For this bride, a wedding day that felt like home was the top of her wishlist, and I couldn’t love that more! Together with her wedding planner, A Lovely Day Events, a day full of family, friends, love and ALL of the flowers by Kill’s Custom Creations was brought to life from the couple’s adorable baby girl to the couple’s stunning attire. Take a look below at this beautiful Bay Pointe Inn wedding, captured by the wonderful Christa Hitchcock Photography!
From A Lovely Day Events…From our very first meeting with Racheal and Ashton, it was clear that they wanted a wedding celebration that highlighted their love for each other, their families and the details that showcased the personality of their relationship. We worked alongside Racheal and Ashton to create a visually beautiful and curated design that felt classic and elegant, yet fresh and romantic. The subtly southern aesthetic of their venue served as a picture-perfect blank canvas for a palette of white, soft pinks, apricots and lemon – and was a fun nod to Racheal and Ashton’s home states of Michigan and Lousiana.
One must-have for Racheal? Flowers everywhere. Together with our florist, Jessica Kill of Kill’s Custom Creations, we made sure to do just that. Jessica started by transforming the ceremony green-space into a lush garden meadow with floral aisle markers stretched all the way to the classic white pergola that had cascading summery blooms. After the ceremony, the aisle markers made their way inside for the reception, lining the head table, lounge area, and reception entrance, while the statement urns framed the gold bookcases where guests found their place cards.
Inside, table settings were kept classic and simple in order to showcase an array of floral arrangements. We included several subtle moments of “southern charm” – including lovely gold mint julep cups overflowing with bright flowers and crisp hemstitched napkins tied with a silk coral ribbon. Jessica transformed the fireplace that functioned as the backdrop for the head table with an organic weaving floral arrangement that spanned nearly twelve feet tall filled with southern smilax, garden roses, lisianthus, and other statement blooms.
Beyond the design, we worked with Racheal and Ashton to craft a day that allowed them to be surrounded by family and create a truly experiential celebration for their loved ones – many who traveled from across the country to join the wedding day festivities. They worked to include their family wherever possible – whether it was Racheal’s best friend and Maid of Honor walking down the aisle with their sweet baby girl, Dee, Ashton’s uncle offering a heartfelt and moving sermon during their ceremony, or Ashton’s grandmother offering words of wisdom on love and marriage during the first toast of the evening.
Equally important, we wanted to ensure that the wedding day felt authentic to Racheal and Ashton. Racheal and Ashton had an impeccable eye for their own attire. Racheal’s stunning pearl-studded veil complimented her ballgown flawlessly, while Ashton had custom suits crafted for him and each of his groomsmen, complete with custom embroidery on each cuff. They both hold a deep love of music, which made it an easy decision to select a true jazz band for their cocktail hour, while a DJ spun house, funk, and soul music throughout the reception. At the end of the evening, guests were surprised with a Second Line led by Racheal and Ashton that circled the entire reception property. From start to finish, the day was a true celebration of Racheal and Ashton. The love and warmth shared by their family and friends was palpable and something that we will truly never forget.
From the Bride…Everyone wants their wedding day to feel magical, but we wanted ours to feel like home. We wanted our wedding to feel like us; our love, our story, our family. With the help of our wonderful planners, we were able to achieve that. The planning process was tricky, I was an out of state, pregnant bride with a habit of being a bit indecisive, however despite that everything that I envisioned was deciphered and executed perfectly.
Flowers were a big deal to me, I kept telling the girls, I want more flowers here or there, and they were super accommodating changing the design as needed, and when I walked into the reception space my breath was literally taken away, when I saw my bouquet I was almost in tears, it sounds dramatic but have you ever imagined something in your mind and then see it come to fruition? It’s pretty amazing.
At the end of the night I remember looking around and just thinking how beautiful everything was, the candlelight’s were twinkling, the flowers were gorgeous and my guests all looked so comfortable and happy which is what we wanted over everything. That day was exactly how I wanted it to be, I didn’t feel rushed, I felt at ease and I felt like my family and close friends were able to truly share in the love that my husband and I share.
Photographer: Christa Hitchcock Photography | Floral Design: Jessica Kills | Cake: The Cakabakery | Makeup: Cutini Parrucchieri | Hair: Demi Dixon | DJ: DJ Head Debaise | Ceremony & Reception Venue: Bay Pointe Inn | Design & Event Planning : A Lovely Day | Furniture Rentals: Event Theory | Live Music: James B. Sawyer Quintet | Napkins: Linen Hero | Paper Goods: Minted | Table Numbers: Shine Wedding Invitations | Tablecloths: Nuage Designs