Hallie & Shawn’s wedding is very similar to what I would choose if I was getting married now. Don’t get me wrong— I absolutely loved our wedding and it was a perfect fit for us at the time, but their day really delivered the best parts of an intimate elopement as well as a big reception. On Friday night, they kicked things off with their first look and some beers at Old Louisville Brewery, then they moved next door, where forty of their closest friends and family joined them for their ceremony, dinner, and toasts at 610 Magnolia. It was relaxed, joyful, and full of happy tears. On Saturday, they had a bigger reception full of amazing food, delicious cake, and loads of dancing at the Filson Historical. I asked them about their plans for the wedding and Hallie said, “We tried to represent ourselves through food and music that we love. We wanted our ceremony to be small and then be able to celebrate with everyone on the following day. We both love Old Louisville and we are so happy to have found two venues there. We also tried to incorporate some of the traditions & style from Shawn’s Indian side of the family— lots of bright colors, marigolds, and some other Indian touches.”

Once the day was done, I asked each of them their favorite moments. Shawn said, “I loved getting to spend so much time with our family on the wedding day. The small group was just what we wanted and it felt extra special.” And Hallie said, “I loved getting to see Shawn before the ceremony and spend some time together. It made the day feel like any other even though it wasn’t! It was so great getting to hang out with all of our friends and relax before we made it official.”

On the significance of attire Shawn said, “My one really important piece was my boutonniere, which had some lace from my mother’s wedding dress wrapped around it. Hallie surprised me with that and it meant a lot.” Hallie also incorporated a lot of elements from family in her outfit. “My dress has some of Shawn’s mother’s wedding dress sewn into it. I also wore a ring of hers that Shawn’s Dad had given me. It meant so much to be wearing pieces of hers on such a big day. I never got to meet her but have heard what an amazing woman she was. It made the day that much more sentimental. I also wore a pin from my grandmother that my sister wore on her wedding day. I pinned it onto my flowers along with some of the same lace from Shawn’s mom’s dress.”

A lot of their vendors are also friends which made the day feel even more special. Shawn grew up with Sayward from Hazelfield Farms and is close friends with their band, The Downtown Country Band—their first dance was to a wonderful cover of In Spite of Ourselves. I included a lot of images of their guests here, especially from the first day, because family is obviously very important to them, but also because with such a small group I was able to really focus on that. I feel like because I’m blogging this wedding during the pandemic, I’m also really missing those types of connections with my own family at the moment, so those images seemed extra significant at this time. 

Florals: Hazelfield Farms // Friday night venue & catering: 610 Magnolia // Saturday night catering: Amber McCool with Rooted Red Clover // Band: The Downtown County Band // DJ: Jesse Penn // Coordinator: Maggie Heely with Weekend Wedding Warrior // Gown: Theia from Carrie Karibo Bridal // Hair: Hair by Maddie Woff // Makeup: Bailey Carter Beauty // Cake: Sweet Surrender // Saturday venue: The Filson