Happy Valentine’s Day lovelies! Today we’re celebrating the day of love with this vibrant editorial captured at the beautiful Felicity Church in New Orleans. It beautifully combines an historic venue, and all of its vintage decor, with contemporary details, in a palette that is nothing short of modern. Romance is added with the lush florals, in a rich shade of red (of course!), which includes a stunning floral choker!

From Amanda Lankford of Amanda Jewel Floral + Design talked me through the team’s vision for this Valentine celebration…. “One of our favorite vintage elements of this shoot was the venue itself! For 125+ years, Felicity Church has been a treasured gathering place for the NOLA community. But after Hurricane Katrina when the Gothic Revival structure faced severe damage, the church was sold. In 2011, new owners with a desire to bring back its historical beauty renovated and restored the building and Felicity Church is now a place that couples can celebrate their most special day for years to come!

With such a classic and neutral setting, we wanted to choose a bold accent color that would pop. Red was perfectly fitting, especially for Valentine’s Day! Other favorite aspects of this shoot included working with Distressed Rentals, a local vintage rental company who takes vintage finds and upgrades them to make them new. They’re all about bringing history to a space in an authentic way, using just the right vintage pieces to give wedding guests good vibes + make them want to linger a little longer. Finally, Kinfolk Brass Band, came out for “second line” inspiration! A second line is a New Orleans tradition that dates back many decades! The main line or first line is the main portion of a brass band parade. Those who follow along with the band just to continue enjoying the music are called the second line. It’s truly an amazing thing to watch, so being able to convey this in our shoot was a special treat.”

Isn’t it stunning? Now if you love that floral bridal necklace as much as I do, it would make the perfect DIY project and Amanda kindly shared how she created it….. “Statement blooms are so in right now, so why not create an actual real live floral choker to add an unforgettable touch to your bridal look? It’s a fun make ahead accessory (should last 2-3 days depending on the bloom) that adds that wow factor you’re looking for! We used ranunculus blooms because they hold up very well, but feel free to play around with various blooms that are fitting with your wedding florals.

I started with finding a really great base for the necklace and selected a velvet ribbon. Velvet is so in right now and it sits well with florals. Floral glue works best, but hot glue works well too (no, it doesn’t hurt the bloom). I snipped the blooms off at the very neck so no stems were showing and the ranunculus bloom would lay flat. For added texture, include a few little snippets of greenery and smaller blooms with glue tucked in between the bigger blooms. You can do a full choker and place the blooms all around, or accents so that the velvet ribbon shows off a little (a fun way to tie in a pop of color). Fasten it with a jewelry fastener to complete the whole look and make it look like an extension of your wedding day jewelry!”

VIEW THE GALLERY

Many thanks, as always, to all of the talented creatives (listed below) who brought this Valentines Day vision to life, but especially to the oh so sweet Natalie of Four Corners Photography who captured it all so perfectly and allowed me to share it with you here. If you love Natalie’s documentary style of photography and would like to see more of her work do pop and take a peek at her website www.4cornersphotography.com, and of course be sure to find and follow her on Instagram and Facebook!

Now if this has you looking for more Valentines Day wedding inspiration you might like this enchanting Little Red Riding Hood inspired affair, and this inspiration board in the prettiest palette of red and pink is sure to get you in the mood for love! Or for something a little less traditional you might like this lavender infused inspiration board. Or for another beautiful bridal necklace you should take a peek at this Fall urban Secret Garden wedding editorial – the florals are just breathtaking!

Amy

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Contributors & Credits

Photography – Four Corners Photography // Planner – Sapphire Events // Hair & Makeup – Anne Timss // Floral Design – Amanda Jewel Floral + Design // Venue – Felicity Church // Music – Kinfolk Brass Band // Paper – BRYLO // Wedding Cake – Melissa’s Fine Pastries // Rentals – Distressed Rentals // Textiles – Silk & Willow, La Tavola Fine Linen // Wedding Dress – Town & Country Bridal // Rings – Trumpet & Horn // Table Accessories – West Elm // Virtual – VR Arcade Nola // Models – Sarah Mattix and David