The Enchanted Forest
Sydney and Alex
Sydney had a clear vision for her wedding—bright, bold colors that captured the richness of early summer. She was specific and intentional with her palette, so together we began sketching out the design on paper, mapping out every detail, including the flowers that would bring it all to life. With help from a talented local florist, I identified the exact blooms and greenery we needed for each arrangement. By the week of the wedding, hundreds of flowers arrived, and the real work began.
Surrounded by a small but mighty team of helpers, we transformed an outdoor venue tucked into the North Carolina countryside. It was a stunning setting. The sun filtered through the trees and cast soft light along the wooden path that led to an arbor nestled in a quiet clearing. Moss covered the ground in shades of lime green and created the perfect backdrop for the vibrant flowers that lined the aisle and wrapped around the arch.
But nothing compared to the moment I saw my daughter walk down that path. Her smile said everything. In that one moment, surrounded by beauty and love, I knew I had given her a day she would never forget.
Westwood Lodge and Hunt Club
Grand Opening Gala
Luxe Dinner Party
Baby Shower - Welcome Pumpkin
Rustic with Character
Barn Reception Venue
Olivia and Lucas
From the moment my nephew, Lucas, proposed to his girlfriend, Olivia, I knew I wanted to do something meaningful for the two of them on their wedding day.
Lucas has grown into a kind, grounded young man and is now pursuing his dream as a talented, independent country music artist. He’s worked incredibly hard to get where he is, and I couldn’t be more proud.
As for Olivia, she fit into our family from the very beginning. Her warmth, grace, and genuine spirit made her feel like one of us almost instantly. The two of them are a beautiful match, and I wanted to help make their wedding day just as unforgettable as the love they share.
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Olivia knew immediately she wanted a fall wedding, so October it would be! The venue? A barn. A rustic, brown wood siding, brown wood floor, barn. The minute I laid eyes on this barn, I knew with a little creativity and vision, it had the potential to become a beautiful location for a lovely wedding reception. I told the two of them that my husband and I would take care of the reception décor, but I needed to find out what they had in mind for colors, style and overall design so that I could begin my work by pulling together all the tiniest of details.
Olivia’s style was colorful and with a bit of rustic elegance. She selected flowers that were red, orange and burgundy in color, with just the right touch of dark and muted green to pull everything together. She wanted some burlap, but not too much, with a touch of ivory lace to bring a hint of romance and elegance into the overall theme.
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The stage was the focal point in the venue, so it needed to be striking as to distract from the vents suspended from the ceiling. Sheer fabric was draped on the sides and over the top of the stage. Floral arrangements were attached to create a romantic backdrop. Scattered throughout the venue were gold, plum and burgundy chrysanthemums as well as large ferns.
To achieve a rustic, yet elegant design, I wanted the venue to be full of roses; over 500 of them in red, orange, and beautiful orange, yellow and red variegated. I also chose to include red and burgundy Gerber Daisies, beautiful green Bells of Ireland, a gazillion stems of grapevine, and eucalyptus in the florals.
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My husband, who makes a great partner with event planning, took my design idea for the containers and ran with it. He created the tall wooden containers used to hold the large table centerpieces. We stained these with a beautiful Americana stain.
He also constructed the shorter wooden boxes used to hold the lanterns and florals. I chose to do two different types of centerpieces, one short and one tall, on the twenty guest tables because it is more interesting to the eyes as you look across the venue.
The table design included white floor-length tablecloths, burlap and ivory lace runners crisscrossed on each table. We chose gray linen napkins, silver flatware and gray dinnerware. Instead of stemware, Olivia really loved the idea of using mason jars, so these were provided for each guest to use and take home with them at the end of the night.
There were a slew of details that had to be thought through. The use of photographs, koozies, table number signs, the gift table, placement of potted plants, lanterns, table runners, you name it. Luckily, I had help! My sister-in-law, Lucas's mom, did a phenomenal job keeping up with many of the particulars that really made a huge impact in the overall design.