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Jennifer + Paris’ California wedding was a rustic fairytale, right down to the open-air, twinkle-lit reception at a family friend’s estate.  Jennifer’s maids were effortlessly chic in frocks from David’s Bridal.  (We love that first shot of the bridal party!)  And while the little details (table numbers + clothespin escort cards) are ranch-ready perfect, it’s the dessert spread we’re crazy for.  I lost count of how many different kinds of cupcakes Stephanie Benbow-Barker of Shortcake’s Bakeshop prepared for the newlyweds, but Jennifer + Paris’ cupcake tree is a sugar addict’s heaven.  Photographer Cooper Carras has more from this wonderfully homespun affair waiting for you on his blog.  

What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration?  What was Southern about your wedding? To stay true to our rural-country setting, we served BBQ tri-tip, roast vegetables, corn bread and baked beans.  For our beverages, we had beer on tap and made sangria and mojitos with fresh fruit, served out of large glass infusion jars – all this served behind our authentic western saloon bar.  Our table tops were centered with large antiqued candle lanterns, sitting on a bed of lush, grassy ground cover.  Each table was numbered using antiqued shipping tags attached to the lamps.  We also used shipping tags for our name tags, which were given the same antiqued treatment.  The name tags were strung along the arena fence by ribbon and clothes pins.
Describe your wedding cake:
We decided on cupcakes rather than a traditional wedding cake to fit the rustic theme of our wedding. Lucky for us, Paris and I are friends with two very talented bakers. The groom’s display consisted of Jalapeno Cream Cheese, Kaluhua Mocha, and Guinness and Whiskey cupcakes.  The Bride’s display was made up of Classic Red Velvet, Ube with Macapuno Frosting, Tiramisu with Marscapone Buttercream, and Chocolate with Chocolate Ganache Frosting cupcakes. Both displays were topped with a small cake, which held two unique, handmade custom toppers of the bride and groom, designed, sculpted, and painted by Paris.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? 
The biggest challenge had to be preparing the venue itself, which was Paris’s parent’s property: a beautiful 5-acre working ranch in Jamestown, CA. We had to make sure we had the arena properly wired for the string-lighting, caterers and sound.  We even had to rent portable toilets because their home could not accommodate the 175 guests we anticipated for the wedding.  It was a lot of hard work, but we felt all the more connected to the venue, which made it all worth it.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day?
In the middle of our reception, while the band was in mid-swing and the party was on the dance floor, the electricity just shut down.  While our electrician-friend Jody ran (and fell) to the rescue to fix the issue, Paris and I continued to mingle with our guests when we started to hear singing.  In the darkness under the stars, our friends began to sing “That’s What Friends Are For,” and more and more people joined in until the evening was filled with singing voices.  It was such a beautiful and spontaneous moment – we simply felt overwhelmed and enveloped by love.  We will never forget it. It epitomized the spirit of the event.


Written with love by Katharine
2 Comments
  1. avatar Tina Ebanks reply

    Absolutely in love with the rustic elegance!

  2. avatar Jay Hsiang Studio reply

    I love the details in this wedding!! Great photos :)

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What did I tell you: amazing, right?  The newlyweds’ celebrated with an open-air reception at the Biltmore Estate where the highlight (at least according to the bride!) was the detailed wedding cake from the Estate’s talented pastry team. We tend to agree: it’s hard to imagine a cake more perfect for an authentic Carolina wedding.  Thanks to the darling duo at Joey + Jessica for getting our last week of September (wow!) off to a great start.

See all the photos from Leigh + Jeff’s wedding in their Real Wedding Gallery!

What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Walking down the aisle and seeing my family and friends, many of whom had traveled so far to join us for our big day.  It was such a surreal experience to have those closest to us gathered in one place.
Did you write your own vows?  If so, what was your favorite phrase, verse or line?  We did not write our own vows, but one of my favorite moments during our ceremony is when Braidstream, a local string ensemble, played Simple Gifts, my favorite hymn.  It’s a Shaker Hymn from the mid-nineteenth century.  Here is one of my favorite verses:

‘Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free,
‘Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
‘Twill be in the valley of love and delight.

Written with love by Katharine
3 Comments
  1. avatar Melissa Porter reply

    Congratulations to Leigh & Jeff! – The fabulous floral arrangements were created by Stacey at The Bloom Room. It was a pleasure helping to bring their vision to life! Melissa Porter, Asheville Event Co.

  2. avatar Shawn reply

    Very impressive– and the cake! So unique and lovely. My man and I both enjoyed looking at your sweet pictures and contemplated our own wedding in 20-some days….Everything looks just splendid, and we wish you heartiest congratulations!

  3. avatar Rachel – theWeddingVine reply

    That cake is amazing! Original idea and design!

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Okay, now it’s official: this wedding is to awesome for a Wednesday!  We love that the bride + groom, in addition to creating some truly stunning portraits with Forever Photography, had fun with their big day.  Crowns, scepters and mustache props?  Awe-someMichelle’s Patisserie designed a simple, effortlessly chic four-tier cake, while Visual Lyrics styled low arrangements of rustic blooms for the outdoor celebration.  Not ready for the fun to end?  Take a peek at Forever Photography’s post on Christina + Mitch’s day!

Describe your flowers: We chose an unusual color palette for the wedding: black, silver and taupe. I wanted flowers that went with this theme. My bouquet had black succulents, taupe roses, schwartz calla lilies, monkey tails, silver dusty miller, stephanotis with a black bead, a gray cameo broach and gray ribbon. Some of the tables had 5 unique shaped vases with flowers of different heights and textures (white veronica, taupe roses, monkey tails, scabiosa pods and bunny tails). The other tables had white birch boxes with different flower textures in silver protea, white agapanthus, black succulents, monkey tails and ivory amaranths. There were 2 large wooden square cocktail tables inside which had bubble bowls with silver protea, black succulents and ivory hanging amaranths.
Describe your wedding cake:
It was a 4-tiered white cake. All the tiers were a different sizes and heights. The cake was very smooth and had a black ribbon on each tier. It also had a spun sugar flower that matched the belt on my dress. It was almond cream and classic vanilla.
What was the most memorable moment about your wedding day?
My most memorable moment of the day was our first look. I wouldn’t tell him anything about my dress or my look. He had no idea why we chose black, silver and taupe as the wedding colors. I was so nervous walking out to see him. He turned around and we both got teary (I cried). It was such a great moment and the pictures of it are priceless. I cried when I saw them. It was so great seeing each other beforehand. I loved it because we got to spend more time together. We had so much fun taking silly pictures with our bridal party after that.
Did you write your own vows?
We combined several non-traditional vows and made our own.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future?
Babies! And having a family together.

Written with love by Southern Weddings
7 Comments
  1. avatar Marissa L. reply

    Beautiful pictures!! Looks like it was a fun wedding.

  2. avatar Lemon reply

    What a gorgeous bride!! Love that shot of them walking in with crowns-such a fun photo!

  3. avatar Heidi@TrulyEngaging reply

    Lovely! Quite lovely. The palette is gorgeous and interesting.The birch was a brilliant choice! Loved reading how they first saw each other. Congrats to Christina & Mitch!!

  4. avatar joey + jessica reply

    Love the mood of the last shot of them in the car! So fun and fresh!!

  5. avatar Dennis @ Wholesale Flowers reply

    What's not to love? The crown scepter and mustache props make for some fun pic's. The cake has a great stream line clean look and blends perfectly with the brides dress.

  6. avatar Rose reply

    I love this wedding!! It looks like so much fun!!!

  7. avatar Janneke reply

    wow, simple but beautiful!

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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