Good gracious, y’all, where do I even start? Lynae + Brenton’s reception is truly a feast for your sparkle-lovin’ eyes. Though the details are amazing and numerous, one skim through their interview will tell you that each one was a purposeful representation of their personalities and fun-loving spirits. If the gold glitter linens don’t make you want to hop through your computer screen, maybe their sweets bar will do the trick, or their rock candy-covered cake. If sweets aren’t your thing, L + B made sure the night was one to remember from the dance floor. Balloons filled the space so guests could volley them as they partied, and Lynae + all 14 of her bridesmaids made sure to close the night with a choreographed dance to a Beyonce hit. Now don’t all of you want to be friends with this couple?

Our reception felt like a grand party. The outpouring of love and celebration was overwhelming. It set the tone for a fun and exciting time. There was an ample supply of food, dancing, and merriment to go around. Our reception was an ode to all our favorite things. We really tried to incorporate personal touches with the entire vibe of the room. We had balloons, candy, and lots of sequins and sparkle.

What is the one thing that made your wedding different from anyone else’s wedding? I think our love story is what made it unique. We both have very strong personalities and idiosyncrasies that separate us not only as individuals, but as a couple. I think being able to highlight and celebrate those eccentricities is what will set our wedding apart. People can always duplicate the design, but no one will quite have our personal panache.

Our centerpieces were each assorted and distinctive. Some featured single blossoms and others featured full floral arrangements in vases decorated in fruit slices or birdcages. My favorite centerpieces were floral paper poms adorned atop pedestals. I thought it was a fun, non-traditional twist. It looked like giant tiers of cotton-candy!

Describe some of the decorations or décor elements you used: Brenton loves Izze sodas so it was essential to include them in décor in some way. I love the Denver Broncos so we had glitter Broncos as center pieces for the head table. Our engagement pictures featured 36” balloons, so we incorporated our love for balloons into our reception for some continuity. We had our guests leave thumb prints inside a poster board with a hot air balloon outline as our guest book. Guests could leave their ink thumb prints and then write us love notes and words of encouragement beside it. We also had balloons sprinkled around the dance floor for people to volley around while they were grooving the night away.

Tell us a bit about your first dance. Even though Brenton and I have been together for seven years, it truly feels like a lifetime — but in a meaningful way. I don’t remember many milestones without him by my side so we chose a song with lyrics that celebrated that sentiment. We won dance classes from a bridal show in January so we had been practicing in the early part of the year. It’s too bad we didn’t attend a refresher course or brush up on our moves prior to hitting the floor because we completely free-styled the entire dance. We sang, laughed, and harmonized the melodies of Brian McKnight’s “Love of My Life” in front of an entire ballroom of people. And that’s when it hit us — we chose the longest first dance song ever! It was so long that we actually started laughing to ourselves on the floor and making up our own moves. It was a priceless moment!

Describe your wedding cake: After months of wedding prep and classifying cake and all it’s derivatives as a “no-no food,” I was really excited about our cake confection. We decided to go with a square, four-tiered cake that had flavored layers for everyone. We decorated the cake in rock candy arranged in ombre hues and topped it with a sequin cake topper.

What were some of the highlights? The biggest highlight was that my entourage of bridesmaids and I performed a choreographed dance to Beyonce’s “Love On Top.” It was imperative for me that our reception feel like us and there’s nothing more true to form for me than dancing to Beyonce with my girlfriends. It was special to me that all my bridesmaids came together to support a personal interest of mine — even though a lot of my bridesmaids were apprehensive about dancing in public. That performance was epic and the expression on my husband’s face was priceless.

