This month, we wanted to stress to brides everywhere, the importance of hair and makeup trails before your wedding! We also strongly recommend doing this before your Bridal Portraits if possible and not the day before the big day. There are a multitude of reasons why this is so important but it is one less thing you have to worry about that day. If you have met with your hairstylist and makeup artist in advance, you can relax knowing that you’re going to look gorgeous and everything is going to be just the way you want it.
Make a day out of it! Treat yourself to a massage and a day at Escape Spa and look like a supermodel when he takes you out on the town with your flawless face by MAC Cosmetics
Check out today’s featured article in the Lifestyle section of the Tenneseean highlighting Erin & Kyle Neal who married at Belle Meade Plantation this past February. We had a blast planning their winter nuptuals! Image captured by Divine Images.
In 2002, Erin Bedard, 21, had only one year left as an undergrad at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn., when she took a summer job on a ranch in Wyoming. It was there, while working as a cook, that she met wrangler Kyle Neal, then 23, who had just graduated from Birmingham-Southern.
Congrats to Martha Blair and Justin who married yesterday at Scarritt Bennett, with their reception to follow at Maggiano’s Little Italy! It was such a amazing day with perfect weather. We had a wonderful team of vendors and the day went so smoothly! Images captured by David Wright Photography, we will have more to come soon!
Congrats to Mary June and Greg! Their wedding was certainly a memorable one as there were many different elements; we had cloggers, cow bells for favors and the theme screamed country south! It was a blast to plan from the very beginning to end!
We thought we would share with you an article that paints the amazing experience:
“”Hitting it out of the Ball Park to making a Hit in Nashville”
There’s no denying that Mary-June Seibel and Gregory Wu are successful, ambitious and driven individuals. Just look at their records. Mary-June, a graduate from Lipscomb University and Boston University School of Medicine and Gregory a graduate of University of Illinois of Urbana Champaign, Tufts School of Dental Medicine, and his residency at University of California Los Angeles. In planning their wedding, they wanted to create a sophisticated Southern wedding that had a modern twist.
The American south has remained unique in the way that is has maintained its heritage of elegance and good breeding through the years. The south is known for its knack to be host to elaborate social events, its generous nature and a mix of both modern and vintage style. “I do not think you have to be from the South to be traditional, but traditions do hold strong and true for Southerners.” In planning her own wedding, Southern Tradition was very important. Keeping with the Southern Theme, Mary-June turned to Angela Proffitt of Elegant Weddings by Angela to tie in Southern traditions with a modern twist. Mary-June was confident that Angela would be able to take her ideas and weave them into her dream Southern wedding. The results was a wedding that perfectly reflected Mary-June and Greg’s personality as a couple.
The vision included a touch of Music City for music lovers, since that’s where love found them. The Invitations had two love birds printed in a soft baby blue paper from Buchanan Ink with customized invitations in calligraphy by Val Cole with the final magic touch was the Old School Cowboy Roy Rogers stamp with the “oh-so-Southern feel.”
To capture this special day, Leslie and Bill Emmetts of Divine Images were there to take every precious moment. During Mary-June’s bridal portraits she focused on elements associated with her late grandfather, Howard Seibel, Sr. Her late grandfather’s dream was to sing in the Grand Ole Opry with famous country singers like Johnny Cash to Hank Williams. In honor of her late grandfather, Mary-June used her grandfather’s musical instruments, Mandolin and Ziegler to keep his memory alive. The fondest memories she has of her grandfather was wearing cowboy boots and playing the guitar to his favorite country tune. And with true Southern Style, she wore cowboy boots to tie the Nashville Theme Wedding. With Divine Images magic touch, Lesli and Bill placed Mary-June on stage at the Grand Ole Opry singing her heart away.
Divine Images captured every moment, without skipping a beat. The Day began with photos taken at historical places in Nashville. The Parenthon was the first place Mary-June and Greg choose to take their wedding photos. They included a special member of their family… their malti-poo London. He was styling like his parents! London wore a Juicy Couture Tuxedo from Nordstroms with the matching leash from Saks 5th Avenue. Mary-June and Greg were extremely lucking that Union Station allowed the couple to take their wedding photos with their little London. Mary-June wanted a unique and memorable day that would have the guest loving Nashville’s beauty. The Country Music Hall of fame was so gracious to allow the bridal party and the Brides family to take photos in the Museum. The bridesmaids wore a navy Jim Hjelm chiffon tea-length, ruffle cascade detail on one shoulder strap from Faccio Bridal.
