Hi, y’all! April’s Southern Bride of the Month is Elizabeth. She’s our second Southern Bride of the Month getting married in the Emerald Coast of Florida (meet Alissa here!), and I loved getting to know her and her fiance Mike through their interview!
Hi! What’s your name?
Elizabeth de Shazo
What’s your fiancé’s name?
Michael Brown
How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story.
I grew up in the Deep South in Birmingham, AL and graduated from the University of Alabama. Mike grew up in Emmaus, PA and is a Yale grad. Needless to say, I’ve taught him a thing or two about football! We met in DC in August 2008 at a mutual friend’s house party. Mike was the first guy to arrive. I was one of 4-5 girls in the kitchen – I knew the first time I saw his smile that this was someone I wanted to know. I could just tell he was a good person and it felt like home.
A Bryan Photo
Now tell us alllll about the proposal.
Mike and I went home to Birmingham for a friend’s wedding in June. The night before, he took me to my favorite restaurant, Highlands Bar and Grill (Frank Stitt). I ran into an old friend in the ladies room who asked if we would get engaged soon. Little did I know after enjoying the most savory, French inspired Southern meal, Mike started talking about his love for me and asked me to be his wife. The proposal was so Mike – simple and sweet! This all happened after we ordered dessert and by the time it came I was so excited/shocked that I couldn’t eat! Later on after our engagement, the restaurant sent us the menu from June 17th and we had it framed with pictures from that evening.
When’s the big day?
May 12, 2012
Where might you two be tying the knot?
We will be marrying at Point Washington United Methodist Church in Santa Rosa Beach, FL with the reception following at Watercolor Inn & Resort.
Point Washington United Methodist Church (photo by Jacqueline Ward)
How did you pick your ceremony and reception venues? What do you love most about each space?
All of my favorite childhood memories were spent during the summers on the Gulf Coast. My mother is a member of Point Washington UMC. It is the most intimate, sweet little white chapel. I knew I wanted to have the ceremony in a church and it is perfect. Mike and I visited several reception venues; however, Watercolor Inn & Resort offered a beautiful Inn Green space off of the beach. We liked the ability to have both an outdoor space with a big tent and indoor AC for the Northerners. AC was a big concern for those people!
The Watercolor Inn Green, tented for a wedding (Paul Johnson Photography)
Were you totally that girl who planned her wedding from age 5, or not so much?
I had friends who made wedding inspirational books in college – I was never that obsessed, but I was definitely focused on finding the right person in due time. I’ve always enjoyed wedding magazines like Southern Weddings and Martha Stewart Weddings. It was fun to think about and imagine! I found my wedding dress in a magazine about a year before I got engaged.
Who or what has been most helpful in the wedding planning process?
PINTEREST!! I joke that I may be one of the last of my Southern friends to marry but I’ve been able to plan my wedding with Pinterest which has been amazing! I’m a very visual person so being able to create boards to organize my thoughts and ideas has been very helpful. Pinterest assisted me in clearly sharing that vision with all of our vendors.
One of the wedding ideas Elizabeth collected on – yep – Pinterest (Paul Johnson via Southern Weddings)
Has your vision for your wedding changed or evolved over the course of your engagement? If so, how?
Not necessarily. I envisioned a very vintage, elegant wedding from the start. I wanted the Watercolor Inn Green to feel like a garden by the ocean. Most importantly, I wanted it to be a day focused on our love and to celebrate our family and friendships.
Which part of your wedding are you most invested in?
We definitely invested more in serving quality food and beverage. Mike and I both love seafood and as part of the cocktail hour we will be having a raw bar with oysters, gulf shrimp and blue crab claws.
Pink astilbes are one of the flowers that Elizabeth loves, and we can see why! (JAC Photography and Lane Dittoe)
Have you picked your dress yet? How’d that go? What will you be wearing on the big day?
I went to several shops in the DC area but never had a “say yes” moment. In August I made a last minute call to Kleinfeld and got an appointment without knowing it would be the same weekend of Hurricane Irene. I ended up going to NYC via Amtrak, finding my dress and returning in the same day! I discovered the Monique L’Huillier dress I admired in a magazine was discontinued but Kleinfeld miraculously had it in the back! I knew it was the one immediately after putting it on. It was the only dress I tried on at the store!
Who is your favorite vendor you’ve booked so far?
We’ve worked with some great vendors so far. A Bryan Photo did our engagement photos and we couldn’t be more pleased with his impressive work!! Mike and I were especially excited when we did our cake tasting with Confections on the Coast. Rhonda has an amazing portfolio of cakes and is designing ours to mimic my dress. We are doing 4 different flavors – vanilla, chocolate, strawberry and key lime (1 for each tier). The sketch is beautiful and I can’t wait to see it in person!
