Southern Weddings

Hello, friends! When we introduced Lisa we mentioned that we looked forward to y’all getting to know her and her style better over the coming months. So, to help with that, and because we think there’s no pastime more fun than planning faux celebrations, I present to you: our Dream Southern Summer Wedding series! I’m up first, and the other gals will be coming to you over the next few weeks!

I actually already planned my dream summer wedding, but it didn’t happen to take place in the South. If it had, it might have looked a little something like this:

Clockwise from top left: peach plate from Martha Stewart Living, gown photo by Tim Will via Southern Weddings, pink depression glass photo by Byron Loves Fawn via Burnett’s Boards, garden rose centerpiece photo by Stylish & Hip Weddings via Snippet & Ink, dahlia bouquet from Martha Stewart Weddings, peach photo by Elaine Palladino, monogram program photo by Katie Stoops via Southern Weddings, jeweled gown photo by Byron Loves Fawn via 100 Layer Cake, rose champagne photo by Kristyn Hogan via 100 Layer Cake

The feel: Sophisticated, elegant, classic, and warm. Shades of peaches and pinks mixed with whites, creams, grays, and soft blues. Enough sparkle to make it special and some gray and white stripes thrown in for good measure. Velvet ribbons to mimic peach fuzz.

The place: A manicured estate with stone walls to bring in the gray and a neat lawn where we can pitch our tent. We’re dreaming, so I think the Biltmore would do nicely :)

The time: 4:30pm, late August

The style: I absolutely adored my wedding gown, but if I had to choose something different, I might go with the tulle confection Rachel wore. I actually tried it on in my dress search! The ladies would wear light gray blue floor-length gowns, and the gents would wear crisply tailored suits in the lightest stone gray. Blue and white seersucker boutonnieres would be a perfect summer accent, with white ranunculus boutonnieres.

The food: Dinner would be served family style at long tables covered in my favorite blue gray linen from La Tavola, Tuscany Ocean. There would absolutely be individual grilled peach cobblers for dessert! And a pink champagne signature drink, since that’s the only kind of libation I like :)

The music: A string quartet for the ceremony (I adored our ceremony music and wouldn’t change a thing!), and an 11-piece jazz band for the reception, set up right next to a white dance floor for boogieing the night away.

The flowers: For my bouquet, a perfectly peachy pink clutch of dahlias, sweet peas, zinnias, garden roses and ranunculus. I’d tie it off with my favorite ribbon of all time to bring in some blue and sweetness. For the tables, fresh peaches and white flowers like dahlias and garden roses tumbled down the center would look lovely, with some pink depression glass cake stands for height.

What do you think, belles? What would YOUR dream Southern summer wedding look like?


Elaine Palladino is a delightful member of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Written with love by Emily