Groom’s favorite detail of the wedding: Our candy bar will always stand-out to me. It was purely amazing.
Who was one of the most special guests at your wedding? We were grateful that 6 of our grandparents attended our wedding. At our age, it really meant a lot that our grandparents were in good health and good spirits to witness our moment. Having them in their late 70s and 80s is something we don’t take for granted.
What kind of food did you serve during the cocktail hour, dinner and dessert? During cocktail hour we had a cheese display and passed hors d’oeuvres. Dinner was a buffet featuring a custom menu that we designed with inspirations from all our favorite foods. We wanted all of our guests to have options so we had a variety of sides and proteins to choose from including chicken, salmon and vegetarian protein. Brenton adores breakfast food so we also included French toast, vegetarian strada, and breakfast blintzes. The breakfast bar was a huge hit!
Did you toss the garter or bouquet? We love professional football so the bride surprised the groom with a Denver Broncos garter. Considering we had an oversized Tennessee Titans helmet in the room, it only felt natural to throw a dash of home in as well.
Did you take a honeymoon?  We enjoyed adventures in Maui for a week following our nuptials.
What’s next for you as a couple? What are you looking forward to in the future? Our biggest aspiration is to get back into life as we know it. Also, we both have blogs that we’re inspired by and passionate about that have been neglected while planning the wedding and our new life together. They are in much need of a refresh.
What advice would you give to someone planning his or her wedding? Your wedding is just a day. Your marriage is for a lifetime. Many people view the wedding as the end of a planning process rather than the beginning of a new life chapter. Whenever you encounter wedding stress, acknowledge that at the end of the day what matters most is your marriage and the eternal commitment you are making to your spouse. It helps to put wedding planning stress in perspective because you appreciate that ultimately no matter what happens that day, you have the rest of your life to celebrate your love together.
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration. During the homily, our officiant cautioned, “Don’t get caught up in gender roles in your marriage. Get caught up in serving your spouse any way you can with all your energy.” That really stuck out to us because we’re pretty non-traditional couple. We never had to stress over who was going to fit into what role and why when planning our marriage because we both committed to just doing the best we can and loving each other unconditionally. That’s all you can ever really ask for.

Amber Housley and Brocade Designs are delightful members of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Lynae + Brenton, can we be friends? We are just gaga over their bright and bold taste, and we’re giving a huge hand to Amber Housley for bringing their vision together. For L +B, with family coming in from far and wide, their wedding was an opportunity to show everyone how unique their love is and to showcase their favorite things. They said “I do” at the church where they first met (and where Brenton was initially blown off by Lynae!) and followed the vows with a reception at the Hilton, chosen because it had the largest ballroom available for their 450+ guests!

We want to squeeze Kristyn Hogan every time we see this wedding in V5 and we know that Lynae + Brenton feel the same way. When it came to finding a photographer, no other would do after they met at Lynae’s sister’s wedding (who was also featured on Southern Weddings!). Be sure to check out Jennifer + Armand’s wedding here and here after you drop from excitement over these photos.

How adorable are these save the dates? Lynae + Brenton used giant balloons as a theme and decided to carry it over to their wedding for continuity (and the best photos ever).

Describe your bridesmaids’ dresses. I had 14 bridesmaids with various complexions and body shapes so I wanted a dress option that made everyone feel their personal best. I searched for dresses that met a few requirements. I wanted a one-shoulder option to flatter my bridesmaids with a fuller bust. In my opinion, a one-shoulder was an impeccable way to provide coverage but still keep it youthful. In addition, I had my heart set on an A-line skirt to flatter my bridesmaids who are more pear-shaped. I also wanted something that was belted to highlight my petite bridesmaids so they felt feminine and fun. The Alfred Sung dress met all of my wishes and came in a stellar color. It was a homerun for everyone.
What did the groomsmen wear? The groomsmen wore a subtle pen-striped blue suit with a striped nautical-inspired tire. It was important that the suit be modern but also classic. We opted to go with a two-button suit option with a slimmer cut but traditional lapel. The ties were designed to complement the bridesmaids’ dresses while still making the groomsmen feel masculine and dashing.

Tell us about finding your wedding dress. I curate a personal fashion blog on Tumblr and first discovered the dress on my Tumblr timeline. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was “the one” because it had my favorite thing: a smidgen of sparkle! After being inspired, I clicked around the web to discover the designer and boutique that carried it, and booked an appointment to try it on the same day. Because I’m shorter in stature (5’3”), it was important for me to find a dress that had sequin details that didn’t overpower and distract from me. I chose the dress because it complimented my frame nicely and allowed my face to be the focal point. I felt like I wore my wedding dress — my dress didn’t wear me.

We chose flowers with rich colors and plenty of texture. I wanted lots of options that were multi-dimensional and appealing from every angle. My bouquet was stunning! It was a perfect reflection of my penchant for all things colorful and fun. And it was wrapped in sequins that just set it over the top.

Our wedding ceremony was our chance to really share our love story with those closest to us. A lot of our guests may have known us individually or briefly as a couple but our vows, homily, and musical selections gave us the opportunity to be more in depth about what makes our love so special. It was extraordinary to explain in our vows what brought us to this pivotal moment after seven years and how we promise to keep our marriage together for a lifetime. I think it gave people insight into how much we care about each other and want to see each other happy and fulfilled in our marriage.