Elizabeth and Mike are having a cake inspired by china and lace – love these inspiration images she rounded up! (Both from Martha Stewart Weddings)
What do you love most about Southern weddings?
I think all Southern weddings have a special focus on family and friends. Before meeting my fiancé, I didn’t realize that most Northern weddings are a sit down dinner. I appreciate the majority of Southern weddings I’ve attended are “strolling” so that you can spend time with those you enjoy most and dance as much as you want!
Do you have a favorite Etsy store you’d love to tell us about?
I would highly recommend checking out the HeidiDevlin store. She makes the most beautiful pillows! I purchased a customized one for our reception lounge. I think it will be a very special touch to the big day! I also purchased a great burlap banner from the funkyshique store.
A burlap banner from funkyshique!
What are you most looking forward to on your wedding day?
Seeing Mike for the first time when the church doors open!
Any plans for a honeymoon? Where do you want to go and what will you do?
We will be spending two weeks in Hawaii. After a long flight we’ll land and stay
in Oahu for 2 days. Then we travel to Maui for several days then Kauai. I can’t
wait to explore the islands, hike, and snorkel (my favorite)!
Any advice you’d like to pass along to fellow brides?
Stay calm and delegate tasks nicely to your groom when necessary. Enjoy this exciting time together!
Now it’s your turn to ask for advice – is there anything you’d like to poll the SW readers on?
For those that are married, do you have advice on how to take advantage of time during the wedding day? I’m scared it will all go by so fast and I’ll regret not doing something. Also how did you stay relaxed the day of?
Thank you so much for playing along, Elizabeth! Readers, if you’d like to apply to be a Southern Bride of the Month, check out this post for all the details! If you’ve already emailed me, you’re still in the running for future months!
Hi Elizabeth and congrats! I just got married 10 DAYS ago! Here’s my best advice to your question – get your hair done early (mine was done by 9:30 and my wedding was at 5!) – plan your lunch into your schedule – and make sure you have a list of all the details you want your photog to take pics of. I had a bag of things I wanted shots of (like accessories, rings, invites, etc.) so that my photog (who Bryan trained!) could take the detail pics on demand when we had some down-time. Because we had hair/makeup done just after lunch, we had lots of down time which really kept me calm and relaxed. We took all the pics and were done a full hour before the ceremony, which was great! My day was SO organized that it made it effortless and fun. Makes lots of lists!
Good luck!
Hi Elizabeth! You know I have advice being the old married lady I am (8 years this fall!). Since you’ve already picked the right groom, relaxing should be easy. If you can boil your wedding day down to 2 very important things, the rest is just details that you’re paying other people to take care of. First, make sure you both say “I Do” and that the pastor signs the marriage certificate. Second, have a big ole party with all of your friends and family. It sounds like you’ve planned every detail and have hired great vendors. Let them do their jobs, don’t try to control every moment and just be in the moment.
On a practical note, the other lady that commented was right. Figure out a way to start the day early. I had a bridesmaids breakfast that forced everyone up and out the door by 9am. Breakfast was a lovely, casual affair with pictures that followed then it was back to the hotel to change into jeans and a button down shirt and off to the salon by 12pm. Lunch was a quick bite then back to the hotel for the REAL wardrobe change. Pictures took place throughout the afternoon with a mix of casual and formal shots but everyone was at the chapel at least an hour before “go time”.
The last piece of advice I can give you is to keep the party going for as long as you can. You and Michael will have 2 weeks alone in the islands but only a few short hours to celebrate with all of your friends and family together in one spot. Our reception ended at 10pm but we somehow coaxed the head of security at our hotel to allow us to continue the party with our friends in an unused conference room until the wee hours of the morning. I will never forget how much fun Jordan and I had together with our friends and how it was truly a celebration. Best wishes!
Hi Elizabeth! My advice is similar to Madelynne’s – start early! Build your schedule meticulously, and budget MORE time for everything than you think you’ll need. Show it to several people you trust (including your photographers) to make sure they agree that it’s realistic and that you’re not forgetting anything. Once it’s finalized, show it to your bridesmaids and your family members so that everyone is on the same page and you won’t be chasing after anyone on the day of. As for staying calm, build a playlist of your favorite tunes to listen to the morning of the wedding, and make sure you’ve ordered or prepared a favorite snack and/or meal!
Thanks so much y’all! Great suggestions :)
You chose such a nice place to celebrate! It looks amazing by night! I hope you both enjoy this day, you had a nice love story and I hope you can keep going beyond. Best wishes!