Elegant and Rustic Wedding Ideas

May 22, 2012 | by Jocie (email) |

Okay, so we didn’t almost die, but we thought it might be a definite possiblity. A co-worker of mine got married this past weekend in south-west Virginia, about 4 hours from us. We left the girls with my sister-in-law (Thanks, Charis!) and got a hotel room for the night. It was a rare treat to be with adults, dressed up, and without the kids!

We weren’t really sure what to expect of the wedding. I knew that it was at her sister’s but was under the impression that my co-worker comes from southern money, so it could have been outdoors or indoors in a large estate house. Also, it was a 4 pm wedding, so usually not as formal as an evening wedding but can still be kinda dressy depending on the location. This also brought a crazy obsession about what to wear. I ended up settling a fancier sun dress with wedge sandals.

We get to the hotel on Saturday, check in, and then determine directions to the wedding. Thankfully we decided to add a little extra time since we didn’t know where we were going. Here’s the almost death part. We’re driving out in the middle of no-where with NO CELL SERVICE and I could swear I heard the banjo from Deliverance playing. Me and Ethan are far to pretty and city-like to survive, although Ethan did have his trusty pocket knife, you know, in case people got scrappy at the wedding. LOL! We drove probably 2 – 3 miles up a narrow gravel road, twisting up a mountain in Ethan’s sporty little Civic which was not getting great traction. Thankfully, no one was coming down the mountain at the same time.

At the top of the mountain was a cute wood cabin, a clearing, and a barn. Check out the tin roof. Ethan said that a good tin roof can last up to 50 years. 🙂

The wedding was set on the clearing with beautiful white chairs and a homemade trellis. BTW, I was sooo glad I had worn a sun dress and wedges or walking up the clearing would have been rough. Most came a little dressier than us (suits and stilettos, not together) but we were happy to have dressed down with the sun and terrain.

At the end of each row was a garden stake from which hung a Ball jar with flowers.  At the start of the isle, where the flower girls and ring bearer started, was a wood box with flowers also. It was the most romantic and beautiful outdoor decorations I have ever seen at a wedding. It didn’t hurt that it was a beautiful day on top of a mountain.

After the ceremony, everyone walked down the hill to the party barn. No joke, it was a barn built for parties and it was Ah-maz-ing! Ethan joked that they were hearding the cattle – that’s why I took this second  pic. lol!

We were greeted with passed hors d’oeuvres and several options of cold waters and juices, including watermelon juice, fresh lemonade, and citrus water.

Of the hors d’oeuvres, our favs were the mini bruschetta and the bacon-wrapped pineapple. Ethan really loves any food wrapped in bacon!

For adult beverages, there was an open bar with beer and wine. The coolest part was that the beer and wine was kept cold in an old, iron bath tub! What a cute way to class up the beer!

Behind the beer and wine was this cute sign directing people to the bathrooms. So precious!

At the gift table, everyone could write messages to the happy couple and tie them to a metal pasture gate.

The guest tables were so beautiful too. Each had a different white lace table cloth with an assortment of different bottles filled with flowers. We spied some pretty neat bottles, including one Patron at our table.

The party barn itself didn’t need too much decorations because it was beautiful in its own right, however they placed billowing white fabric lining the ceiling surrounded by white twinkle lights. It was so romantic, especially as the sun set.

The food and drinks were all wonderful and Ethan got to eat one of his favorites – Lamb! It was kinda funny since we were eating in a barn. lol! The wedding cake was also amazing and beautifully rustic.

We didn’t end up staying too late because we were scared we would accidentally drive off the side of the mountain by accident and never be seen again since we had no cell reception. But we were so glad to have gone and it was one of the prettiest weddings I’ve been too! Next time, I’ll bring my good camera instead of my iPhone. heehee

What do you think? What would you add for your Rustic Elegance wedding?

As Always, thanks for reading!

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