Who participated in your ceremony? We had a total of 28 bridesmaids and groomsmen who stood by us during our big day. It was striking to see an entire entourage of people stand by us on the biggest moment of our lives to date and affirm “these two people together are a wonderful idea.” It meant a lot to have all their prayers, laughs, and tears surround us. We also performed a sand ceremony that gave us an opportunity to greet our grandparents, parents, and siblings. It was truly a special moment.
Did you write your own vows? We wrote our own vows that reflected us individually and as a couple. Our biggest standouts were remembering times past dating. We’ve experienced several life transitions, first jobs, totaled cars, and lost pets together. To be able to revisit those milestones and laugh at those memories was really extraordinary.

Below: Best photo ever.

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. (From the groom) We met our junior year of high school. I was in Nashville and Lynae came into town with her high school drama club to perform at the local church. Following the performance, I approached her and tried to introduce myself. She proceeded to blow me off completely. Now I was really frustrated, and I swore off Lynae Turner and any other one I might meet in the future. Cut to freshman year in college and we were reunited again, much to our protest and distain. Lynae was roommates with my neighbor from Nashville, so we kept crossing paths. Eventually I started to warm up to the idea of having Lynae around, and as the weeks went by she became one of the crew. One day while we were watching the VMA’s, Lynae sat next to me. For some reason every time I looked over, she’d scooted her chair closer to me. I’m not one to turn down an unexpected gift, so I put my arm around her and just kind of sat there. The next thing I know, she’s asking if I want to go to Taco Bell. I hate Taco Bell, but again, it was an unexpected gift. So I drove her there and we started talking the next day. By my birthday we were officially dating.
Describe the proposal: (From the groom) Lynae and I had talked about our engagement for months before I popped the question, but I was still determined to surprise her. The morning I wanted to do it, I picked up her ring and called Lynae’s mom and sister to set the plan (my parents were out of town). Our church was having a revival that night, so all three of us told Lynae we would see her there in the evening.​ The best way to get Lynae distracted is to bring up clothes. While we were at the revival, Jennifer told Lynae to stop by her apartment afterward because she had some clothes that didn’t fit her anymore. Lynae was so excited she didn’t even notice her mom and I left early, already on the way to her sister’s place. We got there and parked our cars around the corner so she wouldn’t see we were there, went in the apartment and cued up Jennifer’s computer to play our favorite song (Eric Benet’s “The Last Time”). By the time Lynae got there, her mom and I were each in one of the bedroom closets. When she walked up the stairs, Jennifer hit play on the song and told Lynae the clothes were in the closet. Lynae still wasn’t thinking about anything but the clothes. When she opened the door, I was on one knee with the ring, and her mom popped out of the other closet just in time to fan off Lynae, who fell to the floor! After another minute of screaming and crying, I brought up the fact that she STILL hadn’t said yes, and she finally agreed to be eternally stuck with me. Six months later, Lynae asked Jennifer when she was going to get those clothes she was promised.
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Vibrant, sentimental, and sparkly
What was the weather like on your big day? It actually rained the entire morning leading to the ceremony, but we were very fortunate that the rain broke immediately after the ceremony allowing us to enjoy the rest of the evening and take pictures outdoors.
How many guests attended your wedding? 700 attended the ceremony. About 478 attended the reception.

Amber Housley and Brocade Designs are delightful members of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

Welcome back to part two of Kalen + Parks’ fab Real Wedding from V5! Kalen described their pink + gold reception at the Old Edwards Inn as a “gigantic party with a big dancing crowd and lots of cheerful faces.” Now that sounds like the kind of wedding I’d love to attend!

Together with their designer Calder Clark, K + P mixed elegant community tables with small plates stations of yummy Southern food to create a laid-back atmosphere where guests felt at home. Along with the gorgeous blooms, I can’t help but adore their uber-Southern dance floor that Calder created using old white oak fumed gray and stencils. And you know we SW gals can’t help but love their background of gold paillettes!

Special thanks to Jeremy at Harwell Photography for making us feel like we were there celebrating right along with Kalen + Parks!