In holding with Wedding Tradition, Mary-June had her something new- Jim Hjelm Ivory Lace Wedding Gown/Godfather Waltz Earrings by PARIS that had an antique flair, something blue- Christian Louboutin blue shoes from Neiman Marcus, something old/borrowed- antique brooch from her maid of honor. Each element of the wedding wanted a traditional Southern element, from the Church to the reception. What is more Southern than a big white steeple church! Woodmont Christian Church is a southern bride’s dream place to have a wedding. With its majestic white steeple to the long red carpet aisle, this is a perfect entrance for a Southern Belle. For the ceremony, Mary-June wore a ivory lace Jim Hjelm dress with a pretty little bow in the back and a long Cathedral lace veil (both from Faccio Bridal). With Mary-June’s father in hand and a large bouquet of white roses by Village of Flowers, she marched down the aisle to the organist and trumpets playing, “Trumpet Voluntary.” Following the ceremony, guest were shuttled by the FADDS trolley to the Country Music Hall of Fame, while the Bride and Groom rode in style in a vintage seafoam/metallic colored Bentley from Matchless.
Mary-June’s passion for Country Music and music history was clear. The Country Music Hall of Fame has a special place in Mary-June’s heart. For her 6th grade English class project, students were to write a “Country Theme” lyrics and a winner would have their lyrics played at the Country Music Hall of Fame. What’s more country, than writing about your dog. Mary-June wrote a song about her poodle Cindy that died a few months earlier. Well, to Mary-June’s surprise, during the class tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame, her lyrics were chosen and played by the song writer that filled the room with music. She choose the wedding to be during the Country Music Festival, so that the out-of-town guest can experience Nashville’s first love, Country Music.
For the décor, Mary-June and Angela used sleek ottomans from Music City Tents and Events, tailored skirted tables from Connie Duglin, and Chavari chairs to transform the Rotunda into a glamorous lounge. Simple was key, since the Rotunda is beautiful by itself. The Hall of Fame Rotunda honors the heart and soul of country music. Within the bronzed circle of those artists who have shaped Country Music history. With its inscription, “The Circle Will Be Unbroken,” the Rotunda was the perfect place to celebrate a marriage! She incorporated navy and yellow linens throughout the reception hall with yellow flowers and lemons on each table. Ice sculptures of a guitar and cowboy boots were also a eye-catching décor used to grab attention, as well as a “cowgirl” painting for the special occasion. Instead of doing the traditional guest book, Divine Images complied a navy photo book of Mary-June’s bridal portraits for the guest to sign. For the reception, Mary-June wore a strapless gown designed by Badgley Miscaka from B. Hughes and a caged horse bow veil that reflected an old Hollywood Glamour look. From the dresses to the reception, Mary-June’s vision reflects her love of architecture and clean lines. Guest were offered Hors D’oeuvre when they arrived in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Guest enjoyed fried green tomatoes, cheese grit cakes, crawfish sushi rolls, and washed it down with Lynchburg Lemonade in Mason Jars.
But the main meal was the true showcase of Southern elegance, featuring fried boneless chicken with pecan stuffing, macaroni and cheese in individual martini glasses, French styled green beans, and organic yellow seedless watermelon. Going with the Southern Tradition, she choose a cake that reflected her groom’s 2nd love… The Boston Red Sox! Jay Qualls of Maple Wedding Cakes designed a groom’s cake that resembled miniature version of the “Green Monster.” The Wedding Cake was elegant reflection of the bride’s vision. The wedding cake consisted in platinum and pearls done in a soft yellow with a navy blue ribbon.
Entertainment for the wedding wasn’t the run-of-the-mill! Music for the reception was provided by the Craig Duncan Band. The surprise entertainment for the wedding was The Craig Duncan Cloogers. The Cloogers wowed the crowd by interacting with the guest with good ole Southern clooging! As the evening was beginning to end, as close friends of the Bride and Groom got on stage with the Craig Duncan Band to sing Kenny Roger’s “The Gambler” and Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” in honor of the Boston Red Sox! The night was magical in every way possible. A great ending to a beautiful day… the band wrapped the last song by singing, “Song of the South.”
The evening ended with each guest getting a “Moon Pie, Goo Goo Bars, and cowbells with the inscription of Mary-June and Greg.” With the cowbells in hand, the each wedding guest rang the bells while the Bride and Groom exited the Country Hall of Museum to begin their new life together. For her final dress change, Mary-June wore a sexy above the knee Priscilla of Boston halter dress from The Bride Room with cowboy boots. The party didn’t end at the reception! Guest were shuttled back to their final destination in a party bus that had a DJ on board! Their final exit was just as magical as it began. The evening ended with fireworks, courtesy of CMA Festival. Both Bride and Groom rode off in a vintage white colored Jaguar from Matchless to their evening at Union Station Hotel. It was a magical evening that their guest will cherish.
