Southern Weddings

Savannah, a “backwoods princess,” and her wedding planner, Ms. Brandee Gaar, turned The Lange Farm into a romantic and relaxed reception site full of intimate details. I love how they were able to combine the farm’s natural, rustic charm with feminine accents to make Savannah + Robbie’s big day a sweet marriage (pun intended!) of the couple’s style. Seems only appropriate that these two are going on a “huntingmoon”!

Big thanks to our friend Andi Mans for capturing their big day and making us feel like we were in attendance! Especially that line dance photo!

How fantastic is this, y’all?! That image on the left is the inside of Savannah’s boot – she had them custom made with a piece of the couples’ vows inside! GUSH! Oh, and that big ol’ side braid is so stylish!

Describe your wedding flowers: I really wanted to keep an enchanted feeling with the florals — something magical, yet just-picked. My sister and I grew up as backwoods princesses. I wanted to make it feel just like we did as young girls in the middle of the woods playing dress up with lots of soft colors and bright greens. My florist absolutely nailed it.

How stinkin’ cute are these two? What a sweet set of sisters!

What is the one thing you are most happy you splurged on? By far the food. We knew from the get-go that if all else failed, our wedding dinner would still be phenomenal. We are HUGE foodies, and that was our top priority. Our best memories are when we are sitting together with family and friends at our favorite restaurant, at home cooking together, or discovering a secret spot when we are on vacation. Food is what brings people together, and it’s what brought us together. We wanted it to be an experience for our guests, not just a meal.

Y’all, I am seriously dying over these chairs! I love how they utilized them at the ceremony AND at the reception. Wonder if i can have them in my house next?

Ok, and now these pups? I can’t get over them!

Did you decide to do a “first look”? Robbie wanted it to be the biggest surprise of his life and wanted to keep it special. I agreed. It made the connection between us very special because when we looked at each other, we didn’t see Robbie and Savannah, we immediately saw husband and wife. It was an incredible feeling and no one else existed in that moment.
Did you write your own vows? Yes, we wrote our own vows. My favorite was when Robbie said, “I will always cherish the gift you have so passionately given me: true love.” Robbie loved when I said he was my best friend and the one my soul loves.
What readings, if any, did you have at your ceremony? Corinthians was read at the ceremony, my favorite bible verse.
Tell us about some of the songs you used throughout your wedding. I walked down the aisle to the acoustic version of “When a Man Loves a Woman.” We walked back to the acoustic version of “Remember When” by Alan Jackson. Our first dance was “You Had Me From Hello” by Brad Paisley — a song that deeply touches Robbie’s heart. It’s special because Robbie used to sing that to wake me up every morning when we bought our first house.

Still dying over these chairs! Anyone else think I need them?

Our favorite detail of the wedding was: We both agree that our dinner with our friends and family was our favorite detail (besides marrying each other). We came up with the idea of setting our table up as a horse shoe. It still distinguished the wedding party, but we were able to see everyone. The decorations were absolutely stunning. It was the perfect blend of simple and elegant and made everyone feel right at home — just the way we like it.

Our wedding was smothered in Southern charm and we wouldn’t have had it any other way! For starters, our venue was on a horse farm and our reception and after party was in a beautiful antique barn. One of my favorite details was that I had a charm of a buck (from a necklace Robbie bought me when I got my first buck) and Robbie’s late father’s watch attached to my bouquet so I had a special piece of family with me. I also rounded up all my gals to join me in a sassy line especially for Robbie. We had custom cowboy boots handmade by Lucchese out of El Paso, Texas, and for a personal detail, we each had a piece of our vows engraved inside our boots!

Describe your wedding cake or dessert: Our poor wedding cake was so simple, but it was so perfect for us. It was a beautiful white three-tiered cake on a wood stump. Growing up, I fell in love with “Steel Magnolias” (that’s where a lot of my inspiration came from) and I always knew I had to have a great groom’s cake at my wedding. My groom was the perfect inspiration for an over-the-top groom’s cake and it absolutely did not disappoint!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. Our story is one of true “fate.” I was waitressing at a small Italian restaurant in Ponce Inlet, Fl. Robbie was a regular customer, (large pizza with pepperoni and mushrooms). After a few giggles and small talk, I started to see him more than a few times a month. He actually used to order take out just so we could sit and talk, then he would go home and throw the food away. After eight months of friendship, we started to date. It didn’t take very long for us to be completely in love. We are best friends and we have been having the time of our lives ever since.
Describe the proposal. I thought I would hate him forever for this story, but it has become one of my favorites because it was a proposal with character. Robbie and I had to cancel our Christmas trip to Atlantis unexpectedly and wound up spending Christmas at home. He and I had to drive to our shop to grab a few things before heading to his parents’ house for dinner. I was loading up our truck and I accidentally locked our dog and the keys in the truck. My dear Robbie was furious. After what seemed like a decade, I finally found a locksmith to come unlock the truck for us. As I climbed up in Robbie’s four-wheel drive, my brand new iPhone slipped out of my pocket and shattered. My Christmas Day was off to a bad start, but we finally made it to his parents’ house. After about an hour, Robbie decided it was present time and I went first. Everyone was acting funny and all I could think was, “Dear God, please don’t propose to me. Not here, not now, and definitely not after the way you got mad at me!” Sure enough he got down one knee, and I said yes.
In what month did you get married? December
How many guests attended your wedding? 35
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: My sister and I went to Solutions Bridal Orlando and the first gown Roberta brought me was the one we both fell in love with. It just belonged to me, and I knew it was the one I wanted to marry Robbie in.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? Having to move our wedding venue. We originally planned to have it at our own ranch. Our vision was to have an intimate ceremony on our 6,000 square foot island in the middle of a pond on our property. Our hearts were broken when we found our new home was infested with termites in the middle of remodeling. With the instability of the situation, we opted for the safer option of moving the venue just six months before our wedding day. After a few venues fell through, our vision for a rustic elegant wedding began to fade. But we kept our spirits high and knew what was meant to be, will be. Sure enough, we found the Lange Farms.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? The way my groom looked at me when I walked down the aisle. It was like no one else existed. I know that’s cheesy, but I would give anything to live those moments over and over again. For Robbie, it was when Savannah’s granddad put my hand in his. He said, “It was very symbolic and it made my world complete, he literally gave me my best-friend.”
What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? I think we both agree that the most important thing to remember is that this is your day and no one else’s. Customize it and make the wedding your own. Just let it be and enjoy your big day. Have an absolute blast, laugh and dance and don’t stop kissing your new husband. It’s an incredible feeling and a beautiful day that is gone in a heartbeat, so don’t spend it stressed. Soak it all up and take it in because that time is so precious.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? Well when we get home from our “Huntingmoon” (yes we are hunting for our honeymoon), we will be sitting on the back porch with a big glass of ice tea and be taking a nice deep breath of fresh air because a year of wedding planning sure was fun, but we couldn’t be happier it’s over. Robbie and I fully intend on raising a family in the next few years, but for now my new hubby is building me a nice house with a big wrap-around porch. That’s going to be our next project and we couldn’t be more excited.

Written with love by Marissa