Grace and John’s classic wedding was a celebration of elegance and timeless love. With a sophisticated color palette of blues, ivory, and greenery, their special day was filled with beauty and meaningful details. One particularly unique touch was the inclusion of a fortune cookie fortune in their detail photos. Grace had kept this fortune, which read “love is on its way” and was dated “6.2.19,” since the early days of their relationship. Remarkably, their wedding date was June 1, making it feel as though the fortune had predicted their special day. With 14TENN providing the perfect backdrop, LMA Designs adding life through gorgeous blooms, and Smith Creative Co. capturing every cherished moment, this celebration was truly one for the books.
Grace + John
6.1.2024
Ceremony: Calvary United Methodist Church
Reception: 14TENN
Budget: $70,000
Guests ~ 200
How did you meet?
Grace: John and I both grew up in Nashville, TN and attended Montgomery Bell Academy and Harpeth Hall respectively. My brothers attended the same school as John so I knew vaguely of his family but had never met John. He was a senior when I was a freshman. We both went on to attend Auburn University, but again never met while we were both students there. Flash forward to November 2018 when some mutual family friends insisted we meet at their football tailgate for the Auburn vs Texas A&M game. Our family friend was emailing me saying “you must come meet John Powell. He is smart, handsome, funny, and a great guy!” I was sold and agreed to come meet him. I immediately had interest and we continued to be in contact for a few months but things fizzled out before I went to Australia for a few months in early 2019. March of 2019, those same family friends invited me to the Auburn Elite 8 basketball game in Kansas City and when I arrived, I discovered they had invited John to attend too with the plans of us to sit together for the game. John and I haven’t stopped talking since! Thank goodness for those family friends who persisted and pushed us together! Our relationship became “official” on May 29, 2019. We did long distance for a while because I was still a student at Auburn and John was abroad in St Andrews Scotland getting his masters degree, but in 2021 we both ended up back in Nashville officially and our love story continued to blossom. In April 2023 we were engaged!
Tell us about your engagement!
Grace: When John decided to propose, he knew he had a daunting task because he knew I wanted to be dressed up for the big moment but I hardly ever get out of “athletic” clothing. I was told we were going to dinner with his parents for his father’s 60th birthday. On our way to dinner, we stopped at Ellington Agricultural Center (a park near where we live). I was slightly confused but went along with it. We got out of the car to “go look at something” and he led me to the Iris Garden at the park. He said some things that I honestly cannot remember and got down on his knee. I was shocked and it was perfect! We then went back to his parent’s house and were greeted by friends and family to celebrate!
Where did you get your dress from?
Grace: Dress is from Adorn Bridal. It is “Dreama” by Justin Alexander. My shoes were from Dolce Vita, jewelry was mostly family heirlooms, veil was purchased from my alterations people, Karen Hendrix Couture.
What was the vision & theme for your wedding? What details were used to create this vision?
Grace: I wanted our wedding to be classic and timeless. Nothing too over the top. We kept the florals pretty simple with the tables lined with greenery and candles. Two of the round chandeliers at the venue were simple greenery with the center one being more of a statement floral design. The colors were blue and white with accents of gold and greenery which screams timeless to me.
Where did you splurge? Where did you save?
Grace: We splurged on band and food. We saved money by limiting the “signage” / extra decor at the wedding as well as keeping the florals relatively simple.
What is your best piece of advice for others planning their wedding?
Grace: Take time to think of what is most important to you. Always remember that the point of this day is to marry the love of your life! Everything else is just a bonus! Don’t get too overwhelmed by what others might think – it is your day!
What was your first dance song?
Grace: All Your’n by Tyler Childers
Can you share your favorite memory or any special moments from the day?
Grace: We decided to incorporate a Bride/Groom with grandparents dance. John danced with his grandmother and I switched out dancing with my two grandfathers. This was super special to us!
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
Grace: Another unique thing we did was in our details photos I included a fortune cookie fortune. This fortune said “love is on its way” and I had dated it “6.2.19”. I found it in a memory box just a few weeks before the wedding. I remember vividly sitting with John while we ate take out Chinese. He opened and read his fortune and then asked me what mine said. I was a little hesitant to read it out loud because I was slightly embarrassed. We had only been officially dating for a few days! But I kept that fortune all of these years. I guess love really was on its way. And it’s wild that the date was June 2 and our wedding date was June 1!
If you love this classic wedding celebration as much as we do, find more inspiration here!