We would like to share some kind words from a few bridesmaids from recent weddings!
Sarah Klinck, Matron of Honor from Megan Chang & Cody Longs wedding party said: “Thank you so much for your hard work!!! You were very organized, calm, and easy for everyone to get along with! The wedding was amazing and I was honored to be a part of it! I am so glad Megan got the wedding of her dreams. It was definitely a weekend to remember!”
Tanya Sirivong, one of Mary June’s bridesmaids said: “I just wanted to tell you that you did an AMAZING job at Mary’s wedding. I don’t think the wedding would’ve turned out the way it did without you! You are soo patient and full of positive energy! Wish I knew about you when I got married. I will definitely let all the future brides know about your service. Thanks so much!”
Thank you so much ladies for your thoughts and positive feedback! The EWBA team had a blast planning both of these special events!
Lauren and William’s “vintage inspired, urban Nashville” wedding is featured on Ashley’s Bride Guide! Check out an exerpt from Ashley below:
“When we get caught up in the hustle and bustle of wedding planning, it’s easy to overlook what’s at the core – a marriage. Once in a while, we meet a gem of a bride whose vision isn’t all about the glitter or themes but one who cherishes the moments that she wanted as part of her special day, with lots of unique personalized touches that were such a joy to see. For Lauren and William, their wedding was a day spent with family and friends from near and far, one that was capturedl in gorgeous photographs, and super fun photobooth pics.”
Check out a few of our inspiration boards that the Elegant Weddings Team has created to help our clients envision their wedding day! These boards are so helpful for our couples when meeting with vendors to communicate their unique vision. With or without a wedding planner, make sure to always have pictures to show everyone involved so they carry out your vision for your wedding day!
Check out this awesome highlight video Gipsy Williams and her Premier Video Team put together to tell the wedding story of our adorable couple, Jamie and Stephen!
Did you know that we plan a wide variety of events, not just weddings?
To distinguish between the two, we recently launched our new events website, Events by AP! Please check it out for all of your event planning needs! Events by AP is dedicated to corporate events, meeting planning, private parties, social events and much much more!
The Elegant Weddings team had many logistics to consider when planning Libby and Patrick’s wedding for May 22, 2010. Alongside of some of Nashville’s best wedding vendors, we had visiting vendors that traveled many miles to capture their special day. Little did we know that mother nature had another plan in store, leaving us faced with the largest flood to go down in Nashville, TN.
Just as Abby explained, in the Style Me Pretty post, just weeks before the wedding, we hit a little (and by little, I mean HUGE) road bump that we encountered. It’s all in how the vendors pull together as a team to handle any situation that will really make or break your day. It was 19 days from the wedding and we were entering the home stretch of the final planning. The venue was flooded to the second floor of the parking garage and the venue had called off all events for the month of May, Libby’s included. Luckily, the Elegant Weddings team, put a back-up plan in place, after spending hours and hours, days and days, checking with all possible venues in town. But, thankfully the venue opened just days before the wedding date and we were able to move forward with our plans! Libby and Patrick’s wedding story is one of those that will go down in history. From the amazing designers that took part in the day to the flooding that nearly stopped all of our plans from happening…it’s a story that I’m sure Libby and Patrick will be telling their grandkids. Despite the fact that we were literally faced against a natural disaster, the day turned out to be something out of a dream.
Do you want to know how compatible you really are to marry your husband or wife? The VIA Character Strengths survey measures your top 5 strengths and your top 5 weaknesses. It is important to identify these characteristics prior to marriage, to work together with each other to understand each others feelings. Elegant Weddings recommends taking this and discussing it with your partner to better understand each other through your wedding planning process and as you begin a new life together.
Take the survery. It’s free. You have to sign up for a user account. It takes about 30 minutes.
Elegant Weddings by Angela offers a full service team that is highly
organized and detail oriented, designed to assist you by planning the
wedding of your dreams. Our team handles the time-consuming details
by offering customized wedding planning in consulting, coordinating,
and directing. We can guide you through the entire process or provide
you with only weekend directing by overseeing all of the logistics and
details of your special day. Our goal is to provide you with the
highest level of quality service and personal attention to ensure that
you have a memorable event.