From electric blue wedges hidden under her classic gown to an open-air photobooth that proved to be a “photo bomber dream” (her words, not mine), Laura + Chad’s wedding at the Oldfield Plantation seems like it was a complete blast! I mean check out the photo of Laura and her daddy getting down on the dance floor – pure fun! I’d be remiss not to mention the gorgeous clear tent strung with twinkling white lights because I know Nicole is loving them as much as I am! Be sure to read Laura’s “most memorable moment” in her interview, because it might not be what you’d think!
Thanks to Heidi from Our Labor of Love for sharing this fun soiree with us!
You can’t get much more Southern than blue suede wedding shoes!
I knew without a doubt I wanted to wear blue shoes. Deciding which pair of blue shoes to wear, however, is a different story. Balancing my love of high heels with the fact that I would be walking down a flight of brick stairs during the ceremony and on grass during most of the reception proved to be quite difficult. Finally, I opted to go with electric blue suede wedges. I loved that they provided a unique and unexpected twist under my otherwise traditional dress, while simultaneously serving an incredibly functional purpose!
Did you decide to do a “first look”? Yes. On a personal level, we welcomed and embraced the opportunity to share a calm, private moment before the ceremony and reception whirlwind began. In addition, it made logistical sense. By doing a first look, our extraordinarily talented photographer, Heidi and her team were able to maximize the best light of the day and the high tide of the river to capture many incredible shots that would have otherwise been impossible had we waited until after the 5:30 pm ceremony.
My hand-tied bouquet consisted of white hydrangeas, white freesias, white polo roses, and green cymbidium orchids. The bridesmaids had bouquets of white hydrangeas and white freesias. Chad’s boutonniere was made of green cymbidium orchid and the groomsmen’s boutonnieres were white freesia. For the ceremony, we had ferns with white Asiatic lilies. At the reception, our centerpieces were made of white hydrangeas, white lilies, and assorted white flowers in palm leaf-lined vases. The reception napkins had white dendrobium orchids
Y’all, I’m a sucker for a fellow in saddle shoes or oxfords as my husband calls them! So dapper!
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? When my veil snagged itself on the bricks as my dad walked me down the steps during the ceremony! We didn’t realize it was caught until it actually started to pull my head backwards and almost caused me to loose my balance. Luckily, my dad had a strong grip, we were able to free it from the bricks almost immediately, and after a deep breath or two, everyone (myself included) exploded with laughter. The snafu was a blessing in disguise – it broke the nervous energy and reminded us all to relax and have fun!
What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? Don’t allow yourself to get burdened by the details. Also, as our “most memorable moment” story clearly illustrates, no matter what, something will always go wrong, but in the end, it will be fine.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The clear tent strung with twinkling white lights, which gave us the ability to look up and see the trees and stars after dark.
Describe your wedding cake or dessert: It was essential our cake tasted as good as it looked, so we chose three tiers of red velvet cake with whipped cream cheese filling and vanilla butter cake with vanilla butter cream filling and homemade vanilla custard. The flowers on the wedding cake were handmade edible sugar replicas of the polo roses in my bridal bouquet.
Tell us about some of the songs you used throughout your wedding. Our selections were traditional songs throughout the ceremony played by a solo harpist. We wanted the music to compliment, not overwhelm or distract from, the natural beauty and surroundings of Oldfield Plantation. Once we were ready to celebrate, we started the evening with very Southern-traditional South Carolina Shag, which got all of our guests, young and old, up dancing immediately!
Describe the proposal. (From the groom) Laura and I had just gotten back to her parents’ home after a nice dinner with her parents and a large group of family friends. Even though it was pretty late at night by that point, I asked if she would like to go on a walk. After some convincing that it wasn’t that cold out, she reluctantly agreed. We walked to the brick patio of the River House, where weddings are frequently held on Oldfield Plantation, the gorgeous low-country community in which her parents live. I knew Laura always wanted to get married at this exact spot so I dropped to one knee, asked if she would, and the rest is history.
In what month did you get married? October. It is the perfect time of year for an outdoor wedding in the low country.
How many guests attended your wedding? 124
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: It was surprisingly easy. I found my dress on the first day that I (along with my mother, a couple of close family friends, and my maid of honor) went dress shopping. Initially, I pulled vintage-inspired lace dresses since I thought that style would be best for an outdoor wedding. While the dresses were beautiful, we all agreed they weren’t right for me. The wonderfully accommodating bridal consultant, Flo at Bridal’s by Lori, then convinced me to try something different and brought in a stunning Rivini satin fit and flare gown. It was unlike anything I had tried on before, but I knew instantly the classic, refined, timeless (and comfortable!) dress was perfect. On my wedding day, the dress looked flawless paired with my mother’s pearls!
Did you write your own vows? We pieced together our vows and ceremony with the help of our officiant in order to make them special and meaningful. One of the most meaningful aspects of our ceremony was that we actually exchanged our vows on the exact spot that Chad proposed to me.
What readings, if any, did you have at your ceremony? Our long time mutual best friend and bridesmaid Megan read Blessing for a Marriage, by James Dillet Freeman.
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? Our wedding weekend was filled with Southern details and activities, all set under the picturesque live oaks and Spanish moss on the banks of the Okatie River. To kick off the weekend, our family and friends joined us for our rehearsal dinner, a traditional Low Country Oyster Roast. The day of the wedding, while the guys headed out for a morning of shooting targets on a nearby sporting clays course and hunt club, the ladies enjoyed a relaxing bridal luncheon complete with Diet Coke in glass bottles (my favorite). The most Southern of all though was our food! We had the ultimate “Southern with a twist” menu. Chef Jason with Oldfield Plantation truly went above and beyond our wildest expectations and created a phenomenal meal that literally left our guests raving for months. The delicious menu included (just to name a few) shrimp and grit wontons, fried green tomato lollipops, low-country oyster shooters and, of course, Southern style chicken and waffles.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? Planning and coordinating an entire weekend of wedding activities and events while I was living and working full time in Atlanta and Chad was living and working full-time in Charlotte. We couldn’t have done it without the help of our incredible friends and family, especially my parents!
What is the one thing you are most happy you splurged on? An open-air photo booth!! To this day, looking through the photo booth pictures causes us all to laugh until we cry. By setting up the photo booth facing the river and completely open without any walls or backgrounds, it enabled our guests to have a lot more freedom to hop in and out of each other’s pictures, embrace the spontaneity of the photo booth, and encourage one another to be silly. The open space was a photo bomber’s dream come true!
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