the wedding scoop

Kristen and Adam’s Welcoming, Gorgeous Wedding Day at Nashville’s aVenue

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

It's no surprise that Kristen and Adam's Nashville wedding mirrored their social butterfly lifestyle: comfortable, focused on friends and family, and welcoming.

The couple picked an all-star wedding team who understood and respected their vision, and then they stepped back and allowed the weddings pros to execute. The result was a day filled with laughter, great food, and a warm atmosphere. And while "stunning" wasn't a top priority for the couple, they got that too! Their day, from beginning to end, was absolutely breathtaking.

Kristen + Adam
Wedding Date: October 10, 2015
Ceremony Venue: St. George’s Episcopal Church
Reception Venue: aVenue
Guests: 180
Budget: $20,000 – 30,000

Wedding Team

Wedding Details

How would you describe your style as a couple?

We are both very laid back and I would say an inviting couple. We are big social butterflies. Neither one of us have met a stranger. Our typical evenings involve wine and conversation with friends at someone’s house.

How did you incorporate that style into your wedding?

We wanted our wedding to feel like a big, welcoming party. I didn’t want anything too elaborate or fancy. We wanted the occasion and the guests to be the main focus. I loved the idea of the exposed brick throughout the venue and beautiful flowers throughout with simplistic centerpieces. We had a “lounge” type area in the center of the receptions with a couch, rug, and coffee table. Made you feel like you were just hanging out with your friends at someone’s home.

What was your (or your guests’) favorite aspect of your wedding?

We made a great decision with the band. The band Bueller did an amazing job getting everyone to dance and come together. One of our favorite parts was when the band was playing Journey’s “Faithfully.” A large group of our friends circled around us and sang loudly. It was a very special moment for all of us.

Where did you splurge? Where did you save/DIY?

I would say we were pretty economical about most things except the photographer. It was very important, for me especially, to have pictures that really captured the moment and that were beautiful. We knew the day would be a whirlwind and we may not remember everything, so to have pictures you can look back on is so important to us. We saved money on décor. We did not DIY, but we really didn’t go crazy on décor with draping, etc. We wanted it to feel clean and open.

Now that the wedding day is over, is there anything about your planning process you feel you could have done differently?

It went so smoothly and turned out so gorgeously that I really don’t have anything I want to change. The wedding planner did most of it, so it was kind of nice to walk into the venue and see everything for the first time.

In one sentence, what words of advice do you have for couples in the midst of their planning?

Enjoy it and do not sweat. People want to celebrate you and do not care about your centerpieces and drapery.

Posted by Ashley King | Filed under: 0 comments »

Fabulous Frocks of Nashville Adds Versatile Wedding Accessory: The Chelsea

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Fabulous Frocks of Nashville just added the Chelsea piece from Sara Gabriel Veils & Headpieces! What's special about this new addition is that the Chelsea can either be worn as a sash or as a hair ribbon.

At AshleysBrideGuide.com we're all about multi-purpose wedding finds, be they detachable skirts or floral pieces that can be used from ceremony to reception. So of course we love this new beauty.

Visit Fabulous Frocks to try on the ribbon and see what you think.

Photo: Fabulous Frocks on Instagram

Posted by Ashley King | Filed under: Bridal Gowns, Wedding Dresses & Accessories, Makeup, Hair, Health, Beauty 0 comments »

Oakwood Cleaners Restores 70 Year-Old Gown for Bride’s Granddaughter

Monday, March 28, 2016

Helen Stokich’s wedding gown had certainly seen better days. It had been stored for years in various places: her attic, her sister’s home, her son’s closet, her granddaughter’s attic.

Eventually, her granddaughter, Ellen, was compelled to bring it back to its luxurious beginning. Ellen began online research and found many reviews that led her to Oakwood Cleaners, the go-to place for wedding gown restoration in Nashville.

Ellen contacted Rhonda, owner of Oakwood Cleaners, and after meeting her team, discussing the gown, and being treated like family, Ellen was comfortable enough to leave the gown at Oakwood for further analysis.

The gown was fragile. It had been kept in an old, white plastic trash bag inside of a brown bag and was wadded up and wrinkled. Its smell of mothballs was overpowering, and the stench quickly took over the room.

Oakwood covered it with their breathable bags so the odor would not permeate through the store and allowed the smell to dissipate over 2 or 3 weeks.

Rhonda continued to analyze the gown and didn’t think there was anything that could be done without ruining the dress. However, she’d fallen in love with the dress and the love story, and she wanted so badly to help Ellen.

Rhonda talked to her production manager and Ellen about the options: Dry cleaning? Pressing? Preserving? What could the gown withstand? The production manager thought it was possible, but the lining would not survive the heat. Ellen gave her permission to remove the lining and the process started.

Oakwood Cleaners was able to dry clean the gown without any further damage. (Yes!) It brightened the dress a little, ridding it of the odor and some of the soot that had built up from age and from being stored in plastic. (Helpful tip: Never store anything in plastic for more than a few days.)

Oakwood’s certified expert wedding gown presser handled it with much love and care, and it came out beautiful. When Ellen went to see it, she was amazed and hugged Rhonda a dozen times! Rhonda was also just as thrilled with the outcome.

