Southern Weddings

Good gracious, y’all, where do I even start? Lynae + Brenton’s reception is truly a feast for your sparkle-lovin’ eyes. Though the details are amazing and numerous, one skim through their interview will tell you that each one was a purposeful representation of their personalities and fun-loving spirits. If the gold glitter linens don’t make you want to hop through your computer screen, maybe their sweets bar will do the trick, or their rock candy-covered cake. If sweets aren’t your thing, L + B made sure the night was one to remember from the dance floor. Balloons filled the space so guests could volley them as they partied, and Lynae + all 14 of her bridesmaids made sure to close the night with a choreographed dance to a Beyonce hit. Now don’t all of you want to be friends with this couple?

Our reception felt like a grand party. The outpouring of love and celebration was overwhelming. It set the tone for a fun and exciting time. There was an ample supply of food, dancing, and merriment to go around. Our reception was an ode to all our favorite things. We really tried to incorporate personal touches with the entire vibe of the room. We had balloons, candy, and lots of sequins and sparkle.

What is the one thing that made your wedding different from anyone else’s wedding? I think our love story is what made it unique. We both have very strong personalities and idiosyncrasies that separate us not only as individuals, but as a couple. I think being able to highlight and celebrate those eccentricities is what will set our wedding apart. People can always duplicate the design, but no one will quite have our personal panache.

Our centerpieces were each assorted and distinctive. Some featured single blossoms and others featured full floral arrangements in vases decorated in fruit slices or birdcages. My favorite centerpieces were floral paper poms adorned atop pedestals. I thought it was a fun, non-traditional twist. It looked like giant tiers of cotton-candy!

Describe some of the decorations or décor elements you used: Brenton loves Izze sodas so it was essential to include them in décor in some way. I love the Denver Broncos so we had glitter Broncos as center pieces for the head table. Our engagement pictures featured 36” balloons, so we incorporated our love for balloons into our reception for some continuity. We had our guests leave thumb prints inside a poster board with a hot air balloon outline as our guest book. Guests could leave their ink thumb prints and then write us love notes and words of encouragement beside it. We also had balloons sprinkled around the dance floor for people to volley around while they were grooving the night away.

Tell us a bit about your first dance. Even though Brenton and I have been together for seven years, it truly feels like a lifetime — but in a meaningful way. I don’t remember many milestones without him by my side so we chose a song with lyrics that celebrated that sentiment. We won dance classes from a bridal show in January so we had been practicing in the early part of the year. It’s too bad we didn’t attend a refresher course or brush up on our moves prior to hitting the floor because we completely free-styled the entire dance. We sang, laughed, and harmonized the melodies of Brian McKnight’s “Love of My Life” in front of an entire ballroom of people. And that’s when it hit us — we chose the longest first dance song ever! It was so long that we actually started laughing to ourselves on the floor and making up our own moves. It was a priceless moment!

Describe your wedding cake: After months of wedding prep and classifying cake and all it’s derivatives as a “no-no food,” I was really excited about our cake confection. We decided to go with a square, four-tiered cake that had flavored layers for everyone. We decorated the cake in rock candy arranged in ombre hues and topped it with a sequin cake topper.

What were some of the highlights? The biggest highlight was that my entourage of bridesmaids and I performed a choreographed dance to Beyonce’s “Love On Top.” It was imperative for me that our reception feel like us and there’s nothing more true to form for me than dancing to Beyonce with my girlfriends. It was special to me that all my bridesmaids came together to support a personal interest of mine — even though a lot of my bridesmaids were apprehensive about dancing in public. That performance was epic and the expression on my husband’s face was priceless.

Groom’s favorite detail of the wedding: Our candy bar will always stand-out to me. It was purely amazing.
Who was one of the most special guests at your wedding? We were grateful that 6 of our grandparents attended our wedding. At our age, it really meant a lot that our grandparents were in good health and good spirits to witness our moment. Having them in their late 70s and 80s is something we don’t take for granted.
What kind of food did you serve during the cocktail hour, dinner and dessert? During cocktail hour we had a cheese display and passed hors d’oeuvres. Dinner was a buffet featuring a custom menu that we designed with inspirations from all our favorite foods. We wanted all of our guests to have options so we had a variety of sides and proteins to choose from including chicken, salmon and vegetarian protein. Brenton adores breakfast food so we also included French toast, vegetarian strada, and breakfast blintzes. The breakfast bar was a huge hit!
Did you toss the garter or bouquet? We love professional football so the bride surprised the groom with a Denver Broncos garter. Considering we had an oversized Tennessee Titans helmet in the room, it only felt natural to throw a dash of home in as well.
Did you take a honeymoon?  We enjoyed adventures in Maui for a week following our nuptials.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? Our biggest aspiration is to get back into life as we know it. Also, we both have blogs that we’re inspired by and passionate about that have been neglected while planning the wedding and our new life together. They are in much need of a refresh.
What advice would you give to someone planning his or her wedding? Your wedding is just a day. Your marriage is for a lifetime. Many people view the wedding as the end of a planning process rather than the beginning of a new life chapter. Whenever you encounter wedding stress, acknowledge that at the end of the day what matters most is your marriage and the eternal commitment you are making to your spouse. It helps to put wedding planning stress in perspective because you appreciate that ultimately no matter what happens that day, you have the rest of your life to celebrate your love together.
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration. During the homily, our officiant cautioned, “Don’t get caught up in gender roles in your marriage. Get caught up in serving your spouse any way you can with all your energy.” That really stuck out to us because we’re pretty non-traditional couple. We never had to stress over who was going to fit into what role and why when planning our marriage because we both committed to just doing the best we can and loving each other unconditionally. That’s all you can ever really ask for.

Amber Housley and Brocade Designs are delightful members of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Written with love by Nicole