Originally from Singapore, Nashville was the first Southern city I visited in America. And after living here for more than 10 years, the people are still wonderful, the hospitality is great and the food... oh the food! I swoon just thinking about it. Southern food is delicious. It brings "comfort food" to a whole new level.
It's no surprise couples choose a hearty, might-as-well-be-home-made menu of classic Southern dishes to serve at their weddings. Down South Delights is one catering company that know how to satisfy that desire for some downhome cookin'.
Warning: Reading their blog is like going to the grocery store - don't do it on an empty stomach because you will want to eat everything you see! They seem to have such a flair for Southern fare (and, really, cuisine of any kind).
Barbara wanted a super chic modern wedding with Tiffany blue & chocolate integrated throughout the reception. They chose The Cannery as their venue which we are now on the list as one of their preferred caterers!! We started working with the couple last April and catered the engagement party too!
Mini Salads
For the menu they chose our strawberry almond chicken tarts, hot buttered seafood dip, a lavish fruit & cheese display, butter pecan chicken tenders w/ blackberry Dijon, a mashed potato martini station, garlic Cheddar biscuits with praline ham, Bourbon beef tenderloin on cream biscuits, zucchini artichoke fritters w/ spicy marinara, a mini salad display, and a spinach artichoke dip.
Zucchini artichoke fritters
Since the reception began in the evening the couple wanted the hors d’ oeuvres to be substantial and filling.
Courtney of A Magical Affair was the planner and we absolutely LOVE working with her and her team.They also designed the enormous candy buffet that was a hit all evening long.
The decor was handled by One Source Weddings which had a beautiful draped entrance and also some fabulous custom seating.
French Confection created the oh so stylish Tiffany Box cake.
Check out the cute banana pudding shots that we created and served after the wedding cake for a little snack for guests to enjoy.
The 1940's evoke images of black and white movies with their dashing actors and stylish, elegant leading ladies. Casablanca, Citizen Kane, It's a Wonderful Life and many more classics made the decade and its fashion iconic - sharp suits and fedoras for men, beautiful dresses and sexy yet very classy accessories for women. It was a romantic era and it's no wonder when Kelly and James planned their big day, they adopted the 1940's theme.
Using creative, D.I.Y. smarts they successfully incorporated the theme and included their guests in the mix to really complete it! They did such a fantastic job too and thanks to Donald Yeager Photography, we get to share in the fun of their 1940's wedding. I had so much fun looking at the pictures and I hope you do too.
Real Wedding: Kelly & James' Downtown Wedding, 1940's style.
BrideKelly Hohenbrink
GroomJames Stewart
Our Wedding Details November 7, 2009 4:00pm
Ceremony Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Germantown, Nashville
James proposed the day after Christmas 2008 at my parent’s house. He had big plans to propose on Christmas day but everything that could go wrong with his plan, did go wrong. He ended up getting down on one knee the next morning in my childhood bedroom and proposed before anything else could get in his way!
What was your wedding style?
Classic and fun 1940’s.
What were your colors? Why did you choose them?
Our colors were black, white and red. Using black and white is always very classy and, by adding a pop of red, it really worked to make it glamorous.
Did you have a theme? What was it?
We made our wedding theme 1940’s Hollywood Glamour done Nashville style.
What did you use for inspiration?
We got a lot of ideas from watching classic 1940’s movies to see their style of dress, the mood of the era and to get ideas about centerpieces. The classic movies were pretty much all we watched up until the wedding day so we were really in tune with how we wanted the vibe of the ceremony and reception to be. We also bought magazines from the 1940s from ebay to make sure we were in line with the styles and to get ideas about how the invitations should look.
What was your budget?
The budget was very important for us. We tried to keep in under $15,000. We probably went over but not by too much.
What was your wedding WOW factor? {What did your guests love?}
The reception was completely decked out for the 1940’s. From the Big Band music and the crooning of Frank Sinatra to the actual 1940’s magazines scattered throughout the room, it was like stepping back in time. We had feathers and pearls everywhere. Each table was supplied with fedora hats and red handkerchiefs for the men and boas, pillbox hats, gloves and “pearl” necklaces for the women. Our guests were all able to dress the part and had a fabulous time. We also had lots of tea-light candles in Mason jelly jars for a southern, romantic feel.
What did you give as favors to your guests?
The guests got to take home the hats and accessories they wore during the night and also candy from the Mason jars that were on their tables. All the candy we put out was candy popular in the 1940’s and I made sure it fit the color scheme, of course!
How did you personalize your wedding?
One of the fun things we did was put framed pictures on each table at the reception from our engagement photo session with Donald Yeager Photography. We had the pictures taken in downtown Nashville dressed up in 1940’s style clothing. We also put out framed pictures of our grandparents on their wedding days from the actual 1940’s. They loved it!
