Oh how I wish I was a southern belle just like this beautiful bride! I’d have a sweet wedding just like this with pretty, pale flowers and hydrangeas hanging from trees. My dress would be covered in lace with a corset back just like hers and my pretty pink heels would be the perfect complement to my gorgeous bouquet. I’d even have the talented sisters of Inkspot Crow Films and Meredith Perdue Photography capture all my memorable moments! Okay, that was fun! Now it’s your turn to live vicariously through this southern stunner of a wedding here in the gallery!
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Don’t even think about skipping over this amazingly sweet video from Inkspot Crow Films!
Our March 2011 wedding was the epitome of “north meets south” and I loved sharing my southern roots with my new husband’s family. I’ve never lived outside North Carolina and Nick grew up in New York. After college, he ventured down south and we met through friends. He surprised me with a lakeside marriage proposal the day after attending a friend’s wedding in the mountains, and I quickly started planning our quintessential southern wedding.
Nick has a huge family and I wanted to give them a glimpse of what I love most about the south. We chose The Carolina Inn in Chapel Hill for the ceremony and reception because of its classic southern charm and gorgeous accommodations. We wanted a March wedding in hopes of enjoying springtime flowers and warm weather. We were married under a tree that was just beginning to bloom – a beautiful symbol of our new life together.
I am not very crafty, but wanted to add some personal DIY touches to the wedding. I designed the menus and programs, and my wonderful mom and bridesmaids helped me create the escort card ribbon board. I called on both of our moms to help gather wedding day photos of immediate family members to display at the reception. I loved the old prints of our grandparents smiling at us from their wedding day portraits. One of my favorite Etsy details was our guest fingerprint tree. It looks beautiful hanging on our wall at home and everyone loved it. It was important to have a visual reminder of our guests, and the fingerprint tree is perfect.
My vendors were fabulous. I didn’t have a wedding planner, but so many of my vendors stepped in with advice and creative ideas whenever I got stuck. I had the privilege of working with two incredibly talented sisters who both work in the wedding industry and documented my wedding in the most beautiful creative ways. MacKenzie, one of my very best friends since high school runs Inkspot Crow Films with her husband and they captured the wedding on film. I am blown away every single time I watch our video and relive that magical day; I can’t thank them enough for their beautiful work. Meredith Perdue, our photographer, is MacKenzie’s sister and quite the entrepreneur, having started her own photography business at the age of 21. She photographed our engagement session, bridal portraits and the wedding day and does amazing work. It made me so happy to work with these two remarkable ladies and it was even better working with friends.
When I think back on our wedding day, I realize how blessed we are to be supported by such loving family and friends. We were completely surrounded by so much love and support and I’ve never been happier. The wedding was lovely and romantic, and the reception was a massive celebration — I didn’t want it to end. We have so many tangible reminders of our wedding weekend and Nick and I love to sit back and relive the best moments, and we marvel at how lucky we are.
Ceremony and Reception: The Carolina Inn / Cinematography: Inkspot Crow Films / Photography: Meredith Perdue / DJ: Randy Bennett for Bunn DJ Company / Cake: Swank Cake Design / Flowers: Fresh Affairs / Minister and Ceremony Coordinator: Triangle Custom Weddings / Bride’s Dress: Maggie Sottero / Bride’s Shoes: Aldo / Suits: Brooks Brothers / Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal
