An Enchanted + Majestic Woodland Wedding In Georgia

The term “fairytale wedding” gets used a lot, but Aly + Adam’s Georgia “I do’s” are the stuff of literal fairytales. 

For starters, take the way these two found each other: “Adam and I met on a medieval battlefield…” says Aly. “No, seriously! We were both a part of a medieval group and, at the time, Adam was the prince. I was smitten. I took off my helmet, let my hair down, and apparently it worked!”

The celebration that Aly + Adam put together at the beautiful The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee with the help of planners from Drake Social was ethereal, enchanted, immersive, romantic majesty. “We both love fantasy and medieval themes, so that was a no-brainer,” Aly says. “I try to be thoughtful about small details, so everything from the programs to the altar were cohesive and meaningful.”

If you’ve seen the fantastical 1992 animated classic FernGully, then you have an idea of what inspired this wedding’s aesthetic. Woodland wonder. Fairy magic. Timeless tales of romance. All with a warm, autumnal twist and a color world filled with forest green, burgundy, teal, black, and brown.

There are SO many details we cannot wait to show you (the embroidered floral elements, the fern-filled ceremony, the enchanted forest reception seating chart, the fairy houses filled with appetizers), so let’s skip the “Once upon a time” and get right to these gorgeous wedding photos from The Willetts!

An Autumnal Welcome Dinner

Like the idea of a rehearsal dinner dress as dreamy as Aly’s? The answer to your embroidered flower hopes + dreams may just be in our roundup of all the loveliest floral dresses.

Aly + Adam welcomed their guests the night before their wedding with a truly stunning Fall foliage-filled celebration that included an appearance from these adorable beer burros! As well as a live performance from Tim & Taylor!

This is total of autumn wedding decor dreams 😍 Take a look through our collection of Fall wedding decor ideas for even more.

That lush hanging installation!! That is pure tent decor brilliance.

The Wedding Day

Loving the moody deep greens and wine reds of this romantic invitation suite from hi note studio.

Cozy flannel shirts are such a cute bridesmaid gift idea for a Fall wedding!

Our Favorite Memory
From the bride: "Other than marrying my knight in shining armor, the most memorable moment of the day was seeing everyone we love all in one place. It was surreal and is probably a once in a lifetime event."

“My mom and I have been dreaming about wedding planning and dress shopping since I was little,” Aly remembers. “We used to buy wedding magazines whenever we traveled and we loved watching wedding shows.  In fact, we used to pass a Winnie Couture boutique every time we went to the grocery store and we dreamed of one day walking in to shop.”

“Fast forward (it’s time!), and I flew home to Houston to be with my mom. We knew we wanted it to be just us, but my dad did come to a fitting. We made several appointments including one at Winnie for nostalgia’s sake. We had no idea that it would turn out to be fate! I liked Winnie because I had a specific look in mind and they allowed me to combine designs and customize my dress.”

Behold!! The dreamy half up half down bridal hairstyle that Erin Ryser created and filled with fresh flowers.

Loving these delicate, enchanted wedding nails! The metallic gold unicorn nail art adds so much fairytale wonder to this floral nails set.

Completely obsessed with these rich jewel tone bridesmaid dresses. Total medieval ladies-in-waiting vibes.

And wow for that Mother of the Bride look! We are obsessed. Love how Aly’s mom really got into the theme!!

Aly is a dog trainer, so it only makes sense that the couple had their precious pooch around on their big day. Check our our list of clever ways to include your pup in your wedding day if your furriest family member is on your guest list, too!

An Enchanted Ceremony

Talk about a creative ceremony layout idea! Love that Aly + Adam created a unique, geometric take on an in-the-round ceremony setup in such a beautiful lakefront-meets-woodlands spot.

Amanda Jewel, architect of the day’s breathtaking florals, leaned into only ferns + greenery to create the ceremony’s immersive, leafy, enchanted world.

Take a look at this chic tiki wedding in a Brooklyn loft and this western wedding in the Idaho mountains for even more examples of ceremonies that opted for surround seating setups.

Our Musical Choices
Processional
"Tale as Old as Time" from Beauty and the Beast
Recessional
"Good Riddance" by Green Day
First Dance
"Golden Years" by David Bowie

“For the veil, I knew I wanted some color and to incorporate the fantasy forest theme,” Aly says. “I asked myself: what would a forest fairy wear to her wedding? I hopped on Etsy and found a wonderful woman in Ukraine who combined some of her designs to create a custom veil. It was perfect.”

Aly + Adam’s ceremony featured music from Gregory Hamilton.

Fall in love with everything on our list of the best fairytale princess wedding dresses if you can’t get over how glorious Aly looks in this full skirt off the shoulder puff sleeve silhouette.

A Charmed Cocktail Hour

For their wedding reception seating chart Aly + Adam created an actual enchanted forest complete with escort cards that doubled as guest gifts.

Different kinds of music filled the air throughout the day with performances by Divisi String Quartet, Steel Toe Stiletto, and John Maschinot’s Irish Trio.

Before the reception began, guests grazed on this absolutely astounding charcuterie spread…

…and wedding cocktails were distributed through a greenery wall as if by magic!

Some appetizers were even served in these fairy houses!

A Regal Reception

Our Advice
From the bride: "My advice is to hire a wedding planner. My mom and I were both professional event planners at some point in our careers, so we figured that we'd be able to do it ourselves. While I was confident in our abilities, hiring someone else allowed us to enjoy the process and the wedding day. We hired Drake Social and they were incredible. They were like the Ocean's Eleven of event planners - they were stealth and exceeded our expectations. They made it easy, fun, and care-free."

Completely 100% obsessed with these adorable acorn menus!

Mayker Events, Blue Eyed Yonder, Party Bound, and Lake Oconee Event Company came together to create the majestic, fantastical decor + furniture aesthetic of Aly + Adam’s reception feast.

One of our favorite details from Aly + Adam’s day? A poet from Haikuists was on hand to live-write haikus for guests!

This spectacular fresh flower and greenery-adorned wedding cake was accompanied by wedding desserts like cookies from The Sweet Tooth.

Congratulations, Aly + Adam! Your majestic woodland wedding totally took our breath away. GWS wishes you nothing but the happiest ever after!