“How to Plan a Wedding” is a new ongoing blog series where ATP brides share their wedding planning journey, how they booked their dream vendors, what they loved the most about their wedding day, and what they wish they would have done differently.
Today, we are switching things up a little bit because this is part one of our conversation with my sweet bride, Ashton. She’s only three months away from her wedding day, and we are talking all about what her planning journey is looking like so far. She will be back on the blog in May to tell us all about her wedding day!
So, if you’re a bride planning your own wedding right now, this blog post is definitely for you! Let’s dive right in!
THEIR FIRST DATE
Joe and I met through a series of events. He’ll never let me live it down that I left him hanging for a few months, haha! I was trying to play hard to get (and it must have worked!) The week before our first date, I had just been on The Journey giving my testimony of faith and talked about how I was ready to let my heart beat again (as inspired by the song “Tell Your Heart To Beat Again” by Danny Gokey) and then, that Sunday, I was baptized.
Just a few days later, Joe texted me out of the blue to try to reconnect with me and asked me on a date. I remember the morning of our first date thinking “something is different about this guy” and I was actually on Pinterest trying to find a cute “first date outfit”! I went all over town getting my hair cut, buying new makeup, a new purse, and a new outfit. Ahhh! I was never one to put forth much effort for a first date, so it meant a lot for me to do all of this.
We met up at Waterstone (he drove 60 miles just to have dinner with me) and it was pouring down rain. I had forgotten to bring an umbrella and I thought “Oh my goodness! All this effort and I’m going to look like a wet mess!” He came over to my car with an umbrella, hugged me, and walked me in under his umbrella. We had such an amazing dinner, and halfway through it, he asked if I would like to get Starbucks afterwards. I was SMITTEN, haha! I had met someone who loved Starbucks as much as I did! It was the most perfect first date and I just knew this was the beginning of my fairy tale.
THE PROPOSAL
In June of 2018, we were on a family vacation with his parents and nephew down in Myrtle Beach. He had told me earlier in the year he would like for us to take some nice photos so I needed to plan to bring our cameras and find a nice dress. I got so flustered trying to find a dress, he actually helped me pick one out. A few days went by and he still hadn’t picked a location to take our photos. One morning he said we would be going to Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant. Boone Hall is the location where they filmed The Notebook, as well as my all time favorite movie, North and South.
We had been there the year prior because it was on my bucket list, and fell in love with how beautiful it was. We started posing for photos while his mom and nephew were behind the cameras and I noticed his heart was POUNDING! He still, to this day, will say it was just the heat (because the heat index was 104, but I think he was also just excited, haha). He then suddenly turned to me and said “I know I told you I wasn’t going to propose for awhile, but how about today?” He dropped to one knee and asked me to marry him. I was so emotional and happy I was gasping for air and crying the most ugly cry! It was like I was in our own world and I forgot other people were around! When we walked back to his parents and nephew, people started yelling “Congratulations!” and that’s when I remembered “Oh my gosh, I just cried like a baby in front of all these people”.
He told me he had been planning this proposal since the year before when we were at Boone Hall because he knew how much it meant for me to be there. It also turned out his nephew was taking a video of the proposal so we have it all documented! (Extra points for Joe thinking that far ahead!) My ring is a special story in itself. He worked with a designer from Haywood’s Jewelers starting in December, and he made sure to make it personal by adding an infinity symbol to the ring, as well as the date of our first date. I was ( and still am) completely blown away by the amount of effort he put into proposing to me and making it as perfect as possible!
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN PLANNING YOUR WEDDING?
We’ve been talking about what our wedding would be like for a long time. Our wedding is in April, and we’ve been officially planning it since we got engaged in June of last year. I honestly do NOT recommend a long engagement because the longer it takes, the more time you have to dwell on all the extra things you have to do, instead of just getting it done
WHAT KIND OF WEDDING ARE YOU PLANNING?
Our wedding is more casual. We don’t have a theme necessarily, but we are going for a “southern barbecue” feel. We are having a hamburger and hotdog station with all the favorite cookout sides, and the southern favorite, banana pudding! We are also having lawn games for our guests who might not want to dance. The last thing we want is for anyone to be bored at our wedding!
