Friday, March 4, 2016
A light-hearted, fun celebration that showcased their country roots remained at the forefront as Hollie and Dusten planned their Nashville wedding. Those two goals are easy to make happen in Nashville with our rustic venues, Southern food, and incredible natural beauty.
Their wedding was perfectly planned... that was until the groom got stuck in Canada. You have to read all about their wedding story!
Hollie + Dusten
Wedding Date: April 11, 2015
Ceremony + Reception Venue: Loveless Barn
Guests:150
Budget: $30,000 – 40,000
Wedding Team
Planner | Bride
Photographer | Erin of The Collection Photography
Gown | Arzelle’s Bridal
Bride’s Accessories | Bracelet from maternal grandmother
Men’s Attire | Ralph Lauren
Hair + Makeup | Jon Alan Aveda Salon in Bellevue, TN
Stationery | Bride via Wedding Paper Divas
Catering, Rentals, + Lighting | Loveless Cafe
Cake Artist | Gayle Howard from Yaya’s Cake Shoppe
Floral Designer | Floral Expressions by Cindy
Ceremony Musicians | DIY
Reception Musicians | Pink Cadillac
Wedding Details
How would you describe your style as a couple?
Dusten and I both love the classic rustic look.
How did you incorporate that style into your wedding (e.g. décor, colors, details or even picking the venue)?
As stated above, my now-husband and I love the rustic look, and wanted to give it a classy twist. All things burlap and mason jars combined with a perfect Southern atmosphere. We both have roots from the country with me being raised on a cow farm in rural Georgia and him being a good ol’ country boy from a wheat and grain farm in Manning, Alberta. We wanted our wedding to portray that about us in a classy way. The soft colors and vibes provided by our wedding party along with the legendary barn venue provided by Loveless perfectly personified our style.
What was your favorite aspect of your wedding?
THE FOOD. Loveless is, of course, known for their wonderful Southern cuisine, which was a bonus for the many Canadians who attended that had never had the chance to experience a nice Southern-themed meal.
Where did you splurge? Where did you save/DIY?
Splurge - definitely the venue. I could cut corners just about anywhere, but the most important aspect to my husband and me was showing our guests a good time. We had visitors from as far north as Manning, Alberta and as far east as Adana, Turkey. While a usual wedding is the bride and groom's day, we knew we wouldn’t be completely satisfied unless all of our guests had a time they would never forget. Not only that, but by using the Loveless Barn, all the catering and decorating was taken care of in one place. There wasn’t all that, “Oh my gosh, I have to run to the caterer,” or, “I have to go across town to meet my decorator!” My husband and I went maybe a total of two times to sit down with the events manager at Loveless who gave us our options on everything. All we had to do was point and say, “I want that!” The amount of stress relief I had by using an all-in-one venue was worth the cost!
Also, the entertainment. Pink Cadillac was phenomenal. They engaged with the audience and kept the party going. I highly recommend a live band for anyone who wants interactive and live entertainment at their wedding.
As far as DIY and saving, I went with smaller, freelance vendors for all the other things in my wedding. My florist was a lady who works from home, and who had done one of my boss’s wedding flowers. She was fabulous. It was so low key and easy. The same goes for my cake artist. My guest book was a canvas picture of a tree from Etsy that guests marked with their fingerprints. My bridesmaid bags were cute necessities from Target. The bridesmaids’ and my shoes were flip flops from Old Navy. My motto: The simpler the better. I wanted to preserve that good old simplistic, Southern rustic feel.
Now that the wedding day is over, is there anything about your planning process you feel you could have done differently?
My wedding was unique in that my husband almost didn’t make it back in time for the wedding. Long story short, he got stuck in Canada, and we had to cancel our wedding a week before the big day. Somehow, a miracle happened, and he got back 3 days before so we were able to pull off the wedding of our dreams. There are so many things I wish I could have done differently (like not cancel my wedding and then have to reinitiate the whole process again), but I truly believe everything happens for a reason. I had an incredible team of support from my family, friends, and vendors, so, honestly, with the way things turned out, I wouldn’t change a thing about the wedding day.
What words of advice do you have for couples in the midst of their planning?
1. Don’t let your husband get stuck in a foreign country a week before your wedding. The stress will make you throw things. Haha :)
2. Don’t get consumed in the planning. I know it’s your wedding, and it’s a big deal, but you can easily get sucked in and stressed out about small details that your guests will never even notice.
3. Make decisions and stick with them. Don’t visit other vendors after your choose one, and don’t visit other potential sites after you have already put a down payment somewhere else. It will drive you nuts. Enjoy the process. It really is special.
4. Only you will know if something goes wrong the day of your wedding. Everyone is having such a beautiful time, they won’t notice that there aren’t enough napkins on the table or that your hair is falling down on one side. So, take a deep breath, let it go, have a cocktail, and enjoy the heck out of your special day. It only comes around once (hopefully!).
