Pastels was one of my picks of the top wedding trends for the coming year and when you see pretty celebrations such as this outdoor Alabama affair captured by Baylee Rae , it is easy to see why! Pastels are perfect for a Spring or Summer wedding – and with Rose Quartz and Serenity Blue Pantone’s colours of the year, I predict we will be seeing them well into Autumn and Winter in 2016 too! – and they instantly add the sweetest touch of vintage romance…..

High School sweethearts Krista and Dustin planned for a long engagement, after Dustin got down on one knee before being deployed to Japan for 7 months. But 8 months later the couple were exchanging their vows – thanks to the hard work of Krista and their wonderfully supportive friends and family. “Throughout the whole planning process I never felt the need to stress because so many people helped me with everything! I never felt alone even though the groom did not get to help with much of it. I loved staying up all night with my mother-in-law thinking of ways to make the wedding even better and more beautiful. And when the day finally arrived it was way better than I ever dreamed. I looked out the window at the ceremony and it was so beautiful and the details at the reception were so perfect…… I only wish I could turn back the clock and put it in slow-motion because the day just flew by.”

“I actually had two dresses. My first dress was my ceremony dress and I found it at a bridal boutique in Mobile, AL. The designer is Allure and it was not anything like what I thought I wanted. My goal was to find a long sleeve lace dress but none of the ones I tried on made me feel beautiful. My mother and I kept looking and when we arrived at the boutique we looked at almost everything, but there was nothing that caught my eye….. until I saw a very beautiful silk ivory dress with a wide open neckline and a slight 1950s feel. It made me feel so beautiful and elegant, I just knew straight away it was the one. My second dress was my reception dress. It was supposed to be just my leaving dress, but Alabama can get a little hot! The story of the dress is a little bit different because it found me. I actually bought it almost a year before I was even engaged, but it was only 99 cents at the Goodwill so of course I bought it. The dress ended up being perfect after a few people altered it for me. It was a late 1960’s dress and it made me feel so different than my first dress. It not only made me feel beautiful but I also felt so classy and timeless.”

“My something new was from a family friend who gave me a beautiful set of pearl earrings and necklace. My something old was my bouquet, made of vintage brooches by my Mum – I started collecting them as soon as we got engaged. My something borrowed was from my mother- in-law after I came to her freaking out because I had completely forgot about the “something borrowed!” She found a handkerchief that her grandmother had given her for her wedding. I of course loved it and the best part was I used it to wipe away Dustin’s tears during the ceremony. My something blue was my shoes ~ I have always known I would wear blue shoes on my wedding.”

“I had three bridesmaids. Meagan, my maid of honor, has been my best friend since eighth grade; Kali, my sister; and Camellia a friend since high school. I actually found their dresses online at David’s Bridal and it literally was one of the easiest decisions of the wedding. I thought it was going to be hard to please everyone, but I knew I wanted all of them to wear a different style. So we met up at David’s Bridal and I showed them the dresses I wanted them to wear and I secretly prayed they loved them. They did and we ordered them right then!”

“The groom wore his Navy dress blues because he insisted and plus how much more vintage can you get. Dustin’s boutonniere had white flowers and a brooch of two lizards, one being smaller than the other, I found and it was so perfect. Dustin’s dad died when he was seven and their nicknames were lizard and lil lizard. This was one of our ways of having his dad be a part of our wedding.”

“We got married at the Spanish Plaza, which is a park in Mobile, Al. We stumbled across it when Dustin’s mother took me to the Malaga Inn to show me it as a possibility for the wedding reception. I ended up really liking it and as we walked away from it, we saw across the street a beautiful park and I was sold.”

“I wanted to include both my Dad and my Stepdad, so I had my Stepdad walked me to my Dad, and my Dad walked me down the aisle to Dustin. When I was standing with my step dad and watching the wedding party walk toward the ceremony, I remember feeling so nervous. But as we began walking toward my Dad I felt less and less nervous, then my Dtepdad gave me to my Dad and my Dad was crying a little which started me off and then I looked up to see Dustin and he was crying too! At that moment I felt so happy to be spending my life with him, but also sad to be leaving my family  – I hated seeing my family so sad/happy.”

“I chose a few bible verses for our ceremony. I chose Ruth 1:16 because being that Dustin is in the military we will move a lot and I wanted him to know that no matter where he goes I will go also because I love him. Another one we used was 1 Corinthians 13:4-7:13 because I love that verse and it was also a part of Dustin’s parents wedding.”

“The reception was at the Malaga Inn and I would describe it as romantic and vintage. The reception has an indoor location and outdoor location. The outdoor location was so beautiful because it is a courtyard with a fountain. They were both decorated in a shabby chic way by my mother, Dustin’s mother, and Michelle (many others helped as well).”

“Mrs. Delisha, Dustin’s mother, was the biggest help with all the little details of the wedding. Most of the decorations were things we found at yard sales or things people let us borrow (we went to yard sales for like 4 months straight and it was so worth it)”

“Our wedding cake was a three layer naked cake. It was created by Pollman’s Bakery. The maid of honor and I did the cake tasting because Dustin was in Japan, but we chose yellow cake with strawberry filling and it was so good.

“The Groom’s cake kinda sorta stole the show but I was not mad. Mine was simple and pretty but his was a realistic suitcase that everyone was talking about. It was made by Carol Monteith.”

Pearls of Wedding Wisdom from the Bride…..

The best advice given was by my mother-in-law/wedding planner, and it was that the little details make a wedding. She was so right. Most people focus on the big things but the little things matter too. Never get overwhelmed because everything will be perfect on your wedding day and if something does not go as planned it makes for a better story/memory. For instance Dustin and I took a dance lesson and yes we are terrible dancers and we ended up changing up our dance as we did our first dance but no one knew.

Tell us a little bit about your photographer…..

“I found Baylee Rae on Facebook and loved her work so I set up an appointment and found out I not only loved her work but I loved her personality and I am so glad I chose her to be part of my wedding day.”

*sigh* such a dreamy celebration! A hearty congratulations to the loved up Krista & Dustin! And huge thanks to their lovely photographer Baylee Rae who captured the whole day – the tears, the love and every little detail – so beautifully. If you would like to see more of her wonderful work, why not head over to her website bayleeraephotography.com, and you can find her to follow on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.

If this romantic vintage inspired wedding has you smitten, why not take a peek at this beauty with an incredible rainbow cake (the brides pink dress is one not to be missed too!), or this 1950s inspired city chic celebration, or this Spring wedding with a marquee reception! You will find all of these, and lots more wedding inspiration, by clicking here.

Amy

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Credits

Photography ~ Baylee Rae // Wedding Dress ~ Allure Bridals // Bridesmaid Dresses ~ Davids Bridal // Reception Dress ~ Goodwill Store // Bridal Hair & Makeup ~ Bride’s Mum // Bride’s Bouquet ~ Created by Bride’s Mum // Ceremony Venue ~ Spanish Plaza, Mobile // Reception Venue ~ Malaga Inn // Floral Design ~ Rose Bud // Wedding Cake ~ Pollman’s Bakery // Groom’s Cake ~ Carol Monteith // Catering ~ Old South Gumbo // Rentals ~ Blue Rents