Lily + Jonathan: Louisiana Wedding

Hope you caught this mornings Caribbean Comfort Shoot from Bliss by Sam.  It made me want to grab a Red Stripe and put my toes in the sand!  Next up, we're sharing a Louisiana beauty from local Charleston photographer, Taylor Rae.  Bride Lily has shared a little extra detail about her Deep South nuptials.

Tell us a little bit about how you met your husband...

Jonathan and I met at Wheaton College in our first class our Freshman year. We became friends our first semester and started dating a the beginning of the Spring semester. We’ve known each other for five years and have been married for one of those.

How did he propose?  How long were you engaged for? 

The summer after our junior year of college I did a study abroad program in England so we were apart for the whole summer. When I got back I was at my parents’ home in Louisiana for two weeks before going back up to Illinois for school. Jonathan was with his family in Ohio. One afternoon he called me and said he was just missing me so much that day and that he just couldn’t wait to see me and to start this next year together. I said I really missed him too and couldn’t wait to see him either. Then he said, “Really? Well why don’t you come outside.” He had flown down from Ohio that morning and was in my backyard with a beautiful bouquet of flowers and a gorgeous ring he had picked out all by himself. He got down on one knee and asked me to spend forever with him.  We were engaged for 10 months and were married in June 2010 just after we both graduated from college.

How did you choose your venue? What elements drew you to it?

I knew that I wanted to have an outdoor wedding, but being in Louisiana in June, preferred to have a reception somewhere air-conditioned. I also knew that I wanted it to have a vintage feel. This venue was perfect because it has a great courtyard for the outdoor ceremony and the restaurant is in a beautiful old house with lots of old wood and brick and the back wall is made entirely of this huge collage of windows in all shapes and sizes. It fit the feel of the wedding and came with everything I needed so I didn’t have to worry about coordinating a lot of separate vendors.

Your wedding was filled with gorgeous details.  Did any have special meaning? What was your favorite?

Although we aren’t Jewish, I really wanted to be married under a chuppah because it symbolizes the new home that the couple will build together. This one was particularly special to me because my brother and sister-in-law built it for me.  My favorite element was the foot-washing we did as part of the ceremony. In the New Testament Jesus washes the feet of his disciples as a symbol of his willingness to serve them. We chose to do this in our ceremony as a way of showing that through our marriage we were committing to serve one another.

Almost every detail was made by hand by me and by other friends and family members and because of that I truly felt that my friends and family were a part of our wedding day and of our marriage.

Out of the entire day, what was the most memorable moment?

Without question, the look on my husband’s face when he saw me in my dress for the first time, walking down the aisle to become his wife. I have never felt so beautiful and treasured and so confident that I was making the right decision.

   

   

What’s your favorite picture from your wedding?


By far this pic of us kissing in front of the restaurant with my dress held out behind me.

Tell us a little bit about your menu.

Because our venue was actually an incredible restaurant we were able to do a sit-down dinner with a choice of soup or salad and chicken, steak, or fish entrée options. There were a lot of Cajun influences in the food since we were deep in South Louisiana. Everyone thought it was delicious.

Looking back on your engagement and wedding, is there any advice you would give to brides in the planning process?

Don’t let yourself get stressed out about the details of the wedding. The important thing is your marriage to this man that you adore. It doesn’t have to meet anyone else’s standards, it needs to be meaningful to you. The things you will remember are not how good your cake looked or whether your bridesmaids’ shoes were all exactly the same color, it’s how it felt to walk down that aisle toward the man you love and the fun of celebrating with your friends and your family.

 

Vendors

photographer: taylor rae photography