Virginia + Jake moved to Texas (her home state) shortly before their wedding, so their modern wedding day was all about showing a little southern hospitality to their visitors! They worked with Wild Heart Events and Simply XO Events to create an inviting space, served great food and better drinks, and stepped out in striking wedding fashion (hello, white bridesmaid dresses!) that easily moved the day into WOW territory. Here’s Virginia with their inspiration behind:
“We wanted our wedding to be unique, fun, and inviting. We definitely feel that we incorporated some ‘traditional’ elements, but we put our own spin on them! From the fashion to the florals to the food, we wanted to express our creativity, but be able to look back 20 years from now and feel a sense of timelessness.”
The fun unfolded at Maes Ridge in Johnson City, Texas, and Kaylee Chelsea Photography was there to capture it all!
And here come the modern boho vibes! The invitation suite and graphics for the day were beautifully created by Velvet Fox Designs.
We love a modern barn wedding venue!
Ladies Who Lounge
LOVING the matching sweatsuit look in place of getting ready robes! And peep that logo on her bridesmaid’s pants! Jake’s dad created a custom logo with their first and last initials over the state of Texas and they incorporated it throughout different elements of the weekend.
Virginia made a point to have fun throughout the entire process and one way was to make a weekend out of dress shopping!
“I love any excuse to celebrate and enjoy life, so I did things like making my wedding dress shopping appointments into a fun girls’ weekend in ATX with my best friends. We wore matching pajamas, drank champagne, explored a new city, and got hyped for the big day!”
Two-Piece Tulle Dress
And speaking of the dress…how’s this two-piece gown for a show-stopper?! We asked Virginia the story behind finding her dress and she had some great advice to share:
“The funny thing about dress shopping is that I ended up being drawn to tons of dresses and styles that I said I’d never wear! Instagram and Pinterest are incredible resources for inspiration, but that inspiration doesn’t always translate into real life, and that’s totally okay!
I ended up looking at about 8 different stores in Dallas, Austin, and LA. In the beginning, I was very much open to trying on anything and everything, so that I was able to hone in on the styles, fabrics, and designers that I liked best. One thing that I quickly learned – fabric is key and not all fabrics are created equal! I also think an important piece of advice is to dress for YOUR body and YOUR style! Feeling confident and comfortable on the big day was very important to me – and I’m always more confident when I love my look!
For the ceremony, I ended up going with a two-piece look from Chosen by KYHA – the Millie Skirt and the Bentley Bodice. For me, it was the perfect combination of edgy and classic, and most importantly, it felt very true to my style. Plus, it’s not every day that you get to wear a fluffy tulle skirt!”
She carried a lovely neutral bouquet by Good Seed Floral that pulled the whole look together.
A sweet idea for something blue!
Gals in White Bridesmaid Dresses
Oh, this is a LOOK! The ladies matched in long satin white bridesmaid dresses and strappy white heels. So modern and fresh!
And let’s not forget the fellas — looking striking in black suits!
The First Look
There it is…one of our favorite moments!
Virginia’s sister-in-law styled her hair with modern-glam waves and Lux Beauty & Bridal paired it with a peachy-neutral makeup palette. And V has a great tip for testing out your hair + makeup artists: “Have them glam you up when you go wedding dress shopping! Who doesn’t love a good excuse to get their hair & makeup done?!”
Virginia popped on a customizable hat by Olive and Pique and once again, we are HERE for a bridal hat moment.
The Modern Ceremony
Loving these chairs!
Most definitely our ceremony! It was a very surreal and special moment for both of us, and while weddings can be busy and a bit of a blur at times, we both remember feeling so much peace and happiness during the ceremony. Jake’s childhood pastor flew out all the way from California to Texas in order to officiate for us, and it made the moment that much more special!
Processional: You’re Beautiful by Shane & Shane
Recessional: How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You by James Taylor
First Dance: Touching Heaven by Johnnyswim
Terracotta + Texture at the Reception
The entry signage sets the scene for the reception, and these seating charts are FAB.
