L A U R E N + L O G A N

It was lightly raining on the morning of Lauren and Logan's wedding day but just before Lauren walked down the aisle, the sky cleared and a double rainbow appeared! The ceremony was a beautiful coming together of three people: Lauren, Logan and Lauren's daughter who was given a special ring of her own.

F R O M T H E B R I D E

We first met...

We met almost four years ago through mutual friends at Logan's childhood home.

The proposal...

September 13th, 2015, the day we got engaged! We were on our second day in Emerald Isle, North Carolina at an awesome condo for our annual family vacation. I had no idea that the entire time there were other plans for this trip. Logan brought up the idea to go for a walk on the beach at sunset and proposed in front of my daughter while my mother was filming. It was a magical moment on our favourite beach at sunset. After the proposal, we stood together and soaked in the moment as much as we possibly could while taking pictures and enjoying the beautiful background. The memories from that night and that trip will stay with us forever. Emerald Isle will always hold a special place in our hearts !

T H E W E D D I N G

Our photographer...

Ellen LeRoy was our photographer and exceeded amazing. We chose her because of the previous pictures on her website. They were jaw dropping. I called her up and as soon as I spoke to her I knew she was meant to be our photographer! Our photos are also jaw dropping. I love how my wedding photos capture so much emotion as well as beauty and the background really comes into play.

Our dream wedding...

I wanted a very modern and elegant wedding. I wanted the location to be near the beach and have ever since I was a child. I didn't want people to walk away from our wedding forgetting our wedding colours or little details. I went back and forth with the colour schemes and decided that hot pink against navy blue was truly beautiful, eye catching all while elegant.

The light and scattered raindrops drizzled down, off and on, during the day of our early evening wedding, causing some concern for the situation at the uncovered, outdoor venue on the manicured, green, lawn of The Boathouse, in Beaufort, North Carolina.

God answered prayers. Some straggling water droplets sputtered half-heartedly out of the sky as I reached the front of the wedding canopy, escorted by my mother.

The raindrops stopped abruptly moments after they began and the wedding guests watched in wonder as the grey clouds rushed off hurriedly as if being shooed away by an unseen force. The sun struck a proud pose high up in the early evening sky as it painted the backdrop of the sky in a warm Carolina Blue and placed the first wedding gift for us in the foreground, majestic and unwrapped for all to see: a stunning, multi-colored double rainbow.

Ceremony location...

The east lawn at the Boathouse at Front Street Village,Beaufort, NC

Reception venue...

The Marlin room at the Boathouse at Front Street Village, Beaufort, NC

Pre-wedding celebrations...

My bachelorette and Logan's bachelor party of course!

The bridal party...

We had five bridesmaids and five groomsmen, they were our siblings and closest friends with the exception of Logan's best man. Logan carried on the family tradition that the groom's father is the best man. My daughter was the flower girl and my father was the pastor and my mother walked my down the aisle!

My maid of honour Brittney was amazing with helping me plan the whole wedding as well. I literally called her and texted her everyday about the wedding plans. I know I probably drove her crazy but it was so exciting to see all the planning we had done come to life. We still talk everyday and now we talk about how we miss planning! Who knows, hopefully she is next!

The bridesmaids wore...

The bridesmaids wore knee length, strapless navy blue dresses with a matching pair of navy blue wedge sandals.

The groomsmen wore...

The groomsmen wore light grey suits along with hot pink bow ties.

The groom wore...

Logan also wore a light grey suit with a hot pink tie instead of a bow tie.

The dress...

My gown was like straight out of a fairytale. I call it my Cinderella dress. It was an A-line, strapless ball gown with exquisite pearl beading on the bodice. The back consisted of a corset and a long train. I bought it from New York Bride of Raleigh, NC and the designer is Mori Lee. I was so overwhelmed with the amount of wedding dresses and wasn't quite sure the style that I wanted. I told an employee to bring me their favourite dress in the store. As soon as I saw the beading I was mesmerised. When I tried the dress on I truly felt like a princess - which is how every girl should feel on their wedding day!

Wedding flowers...

I literally wasn't as worried about the type of flowers so much as the colour. I looked online at hot pink bouquets and sent some photos to my florist and let her decide on what best fit my vision. I was focused on the flowers being hot pink to really pop against the girls navy blue bridesmaid dresses! My florist's name is Carolyn and owns Avalon Event Floral in Morehead City NC. Carolyn was always so supportive and full of great ideas.

Reception décor...

At the reception, all of the tables had navy blue tablecloths accompanied by large and small arrangements of hot pink flowers. The gift and cake table had hot pink table cloths. Flowers were everywhere! The dance floor was outside the reception room on the balcony overlooking the water. It was beautiful at sunset.

Wedding cake...

One Belle Bakery made our cake! They are located in Wilmington, NC. The owner was actually on a TV show on TLC called Ultimate Cake Off.

On the menu...

We had a cocktail hour while the wedding party got their photos taken and then after we had a buffet meal. We had Caesar salad, shrimp scampi, beef tenderloin, chicken marsala, finger potatoes and zucchini.

Memorable moments...

One of the best moments that brought tears to everyone's eyes was when Logan got down on one knee and said his vows to my daughter Emma. Logan then gave her a ring of her own. It was really a touching moment.

Another memorable moment was when we were taking our last photo with the bridal party. We were standing on a dock and our photographer, Ellen, told us to do something crazy. Normal people make silly faces, but not my brother in law! He literally DIVED into the water. The look on Ellen's face was priceless.

Wedding soundtrack...

Every genre possible was played. Lots of throwbacks too!

M A R R I E D L I F E

The honeymoon...

Cancun Mexico!

Future plans...

I applied to nursing school shortly after the wedding and recently found out that I got in! Right now we are really focusing on bettering our lives for our daughter. After I finish school we really want to move to the beach. You can't see a prettier sunset than on the sand!

W E D D I N G W I S D O M

The engagement....

I hopped right into wedding planning literally the next day after I got engaged. Don't do this haha. Enjoy being engaged. You will have plenty of time to plan later! Plus your fiancé will greatly appreciate it.

On the day...

If you drink, definitely have drink a beer or two before you walk down the aisle!

Photography: Ellen LeRoy / Reception venue: The Boathouse at Front Street Village / Wedding gown: Morilee from New York Bride of Raleigh / Florist: Avalon Event Floral / Cake: One Belle Bakery