What did you give your bridesmaids and groomsmen?
All the bridesmaids and groomsmen got full flasks that I engraved with their initials. Yep, engraving can be DIY, too! I got the engraver at Lowes for under $20 and stencils from Hobby Lobby.
What was your most special moment of the day?
My special moment of the day was walking into the reception for the first time. James and I didn’t want to see each other before the wedding so we took our pictures as a couple after the ceremony. This gave the guests plenty of time to get comfortable at the reception during the cocktail hour before we arrived. When we walked in, I saw the whole crowd dressed up in all the hats and boas and jewels that we’d put on their tables. They were eating, drinking, laughing and looked simply dashing. It just meant so much to me that everyone had really gotten into the theme. They looked amazing and were already having a great time.
Did you have kids at your wedding? What did you do for them?
We did have kids at the wedding but limited it to nieces/nephews and children of our friends. We arranged for them to have special kid’s meals and put crayons and actual 1940’s coloring books on their tables (ebay, of course!). Also, we gave them Ring Pops for a little extra kid bling.
Did you Do It Yourself or did you leave it to the professionals?
We were on a strict budget and I’m very artsy so everything that we could do ourselves, we did. We had friends do our flowers and wedding cupcakes. Pictures were very important to us so we made sure to use a professional photographer. Don Yeager did an amazing job. We also used a professional DJ under strict orders to only play music from the 1940’s.
If you did DIY, what was your favorite project? Why?
Making the vintage hats for the guests was my favorite. This ranged from simply hot-gluing a ribbon on a men’s fedora to constructing an entire ladies pillbox hat from felt. It wasn’t my favorite while making them (because there were so many!) but it made every hat unique and definitely personalized. And, there is something special about seeing everyone from your grandparents to your friends from work looking stunning wearing hats that you’ve hand-made. I still can’t help but smile thinking about it!
Wedding Vendors:
Planner: Planning was done by the Bride
Cake(s): Cupcakes made by our friend and expert cupcake-maker Jackie Kovarovics
Caterer: Chef’s Market
Photographer: Donald Yeager Photography
Stationery: All designed by the Bride, printing by GreenerPrinter.com
Bridesmaid Dresses: Pacificplex.com
Rings: Overstock.com
Music: DJ – Joel Price
Decorations/Detail: All designed by the Bride.
Bridal Gown: Ceremony gown from David’s Bridal, Reception gown from Pacificplex.com
Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse
Accessories: Hats, gloves, jewelry, seamed hose, etc all from ebay.
Flowers: a group of my girlfriends from work ordered roses online from Sam’s Club and then made all the bouquets and boutonnieres
Transportation: Limo service was given as a gift. Not sure which company was used.
Gifts: Flasks from Amazon, Vintage pins for the Mothers from ebay
Who were your favorites? {the ones you would highly recommend to your best friend}
Donald Yeager Photography was great. He was so willing and excited to shake things up a little with the 1940’s theme. I would definitely recommend him. Also, the bridal party got their hair and make-up done at Harlow Salon. Harlow is amazing and they are experts in 1940’s style. They are the ones who really made the whole look come together better than I’d even imagined they would.
Wedding Rewind
What would you do differently if you could start back at the beginning?
Nothing. All the DIY projects wouldn’t be for everyone, but I really liked putting so much work into it. Luckily I had flexibility at my job at that time and started early so I had adequate time to get everything together.
What do you consider the biggest waste of time and/or money?
The biggest waste of money was getting a venue that did not include the tables/chairs/plates/etc in the rental. All these things had to be rented separately which really adds up. However, we probably would have still done it the same way we did if we had it to do over because the location and look of the venue really fit our theme.
What do you consider the best value for the service and product?
Everything. It’s hard to say just one thing since most everything we did was either DIY or done by a friend.
What was the neatest thing you found for your wedding?
I found so many great things from ebay. I really wanted to be true to the 1940’s and couldn’t believe how many things I found from the actual era on ebay. I found a lot of great original hats and magazines and coloring books and vintage jewelry. It was perfect.
What was your biggest {and best} splurge?
We chose to have additional lighting brought in from Nashville Event Lighting– string lights over the dance floor and wash lighting against the walls. We could have done without it but it really gave the place a nice vibe and the string lights added some extra romance. They also looked great in pictures!
What a fantastic theme! Everyone and everything looked great and it looked like it was a blast. Kelly and James, here's wishing you a lifetime of dances and fun - congratulations! We're glad we got to take a peek into your wonderful day. Much thanks also to Donald Yeager Photography for the pictures.
Happy Monday! I would like to wish a very happy birthday to Tabitha (my right hand and ABG blogger whose birthday was yesterday) and Ms. Hillary Robson of Brocade Designs, whose birthday is today. I love you both and ABG would not be the same without you!!!
