Springtime Wedding at Vesuvius Vineyards

Q1: Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?
A1: The vision for our wedding was romantic and simple. Being a wedding planner myself, I know that weddings can frequently become such a production! I wanted out day to be beautiful but simple. After seeing Vesuvius, a lot of the design inspiration came from that. I knew that I wanted to get married outside but I did not want anything rustic. Vesuvius was a beautiful combination of outdoors but also classic southern beauty. We believe that marriage is a reflection of the way that Christ loves the church and we wanted that to be evident in our day. One of the most special parts of the day was that my groom’s father is a pastor and the one who married us!

Q2: Let’s talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?
A2: I knew I wanted to incorporate a lot of greenery and magnolia leaves into the reception space to incorporate the naturally occurring vibe of the venue. For our color palette, I love very neutral colors so we wanted to stick to that. Our only “color” was a soft dusty blue.
Also, I LOVE velvet. So the round tables were covered in a white velvet linen. The biggest project of the wedding was the table runners and napkins. Since I was unable to find the exact color that I wanted, I hand dyed the linens myself. We added draping to the reception space to help to soften the space. The sheer panels contribute to the romantic feeling of the space that complimented all the candles well.

Q3: What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?
A3: The florals were really hit out of the park by our florist. She is a good friend of mine, and I had full confidence in her eye and creativity. Literally, all I told her was that I wanted a lot of greenery and mostly white florals. She ran with that and the bouquets and arrangements were more beautiful than I could have imagined.

Q4: Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?
A4: One of my favorite things about planning weddings is creating unique seating charts!! For our seating chart, I wrote out everyone’s name and table on a magnolia leaf then clipped it to chicken wire hanging from a copper arch. Guests then came by to “pick their seat”. One of my favorite parts of our wedding was the food!! We went to a BBQ restaurant on our first date so when it came time to pick a caterer we immediately thought BBQ. The Smoke Pit is some of the best BBQ we have ever had (growing up in the south, I don’t say that lightly) so we definitely wanted them to do the catering! As far as other entertainment, we just wanted people to have a good time and have a good party. Split Second Sound was the PERFECT DJ choice! Their DJs are the best in Charlotte! They do a great job of getting people up and dancing!

Q5: Let’s talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.
A5: I wanted a beautiful dress, but not something that would be impossible to move in. I love lace and illusion necklines. When dress shopping I never got the “this is the one” feeling, but I LOVED my Stella York dress. For my shoes, I chose the Kate Spade glitter Keds. They were comfortable and incredibly fun! I love Kate Spade and I love glitter….how could things get any better than that?!?For the bridesmaids, we went with Show Me Your Mumu dresses. I wanted each girl to be able to get a dress that was flattering for her. It was super easy to just pick out the shade, and they were able to get whatever style they wanted and they were able to try them on at Nordstrom if they wanted to. For the groom and groomsmen suits, we wanted a sleek suit that would be slim fitting but that they would also be able to wear again, so we went with a classic navy. Combat Gent came highly recommended to us and they were GREAT quality at a great price.

Q6: How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.
A6: We were both in different Bible studies at the same church. Our groups frequently met up. One night we all got together for a “Fiesta Dinner” at my house (Jenny), and it was the first time we were both at a meet up together. For John Andrew, it was an instant attraction (and I’m so glad it was!) So the next day he messaged me on Facebook and asked me out. (Yes, Facebook messenger). We went on one date and that was it! We dated for about 15 months before he popped the question!There’s a spot near our house that we like to walk on the greenway by a river. It was actually the first place we said “I love you”. So went back down there for a walk and we got to the spot where we had said it, and he handed me his Bible (like the did the first time) but asked me to read a passage from 1 Cor that we had read before. I opened up his Bible and the ring was taped to a Post-it note inside the Bible. He got down on one knee there (in the river) and I said “Yes!”

Q7: What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?
A7: My favorite moment of our day was our first look! I would HIGHLY recommend it to anyone thinking about getting married. It was so nice to have that time together and really helped to ease a lot of the nerves for the day. My other favorite moment of the day was a special surprise that I had for John Andrew. His little brother was on mission overseas and not able to be there, so I worked with him to write a special note and prayer to be read as a part of our ceremony. I loved that it was a way to have his brother included even though he couldn’t be there.

Q8: Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you’d like to share with other couples planning their day?
A8: Other than to hire Gathered Event for all your wedding planning needs?!? I always tell my clients to make sure that your day is a representation of you so you have to do what is right for you. And to remember that what is most important is that your wedding day is a gathering of the people who love you most to celebrate and affirm your marriage. Don’t lose sight of that in the details.