Rustic Country Barn Wedding in Tennessee

Happy Saturday! Today we are featuring the beautiful rustic wedding of Olivia and Andrew in Tennessee on August 22nd 2015. I’m going to give you fair warning – these pictures had me straight up crying, so grab yourself a box of tissues.

Andrew and Olivia decided on a barn wedding and after they found Grace Meadows Farm, their dream celebration really began to take shape. They chose a colour palette of royal blue and peach, accented with lace and incorporated lots of personal touches throughout the day. They had a table that was made by Andrew’s grandfather that commemorated those loved ones who were not with them; they made fans for their guests to assist with the August heat; and they even wore his and her cowboy boots!

Seeing the photos of Olivia and her Dad together had me bawling and the close pair delighted everyone with a choreographed hip-hop routine during the Father-Daughter dance. So fabulous. I also adore the cute royal blue stationery and mouth-watering looking cake, which matched their decor perfectly.

Thank you so much to Sweetly Vintage Photography for these gorgeous photos!

  
“Olivia and Andrew’s southern cowboy chic wedding was full of personal touches that made it such a fun and memorable night for their guests. It was a night full of surprise after surprise. From the décor to the ceremony, to the reception, the entire was all about them and their love story. Some of my favourite parts of the day: During the father/daughter dance, things started off as usual- with a beautiful slow dance, but soon after was a jaw dropping choreographed hip hop routine! It was a huge hit! My absolute favourite moment of the day was the first look with her father; seriously, such a sweet moment.”

HOW WE MET | Our love story started at Northeast State Community College. We had a mutual friend that had the same class as we did. As weeks went by, several group projects, and study sessions at Olivia’s house, our friendship slowly started to evolve. From then on, Andrew had asked me to be his girlfriend in April of 2012.

THE PROPOSAL | While we were dating Andrew had always joked with me that he would marry me if I ever took him to a Garth Brooks concert. As every girl would, I made it happen!! I found tickets to a Garth Brooks concert in Atlanta, Georgia in October of 2015. On the morning of the concert, Andrew wanted to take me to Stone Mountain to explore. He had been there several times and wanted to take me. It was a very interesting place. As we walked through the gigantic mansion, we had exited into the backyard, which was beautiful! There were flowers everywhere and a white gazebo. He wanted to have our “picture” taken in the gazebo. He demanded to go find a worker to take our “picture.” But little did I know, he was going to propose!! It was one of the best moments of my life! I was glad that Andrew had gotten someone to take pictures while that was happening!

THE PLANNING PROCESS | I will give you new brides some advice…. DO NOT GET ON PINTEREST UNTIL YOU HAVE DECIDED ON A THEME. Don’t get me wrong pinterest is the best thing ever, but it is very overwhelming when it comes to planning a wedding. Andrew and I decided on a barn wedding. We found Grace Meadows Farm in Jonesborough, TN, through a friend. As soon as we pulled up, I knew it was the place to have our wedding. The place is beautiful!

THE VISION | The theme of the wedding was more like a rustic barn wedding. Our colour scheme was royal blue, peach, and adding a little bit of lace. Our guest list was 225 and yes we had at least 200 there. We planned for the ceremony and reception to be inside the barn.

THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | There were several personal touches to our wedding. At the ceremony, we had a heart shaped table that Andrew’s grandfather made, we used it for a memory table as there were a few of our loved ones not with us that day. I had my grandmother, Andrew’s grandmothers and his mother light a candle that was in front of their loved ones’ picture. We had 3 centerpieces: a big mason jar, a lantern, & Andrew’s grandfather’s cowboy boots ( as he had several pairs). Andrew’s aunt and grandmother made the centerpieces. We used artificial flowers except for my bouquet. We made the groomsmen’s boutonnieres out of shotgun shells. Also, we made fans for our guests as it was the end of August when we got married. I purchased my dress from David’s Bridal. The caterer for the wedding was Telford Dinner located in Telford, TN. It was a very good home cooked meal. BBQ, chicken tenders, mac & cheese, slaw, baked beans, tea, lemonade, and Andrew’s favorite, Dr. Enuf!

Our photographer was of course the lovely Leslie Lockhart! I could not have asked for a better photographer! We booked our cake with Cake Art, Margie Chambers, in Elizabethton, TN. We rented several things from Celebrate in Johnson City. Our DJ was Neal Church, and my wedding planner was Lisa Fraley. Oh and ladies, if you want your newly wed husband to fall out of his seat on the wedding day, have Leslie photograph your boudoir session. Yes, some may think that’s not my cup of tea.. Well it wasn’t mine either, but Leslie made me so comfortable and confident. I brought a couple of Andrew’s shirts, cowboy hat and a couple of other props! This was his gift that he received on the wedding day and his reaction was priceless!

OUR WEDDING DAY | Brides, let me give you some advice. Enjoy every minute of that day and take it all in. Because it is over in a blink of an eye. I got my makeup done at MAC in the Johnson City Mall and got my hair done at Shear Class. I will say, my father did not want to do the traditional father-daughter dance. So 3 days before the wedding we had made up a dance to a remix of a bunch of different songs. It was a hit! The day in itself was more that I had ever dreamed of. From all the countdowns to the stressing out over every little detail, it was all worth it. I have people still to this day telling me how beautiful the wedding was. If I had to do it over, there would be nothing that I would change. It was absolutely perfect!

CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |

Photographer |  Sweetly Vintage Photography

Dress Store | David’s Bridal

Event Venue | Grace Meadows Farm

Makeup Artist | MAC Cosmetics

Hair Stylist |  Shear Class

Caterer | Telford Diner

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

Olivia and Andrew, your wedding certainly was stunning. You’ve also cemented Tennessee’s place on my bucket list. Thank you for letting us share your day.

Abby xx