The reception was a traditional Southern station-style dinner, so there wasn’t a formal cocktail hour. After the ceremony, guests entered the pavilion through floral-lined fabric drapes and perched at the barn wood topped community table or lounged on our furniture vignettes while they listened to the cocktail pianist, enjoyed cocktails and passed hors d’oeuvres and hung gold glitter tags filled with their well-wishes on our antler sign-in wall. When we entered the pavilion after post-ceremony pictures, guests gathered around to watch our first dance, then enjoyed some traditional (with a twist) Southern food, and danced the night away…until it was time to go to the after party!

What is the one thing that made your wedding different from anyone else’s wedding? What wasn’t different?! The Robinson and Keys families both like to be different. I am so glad I went with a place that was rustic and charming. Anyone can do a ballroom wedding. Calder Clark Designs turned a rustic location into a romantic plethora of enchantment. Everything from the food, to the atmosphere, to the setting and the timeline was different — which is exactly what we wanted.
Did you include any Southern traditions in your wedding? We had a groom’s cake at the rehearsal dinner that was a replica of the Nikes Parks gave our wedding party. I did a cake pull at my bridesmaids’ luncheon. Parks’ dad was his best man.

What was your reception like? A gigantic party with a big dancing crowd and lots of cheerful faces. It was a mash-up of elegant community tables with small plates stations of exquisite food, then tons of silly touches like neon Kanye sunglasses to help everyone let their hair down (this crowd didn’t need that much help!).
Describe some of the decorations or décor elements you used: Our designer, Calder Clark dreamed up incredible raw gray barn wood bars with crusty old Victorian corbels. She had an artist hand-paint these raw linen slipcovers for our furniture vignettes and had our florist build oversized gray wood pergolas dripping with Southern blooms hanging over folks’ heads in little lounges in the corners of the room. Calder designed a dance floor that was old white oak fumed gray and appliqued with this Anthropologie-esque stencil — it was totally cool and very “us.” We even had a band backdrop made of giant gold paillettes.

What advice would you give to someone planning his or her wedding? Am I allowed to say “Hire Calder Clark Designs?” I think I was super level-headed about the reason we were there. It was about Parks and me committing ourselves to each other for the rest of our lives. Who cares about a flower or a menu or lighting? At the end of the day, the people around us were the most important part — even though our flowers, menu and lighting were all exquisite!! The memories are the most important part because nine times out of ten, you look back on even the stressful moments and just laugh. Also, when you are making decisions, make the decision and move forward. Don’t go back and change things. You can keep making decisions for months, but the bottom line is no one is going to notice if the centerpiece was perfect or not. They will remember how in love you were with your hubby on your first night of being married. Stay rational!

Our cake was a five -tiered confection with an interior of pink butter cake and mocha mousse filling. The base layer of the cake was covered in gold buttercream and the other four tiers were iced with buttercream in ombre shades of pink. The cake was garnished with a few delicate sugar flowers and simple gold bands between each of the tiers.

I found the song “Home” when the infamous father-daughter duo put it on YouTube. I loved the lyrics, so I Google searched the song. Whenever I get down, Parks will just look at me with a smile and say “Holy moly me oh my” and it never ceases to make me smile. It soon turned into that, when I was down, we ended up dancing around the house to the song. It’s a fun song but means a lot so we chose it as our first dance. We wanted to have fun with our dance and we did. During the most stressful moments of planning, it felt good to go to dance lessons and just let it go.

What were some of the highlights? Watching people have the best time ever. I kept trying so hard to soak it all in. We would be dancing and I would just look around. I remember every single moment so vividly.
Were there any family traditions you included in the reception? Parks and I used the same sterling toasting goblets that his parents used for their wedding.
Did you try anything new or untraditional? We kept it simple and had fun. I didn’t want anyone to ever feel that they were supposed to be somewhere or wonder if they were allowed to go get a drink. I wanted them to feel at home. Go get a bite to eat, go get a drink, go dance the night away. Just have fun!
Tell us about your grand exit. Guests lined up outside of the pavilion and showered us with metallic mylar pom-poms as we ran toward the vintage Rolls Royce positioned outside.
Did you include any Southern traditions in your wedding? We had a groom’s cake at the rehearsal dinner that was a replica of the Nikes Parks gave our wedding party. I did a cake pull at my bridesmaids’ luncheon. Parks’ dad was his best man.
What was Southern about your wedding? Our guests had welcome bags full of trucker hats, bourbon balls, Garden & Gun, Barker’s Mill grits, Fat Buddies BBQ sauce, and more!
Best advice or most memorable comment someone made to you during the wedding celebration. A good ol’ cowboy friend of my dad’s came up to us and said “Hey y’all! Some say marriage is hard. It ain’t hard if you don’t let it be. Just enjoy it and be happy with each other.” That advice has really stuck in my head. Don’t make it hard. Learn to communicate, give, take and just be happy. Parks’ dad also reminded us to never go to bed angry.
Who was your favorite vendor and why? Calder Clark Designs. Calder and Caitlin became so much more than a vendor. They became friends and mentors. They are family now. I remember Calder saying that to me the first day I talked to her on the phone, “My brides become my friends.” I thought it was just a selling point or something she says to all her brides. Not true. To me, they became way more than friends. I knew that through the wedding planning and on the wedding weekend, I had NOTHING to worry about because I knew that Calder and Caitlin would make it perfect. They made me a very calm and happy bride that could just focus on me and my husband and our guests all weekend. I would really like my sister or brother to get engaged so that I can spend another year with them!

