Hope & Matthew | The Roosevelt Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana

I had my first meeting with Hope & Matthew at their tasting at the Roosevelt, and they both had all of us laughing the entire time! I could tell immediately that these two were perfect for each other, and the wedding was going to be a fun one. Everyone who has been to New Orleans at Christmas knows that there is nothing more beautiful than the lobby of the Roosevelt Hotel, and I was so excited to be a part of their December wedding. Hope is the type of person that you instantly can connect with and I had so much fun getting to know her throughout the planning process.

They were married in a beautiful ceremony at Immaculate Conception Church, and post-ceremony, the Bucktown Allstars second-lined the bride, groom, and bridal party into the reception. The Allstars are one of my favorite wedding bands, but I may be biased, because I had them play at my wedding!

We have a shared love for our dogs, and they wanted to incorporate their fur family into the wedding. We carved time out of the reception for someone to bring their dogs to the hotel, and they got their photo taken with Hope & Matthew in the lobby in front of all the Christmas lights. Also, they wanted their wedding cake to pay tribute to the Dalmatians, so we came up with a brushed gold cake with one layer covered in spots!

The Groom’s cake was another creation by these two—instead of a typical cake, Matthew wanted a pile of steaks, appropriately labeled Hope’s Beefcake. Needless to say this was a big hit.

Congratulations to Hope & Matthew who have since welcomed a new baby boy to their family!  

Vendor Credits

Planning, Design, & Styling | Satchel Planning & Design

Photography | Lauren Carroll Photography

Bridal Prep & Reception Venue | The Roosevelt Hotel

Church | Immaculate Conception Church

Videography | Bower Productions

Reception Band | The Bucktown Allstars

Florals | Poppy & Mint

Paperie | Invitations by Fergie

Mirror Signage | Smallchalk

Kathy & Brian | The Chicory, New Orleans, Louisiana

Kathy and Brian and were married on November 5, 2016, at the Chicory. Kathy was one of the first full service planning brides I booked back in 2015, so after over a year of working together, it was really special to see these two get married! Kathy is one of the most genuine people I’ve had the chance to work with. She was very conscientious about the details, and always made each decision carefully; I loved helping guide her through the planning stages.

Early on Kathy made the decision to go with a blush and burgundy theme; we were all set to go with the flowers and she had picked out the bridesmaids’ dresses.  One morning she called me saying she just didn’t think she could do that color palette and didn’t want to do blush bridesmaids’ dresses anymore. We made the decision to go with black bridesmaids’ dresses, and I’m so glad she made the change. I love how elegant her bridal party looked in their black attire with their bouquets tied up in silk ribbon. It was a refreshing change from all the blush we’d been seeing in wedding trends for that year. And Kathy was the perfect classic bride!

These ceremony pictures are some of my favorites. I love the way the light was shining in the window behind them as they said their vows; the sunset was timed perfectly.

Kathy and Brian decided not to do a first look. I almost always recommend that couples do a first look, because it saves you so much time after your ceremony taking photos.  When you do a first look, you can get almost all the photos done ahead of time. However, they were adamant about not seeing each other before the ceremony, and it was the right choice for them!

Vendor Credits

Planning, Design, & Coordination | Satchel Planning & Design

Venue | The Chicory

Bridal Prep | The Omni Riverfront

Photography | Lauren Carroll Photography

Videography | Bower Productions

Flowers | Leaf + Petal Nola

Lighting | Luminous Events

Ceremony Music/Reception Band/Second Line Band | Rewind

Hair & Makeup | Just Face It

Wedding Cake | Sucre

PediCab | Bike Taxi Unlimited

Ashley & Kahlil | Il Mercato, New Orleans, Louisiana

Ashley & Kahlil’s Il Mercato wedding was one of the highlights of my 2016.  After booking over the phone, we met for the first time on a rainy day walk through at Il Mercato, and later in the year met up for drinks at the Ace Hotel.  I got along immediately with these two, but I imagine most people do.  They are easily one of the friendliest and nicest couples I have had the pleasure of working with.  

On their wedding day, they both stayed relaxed and calm, despite the added stress of possibly having to move their ceremony inside due to rain.  Thankfully, the rain finally cleared, and it turned into a beautiful September evening—Ashely & Kahlil were able to have their ceremony outdoors in the courtyard followed by a second line around the Garden District. I don’t always tear up at ceremonies but I did at this one, because the ceremony was so genuine, and it was clear how perfect these two are for each other.   

Il Mercato was decorated simply by candlelight with naturally styled white and green flowers by Leaf + Petal Nola.  A focal point was the beautiful (and yummy) wedding cake by Sucre. The reception was a blast—the bride and groom were on the dance floor all night long with Geaux Live DJ, along with all of their guests.  To me, this is what makes an amazing wedding—a couple so happy to be together and getting married, and a really fun party with all their friends and family! 

Vendor Love: 

Event Production & Styling | Satchel Planning & Design

Photography | Love is Rad

Venue | Il Mercato New Orleans

Wedding Prep | Ace Hotel New Orleans

Wedding Cake | Sucre

Florist | Leaf + Petal Nola

DJ | Geaux LIve DJ

Second Line Band | Young Pinstripes 

Hair & Makeup | Flawless Bride

Videography | 63 Films