Whoever said courthouse weddings were not pretty or romantic, has not seen Lauren and Oliver’s beautiful day. I was so happy to be included in it! Such an amazing family with a sweet story. Their baby Stetson has been diagnosed with Sagittal craniosynostosis, which means he never really had a “soft spot” on the top of his head and the top part of his skull fused together too quickly. 3 days after their perfect little boy turns 1 he will undergo surgery to correct this problem (send prayers!) I asked Lauren to talk a little bit about their wedding plans…
Things about the three of us and our wedding. Where to begin!!!! Lol. For starters we planned 3 different weddings lol. A huge wedding in Jacksonville with 300 people for April 16, 2016 and then cancelled that because we decided we didn’t want a big wedding. We then planned a wedding for April 8 2016 in Savannah Ga with just our immediate family and were going to make it a fun family getaway with everyone but after Stetsons diagnosis we then had to cancel that wedding to throw together a new small court house wedding in a week! I will say it was better then I could have ever imagined. We wouldn’t have wanted our day any other way. My dress was from a boutique in Debra’s bridal in Jacksonville. My shoes were Christian Louboutins. The day of the wedding all of the jewelry I wore had some meaning to it. My earrings my in laws gave me that morning. My necklace had been worn by my 5 generations on their wedding days. My bracelet Oliver had bought me as a wedding present and it also matched the bracelet I bought as a present that day for my mother in law and mom. We have learned that you can’t always plan things but, in the end the spontaneous unplanned things turn out better. We adore our son and wouldn’t have our life any other way.
Natalie and Kevin’s wedding was beautiful and all about travel, with post cards, a globe guest “book” and an amazing world map seating chart. It was also about their beloved boxer Cheyenne, who walked down the aisle and stood with them, just like everyone else. There was a lot (a lot) of rain that day, but it did not hinder Natalie and Kevin’s attitude, fun or love for each other. Make sure you read their take below, especially Kevin’s last line advice for grooms-to-be. Thank you Natalie and Kevin for taking us “traveling” with you! xo.
From Natalie:
Describe your wedding day style in one sentence: We wanted a romantic feel, to show our silly/whimsical side and our love of travel. Wedding day color scheme:Navy/silver/blush Describe your wedding planning process:Staying organized. I wanted to get as much done as quickly as possible so that I didn’t wait until the last minute for anything. All diy projects projects were done 4 months prior to the wedding. What advice would you give to future brides for their wedding day?Stay as organized and under budget as possible. Try on a bunch of dresses, you never know what will look best! Anything you would have done differently? Have a rain plan for pictures and transportation. Wish I would’ve had more communication with others day of. They say don’t worry the bride, which was great all day then when I got to the reception I freaked out. That was a horrible feeling for everyone! From Kevin: Prayed to rain gods more to get it to stop raining. Most memorable moment during the planning process: Walking into the venue, looking at my man and knowing right then that it was our location. What are you most looking forward to as a married couple? Traveling the world From Kevin:I’m Looking forward to spending the rest of my life with my best friend, sharing great adventures with her, and loving her like crazy, of course. Which moment are you the most excited to see in photos?Standing as a married couple… With our dog 🙂 From Kevin: Oh, man, so many. My groomsmen and I waiting around beforehand, Natalie walking down the aisle, the kiss, walking down the aisle, any photos with our dog Cheyenne, family photos, our dance, and all the fun candid moments which were captured. What was your wedding inspiration?Romantic travel without being too serious. We are a silly couple, hence the “UP” references, his Batman stuff, etc. and we really like to travel but it’s a wedding, of course I want everyone to feel the love <3 From Kevin: Our theme was based on the Pixar/Disney movie Up! and traveling. We had post cards for people to write their marriage and travel advice to us and a mailbox with our handprints on it to place them inside, a globe to sign instead of a guest book, a suitcase for cards, and Our Adventure Book like in the movie full of photos from our travels and experiences. Also, instead of table numbers, we used postcards of destinations and had a world map to show the seating chart. Describe some of your favorite wedding details and how you came up with them: Kevin’s mom is very crafty, she did the LOVE letters, my hangers for the girls, our save the date stone, and misc other times. Colin Cowie is an event genius, my coordinator/florist found the candelabras that I fell in love with immediately. Pinterest is and evil necessity for so many ideas. I wanted to create my own feel but get basic ideas, I’m just so busy with work that I needed something to go off of, so it helped in that way. The popcorn stand was a nice end of the night treat that I wanted to have. *Side note for all the future grooms out there from Kevin:seeing your bride in her dress for the first time as she’s walking down the aisle is truly a great moment. I wish I could see Natalie in her dress for the first time all over again. She was absolutely beautiful and it’s a moment I will always treasure from that day.
We loved Allison and Jed’s Vintage beach DIY wedding at the Casa Marina Hotel. Teal, seashells and starfish on a really rainy day. And Allison looked like a movie star. My best friend Pegi is the grooms step-mom – her family was all there and are dear friends which was so fun for us. Congratulations Allison and Jed! Thank you for including us on that wonderful day xo
I asked Allison to share some thoughts of her wedding day:
Describe your wedding day style in one sentence: Our wedding day was relaxed, vintage beach with a little bit if liquid sunshine on the side! Wedding day color scheme: Ombré teals and tan. Describe your wedding planning process: My entire wedding was DIY! From all decor to flowers to the music. All of it was done by Jed and I, with the help of our family! What advice would you give to future brides for their wedding day? Things will go wrong, people will show up late and see you before walking down the aisle! Take a deep breath and let it go! Enjoy every single moment, mistakes and all because it goes by so fast! Anything you would have done differently? Been a little more prepared for the rain! I didn’t have a plan B and wish I would have! Most memorable moment during the planning process: Spending an entire weekend with my mom and nana making all of the centerpieces, bouquets and wrapping up decoration ideas. We call it our “wedding weekend” (In February!) What are you most looking forward to as a married couple? Having our best friend by our side for life! Also, Starting our life together and hopefully starting our own family one day! Which moment are you the most excited to see in photos? The first look and the wedding party with umbrellas! What was your wedding inspiration? We love the beach, so having our wedding at a historical beachside hotel was perfect for us. We wanted our wedding to be relaxed, tropical and a memorable day for everyone! Describe some of your favorite wedding details and how you came up with them. I love starfish! (Even have a tattoo of one!) my favorite details were the hundreds of starfish placed all around the reception! Another detail Jed and I worked hard on was our picture frame of our family and friends who have passed and were unable to come to the wedding. Having their pictures there reminded us of everyone who was watching from heaven!