Harwell Photography is a fabulous member of our Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory!

I’m pretty sure we’re all still shaking the glitter out of our clothes and hair. We had a blast at the V5 Launch Party last night — thank you to everyone who came in to celebrate with us and to those of you who joined us virtually via UStream! Look for a party recap soon, y’all.

This week was full of post office runs and V5 features. We were thrilled to start things off with a behind-the-scenes look at our Family Heirlooms shoot.

Tuesday came along and we welcome V5 to news stands with a big post and a bigger photo contest! See details on how to enter here.

We would hate to keep you waiting even longer, so we shared more from V5′s Family Heirloom shoot.

For more behind-the-scenes action from our Family Heirloom shoot, be sure to check out this video!

Another one of our beautiful features made the blog this week! We welcomed the sweet neutrals of our Honey and Pecan shoot.

Then, we filled y’all in on our very first shoot we produced for V5, the Kentucky Rose shoot.

With all the V5 hubbub, you’d think we couldn’t possibly pile on more good news, but we did! The General Store is now open! Head over here to get the skinny.

Real Weddings are gooder than grits!

Erin + Steve’s fall wedding was a big mother-daughter effort and sweet as pie! See it here.

Whew! I’m ready for a cozy weekend in. What are y’all doing?

Today’s the day, y’all! V5 officially debuts on news stands today and we couldn’t be happier to share our features on the blog. Yesterday, y’all got a sneak peek of our Family Heirlooms shoot with some behind the scenes shots. Judging from your comments, you’ll be positively giddy to see these amazing images, styled by Lora Elaine and photographed by Eric Kelley!

Though we nicknamed this shoot the “Tomato Shoot,” it means far more to us than that. Inspired by the family traditions centered around home-grown food and the history of the heirloom tomato itself, we set about creating an editorial that combined the vibrant colors of those delicious fruits with the family we associate with it.

The paper goods ranked among our favorite details from this shoot! Pitbull & Posies created pieces for us with a bit of humor and some amazing calligraphy by Lindsay Letters.

We were thrilled to see what gorgeous floral arrangements Mary Stevens at Fearrington Village created for us. The bouquets in shades of red, orange and yellow were perfectly wild and warm.

The shot below is one of Emily’s favorites from this feature. We loved the idea of creating an ombre bridal party and Emily made sure we got a gorgeous shot of it!

A fun tomato tasting station gave us the chance to highlight the tomato varieties that we adored and proved to be a crowd pleaser — how could anyone pass up those gorgeous colors? They look delicious.

We just loved the idea of boxed meals with gingham napkins and a calligraphy message inside! The food — biscuits, sweet potato wedges, tomato sandwiches and more — were equally appealing.

In lieu of traditional favors, we opted for a produce stand of sorts, letting guests pick out their favorite fresh vegetables to take home. We love how it reflects our Southern upbringings in that no guest ever leaves the house without something to eat!

Ta-da! The cherry cake that Ashley Cakes whipped up for us was beautiful. The happy rainier cherries lining each tier were too cute!

We were joined by some very special guests for our shoot. Miss Georgia 2012, Jasmyn Wilkins acted as our “bride” for the day and our good friends from around town came in to party at our “reception.” We were privileged that our local bluegrass favorite, The Bloomsbury Boys also joined us, providing music for most of the shoot!

Stay tuned for more from this shoot tomorrow!