Hi! I'm Taryn, a writer, designer and soon-to-be-bride from Atlanta, Georgia. Sit a spell with me and catch up as I plan the wedding of my beer-loving, confetti-throwing dreams to the wonderful Mr. Williford.Finding Our Style
I’m going to say “our” a lot, because it feels silly to say “my style” or “my wedding.” I mean, I’m the planner, but I’ve got to think for two here. That said, the mister’s interest in wedding planning ends at what people are eating and what music is playing, for the most part. But he still cares about making sure the wedding is cool. What cool means for us and our guests, however, is difficult to nail down.
Ellen
We just know it’s not this.
Since we’re more beer-and-tacos people than champagne-and-filet people, the first word that came to mind when we tried to settle on a wedding style was “casual.” Not beachwear casual (although, being a family of Florida Gators, I feel like we might need to specify jean shorts are not welcome), but more like low-key, night-out-with-friends-casual. Although I love attending big elegant ballroom affairs with a dozen bridesmaids and even more meal courses, I knew it wasn’t right for us. When it comes to weddings, I’m a fervent believer in the “just do you” philosophy. Make choices that make you happy, whatever they might be, and stick behind them with an unshakable passion, even when your co-workers, hairstylist or well-meaning mother-in-law try to steer you away.
So when it comes to throwing this major fete, we’re going to steer away from some more formal wedding choices and do things that feel more natural to us. More casual to us. Less fanfare, more down-home fun. That means stuff like assigned seats (even though I love seeing creative escort card ideas) could be left out, and things like lawn games and food trucks would be welcomed right in.
Kate Sears for Martha Stewart / Shyla Photography via Style Me Pretty
Bye cute escort cards, hello cornhole!
The elements in our casual-minded mental “yes” column had something else in common. They all felt very modern. I love tradition, but even more, I love throwing tradition on its head (just ask our black tinsel Christmas tree). I wanted our wedding to break the mold in a few places, but still feel a little bit classic. A traditional wedding, with a modern spin.
Romona Keveza dress, photographed by Jose Villa for Once Wed
Like a black wedding dress… maybe.
Lastly, the one thing I wanted to capture in our wedding was a local feel. With Mr. Rooster’s family in Michigan, and my family in Florida, A huge chunk of our guests are going to be visiting Atlanta from out of town, and it’s our job to show them a good time here in the South. So our wedding would have to have a Southern feel. Think grits, peaches and Coca-Cola.
Reese Moore via Southern Weddings
And “bawled” peanuts.
So there it was.
Casual. Modern. Southern.
Perfect.
Once we shook out those three words to reveal the big vision for the big day, something magical happened. We started to picture what each of the little pieces might look like. All of a sudden the venue, the menu, the music… I won’t say it came completely into focus, but it definitely got a lot less blurry. With just those three style cues and a guiding principle—to do what feels right to us, even if it’s not “wedding-y”—we could start to make some major choices and watch this wedding really take shape!
Do you have a wedding planning mantra or style cue words that helped your wedding come into focus?