Now, the gown is stored in a museum-quality preservation box to prevent further deterioration. Whether Ellen displays the dress at a wedding of her own or gifts it to a family member, the gown can now be appreciated by all as a family heirloom.

When asked how she felt about the results, Ellen told me, “Extremely happy! I couldn’t even believe that the dress came that clean or looked that great! I thought a lot of it would be ripped after cleaning and NOTHING was… I was surprised with how well it came out. . . I was prepared for the worst, and I didn’t think the smell would come out, and it did. Rhonda kept me updated through it all, which I really liked.”

The journey of the dress can’t be fully appreciated until you read about Helen Stokich‘s story below.

Posted by Ashley King | Filed under: 0 comments »

Couple Jump-Starts Festivities at Rehearsal Dinner, Hosts Laid-Back Reception at Ruby Nashville

Friday, March 25, 2016

For their Southern, DIY wedding, Meredith and David made smart choices. They splurged on some of the city's top wedding vendors (The Collection, Liberty Party Rental, and Ruby Nashville) and saved by turning to friends, family, and Etsy!! The result was a Nashville wedding part pro, part DIY, and all beautifully done.

Learn more about their big day by reading our interview with Meredith today.

Meredith + David
Wedding Date: November 17, 2015
Ceremony Venue: Church of the Redeemer
Reception Venue: Ruby
Guests: 120
Budget: $10,000 - $20,000

Wedding Team

Wedding Details

How would you describe your style as a couple?

We wanted our wedding to be a laid-back, fun celebration. Our family and friends are important to us, and we wanted them to enjoy themselves. They also helped out a lot and participated in various aspects of our wedding. We also had bit of a Southern vibe. I grew up in the South, while Dave is new to it, but Nashville is our home and where we met and fell in love.

How did you incorporate that style into your wedding?

We incorporated Southern themes with the magnolia leaves that decorated the tables, BBQ dinner, and a hummingbird cake. We had our rehearsal dinner at Urban Grub. We also featured some local artists in our playlist. We included a list of recommended restaurants and activities on our wedding website for people to enjoy while they were in town. We served Yazoo beers at our wedding because we wanted to feature a local brewery. We also celebrated fall a bit, since we both love it, with white pumpkins that we used as table markers and a pumpkin beer that we both really like.

What was your (or your guests’) favorite aspect of your wedding?

One thing that we did that I loved, which was actually our photographer's suggestion, was having an opportunity to connect with out-of-town guests before the wedding. We had our rehearsal dinner at Urban Grub in a room that opened onto their patio, so we were able to invite out-of-town guests to stop by for appetizers/dessert and drinks following the dinner. That way we actually got to talk with people we would have had little time with at the wedding. It was a great idea!

Where did you splurge? Where did you save/DIY?

As you can see, we did a lot through Etsy, which really saved us a lot. We had a really hard time finding ties for the guys, and the Etsy ones were affordable and looked great. The bridesmaid dresses were very inexpensive and so well made. They didn’t even have to get alterations after sending in their measurements to have them made! I loved my dress and spent about half of what I would have in a bridal store.

The reception site was a big expense, but our catering was very affordable and fantastic. Ditto on our florist being affordable and fantastic. I showed her some pictures of what I wanted and she ran with it. Booking my photographer was one of the first things I did because I knew Erin’s work was fantastic and I valued good pictures. She didn’t disappoint! We paid our friend Melanie to be our reception coordinator (because she has tour manager experience and she’s done it before), and her help was invaluable and worth so much more than we paid her!

Now that the wedding day is over, is there anything about your planning process you feel you could have done differently?

I would have loved to have worked with a planner, but I just couldn’t justify the expense. We have talked about wishing that we had hired a videographer. At the time it seemed like a large additional expense, but now we kind of wish we had that.

In one sentence, what words of advice do you have for couples in the midst of their planning?

Breathe! We sold my house, bought a house, moved, and had a break-in at our new house during the planning process. It was a lot! We intentionally set aside times to just hang out and not work on wedding planning so that we focused on our relationship and not just our wedding.

It helps to have a clear vision of what you want and you have to communicate it very clearly. For example, some ceremony/reception venues would tell us what they could accommodate, but when we asked more questions we felt that it wouldn’t be comfortable for our guests or what we were wanting. We wanted to do a sit down dinner and some venues don’t factor that in when they tell you their capacity.

We booked our honeymoon early and chose to go to an all-inclusive resort, which was delightful because we were exhausted and done making decisions!

Posted by Ashley King | Filed under: DIY & Budget Wed Finds, Photography 0 comments »

Nashville Wedding Planner Launches Helpful Wedding Planning Video Series

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Karen Kaforey of Signature Events Nashville started a delightfully helpful wedding planning series where she shares her years of knowledge and interviews the best-in-class wedding pros around Nashville.

She recently interviewed one of our favorite caterers, Jim of Chef's Market. See the video below and be sure to visit the Signature Events YouTube channel for more wedding planning advice videos.

Here's another great video by Karen Kaforey on Selecting Your Wedding Rentals. Very good information that will be useful as your plan your Nashville wedding.

Posted by Ashley King | Filed under: Advice & Planning, Food/Catering, Wedding Planners & Coordinators 0 comments »

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