“Garrett + Hailey had a gorgeous outdoor ceremony with a wooded background featuring perfect shades of navy and pink, these were just a few of the amazing details of their wedding at Honey Creek Farms in Dandridge, Tennessee. The farm features a lovely bridal suite where Hailey and her bridesmaids prepared for the big day together while the guys had a hidden room on the second floor of the barn to get ready. The lighting both inside and outside the barn created a romantic atmosphere and we loved that many of the special dances took place outside under the glow of the full moon and the perfectly strung garden lights. We also loved that Hailey purchased her dress from a trunk show, Brides Against Cancer, so that a portion of the purchase went to charity. This just made us adore her even more! Hailey and Garrett’s fun loving personalities shone through on their wedding day, from their first look to the newlywed shoe game they played at the reception {which ended with an insanely entertaining dance off between the two!} We are super excited to share this glimpse into their day and we wish them a huge congratulations, again.” –Juicebeats Photography

What is your favorite wedding day memory?

This is truly a tough question! When you’re surrounded by family and friends the whole evening you can’t help being excited about each second. That being said, I will never forget the dancing! Dancing with my Father, Grandfather and my Husband will be burned into my memory for the rest of my life. We had a barn wedding in the middle of the Smokey Mountains along with a phenomenal full moon that night. It was so amazing! I took all three of my favorite men in my life outside to dance under the moonlight. It was gorgeous and made the moment that much more intimate to step out the barn doors into a quieter scene. I can still remember the looks on all their faces and was able to feel like time had slowed down during those songs {which is hard to do on your wedding day}. It really was special to talk to them about love and life, and pass small jokes with each other as we made that night sky ours.

What did you DIY for your wedding?

I am lucky to be born into an artist family and a Father who knows how to build anything! To keep everything straight I’ll just outline the wedding by areas!

Invitations and Save the Dates: I am a graphic designer and artist so I watercolored my bouquet and used them as the flowers on my invites. I also created a font out of my Grandfather’s handwriting for the invitations and color dropped the blue sapphires in my engagement ring to style and create my invitations. They really were a work of art!

Table Decorations: We found the table napkins on Craigslist and got our chargers from Pottery Barn. My Sister, Mother and I hunted down cut crystal bowls and vases, mismatched floral saucers and silverware at various thrift stores. I went to a local mission thrift store to find old books with interesting spines in shades of navy and grey to help lift the vases on the table to give height interest. I found that reader’s digest had the coolest patterns to really make the area pop. I also found some interesting titles to make some humor for the guests. For instance my table had the titles “wife trap” and “the wedding trap”. In the cut crystal vases, we used moss and flowers to continue the woodland vintage motif. We also used mirror paint to paint the insides of some of the vases to give a metallic feel and it helped hide the bottoms of some of the more crazier arrangement bottoms. We also found smooth grey river rocks from a local craft store to write each person’s name as a name card for individual seats, and then we cast a few pebbles around the center of the table to bring it all together. To give the table a bit more pop we put a little blue and red birds hidden in the arrangement in some places. Lastly, two of my aunts came together the day of and made little edible roses out of pastry dough and apples that was placed in the center of everyone’s plate along with their rock name card.

Cake and Desserts: My Mother, God Bless her, taught herself over the course of a few months how to take my Great Grandmother’s strawberry cake recipe and turned it into a wedding cake. She bought all the pans and made a full fledge practice cake for Christmas the year before and it turned out perfect that first time. Unfortunately, the cake slid the day of due to the heat, despite the man-made cooler with dry ice harboring it until got time to put it in place about 2 hours prior. *Pro tip: if you make your own wedding cake, have a “pro” put it together at least. Your Mom needs to get in the shower and get dressed! The buckeyes and cupcakes were made by my Aunt and family friend and we’re a real party favorite. I honestly didn’t know they were making anything until I saw them the day of!

Wedding Favors: My Sister and Mother made individual chocolate pies for everyone and put them bags with cute labels! If you do this, make sure you have enough fridge space to keep it all cold until go time! My Mother also made tiny 3 oz. {airplane size} pear preserves for everyone to take with them, as well. If you haven’t learned, my Mother is a rock star! We also purchased a few bushels of apples from a local orchard and put them in vintage crate propped up on a table made out of wood boards on top of two barrels. Paper bags were also available so people could stock their to-go bags with apples, jam and pies.

The Aisle: Our arbor was made out of two chippy paint vintage doors from a friend. From there, my father took old barn wood with a bible verse painted on it {by my mother}, to make the top of the arbor. Once complete, we ran floral swags down the side and vintage curtains to bring it all together. I also collected Ginko leaves from a local Kroger parking lot to sprinkle down the isle with other fallen leaves. If you didn’t know, Ginko leaves turn from a gorgeous lime green to a bright yellow in the fall. My sister bought small galvanized buckets and picked out some white pansies, cabbages, and ivy to make these gorgeous potted displays we sat on top of small wood stumps at the end of every other bench. We also purchased some big white mums from Lowes to make a big statement at the beginning and end of the isles!

Reception Details: We used an ornate vintage picture frame with a piece of cut plywood to fit inside of the frame which we then chalk painted to write the seat placements, as well as the menu on them. We decorated the tables with vintage lace linens to tie in the arbor. We also made a table for our relatives that had passed. Using my graphic design skills, I designed a quote and image with a nice poem about the deceased being with us in spirit. Using MixBook, I made a book of our engagement photos to use as the guest sign in book. Think of it like a yearbook signing and they got to flip through the engagement photos while they did. It make the book more special, and we didn’t have this random boring book with lists of names. Lastly, all of the bouquets and boutineers were handmade by my mother, sister and I!

Did you have a something old, new, borrowed and blue?

Of course! My something old, blue and borrowed was my Great Grandmother’s handkerchief which we wrapped to make a linen rose out of. We then sewed it inside my wedding dress. I also wore a bracelet had sapphires in it as well as my engagement ring. My something new was my art deco inspired earrings from Chloe and Isabel {so amazing!!}. Another Southern tradition is a “penny in your shoe” on your wedding day. I actually made a pendant/shoe clip out of a British penny and resin that I had crafted in an art class several years prior in the wedding and I had open shoes and couldn’t walk with a penny actually inside my shoe.

Any advice for brides currently in the planning process?

On the day of your wedding try to soak it all in! We really did DIY everything, but you have to know when to stop and relax as the bride and trust your that everything will get done. Your awesome family and friends will come through to take over the finishing touches while you go and cherish your time with your girls beforehand. One recommendation is to make a pact with your Husband-to-be to not look at each other until its time. It made getting things ready more fun and interesting. For instance, I would dart behind a curtain while he brought in the keg, etc. It made the process more fun! -Hailey, the bride

Event Credits

Photography: Juicebeats Photography // Venue: Honey Creek Farms // DJ: Knoxville TN DJ Services // Videographer: Haven Media // Bride's Attire: Essence of Australia // Bride's Jewelry: Chloe and Isabel // Bride's Shoes: Macy's // Bridesmaid's Dresses: Wendy's Bridal // Groom + Groomsmen's Attire: Men's Warehouse // Cake Topper: PS Weddings and Events