Simple, sweet weddings make me happy. Especially in a dress like this one. Simple, sweet weddings where the lovely Melissa Joan Hart is accompanying all of the lovely? Happiness times ten. As the gorgeous bride’s sister in law, Melissa was simply one amazing aspect of this beautiful day, where a glowing bride got to marry her prince charming. And crafted a wedding that was as understated as it was gorgeous. More here!
From The Bride…As a little girl, I’ve always dreamed of being Cinderella or at least part of a Disney fairytale. In fact, I’ve always been planning my wedding (actually found a wedding magazine from 1994 for inspiration…needless to say it was a bit dated). Like any great fairy tale, I’ve been on the look out for prince charming. I waited, waited, waited and then I got tired of waiting and waited some more. When I finally found the man of my dreams, he was also attached the Army (which means he’s not really all mine, he belongs to the US Government). This means that you can plan your dream day, but the Army has the last say with TDY, deployment and time off. I also realized at the age of 38 years old, most of what I wanted in a Wedding Day had changed. It wasn’t about how many people could come or the perfect dress, or the location; it was that I was getting to marry my Prince Charming. We had found each other!
WHAT??!! This coming from a girl that watches romantic comedies over and over again, a girl who loves fashion, sparkles, hair and makeup, a girl with a pinterest wedding that oozes gorgeous impractical things such as tulle, sequins and lace? Yes, yes, yes! Don’t get me wrong, I wanted a beautiful wedding but it was more about the moment, the man of my dreams and joining our wonderful families together to celebrate with God had blessed us with: each other.
We planned our intimate family wedding for Easter weekend, which gave our out of town family members an extended weekend to enjoy the beautiful beaches of Santa Rosa Beach, FL. Since I lived in the area before moving to Texas, I used a lot of my friends to help plan this special weekend. The wedding was held at my parent’s new home in The Origins of Watersound. Right behind their home is the most gorgeous green space that ended up being the perfect spot for our wooden archway draped in white sheers. A wooded path that leads to the open space was perfect for a natural isle to walk towards my groom. I’m a yoga girl, so I love the natural organic connection with nature.
My wedding day was absolutely wonderful! Did I mention it was raining….no worries it cleared away and made room for an gorgeous day and a perfect 71 degree temperature. The day started with a 75 minute vinyasa flow at Balance Health Studio (best yoga studio and where I completed my yoga teacher training). The practice gave me such a peaceful spirit, open heart and restful mind. My friend and yogi sister Mindy Norris who is a local stylist arrived at 11:30AM to start the hair & makeup process. SHE IS BRILLANT. She’s booked almost every weekend on the coast doing weddings, so lucky to have her friendship and talent. My bridesmaids were my sister Holly Cole and my sister-in-law Melissa Joan Hart (yes, Sabrina the Teenage Witch). They each picked their own style bridesmaids dress that complemented the color palette of the wedding. We asked for natural beachy waves and I can honestly say that I’ve never loved my hair more than I did on my wedding day. My two flower girls were Scott’s daughters Trinity and Eden Kruse. They wore beautiful crowns of baby’s breath in their hair and wore simply sweet Jayne Copeland cream dress with sewn pink & cream flowers at the waist and shoulders (Dillards).
The groom wore a custom Italian charcoal grey suit with a white textured button front shirt, and champagne Micheal Kors tie. His groomsmen were his brother, Ben Kruse and his father William Kruse. Scott’s sons Noah and Ezekiel Kruse were also part of the wedding partying and stood beside him during the ceremony.
The dress , the dress, the dress: My dress was everything I wanted. Honestly, I just wanted to feel pretty. I had never tried on a wedding dress, but knew that I wanted to sparkle…but in my own way. Not your typical bride way. I had bought this Adrianna Papell dress for my engagement party, but when we had to change some of our wedding plans, I decided it was what I wanted for my wedding dress. My wedding palette was blush/neutral/sparkle/sequins (my husband was thrilled). My dress was a spaghetti strap beaded blouson gown in champagne with sheer overlay and brilliant rows of beaded detail. It has a 20’s, Gatsby feel with breathtaking softness. My earrings were by Rada (BHLDN). The Giallo Chandeliers were made up of soft, pastel hues and sparkle (they were inspired by fairy tales). I wore Grecian lace up ballet shoes from Capezio (this is what happens when you are the daughter of a ballet dancer).
Most of the afternoon was spent drinking mimosa, laughing with the girls and preparing for our 5PM nuptials. My photographer, the marvelous Amy Riley Photography, arrived at 2PM to start capturing our memories. After the prepping process, we headed over to my parents to put the final touches on our wedding looks.
What really made this day special:
My brother, a musician and Grammy nominated songwriter played the acoustic guitar for our music. Over the Rainbow, Hallelujah, Canon in D
My 6-year-old nephew pretending to be our wedding photographer and capturing some pretty funny moments
My brother-in-law singing the Lord’s prayer a cappella
My pastor and family friend Dr. Bill Montgomery performing our wedding ceremony. He baptized my siblings and me, and also wed all three of us too.
An intimate family wedding full of love, happiness and God’s blessings
The gratitude I felt standing in front of my soon to be husband for being more than I could’ve ever imagined in a man, father and husband
After our sweet ceremony, we had our reception at my parent’s home. Catered by Cahall’s in Panama City Beach, FL . We also had the amazing Chick-fil-a trays (which any good southern girl will understand). Heavy hors d’oeuvres consisting of crab cakes, bbq meatballs, spinach & artichoke dip, chicken salad croissants, fruit & veggies trays.
The grooms cake was a Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream from Edgars Bakery in Birmingham, AL. The wedding cake was a sour cream pound cake with buttercream icing made by Michelle Martin Thompson in Enterprise, AL. Both cakes were incredibly delicious.
We spent our wedding night overlooking the Gulf of Mexico at The Pearl in Rosemary Beach, FL (a gift from my wonderful brother and sister-in-law). This is officially my favorite hotel of all time, absolutely stunning (so much so that I’m painting our bedroom the same color as our room).
Photography: Amy Riley Photography | Florist: Beach House Florist | Wedding Dress: Adrianna Papell | Catering: Cahalls Deli | Hair & Makeup: Mindy Norris | Ceremony & Reception: WaterSound Origins | Earrings : BHLDN | Groom's Tie: Michael Kors