After being in the Louisville wedding industry for over a decade now you'd think I would have photographed a ceremony at Locust Grove before, but this was my first one and it was 100% worth the wait. Eleanor said it well, "My historic preservation background and love of old houses had me dreaming of getting married in front of a historic home — Locust Grove it was! Plus, that landscape is just so pretty — the rolling hills, and all the cabins, and spring houses, and willows, oh my!"
We started the day at a gorgeous Airbnb in Clifton. I've said it before and I'll say it again— getting an Airbnb instead of a hotel room for getting ready is the best! It gives you more space and you can rent a place that feels like a good fit for your day. The home where they got ready allowed Eleanor's side to have the second floor and Aaron's side to have the first floor so they had loads of space....plus the front porch of the home was gorgeous and fit with the historic tone of the day. They had their first look under the willow tree in the front yard while some family snuck peeks from the second-floor balcony. When it came time to head to Locust Grove we found out the trolley's brakes went out so we had to wait for another to come! It added a tiny bit of chaos, but lucky for us we had some buffer time built into the timeline to allow for the inevitable mishaps that come with wedding days. We were able to still get all of our wedding party and family photos finished before the ceremony so that afterward they could head downtown and go straight into celebrating!
A few of Eleanor's favorite moments included, "Our photo session of just the two of us right after the ceremony ended at Locust Grove felt really special! Also, right before the ceremony, our best man brought out a bottle of Basil Hayden and filled a couple of cups and everyone who was waiting behind the scenes took a drink and said something nice about us— it was really sweet and special and the bourbon calmed my nerves a little bit, haha. When Aaron and I got to practice our dance on the roof and it felt like my dress was going to trip us up sooooo bad, but then we got down on the dance floor and KILLED IT (at least I felt like we did)!" Aaron's favorite moments overlapped with Eleanor's which is always a good thing "I also loved the pre-ceremony bourbon toasts, that really sticks out in my mind. Also, walking onto the trolley after the ceremony with the champagne popping. And collectively all of the moments we had to get the amazing photos we got (and kissing Eleanor a million times)."
coordinator: Ginna Matson with Hummingbird Page // florist: Kristin Hatten Howell // dress: Essense of Australia through Rebecca's Wedding Boutique with sleeves added by KAren at Highland Cleaners // makeup: Michaela Frances Artistry // hair: Shawn Green with The Beauty Patrol // DJ: Marshall Yancey with Yancey Entertainment Service // Catering: Crushed Ice Catering // wedding party suits: J. Crew Factory // Eleanor's rings: Megan Thorne Fine Jewels purchased through EAT Gallery, Maysville, KY // Aaron's rings: Stuller purchased through EAT Gallery, Maysville, KY // Cake: Sweet Surrender Dessert Cafe // transportation: Miller Transportation // ceremony chairs: Southern Classic Rentals // photobooth: Magbooth // ceremony venue: Historic Locust Grove // reception venue: The Ice House
Their ceremony was really sweet and I loved the music they chose so much. Eleanor once again tells it better than me so I'll share what she wrote, "Our ceremony was exactly how I dreamed it would be. When we got to Locust Grove I was in awe of how perfect it looked even though I feel like we went very minimal on decorations. My best friend since 6th grade's (and maid of honor's) dad performed the ceremony! He's amazing and so progressive and I knew he would do a beautiful ceremony for us. I thought it was the perfect amount of "there's something bigger than us going on here." He suggested a "warming the rings" part of the ceremony where everyone passed around our wedding bands and held them for a moment to put their hopes, prayers, dreams, and wishes for us as a couple on them. I was so excited when he told us about this because it reminded me of something we would do at the summer camp I grew up at called "wish sticks" — we would put our hopes, prayers, dreams, and wishes on sticks and then throw them into the fire so the smoke would rise and our wishes would be heard. I loved this part of the ceremony. Also, my mom told me that my friends who were sitting behind them at the ceremony whispered, "This is SO 'Eleanor'" after we had the wedding party walk down the aisle to a Death Cab song and I walked down the aisle to Vampire Weekend— haha, I loved hearing that."
Fun facts: their cake topper was Eleanor’s grandparent’s topper from their wedding day in 1952. She and her mom visited Tickled Pink Memorabilia Mall (my favorite thrift store) to find all 85 of their vases for the tables! Also their close friend did all their florals!
The night ended with an epic dance party— seriously their friends and family had some of the best energy. A favorite moment of mine was when Eleanor's cousin Kelsey spun Eleanor's dad on the dance floor— it cracked me up and felt like something my family would pull. Also when Eleanor's camp friends gathered around her and went wild during one of their friend group's sentimental songs, "Anna Sun." you could tell it was sheer joy for everyone involved.
