Mountain Wedding Smoky Smokey Chapel Intimate Elegant Rustic

06.07.19

Mari and Mark – May 4, 2019

Our third wedding on May 4th was Mari and Marc. They had a few tiny sprinkles but mostly gorgeous weather! Mari wanted to be sure to have time for lots and lots of photos so we got to go off property for a few minutes to some nearby locations, and one of them had a mountain view! Everything about this beautiful wedding was luxe and romantic from the florals to the dress. Congratulations Mari and Mark!!

From the Bride:
Mark proposed during a long weekend trip that we took to the Smoky Mountains last February. On the deck of our cabin with the beautiful mountains in view, he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife. We decided on Tennessee because during our first visit we fell completely in love with the Smoky Mountains! The area is so inviting and romantic!

From the very beginning I knew I wanted a vintage/rustic/romantic feel, with a woodsy twist and beautiful greenery. One of my absolute favorite lipsticks turned out to be the inspiration for my colors – mauve pink. I knew that this color would pair well with ivory and blush to give me the look that I was trying to achieve. I had Chapel in the Hollow provide the chapel flowers because they had the blush arrangements that matched most closely to those that I purchased for myself. Their’s were beautiful enough that I didn’t need to change them out! For our cake table, we used an old desk and chair that that was once my husband’s grandmothers. She passed away a few years ago, and we felt that it was a great way to honor her absence at our ceremony. Originally, it was an ivory desk with gold trim and handles. My mother and I worked endlessly to get the piece finished for the wedding, actually having painted it twice because I was unhappy with the way it turned out the first time around. We used Rustoleum chalk paint and brown glaze to make the edges looked vintage and distressed, sealing it last with a spray wax to make sure it would hold up in case it rained!

The flowers that you see in my photos are actually wood flowers. I chose wood flowers over silk because they looked more realistic to me, and I chose them over real flowers because I wanted to have them as a keepsake for years to come. After a thorough search on Etsy, I finally found MoonflowerNatureArt. AMAZING! She has a great variety of colors and styles, and all of her pieces are elegant and romantic, with a boho/vintage feel, fitting perfectly with the look that I was going for. As for the flowers on my cake table, they are Sola wood flowers that I actually bought and dyed myself. The website has a variety of styles, sizes, and dye colors to choose from. I picked an assorted pack for variety and simply chose colors that were closest to those in my wedding flowers. Before placing them in the vases, I added floral stems and ta-da, flowers for my cake table! The vases themselves were bought at a local thrift store, where I actually paid .50 cents each. My mom simply used chalk paint and a nail file to make them appear distressed and old!

Originally, my husband and I wanted to write our own vows, however, we both felt that we would get too teary to make it through them so we decided otherwise. For our ceremony, we did the traditional vows offered by Chastidyi and Ian, and we were so happy that we did! It was easy, took about 10 minutes, and before we knew it, we were finally married! The most favorite part of my wedding was the reception dinner that we had back at our cabin. I live in Pennsylvania and all of my wedding planning was done using Google. As I was researching caterers, I came upon a company called Fruitful Vintage Chef, a personal chef service that offers in-cabin buffet and formal dinner services for parties of 20 or less. Planning with them was a breeze, I simply sent an email with my requested date and time, number in our party, the services I was seeking, and the address to our cabin. My husband and I opted for the four-course formal sit-down dinner option, and enjoyed choosing the menu options for our guests. They were able to meet our guests for appetizers back at our cabin while we were with Chastidyi and Ian getting pictures taken, we were told that it was a great way to pass the time!

The gown that I chose is from Maggie Sottero, the Abbie. It’s a fit-and-flare style that I actually found online, and was the first dress that I tried on in the bridal shop. I fell in love! The bodice is beaded with lace appliques, which included both fishnet lace and floral lace styles. It hugs in all the write places and flares at the bottom to provide a nice hour-glass shape, a slip underneath giving it more fullness. As for the off-white color, it is actually called “antique white,” which I was able to coordinate with my overall color scheme. For Mark’s wedding look, he actually went for a more casual vest and pant, both purchased from Men’s Warehouse. It was harder to find a vest that fit him properly because of his wide shoulders, so we had him fitted when we stopped by the store. Originally we wanted to do a green tweed suit, but after multiple failures at finding one that fit properly, and knowing that Mark would be SO HOT in the TN weather, he decided to just wear the vest. It has a tweed-appearing feel to it, but it was light, which minimized the chances of him being uncomfortably hot during our ceremony, pictures, and reception.

Mark and I actually met at a local bar, through mutual friends who introduced us. Fast forward a little over a year, I had been having drinks with some girl friends at the same bar, and asked Mark to stop by. He said that he made a complete u-turn while on his way to a fantasy football draft, eager to come see me. That night, we had drinks, hung out, talked, he bought me Chinese food (haha) and the rest is history! For our proposal, we were actually in Gatlinburg for a romantic long weekend trip to the Smoky’s. As soon as we made it to the area, we were blown away by the beauty of the mountains. We made our way to the cabin, went out on the deck, and just stood in awe. It wasn’t too long before Mark disappeared and came back, telling me to turn around and face the vast mountains in front of me. I look back at this moment and think it’s so funny, because I distinctly remember asking him, “what are you doing?” He told me to turn around, and first thing I see is Mark on one knee, with a huge smile and a diamond ring in my face. Apparently our entire family knew about him planning the proposal for that weekend! He said that he was so excited to ask me that he couldn’t wait any longer. It was nice, because for the rest of our time in Gatlinburg, we were able to celebrate being newly engaged 🙂

My most anticipated moment was, of course, the KISS!! Mark and I practiced our wedding kiss on numerous occasions before getting married. We wanted to keep it sweet and special, without being over the top (since we were in front of our families). I know right before we kissed we were both thinking about getting it right, and honestly, it turned out to be the most perfect wedding kiss we could have asked for!

On my wedding day I was told by both my hairdresser and Chastidyi, “you don’t even seem nervous,” and “you’re the most easy-going, laid-back bride I’ve had in a while.” And to be honest, I truly felt relaxed and just happy to be in beautiful TN with my husband and family. We both worked so hard to make our wedding day special and memorable, but there was nothing more important to me than marrying the man of my dreams. We spend so much time trying to make everything “perfect,” but the reason behind getting married means so much more. I chose to have an intimate wedding, with only 19 guests, because I wanted to spend as much time as possible with my closest loved ones and my husband, while being able to to just simply enjoy the moment I was in. If I had any advice for future couples out there – none of the materialistic wedding things represent your love for one another. Do what makes you happy, care less about what other people think, focus on each other, and ENJOY YOURSELVES! YOU’RE IN LOVE AND YOU’RE MARRIED 🙂