Bride & Groom Peruse Antique Stores, Find Perfect Decor for Vintage, Nashville Wedding at The aVenue

Friday, June 21, 2013

Kate and Mark and are so complementary that they make wedding planning look effortless.  Not only do they share a love for TV and movies (which is great for their marriage), they are also drawn to vintage and repurposed pieces (which was great for their wedding).  With so much in common, they knew immediately that aVenue was the venue for their wedding reception and everything else just fell in line.

Having gone to college here, I love Nashville like a second home, so once we decided to get married outside of Ohio the choice was clear. As soon as we walked into aVenue, we knew that we were done searching for a reception venue. The exposed brick walls and ceiling beams satisfied our affinity for vintage, but offered a canvas that was malleable to any aesthetic. We wanted our wedding to not only reflect our personalities, but complement the beauty of the space as well so our aesthetic quickly evolved from shabby chic to the rustic, industrial chic style that we’ve embraced.

Once we decided on our aesthetic we started focusing on how the wedding could reflect our personalities. We first met in law school and immediately bonded over our mutual love for quoting movies and television shows and making one another laugh. We knew that we had to incorporate that side of our personalities into the wedding, so we spent hours putting together inside jokes and funny stories to print on “Did You Know” cards that were incorporated into the wedding and reception.

To date, our favorite is still: Kate and Mark’s top 3 favorite movies are: 1. Jurassic Park 2. Jurassic Park 3. Jurassic Park (This is not a typographical error)

What was the favorite aspect of your wedding? 

Our favorite aspect of the wedding was being surrounded by our family and friends on such an amazing day. A close second was walking into The aVenue and the Pinnacle and seeing our vision come to life. Laurie’s execution was flawless and we honestly couldn’t have hoped for a more perfect day.
We’ve heard a number of things from our guests about their favorite aspects of the wedding, but the overall consensus seems to be the food and the raging dance party later in the evening.

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

It’s hard to say where we splurged. While we initially set a budget, we’d be lying if we said the final invoice looked anything like the original budget. We hadn’t intended on spending as much on flowers as we eventually did, but once we agreed on an overall aesthetic we knew that the flowers were key to making our vision a reality. We also sprung for some amazing vintage pieces from Stockroom Vintage that I just couldn’t turn down.

In terms of DIY, we bought a lot of the décor ourselves. Mark and I, as well as my mom and I, spent hours (Mark: literally, hours) perusing antique stores looking for mason jars, apothecary bottles, vintage windows and doors, anything that I thought might fit within our aesthetic. With the help of my talented friend and graphic designer, Caroline, we also put together our own save-the-date handkerchiefs using a stamp that Caroline designed. While the antiquing may not have been Mark’s idea of a good time, we loved spending time together and putting together all of the pieces that would make our wedding a reflection of who we are as a couple.

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

Now that the wedding is over, there isn’t much we would do differently. At times I was pretty stressed about finding the perfect vintage this, that or the other thing, but it’s hard to regret it when we were so in love with the end result.

Have fun together while you’re planning, let people help you, and embrace every moment of your wedding day because it goes by so quickly.

Our Wedding Team

Planner | Laurie Hardman, Randi Events
Photographer | Krista Lee Photography 
Reception Venue | aVenue
Gown | Jim Hjelm/ La Jeune Mariee Bridal Boutique, Worthington, Ohio
Bride’s Accessories | Paris earrings; Sara Gabriel veil; Christian Louboutin shoes
Men’s Attire | Groom - Hugo Boss, Groomsmen - black suit of their choosing
Bridesmaid’s Attire | J Crew
Hair & Makeup | Amy Lynn Larwig
Caterer & Cake | Chef’s Market 
Cupcakes | The Cupcake Collection 
Floral Designer | Branching Out Event Florist
Ceremony Musicians | Hands of Time
Reception Band | Hands of Time
DJ | Nashville Party Authority 
Rentals | Southern Events, Stockroom Vintage, Music City Tent & Events & various vendors through Randi Events
Lighting | Nashville Audio Visual
Transportation | Trolley from FADDS Party Bus
Guest Accommodations | Hilton Nashville, Hilton Garden Inn Vanderbilt & Hampton Inn & Suites Nashville Downtown
Stationary & Paper Goods | Pumpkinhead Paperie
Invitation Calligrapher | Hillary Cannon of Feather Letter
Wedding Day Calligrapher (placecards, window pane, dinner menus, etc) | Ginger English of The English Letter

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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide | Filed under: Luxury Nashville Wedding Finds2 comments »