Hi SMP brides! Shelby here from Pretty in the Pines and today I’m sharing all the details of how I asked my bridesmaids and flower girls to be a part of our wedding day! Since it had been several months since the engagement, I had quite some time to think of ideas of how I would ask all of my best friends and family to be in our wedding party.
I thought about giving gifts and asking separately, or even sending surprise packages and letters in the mail, but I knew that deep down, my best case scenario would be if I could somehow get all of my favorite girls together at the same place at the same time. I not only hoped to pull-off a mini party for all of them, but I wanted to make the occasion as much of a surprise as possible! Once I decided on having a surprise bridesmaid brunch at my favorite venue in Raleigh, Merrimon Wynne, I asked my wedding planner, Stephanie Scholl Events, if she could help with the planning and design of it all!
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As soon as I could coordinate the same date for everyone, I met with Stephanie Scholl Events and told her about the theme and vision I had in mind. I envisioned a berry themed brunch because, after all, it was a party thrown for all of the ‘sweetest’ ladies in my life. I also have a love for all things blue and it was the perfect opportunity to incorporate my favorite color and to use these teal berry baskets to fill up with small gifts for the girls. Luckily, Raleigh has some pretty talented vendors for occasions like these and Stephanie Scholl Events was able to bring the vision to life so perfectly! I sent out an invitation that invited them to a “summer brunch” (and made sure not to make it too obvious) that later followed with a lot of “what should I wear?” texts.
At 11:00 on the morning of the brunch, each bridesmaid and flower girl arrived to the house (by this time, some of them were pretty suspicious of why they were there) and I could hardly contain my excitement! This was one of the first times where I had all of my closest women in my life in one spot and the feeling was indescribable! We sipped on delicious drinks made at a mimosa and berry bar while catching up with each other as we waited for the rest of the girls to arrive. As soon as everyone arrived to the house, we sat down at the table and I gave each girl their gift, a watercolor “Will You Be My Bridesmaid?” print by Sage Paper Co., and a handwritten note complete with all the feels! I gave a toast about why we were all there and it didn’t take long before the room was filled with tears. Some of these girls I had known since college, high school, and some my entire life, but I couldn’t get over how wonderful it felt to have them all there together.
The baskets for each bridesmaid were filled with cookies by Oak City Cookies decorated with our wedding date, a bottle of Speak Wines, and a bridesmaid emergency kit from Pinch Provisions! It also included a pair of Moon and Lola earrings, a favorite candle of mine (hello, CCapri Blue Candles), and a cosmetic pouch from Paper Source! My two flower girls felt like princesses in their flower crowns and they were too cute exploring the house in their matching outfits they showed up in that morning! One of them asked why there weren’t any boys invited to this wedding, thinking that was the actual wedding, haha!
We ate the most delicious brunch by Belle’s Catering, complete with a biscuit bar, mini chicken and waffles, berry parfaits, and mini quiches. We finished off the meal with dessert by one of my all-time favorite Raleigh bakeries, The Cupcake Shoppe. I’m talking lavender French macarons, mini blackberry chocolate mousse tarts, vanilla bean cheesecake pops, and mini blackberry cupcakes. It was berry dessert heaven! The room was absolutely magical and even more beautiful than I envisioned it would be. The style had a simplistic but elegant feel with neutral and classic furniture rentals by Cottage Luxe and berry branches intertwined with gorgeous florals by Serendipity Designs. Although the décor was beautiful and just my style, the house was filled with SO much love and that made it so special. In fact, each aspect of the entire day was so special and it got me very excited for the next 10 months leading up to the wedding. Thankfully, I have a pretty amazing photographer friend and sorority sister, Megan Kerns Photography, who was there to capture the entire morning! Next step: find bridesmaid dresses!
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Meet the Bride + Engagement Session
Photography: Megan Kerns Photography | Event Design: Shelby Vanhoy | Floral Design: Serendipity Designs | Catering: Belle's Catering | Venue: The Merrimon Wynne House | Berry Baskets: Amazon | Blogger Bride: Shelby Vanhoy | Bride's Dress: Rent The Runway | Bridesmaid Emergency Kit: Pinch Provisions | Cake + Dessert Bar: The Cupcake Shoppe | Candles for Bridesmaids: Capri Blue Candles | Cookies: Oak City Cookies | Cosmetic Pouch: Paper Source | Earrings: Moon and Lola | Invitations + Paper Goods + Signage: Sage Paper Co. | Planning + Design + Styling: Stephanie Scholl Events | Rentals: Cottage Luxe | Wine Bottles: Speak Wines