Jennefer Hutto / Ceremony and Reception Venue: Penn Farm, Cedar Hill State Park / Florist: Oh Deery Floral / Catering: Mudleaf Coffee / Rentals: Rent My Dust, Rental Stop / Favors: San Pedro Cactus / Paper Products: Remember November Shop / Makeup Artist: Beloved / Bride’s Shoes: Steve Madden / Groom’s Attire: ASOS / Groomsmen Attire: Men’s Warehouse

Written with love by Marissa