Elegant Southern Wedding

By Magnolia Rouge

Oh GRACIE BLUE, you have wooed us with this elegant and charming southern wedding � which features one of the sweetest first looks ever! Check out the brides expression as she realises people are watching them from the house! Bride Lauren moved from Connecticut to Atlanta as a young girl and instantly fell in love with the charm of the South and has always wanted to get married in a historic Southern home full of character and elegance. Her vision was to have a venue that offered it's own beauty without the need for additional decor, and in discovering KIMBALL HALL, they got the perfect result. Choosing a neutral colour palette with a few soft blues and greens � mostly in the bridesmaids dresses � the wedding had the crisp and clean feel they were after.

The Proposal: We met in May of 2008 at the University of Alabama. My roommate, invited me to Lake Tuscaloosa to spend the day on the lake with her friend Jake. Jake and Jonathan went to high school together and both worked at the marina on Lake Tuscaloosa. We spent the day on the lake, but Jonathan and I didn't spend much time together because he locked his keys in his car, and spent most of the day waiting on a locksmith. When my friends and I left the lake, we made plans for all of us to hang out at our house later that night. Jonathan and I were finally able to get to know each other and by the end of the night, he nervously asked for my phone number. Fast forward four and a half years later, we were living together in Athens, AL. Jonathan called me on his way home from work and said he had a surprise for me. I was told to go sit outside by the pool. When Jonathan got home, he opened the back door and our dog, Charlie, ran up to me. I looked down and noticed a diamond ring on his collar. When I looked up, Jonathan was down on one knee. I screamed! To this day, I'm not sure if he ever asked me to marry him, or if I actually said yes!

The Dress: I actually found my dress on Pinterest of all places! I followed the link to the photographer's blog where the woman wearing the dress was married on a beautiful Italian hillside. Luckily for me, her vendors were included at the bottom of the article, which included the designer and style of the dress. The dress was exactly what I always envisioned myself wearing�simple and classic with a hint of Southern elegance. As soon as I tried the dress on, I knew it was the one. My mom and sister were shocked at how easy finding my wedding dress was. They later confessed that dress shopping was what they were least looking forward to. I have a reputation for being terribly indecisive, however, this was one of the easiest decisions I've ever made!

Details: The detail that I was most excited about was incorporating the the farm fresh cotton bolls. Jonathan wasn't as excited about the cotton. Growing up in North Alabama, he considered cotton to be just another crop grown on the side of the road. The first time I saw a cotton field ready for harvest, I fell in love. Even though it's 80 plus degrees in Alabama, the cotton field looked like a blanket of snow. The fact that Jonathan's mom hand picked buckets of cotton for us in October and saved it for our wedding in April made it that much more special. Being from Connecticut and since most of my family were Yankees, I really wanted to showcase the beautiful Southern crop that I fell in love with.

Memorable Moments: Jonathan and I both agreed that our most memorable moment was seeing each other for the first time when we did our �first look� before the ceremony. Even though we have been together for almost six years, I still had butterflies until we saw each other for the first time that day. Once I saw Jonathan, my nervousness was eased and I was ready to marry my best friend. The other memorable moment from our wedding day was after the ceremony when we were whisked upstairs to grab a bite of dinner and have my dress bustled. It was so nice to have a few minutes alone with my new husband to refuel and enjoy this quiet moment with just the two of us. After we ate, I remember being so excited to go downstairs to see all of our family and friends that had traveled so far to celebrate this special day with us.