We have fallen ever so hard for this Alabama wedding and the second you catch a glimpse of the dreamy photography by Simply Bloom, you’ll understand why. Seriously, everything these ladies shoot turns to picture perfect gold. And the detail we positively can’t get enough of – that gorgeous light! It’s so soft and pretty and pairs perfectly with this Southern soiree. Ok, we lied. There are definitely a few more details we are going nuts over…namely that pretty, pretty dress and the holy cow gorgeous flowers by In Bloom. We’ll stop typing and let you fawn over all of the pretty images AND there’s even more of this day in the gallery so hop on over and have a look.
find the FULL Alabama wedding here!
Our wedding was truly a Southern family affair. Brandon’s father officiated our ceremony, and his mother quilted the ring pillow carried by our charming ring bearer, Brandon’s nephew Cameryn. My mother took on the enormous role of wedding planner and stylist, ensuring that every detail of our day turned out just exactly the way we had been dreaming of. Our “getaway car” was a 1958 Triumph TR3A, fully restored by my father from a hunk of rusty old metal purchased nearly a decade ago on eBay. This car, the same model and color as one he owned in his 20s, had been a garage project of his for many years, and I had always dreamed of having it ready for my wedding. When we announced our engagement in December, the car was still in a million pieces, so I didn’t think it would be possible to have it ready by our October wedding. But my father was determined (and, thankfully, retired). He began working overtime on the car, and over the course of nine months, he transformed those pieces of rusty metal into the most beautiful car I have ever seen.
One of my favorite projects for the wedding was our library card catalog “guestbook.” I work at the local public library, and I am currently pursuing a master’s degree in library science, so incorporating something library-related into the wedding was a must for me. My mother found this charming little 2-drawer catalog at auction, and I was able to scavenge some cards from the library’s catalog cabinets, now abandoned in favor of a computer-based catalog. In lieu of a traditional guestbook, guests left us wonderful messages and drawings on the backs of the cards. Along with being a cute and meaningful piece of décor in our home, the catalog is now full of these cards. Anytime I need cheering up, I can flip through them and read these wonderful messages from friends and loved ones. For our reception décor, I wanted everything to be organic and understated, to match the rustic atmosphere of our reception venue, the Roundhouse. Now part of a train depot museum, the Roundhouse would have been used for train-car storage during the time of passenger train travel. My father found several styles of antique glass bottles in my grandmother’s attic, and my mother and I scoured antique stores to find as many more as we could. We eventually ended up with dozens of bottles in all shapes and sizes. For half of the centerpieces, my mother’s friends filled these bottles with locally grown organic wildflowers we bought by the bucketful from our florist. For the second half of the centerpieces, our florist filled some delightful octagonal terrariums I found at a craft store with small succulents and other greenery.
Food was a very important part of our reception. Being from the south, finding a caterer who does great barbecue was a must. We were fortunate to find one who, when not catering weddings, cooks barbeque competitively (and wins). Starting the day before, he cooked us delicious North Carolina-style pulled pork and rotisserie smoked turkey. For our handful of guests who were vegan and vegetarian we had a pasta buffet with plenty of meatless options. Our baker whipped up the most divine vegan carrot and hummingbird cakes; even meat-eaters were going back for seconds! We also had plenty of apple and cranberry pies, a favorite autumn treat of ours. Finally, we had the best photographers in the world. We are so grateful to Christine, Vania, and Breanna of Simply Bloom Photography for turning our joy and love into art. Our wedding would not have been complete without these beautiful and touching images. These women are truly magical!
Photography: Simply Bloom Photography, LLC / Venue: Roundhouse Depot / Wedding Dress Designer: Justin Alexander / Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Bill Levkoff / Guy’s Suits: Indochino / Shoe Designer: Ragazza / Rings: Chris Parry / Hair and Makeup: Breanna Grissett / Caterer: Creative Catering / Cakes: Ellen’s Creative Cakes / Florist: In Bloom / Band and DJ: Hartley Entertainment / Videographer: AVO