Since it's Hillary's birthday, I thought I would share some of her amazing work.
Hillary and her team of floral design experts have put together many a gorgeous wedding in Nashville. The wedding featured below took place at the Hermitage Golf Course and the flowers just gave everything that it needed to turn beautiful into breakthtaking.
Featured Wedding Blog: Brocade Designs Wedding at the Hermitage Golf Course
Last September, I had the distinct pleasure of working with the lovely Chelsea & Jordan– check out her blog, The Adventures of Mrs. Smith, always a delightful read.
Chelsea had so many wonderful ideas for her September wedding: she wanted a beautiful affair with touches of tiffany blue, pink, and ivories– with luscious flowers like hydrangea, roses, and orchids. She invisioned a spectacular aisle with lots of pale pink petals ending with a rustic arch embellished with flowers. The result, I think, was beyond lovely.
All images by Paul Wharton Photography; event planning by Latrice with Opulent Couturier, venue: the Hermitage Golf Course ; delightful deliciousness by Chef Penelope , rockin tunes (that kept the party going all night) The Mad Dog Company, and a killer Tiffany Box cake by Cakes by Rebecca Now, onto the pretty!
Chelsea had some lovely unique touches: one, we designed her bouquet that each flower in it was one that she shared with a bridesmaid. Secondly, she had a lovely handkerchief that she wrapped around her bouquet:
Visit the Brocade Designs floral design blog, for more gorgeous details from Mr. & Mrs. Smith's wedding and to find out a little bit more about Brocade. While you're there, send Hillary a big Happy Birthday wish!
You all might already know that I love love love quirkier weddings where the bride and groom have their signature cool style, one that's VERY distinctly theirs and they're not just following trends. Today's wedding comes to us by way of Jenna Henderson of jHenderson Studios. She really manages to capture the personalities of each couple she photographs. Very cool.
This couple (the bride happens to be Hannah, a wedding photographer whose weddings we've loved featuring) got married in this fabulously worn looking venue in Clarksville, TN called the Customs House Museum. The day looked like a blast! So without further ado, here's Jenna and a few of our favorites from the Westphall/ Blanton wedding!
I often say to Joshy, "Next time we get married, let's do such and such." Meaning, of course, that I have no intentions of getting married to anyone else, but rather what we would do should our wedding magically be in the future somehow. Chances are, we would probably do things differently, just because I get to see all kinds of great ideas for great weddings...and bad ones too. I know what works, what doesn't, and what's going to make stellar photos. Enter Hannah, my bride. Hannah happens to be a wedding photographer.
First, let me say it is a ginormous compliment to be selected to photograph a wedding for a wedding photographer....and intimidating! But, it think it really kept me on my toes, and I'm proud of what I wound up with. Of course, a lot of that has to do with my subject. Hannah & John's wedding was perfectly detail-oriented, personal, funky, & fun...starting with the ceremony venue. It was literally an abandoned church with the doors and windows boarded up sitting on an empty street in Adams, Tenn.
Despite how that might sound, it actually turned out to be really quite awesome. Pretty much everything was DIY...boutineer, bouquets, "yay" flags, food, cake, center pieces...Hannah even made her own dress! Check it out for yourself.
For even more beautiful wedding pictures and the awesome little details that went into the wedding, visit Jenna's blog.
Boy do I have a fun wedding for you today! Golriz (bride) reached out to me last week and said...
"Your site was a wonderful resource for me as I was preparing for our wedding. We only had a couple of months and a very tight budget but I really feel like my fiance-now-husband, devon, and I pulled off a gorgeous, creative, and very unique wedding."
After seeing the wedding video and wedding photos from this Anthropologie-inspired wedding, I couldn't wait to share the incredible details with you. Disclaimer - the photography was not included in Golriz's budget but was a gift from the photographer friend:).
Here are just a few things that I love about her wedding - 1) it's the first Ive seen at Marathon Village (a new, edgy venue that Ive wanted to check out) 2) the couple added so many unique touches that I feel I know them 3) I love their wedding video trailer and their wedding photography, which capture all of the not-to-miss details.
This couple has a very whimiscal style and they expressed it in every aspect of their day. You should do the same! Make your wedding a day that represents you as a couple - as zany, traditional or funky as you are!
Ceremony & Reception Location: Marathon Village, Nashville, TN
Guest Count: 150
What were your top 3 priorities when planning your wedding?
1. Aesthetic - we wanted the wedding to feel intimate, creative and cozy.
2. Budget - we had a very limited budget ($5000) and we were very careful to not go over this figure.
3. Uniqueness - we really wanted to infuse as much of ourselves and our personalities into our wedding.
What was your wedding style? Whimsical and romantic
What were your colors? Why did you chose them?