Virginia works in the wine and spirits industry, so she wanted to pay special attention to the bar. They elevated drinks by adding edible flowers, custom drink stirrers, and fun garnishes to make their cocktails by Drink Slingers unique! And one of the custom cocktails paid tribute to her dad, Charley, and Jake — who both love a classic gin & tonic — calling it “C & J’s G & T.”
Marcramé table numbers! So much yes!
So much to love about all these little textural details that add SO MUCH to the overall design.
Food, Fun, and Southern Hospitality
Food was another important factor to Virginia + Jake, and they wanted our guests to enjoy foods that may not typically be served at weddings while paying homage to the location! The Peached Tortilla came through with favorites like mini brisket grilled cheese at cocktail hour, brisket served with mac and cheese for dinner, Blue Bell ice cream sandwiches for dessert, and fried pickles for late-night snacks!
Where to begin?! There’s so much that can be said about planning a wedding, but a few things that come to mind when looking back on my personal wedding planning process:
Have fun with the process! Believe it or not, you may miss the process once all is said and done, so soak it all in! I love any excuse to celebrate and enjoy life, so I did things like make my wedding dress shopping appointments into a fun girls weekend in ATX with my best friends. We wore matching pajamas, drank champagne, explored a new city, and got hyped for the big day!
Hire the right team of vendors. We’d recommend interviewing a handful of people or companies for each role that needs to be filled. By interviewing multiple people, you have a point of comparison and you’ll be able to see who has a communication style that you vibe with the best! Jake & I absolutely loved each and every one of our vendors. Our design team & planning team were both incredible and on top of it, and things definitely wouldn’t have gone as smoothly if we didn’t have them!
Your photographers and videographers will be with you ALL day, so it’s important to make sure that you mesh well with them. I believe it is worth every penny if having both photography and videography fits into your budget. Once all is said and done, all you have are the memories, photos, and videos! Our photographers were one of the very first vendors we booked, and we knew that they were a MUST HAVE in our budget. Not only do they produce incredible images, they brought a calming energy throughout our big day and knew exactly how to direct the photos. Jake would tell you that he isn’t a photoshoot kind of guy, but Kaylee & Andy’s skills and leadership behind the lens made it easy – we’ll call that a major win!
A good way to test out a hair & makeup team ahead of booking them for your big day is to have them glam you up when you go wedding dress shopping! Who doesn’t love a good excuse to get their hair & makeup done?!
And for the final sweet detail, Feathers & Frosting crafted a neutral + modern cake to perfectly match the day.
Virginia slipped into another Chosen by KYHA dress for the reception, this time the Eames gown. Sleek and timeless, and perfect for dancing!
Such a stunner of a day! All our congrats to Virginia + Jake!
photography: Kaylee Chelsea Photography // venue name: Maes Ridge, Johnson City, Texas, USA // event design: Wild Heart Events // planning: Simply XO Events // florals: Good Seed Floral // wedding dress: Chosen by Kyha // hairpiece: Olive and Pique (hat) // hair stylist: Lux Beauty & Bridal // makeup artist: Lux Beauty & Bridal // groom attire: Generation Tux // videography: NorthMark Films // catering: The Peached Tortilla Catering // cake: Feathers & Frosting // tabletop rentals: Table Manners // furniture rentals: Loot Rentals // linen rentals: La Tavola // specialty rentals: The Styled Affair // music: Dart Collective // photo booth: MirMir Photo Booth // cocktails: Drink Slingers // graphic design + stationery: Velvet Fox Designs // chargers: Elan Event Rentals // ceremony music: Mikaela Kahn // napkins: Theoni Collection // transportation: Elegant Limousine
This wedding looks so perfect, you’d think it was a styled shoot.
Love the white bridesmaids’ dresses. Brave.
Where did you get the white bridesmaid dresses? LOVE THEM!