Ashleigh & Thomas
April 13, 2014
Ceremony & Reception Venue: Boone Hall Plantation
Photographer: Dennis Kwan Weddings
After falling in love with Boone Hall Plantation online, they snatched up the one-and-only April date available for their intimate Lowcountry affair. The majestic Southern plantation served as the backdrop for their vintage vision, which Ooh! Events brought to life in darling shades of yellow. Keeping with the romantic vibe, Ashleigh stumbled across a lace Alvina Valenta gown and the perfect headpiece at Kleinfeld’s in New York City to complete her look.
Planning & Design: Ooh! Events // Florist: Out of the Garden // Ceremony Music: Mike and Maria Hood // Gown: Alvina Valenta // Bridal Shop: Kleinfeld Bridal (New York City, NY) // Groom & Groomsmen’s Attire: Nordstrom // Bridesmaids Dresses: BHLDN // Rentals: Ooh! Events and Polished! // Cake: WildFlour Pastry // Bar & Catering: Cru Catering // Wedding Favors: Jeanine Owen, The Silhouette Lady // Invitations: My Big Day Designs, Etsy // Officiant: Marshall Dunn // Hair & Makeup: Brittney Robbins // Rehearsal Dinner: Virginia’s on King // Rings: David Yurman, Rosados Box
Tell us how you met:
We met in Toronto when we were both rehearsing for Disney Cruise Line. We were cast as singers on the brand new ship, the Disney Dream. We sang “Once Upon a Dream” together and fell in love!
Proposal Details:
On his grandparent’s 60th wedding anniversary we were all in Tucson, AZ celebrating with them. In front of his entire family he got out his guitar and sang “Now and Forever” to me. He got through a verse and a chorus before he got choked up and asked me to marry him. My favorite part was when grandpa told him to get down on one knee!
How did you select your date + venue:
We had always talked about doing a destination wedding since our family is so spread out and Charleston came up as the perfect place! I knew I wanted early spring (before it got too humid) so we started looking online at venues. One venue sent me pictures of a recent wedding, and although I didn’t love the venue the design of the wedding (by Ooh! Events) was perfect! I immediately emailed Ooh! Events and Boone Hall was one of the recommended venues on their site. I fell in love! They had plenty of beautiful photo locations as well as intimate spaces for our small wedding. April 13th was the weekend I was thinking about already and one of the only dates they had available ALL year. It was a perfect match.
The Gown:
I knew I wanted something very vintage and lace. I found the perfect Alvina Valenta dress at Kleinfeld here in New York City while shopping with a friend. My parents flew in from CA a few months later and while trying the dress on for them we found the PERFECT headpiece!
The Hair + Makeup:
I have very vintage style in all things, especially hair and make up! My dear friend and hairdresser here in NY came down with us to do my modern version of a finger wave, and I did my make up myself. You can never go wrong with a cat eye and a red lip!
The Accessories (Shoes, Jewelry, Veil):
The shoes I bought from modcloth (my favorite shopping website!), the jewelry I found at Tejani (great prices on beautiful stuff!) and I think my favorite accessory ended up being my vintage style cocktail hat with birdcage veil! I found it at Kleinfeld, and the only one they had to try on was pink! I fell in love anyway and ordered it in ivory of course! I think it completed my look perfectly!
Bridesmaids Attire:
I wanted my sister (matron of honor) to pick out her own dress; I just wanted it to be yellow. We stalked this dress that was out of stock on BHLDN forever, and they ended up getting a return in her size!!! My nieces joined in on the “shaded of yellow” craze with dresses from modcloth.
Groom + Groomsmen Attire:
Tom wore Hugo boss. He knew he wanted blue and we ended up finding the perfect blue suit at Nordstrom. All I asked for was a yellow bow tie.
Ceremony Site + Details:
We did our ceremony on the side lawn underneath the avenue of oak trees as you enter the plantation. Tom’s childhood minister, who came all the way from Maryland, married us! We did traditional vows and wrote our own, my sister read Disney quotes on love and Tom’s aunt and uncle played banjo and sang for the ceremony. Selections included “Set Me as A Seal”, “Amazing Grace” and “All you need is Love”; we even included Tom’s parent’s wedding song in honor of his father who passed. It was a true family affair.
Aesthetic + Color Palette:
Again with my love of all things vintage! I wanted it to feel southern, rustic and of course vintage. I wanted it to feel like you stepped back in time to a turn of the century garden party, or shindig as we called it. I love all shades of yellow! Yellow is the happiest of all colors, and what is happier than your wedding day!
The Décor:
Our invitations featured penny-farthing bicycles and silhouettes, so I had to include them in the décor! Ooh! Has the most amazing warehouse for a vintage lover, and all of our rentals came from them! My favorite was the dessert cart and bronze chandelier.
The Food + Beverage:
I wanted to give our guests a true taste on the Lowcountry, and Cru Catering did just that! We had shrimp and grits, mac and cheese, crab cakes, friend green tomatoes, chicken in waffle cones and beef tenderloin. Our signature drink was a mint julep. Everything was amazing!
The Cake:
We got the cake from Lauren at Wildflour. The bottom layer was a “morning glory” with a cream cheese layer and the top was almond cake with salted caramel! So good! I wanted a simple rustic design with texture, and I found the lovebird topper on Etsy at felt me up designs.
Personal Touches:
My favorite personal touch ended up being the silhouette artist. She cut our guests profiles out of paper in a matter of minutes, and they turned out beautifully! She even gave us a book of all our guests at the end!
The Flowers:
Billy balls, peonies, ranunculus, blown garden roses and all things yellow!
The Invitations + Paper Details:
Etsy strikes again! My big day designs had the perfect invites and I was able to customize colors and wording. I made the place cards myself to match the bicycle theme!
Guest Count:
31! It was the most intimate wedding I’d ever experienced, and it was magical.
The Favors:
The guests got to take home their hand cut silhouettes; I also filled their hotel rooms with goodies from Charleston like local beer and popcorn. They all got mason jars with silhouettes and our wedding date on them.
Late night snacks/special treats:
We had a dessert bar with mini pecan pies, banana pudding and mud pie in a mason jar!
The Send-off/Getaway Vehicle:
My dad drove his 55 Chevy truck down for the occasion!
Best Piece of Advice for Brides-to-Be:
The best advice I can give any bride is to keep it small! You can do so much more for your guests and with your budget, and it truly was a magical experience having just the people that loved us most in the world there.