White, bright yellow and turquoise blue. We felt the colors suited a spring wedding and brought in our favorite elements into our venue (sunshine and blue skies!)
Did you have a theme? What was it?
We didn't have a formal theme, but from the outset both of us said we wanted the wedding to have the vibe of 'Anthropologie'
What made your wedding creative?
We wanted every ounce of our wedding to burst with creativity, but my fiance and I were on a very tight budget. This was actually a blessing as it forced us to be really creative and think out of the box. Let's just say we became regulars at the local Goodwill store! A friend recently described our wedding as looking like a Wes Anderson movie, so I think we achieved what we were aiming for!
What did you use for inspiration?
Devon's brain! He came up with the paper chandelier idea and even created a little model out of a box so that I could understand what his vision was!
What was your budget? $5000
What was your wedding WOW factor?
The installation with the vintage TVs, 18 hanging umbrellas and lightbulbs. We had a slideshow on the TVs set to music showing pictures of ourselves as kids, and throughout our relationship. Our guests also went crazy for our homemade photo-booth.
What did you give as favors to your guests?
CD's that we had custom printed with 3 songs that Devon and I had co-wrote and recorded. We placed each of the CD's into a fabric hand-sewn case and hung them with mini clothes pegs to ribbon outside the door to the venue so guests could pick one up as they left.
How did you personalize your wedding?
Devon surprised me during the ceremony by performing a song he had written for me. The song reduced all of our guests and me to tears! It was so sweet.
What was your most special moment of the day?
Exchanging gifts with each other on the staircase. Devon got me a ukelele - an instrument I've wanted for ages but have no idea how to play (!), and I got us matching Vespa helmets.
Did you have kids at your wedding? What did you do for them?
Yes, several of our friends and family have young ones and we wanted them to enjoy the occasion. The kids loved the photobooth, the cupcakes and the easel we had where we asked each guest to paint us a heart. They also loved dancing!
What did you DIY/Do It Yourself?
We did it all ourselves with the help of our amazing friends and family!
What was your favorite DIY wedding project?
My favorite project was creating the TV/light/umbrella installation. Even going around to local thrift stores with Devon for weeks beforehand to find the perfect array of TVs was so much fun!
What were some (of the many!) other projects that you DIY’ed?
~A massive paper and twinkly light 'chandelier' above our heads, with handmade strands of fabric flower garlands hanging behind us.
~An art installation with 18 hanging umbrellas, bare lightbulbs and 9 vintage TVs. The TVs streamed a slide show of pictures of the two of us set to music.
~Our wedding favors - we printed CDs with songs that we had written & recorded and put them in hand sewn fabric sleeves.
~Our centerpieces - willow lights with hanging strips of ribbon and bright yellow button mums.
~Cake toppers - little fabric birds.
~Cake stand - instead of purchasing/renting a stand for our 150 cupcakes we built one (using Cetaphil containers and cake boards!)
What are some of the obstacles that you faced in planning a DIY wedding?
Time! Hand crafting all the decorations took up a lot of time. Thankfully a few close friends flew in early for the wedding and we put them to work creating fabric flowers, centerpieces, and the large art installations.
Wedding Resources:
~ Cupcakes: Effie Sahihi
~ Photographer: Ryan Lash Photography (gift)
~ Videographer: FullFrame Digital Cinema
~ Rings: Village Jewelers, Hillsboro Village, Nashville
~ Music: Joel Price, Professional DJ
~ Hair: Genevieve's Salon, East Nashville
~ Makeup: Neda Ferdowsi
What would you do differently if you could re-plan your wedding?
Delegate more! Devon and I both like being involved in all the little details but we could have probably delegated more of the tasks to our willing friends and family.
What was the biggest waste of time and/or money?
Spending a lot of money on a dress. My dress was from BCBG (the bottom half) and my talented mother created the top part/neckline of my dress. I was thrilled with it and I didn't spend a fortune.
What was the best value for the service and product?
Our photographer - Ryan Lash. He has a background as a professional documentary style photographer so he knows how to seem 'invisible' and capture the most intimate moments.
What was the neatest thing you found for your wedding?
I adore the fabric flower garlands that we hung in our backdrop and behind the dessert table. They added such a splash of color and brought springtime inside!
What was your biggest {and best} splurge?
Hiring videographers. We LOVE the trailer and can't wait to see the full video!
Was there one thing you wouldn’t change about your wedding?
I wouldn't change any of it! We had so much fun and our guests are still raving about the experience. It suited us perfectly and was the most amazing way to usher in this new chapter of our lives!
UPDATE:
Just when we thought we couldn't get enough of this wedding, we got the full-length video from the beautiful bride. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we have!
At Ashley’s Bride Guide, we’re always on the lookout for innovative and exciting wedding ideas.
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