WHAT WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE LIKE SEARCHING FOR THE PERFECT VENDORS?
The venue was the easiest part because my mom and step-father own Glencliff Manor. We were honestly considering eloping until we spent a lot of time together working weddings as photographers there, and we realized we wanted to have a real wedding there too! We are using Dave Ellis as our caterer (because he is not only the best, but a very good friend of ours) so that was an easy decision. My mom is doing our flowers and Angela Hudson is our cake baker. There was NO ONE else I wanted to do our cake because she is just phenomenal (and also a good friend!).
We chose Alina Thomas Photography because of the quality (and ALSO a good friend!). The hardest part was finding a hairdresser. I messaged probably ten salons and stylists. Luckily, a good friend of ours volunteered and I am so happy to have her do it for me! My makeup (and the ladies in the bridal party) will be done by Makeup by Jessica. She does an amazing job and I know she’ll make me feel like a true Bride!
THE WEDDING DRESS
One of my best friends, and Matron of Honor, came to Lynchburg for a couple of weeks, so I knew I needed to take advantage of that since she wouldn’t be back until the actual wedding. We went to a local bridal salon and tried on many beautiful dresses. My other Matron of Honor was unable to be with us that day, so we FaceTimed her and showed her the dress I swore was the one! I asked them to hold it for me because I wanted to come back with her, so she could see it in person… and I didn’t want to say yes quite yet. I wanted to wait to make sure it was truly THE dress I wanted.
A week later, I met both Matrons of Honor at Ashley Grace Bridal and said to them “I probably shouldn’t try any on. I’ll just stick with the other dress.” I was sitting in the bridal dressing room (which is huge by the way!) and they both brought me back dresses they thought I would love. After I put on the second dress and the stylist pulled back the curtain to show them, their eyes got huge and they said “That’s the dress!” I was in love with it but I was concerned about the cost. I had budgeted myself $800 for a dress, and this one was… not that! I called Joe to tell him I found a dress but it was over my budget. He said “I would rather you spend the extra money on a dress you love, than a dress that’s just OK.” I got off the phone and started crying saying “This is the dress!!!!!” I honestly look at pictures of it just about everyday because I am SO in love with it. I can’t wait for him to see me in it!!!
ARE YOU PLANNING A FIRST LOOK? WHY/WHY NOT?
We are actually not doing a first look. Although we have been part of many of them as photographers and understand the idea behind it, we just want the first look to be as I’m walking down the aisle for the big effect. I may do the ugly cry like when he proposed, but it’s fine. Haha!
ARE YOU INCORPORATING ANYTHING SPECIAL IN YOUR WEDDING THAT REFLECTS YOU AS A COUPLE?
The whole theme of a laid back Southern barbecue reflects our personality. We’re strong Southerners and love to have a good time. The only thing I picked on my own to reflect us and our love story, is my bridal entrance music. I’m walking down the aisle to one of the songs in The Notebook (since we got engaged where the movie was filmed!)
WHAT ARE YOUR WEDDING COLORS?
Our colors are Blush and Grey! We took our two favorite colors and combined them. However, I keep getting called “Shelby” from Steel Magnolias. But, after all, “Pink is my signature color!”
DO YOU HAVE A PIECE OF ADVICE FOR BRIDES PLANNING THEIR OWN WEDDING RIGHT NOW?
I would say, enjoy every single moment even when it gets stressful. Have fun with it, even when it comes down to addressing the invitations. It’s a season of life you’ll never get to live again so LIVE IT UP!!!
IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?
Wedding nightmares are a real thing, haha! I’m not even stressed about our wedding or worried about anything going wrong because at the end of the day, he will be my husband and I’ll be his wife! However, we both have had our share of wedding nightmares. (Joe dreamed my wedding shoes were purple clogs, haha!)
And that’s a wrap!
I have to admit, I absolutely laughed out loud when I read that last part. Haha! Wasn’t today’s interview on how to plan a wedding with Ashton AMAZING? I can’t wait to release part two after her wedding!
Ashton and Joe, I’m SO excited to photograph your Glencliff Manor wedding in a few short weeks! It’s going to be a blast! Thank you so very much for choosing me as your wedding photographer!
