Marrying McAfee | Let's Party!

Oh the wedding reception...one of the most fun parts of the day. After dinner, the music cranked up, and everyone hit the dance floor. We had a friend from college {DJ Hurricane Herman, what what!} DJ our reception, which allowed for a lot of personal touches and requests. He definitely played to the crowd and got a lot of people moving, which was important to us. 

We took one break from the party to do the traditional bouquet toss, or throw in our case, and the garter toss. I surprised my maid of honor Kirstie by throwing the bouquet directly at her as a surprise. It was so funny. And Christopher surprised me by having hands full of ice when he went to retrieve the garter! I was so hot that I didn't even feel it for a few seconds...it just felt wonderful and cool on my legs, but it got icy, fast. 

Both my maid and matron of honor gave heartfelt and memorable speeches. Christopher's best man Elijah was deployed on our wedding day, but he had two great men step in to fill that place. A few weeks before the wedding, I had messaged Elijah to kind of put the idea out there of a surprise speech if it was at all possible. He was able to record his thoughts and our DJ played it for everyone to hear, much to Christopher's surprise. I'm so glad we were able to do that, and include Elijah in our special day from afar.

My Phi Mu sisters also did the traditional wedding cheer, and I was so proud of myself for remembering to bring my candle from the candle-light ceremony announcing our engagement in the Phi Mu house three years prior, almost to the day! I'm so thankful we were able to get a picture with our fabulous photographer, a Phi Mu herself.

 

Throughout the reception, I could tell that our friends were getting feisty and were creating quite the getaway car. We were scheduled to leave through a tunnel of sparklers at 10:30 p.m., but about 10:15 p.m., I hit my limit. I was exhausted, hot, and just ready to be alone with my husband! So I headed back to the getting ready space, and literally laid on the couch for five minutes while the sparklers were handed out to the remaining guests. When Christopher finally made it back to the room, he asked, "How's my little introvert doing?" He knows me so well, and knew my "socializing limit" had been met!

We spent a few more minutes by ourselves with our photographer and videographer soaking in the last seconds of the day before heading out through the front door through a beautiful tunnel of sparkles. After pulling Saran wrap {and condoms...boys...!} off the car, pushing out dozens of balloons out of the seats, and stuffing my giant dress into the car, we were off! We rode back to our house to change and grab our luggage before heading to Savannah for the night. I think we both couldn't stop smiling all the way home, and kept saying how it was truly the best wedding ever.

Thank you for following along while I chronicled these memories! But no worries, the wedding features will continue, as I have the honor of featuring a few friends and blogging buddies and their wedding days. If you're interested in your wedding being featured, shoot me an email at piperellice at gmail dot com.

Also a huge thank you to all of our family and friends, near and far, who made this day the best day of our lives. We love you all!

Marrying McAfee | Merry Maids

My girls and I took a ton of stunning group and individual pictures prior to the ceremony. It was a perfectly breezy, although hot, April day, and these are some of my very favorite pictures from the day. It was a great time to loosen up a little before the ceremony began. 

One of my wedding tips to future brides is plan at least an hour in between your last pre-wedding picture and the ceremony. Guests with good intentions like to arrive early, up to an hour before the official start time, and I desperately did not want anyone to see me in my dress before walking down the aisle. The entire time we were taking pictures I was so worried about someone, especially my groom, seeing me! With a wedding start time of 6 p.m., we were back in the getting ready room by 5 p.m.

If you look closely at the girl's bouquets, you may notice something special: rose colored carnations. I specifically asked the florist to include a few of those blooms in my Phi Mu sisters' bouquets to represent our sorority bond. I also used a strip of fabric from my junior bridesmaids' dresses that I got monogrammed with my new monogram in navy as my bouquet wrap which had one of my favorite flowers in it, peonies! 

Don't you love how my little's gold glittery shoes matched mine?!

Marrying McAfee | It's all in the Details

I've had a lot of questions about where I got certain items for our wedding, so I wanted to do a detailed post all about the details! Some of these ideas were things that I poured my heart and soul into, like our custom crest cups, napkins, and koozies. I'm so glad we have detailed pictures of all of the "small things" that really mattered to me, thanks to Ari Merritt Photography.

Casablanca Bridal Gown  from Southern Brides in Florence, SC

Invitation Suite from Vistaprint

Gold bow wedges | Garter | Pearl Earrings

Monogrammed Pearl Statement Necklace 

Groom's Fingerprint Ring

Moss Monogram Wreath

Gold bejeweled cake stand 

Monogrammed gold serving set

Monogrammed Cake Topper  | Cake

Crest embossed cocktail napkins 

Custom crest and monogram koozies in pink and navy 

Frosted cocktail cups with custom crest | Bridesmaid dresses in peony

Giant Monogram 

Manda is getting married!

This blonde bombshell is getting married tomorrow!!

Both Amanda and her hubs-to-be Jared were two of my very first friends in college at Georgia Southern. We've spent a lot of time together throughout the years, and I am so excited to be a part of their very big day. Amanda and her family have spent the last few months putting tons of personal details into the wedding which will be held on her family's property. Her amazingly talented older sister even designed and created the invitation suite, and will be doing all of the flowers!

Best wishes for the soon to be Mrs.; I hope you love being married as much as I do! Can't wait to experience this beautiful {although scorching!} weekend with one of my very best friends.

Marrying McAfee | Getting Ready

My mom made me a clover crown, just like
she used to when I played outside when I was little

{Read about the pre-wedding events here}

 After the rehearsal dinner, the girls and I all came back to my house for one last sleepover before the wedding. They surprised me with a box full of sweet notes and letters to read right before bed, which was the sweetest thing ever. My bridesmaids didn't miss a single detail the entire time, and I am so grateful for such precious memories. 

On Saturday morning, we got up early and headed to the wedding venue, Quinney Oaks Plantation in Millen, GA. Hair started at 9 a.m. as there were a lot of heads to do! We spent the morning relaxing, setting up some of the decorations, and listening to music. For lunch, some of the moms brought us Dairy Queen box lunches which was delicious and very needed after a week of not eating much due to nerves! Plus, who doesn't want a hot fudge sundae before they get married?! 

After lunch, I started my make up and my MOH's pageant pro sister came to do everyone else's make up for them. Once we had all hair and make up done, the bridesmaids put on their gowns and were ushered out of the room while my mom and my maid and matron of honor helped me dress. I was thankful for those moments with my mom and Kirstie and Niki, two of my longest friends. It was a great quiet time to reconnect briefly before things really kicked into high gear. 

We did a special little "first look" with my ladies in our dressing room and I love looking at pictures of their priceless reactions! My mom then prayed over me and my marriage which really turned on the waterworks for everyone. I'm so blessed to have such a godly example of a woman from my mother, and love these pictures that Ari Merritt Photography captured of that moment! 

Hair by Jordan Reddick at 30 Volume Salon in Statesboro 

Trying to cool off with my gin bottle!

My amazing Matron & Maid of Honor