“Stephanie manages exhibits at an art museum and we had connected while working on another project. While setting up a gallery we started talking about her upcoming wedding and I mentioned that I was a photographer. Thankfully, I always travel with my album samples so I pulled those out of my car for her to look through. Her fiancé, Justin, had a background in film, so I was crazy flattered and pretty intimidated that they wanted to work with me. Naturally, I had been looking forward to this wedding for a long time and of course, Stephanie and Justin’s creative minds did not disappoint.

Stephanie had every last detail perfected. Her dress, cathedral length veil, romantic centerpieces, flowing bouquet ribbon and everything else was absolutely stunning. I was even obsessing over the hand written place cards and the fact that their engagement pictures (taken by me) were printed so tiny on color coordinated M&M’s (which will forever be in my special box, never to be eaten).

Throughout the entire gallery I noticed a common theme, that in so many of the images Justin is just staring at her. I caught them embracing quietly at many points throughout the day, after their first kiss, in the middle of a pose change during family formals. The bond and loyalty that they share for one another was so obvious to everyone present. I am thankful for the opportunity to share in the love of this day and am very excited to watch their family grow this year!” – Meliabelle Photography

What is your favorite wedding day memory?

I remember feeling so happy to finally bring everything and everyone together! I simply loved seeing it all unfold throughout the day. One of my favorite memories of the day came right before I walked down the aisle. I was waiting just outside the door of the church when I heard laughter coming from inside. The flower girl had made it to the end of the aisle with her basket still full of petals. Her mother (eight months pregnant at the time) asked her if she had any petals left, so the flower girl grabbed as many as she could with her little hand and tossed them all over her mother!

What did you DIY for your wedding?

As an artist, I put a lot of thought into every detail of the wedding and I enjoyed designing, special ordering or making everything myself. I designed and ordered the Save the Dates, invitations, favors, menus, cocktail napkins and my bridesmaid helped me design the wedding website from scratch. I made the ceremony bulletin, signs and centerpieces myself.

I had an arrangement of white candles, glittered votive holders, leaves and berries on a round 12 inch mirror as the centerpieces and table number. I used an embossing gun, wax paper, tissue paper, colored pencil, glue, and glitter to make tissue paper transfer candle table numbers. They turned out really great! I found this DIY tutorial on Pinterest from Something Turquoise here, then took it one step further and traced the number on the candle with glue and sprinkled fine white-gold crafting glitter over it. I also printed Something Turquoise’s free Wed-Libs and had sitting at each place setting as an ice breaker for our guests!

Something old, new, borrowed and blue?

I carried my grandmother’s handkerchief for something old, my dress was something new, I borrowed my friend’s lipstick and I kept a second handkerchief with blue-violet embroidered flowers.

Any advice for brides currently in the planning process?

I am a planner, so I knew I had to give myself lots of time to look at different options in order to move confidently through my choices, but it’s a personal preference. I wanted to be able to stay pretty calm and organized throughout the process and this was best for me.

My advice for a bride-to-be is to look at lots of options before choosing the best fit. Ask lots of questions, don’t be shy. Do your research, know what you want to splurge on and what to save on. Determine a rough guest list for numbers. Develop a budget. Become familiar with wedding expenses and details {keep in mind, you often get what you pay for.} Do a trial or ask to see samples and develop a detailed plan with your vendor(s). Once you decide, put everything in writing so you and your vendor can go back to it for reference when {not if} needed. Keep important documents and notes together in a binder. As the date approached, I kept in touch with my vendors and stayed on top of everything. Keep everyone in the loop {family, friends, coordinators, etc.}. This made for a very relaxing and enjoyable wedding day. After the wedding, don’t forget to write those important thank yous and review your vendors!

Every bride is different. There are so many {free} online resources for wedding planning. Check them out, find things you like, talk to your family, friends and vendors, and get inspired! -Stephanie, the bride

Event Credits

Photographer: Meliabelle Photography // Ceremony Venue: St. James United Church of Christ // Reception Venue: Burning Tree Golf and Country Club // Florist: Flower Solutions // Cake: Cakebox // Invitations and Cake Topper: Laura Hooper Calligraphy // Save the Dates and Menus: Minted // Napkins: Wedding Paper Divas // DJ: Ground Zero Entertainment // Brides Dress: Arena Bridal and Formal // Brides Jewelry: Bead Passion by AB // Hair and Make-Up: Runway Salon and Spa // Guestbook and Pen: Wedding Star // Bouquet and Invitation Ribbon: Frou Frou Chic // Favors: M&M's