Susan and Steve's Amazing Wedding at The Cotton Company!

Last December, Susan contacted me about officiating her wedding to Steve on March 10, 2012 at The Cotton Company. We all met and they loved the idea of creating their own ceremony. This was not a first wedding for either of them and all the more reason for making sure the words of the ceremony, especially the vows, were meaningful. They also liked the idea of sharing the story of their relationship, honoring their parents and children who were present, remembering their beloved 4 legged furry children (their dogs) who were on guard duty at home, and the special little touch I add with secret paragraphs crafted with each of them about why they love and want to marry their partner and what they are looking forward to in marriage. They don't hear what each other has told me until the ceremony. It is a sweet moment.

When Marty and I arrived at The Cotton Company, it had been completely transformed since the last wedding I did there in December for Kristin and Tim. They were expecting about 175 guests. The chairs are set up in the center of the room covering the dance floor which was exposed later. It was a nice set up and I did not know the space could accommodate that many guests.

This beautiful cake was provided by Sweet Loralee Pastries. It is bedecked with gorgeous red roses in keeping with their red theme. Amedeo's was catering.

Erica Barfield with Ambiance Wedding & Event Design put together a beautiful altar area with puddling satin tablecovers sprinkled with red rose petals and tall florals dripping with bling!

Marty got a picture of Erica by the cake. She was not only their florist but their wedding director too. She was on the ball and making sure everything went perfectly.

These large flower balls graced the guestbook and gift table. 

That is Steve on the left. His groomsmen were his three brothers, Dave, Ralph and Larry, his son, Josh, and Susan's son, Christopher. Our Junior Groomsman was Collin.

Our bridesmaids all dressed in hot red dresses were hidden away in the storage room before processing out. On the left is Keely, Susan's daughter, with Emily, Tiffany and Charlottte. Nakisha, our Maid of Honor, is not pictured and my guess is that she was still in the bride's dressing room. Our two Flower Girls, Belle and Sophia, are in pink and Madison, our ring bearer (rings are in the basket), is in red.

After we all processed in, Erica guided Madison down the aisle and she made it just fine and managed to stand with the bridesmaids for the whole ceremony!

Susan, looking stunning, was proudly escorted in by her father, Charles, as the guests stood in her honor. She chose to enter to Jonathan Cain's fabulous rendition of The Bridal March. I just love that music! I believe I recommended it to them and they took me up on it. The music for the ceremony was played via iPod by John Chan of the Boomerang Band that played for the reception. Steve has his own band so he must have called in some favors and got this great dance band.

The lighting was dimmed and the track lights above the altar area created a nice glow and plenty of light for me to see the ceremony words.

 

I have "enhanced" these lighter photos so you can see the venue better. The Event Gallery upstairs over the retail shops is quite unique. I have done many weddings here through the years. The area is quite versatile and can be set up and decorated in many ways. When the ceremony was over, the chairs were moved, the dance floor cleared, and large round tables covered with red tablecloths were arranged around the dance floor. Beth Jarvah is the event director for The Cotton Company. She is also a photographer and I have known her previously from weddings she photographed. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Susan and Steve now step into the next chapter of their lives together, marriage. They were great to work with on the story, providing me with lots of great material, both serious and humorous, which their guests really enjoyed. Their words about their love and their vows were particularly touching as well. I could tell they know what is important to them and treasure the love they share. 

Steve and Susan, wow, what a great wedding! I am honored that you chose me to officiate. May the rest of your lives together be as spectacular!!

Wonderful Winter Wedding for Kristin and Tim at The Cotton Company!

Kristin and Tim are a great couple. When we met on November 20th, they shared the funny story of how they met each other with me. I am so happy they found each other because they seem so compatible! They were a lot of fun to work with in creating their special ceremony for December 17, 2011 and worked so hard to transform the upstairs gallery of The Cotton Company in Wake Forest into a winter wonderland. Kristin's mother, Renee, was so very kind to donate all the decorations to the bride whose wedding was there the next day! 

Marty and I arrived an hour before the ceremony and everything was in place. The caterer, Jessie Scott with Tastefully Yours, was getting all the beverages set up.

This beautiful cake was made by Dawn Macon. 

 

The DJ, Frankie Hagen with Island Sound, was setting up too. He was great to work with and had been told that I brought my own microphone and receiver so he was ready. Frankie also identified for me the most beautiful rendition of the Bridal March Kristin had chosen for her entrance that I had heard at previous weddings and loved. It is by Jonathan Cain of Journeys. It is on You Tube at this link.  

This is the latest trend in bouquets--brooch bouquets--made with vintage brooches. How gorgeous they were and Kristin made them herself! I had read about them just the other day but this was the first time I have actually seen them.

Across the dance floor Kristin and her father, Gregory, float down the aisle to that magical Bridal March. Our photographer for this occasion was Bernhard Goetsch with BG Photography in High Point. This was the first wedding he and I have done together but I met him a couple of years ago at a wedding event in Mebane. He also does a lot of weddings with our mutual friend, Rev. Jane Burnette in the Triad, and had furnished our website with some great photos he had taken of Jane. It was good to see him again and work with him!

 

Kristin's friends Samantha and Shannon were her two attendants. Tim's best man was his father, Tim Sr., and his groomsman was his younger brother, Josh.  They were not at our rehearsal but did just fine.

 

After the vows, Kristin and Tim exchanged rings. Then we had the Unity Cross ceremony.

The Unity Cross symbolizes the joining of the bride and groom in marriage. First Tim took the frame of the cross which represented strength and his role as the supporter and protector of his family and set it up in the base.

Then Kristin placed the more intricate sculpture inside the frame representing her many capabilities and how she fit perfectly together within the frame of the marriage.

The Unity Cross comes with three pegs which hold it in place. These three pegs represent God: The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. I placed those three pegs in place and finished the ceremony with words from Matthew 19: "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two shall become one. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate."

Then we closed with a prayer based on First Corinthians, the pronouncement of marriage, the kiss and the presentation of the newly wed couple!

 

 

 

 They look so happy and thrilled to finally be married. It is time to party!!

Kristin and Tim, what a wonderful couple you are and what a wonderful wedding you planned. It was my pleasure and my honor to know you and officiate for you! I wish you all the best!