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Posted by Ashley King |
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Thursday, March 3, 2016
2 Travel Anywhere and Street Tuxedo are bringing back their ultra-popular Honeymoon Night to Nashville grooms and brides on March 12. It's proven to be the ultimate planning experience for grooms as it provides the perfect opportunity to shop for tuxes and honeymoon options with little stress and lots of help.
Details are below:
Time: Saturday, March 12, 2016 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM (CST)
Location: Street Tuxedo of Green Hills - 2209 Bandywood Drive Nashville, TN 37215
Please RSVP by clicking here as tickets are FREE but are LIMITED.
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Posted by Ashley King |
Filed under: Bridal Shows & Events, Destination Weds & Honeymoon , Grooms, Groomsmen & Tuxedos ,
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Wednesday, March 2, 2016
Nashville's LVD Bridal introduced new looks for rehearsal dinners and receptions over the last week. These gowns are versatile, and they can easily function as either bridesmaids' gowns or short wedding gowns. The new dresses are from designers you know and love, like Sarah Seven, Willow by Watters, and Nicole Miller Bridal.
Contact LVD Bridal in Houston Station to schedule your appointment. 615-487-2893
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Posted by Ashley King |
Filed under: Bridal Gowns, Wedding Dresses & Accessories, Bridesmaids & Bridal Party,
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Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Today's guest blog is presented by Laurie Capper. She's a delight, and after serving as our intern and helping Nashville brides plan their dream wedding, she now helps them find their dream home as a realtor with Parkside Realty.
What's the one thing you can't plan a wedding without (well, aside from the bride and groom)? A budget! You have to be consciously aware of exactly how much you're spending and what you're spending it on. You want to make sure that ALL of your decisions make sense logically, aesthetically and financially.
This applies not only to your wedding, but also to your life; especially now that you're joining forces with your new spouse. In addition to evaluating your wedding budget, you'll also both want to discuss what comes AFTER the wedding and how you can be financially prepared for that.
If you’re thinking of purchasing a home soon after you’re married, you’ll want to know exactly how much house you can afford and you will need to get an idea of how much money you should be saving. The first step is to speak with a lender. A lender will go over your financials such as income and debt, and let you know exactly how much home you can afford (e.g. your financial home-purchasing power). A lender will also talk to you about the different types of home loans, discuss loans that might work for you and your future spouse,and the current mortgage interest rates. They will also educate you about the amount of cash you’ll need for your down payment, closing costs and other expenses such as title insurance (which will help ensure your rightful ownership of the home once the transaction closes), home appraisal and home inspection.
Make sure you also ask the lender if he/she can provide you with an estimate of how much your monthly mortgage payments will be based on the type of loan you have, the current interest rates that are available and the amount of home you want to purchase. Even if you can afford to purchase a $500,000 home, you may not want to if your payments will leave you scrounging for cash each month.
Once you've met with a lender, take some time to sit down with your future spouse and determine exactly how much money you’ll need to set aside each month to cover all the costs associated with the purchase of a home. It may seem tough to save money for a home while you’re also planning and paying for a wedding, but remember - no amount is too small!
You may also want to look into setting up a gift registry that allows friends and family to contribute money toward the purchase of your new home! This is a great alternative to traditional wedding registries and will definitely help you and your future spouse save. Check out Hatch My House (hatchmyhouse.com/), an online house wedding registry. All you have to do is sign up, create a “house”, and invite your friends and family to visit your house page and purchase a part of your house. Your friends and family will love it because they’ll feel as though they’re not only sharing your wedding day with you, but also getting involved in the next chapter of your life.
After you’ve met with a lender, discovered your financial home-purchasing power and successfully funded your new-home savings, you’ll be ready to start house-hunting! Contact a real estate professional to help you officially get your search started. Let him or her know what steps you’ve taken and what you’re looking for in a home (such as price range, area, neighborhood, size, number of bedrooms, and baths and anything else that’s important to you and your future spouse). In turn, he or she will give you an idea of what's available based on your needs and desires and will help educate you on the home-buying process.
If you’re in need of a real estate professional - give me a call! I’d love to get to know you, talk about your goals and home purchasing needs, walk you through the process of home buying or consolidation of properties, and help you Open New Doors!
Laurie Capper of Parkside Realty, LLC - (615) 600-4693 or [email protected]
Photos: All homes listed were taken from the Parkside Realty Facebook page and are actual homes available for sale in the Nashville-area.
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Posted by Ashley King |
Filed under: Honeymoon and Post Wedding,
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Monday, February 29, 2016
When our Instagram friend, Bloom Flowers & Events, instructed followers to check out Michelle and Daniel's recently posted wedding, we happily obliged. Bloom is known for innovative floral creations so we wanted to see what they'd created for this couple's wedding at the City Winery in Nashville.
Michelle's bouquet was stunning and traditional with contemporary floral pops. For her bridesmaids, Michelle went in a completely different direction, creating a fun contrast that we loved! See their wedding, shot by Gavin Nutt Photography, via the Bloom Facebook album.
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Posted by Ashley King |
Filed under: Florals, Details & Design ,
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