For today’s feature we’re traveling a little further to Asheville, North Carolina. That’s where Bryan and Elise tied the knot with a beautiful outdoor ceremony and rustic reception at Crest Pavilion. Their colorful farmers-market inspired wedding was complete with homespun details, a variety of beautiful blooms shown through pretty floral arrangements, scenic views, and delicious desserts that the bride made for her big day. The look was filled with so much charm and the dance floor was filled with loads of energy thanks to Emerald Empire Band who kept the party going! This one certainly doesn’t lack character and we know once you see these photos by Whitmeyer Photography you’ll adore the day as much as we do!
Elise + Bryan
Crest Pavilion ~ Asheville, NC
Guests ~ 130
Budget ~ $20,000 – 30,000
How did you guys meet?
Elise: We met after being introduced by mutual friends! Bryan is active duty Air Force (a rarity to be stationed in Asheville, NC), and I am an Army veteran so our friends decided being two of the only military people they knew in town that we should meet. Bryan unfortunately got reassigned in North Dakota about a year after we met so we navigated a long distance relationship (during the pandemic) for almost 2 years.
Tell us about your engagement!
Elise: We got engaged over Christmas 2020 in North Dakota. Bryan’s popped the question together with his son Zane!
What was the vision for your wedding?
Elise: Bryan and I both knew we wanted to get married in Asheville, where we met, and both wanted the mountains to be a centerpiece of our day! We envisioned having a beautiful wedding but mainly wanted a fun party surrounded by family and friends!
What was your theme and what inspired it?
Elise: We didn’t have a theme necessarily, but I love of farmers market flowers, all the colors and all the varieties! I was going for a comfortable, vintage feel, with lots of wood accents and of course LOTS of farmers market-style flowers in mason jars, and apothecary jars as vases. It was my dream to marry a man in uniform so Bryan wore is Air Force mess dress. I incorporated lots of navy accents as a neutral to connect all the colorful flowers and the color of Bryan’s uniform. I used lots of mercury glass accents, and even painted old windows to look like mercury glass to use as seating charts and signs. Table numbers were actually years with pictures of Bryan and I during those years (including all the awkward teenage years to keep the guests laughing and moving throughout the room to look at pictures instead of just staying in their assigned seats). We had fun fact napkins at the bar, one even led to the realization that the lead singer of the band had attended the same concert we had the night Bryan asked me to be his girlfriend!
Where did you splurge? Where did you save/DIY?
Elise: We splurged or spent the biggest part of our budget on our venue,. Crest Pavilion was simply beautiful and had the gorgeous mountain backdrop I’d always envisioned. All the stone, metal and glass at the Pavilion was a perfect complement to the vintage accents. We also spent a big part of our budget on our band! Bryan’s one request was for awesome live music so he did all the planning for that part of our big day. Emerald Empire Band was phenomenal! They were engaging, and fun, everyone (including myself as the bride) didn’t leave the dance floor the whole night! I was so adamant about having lots of colorful flowers, I decided (and really always dreamed about) doing all the flowers myself to save money. It was a huge undertaking but I was SO happy I did. They looked like bouquet after bouquet of farmers market flowers just like I wanted! I also love to bake and for some reason really wanted to make my own wedding cake and cupcakes! I practiced lots of tiered cakes in the months leading up to the wedding, bringing my creations in to work for my coworkers to taste test. I stacked and finished the lemon wedding cake early on the morning of my wedding day!
What words of advice do you have for couples in the midst of their planning?
Elise: Although it can be stressful, the end result of all my hard work planning was my absolute most perfect day – its the only way I know how to describe it and it was so worth it! Do a few (or as many) personal touches that matter to you as the bride, they made the event feel really warm and those are the things people have commented on since! I recommend a good notebook for continual lists of things to do, and an Amazon prime account for all the things you end up ordering!
Can you share any special moments or highlights from your wedding day?
Elise: I had asked the band to call a group of my friends to the dance floor when they played Sweet Home Alabama at some point in the night. Its a special song to us and there’s a line dance only we really know. Without us knowing, the band opened the dance floor with that song and so some of my dearest friends and I all stumbled through the line dance together for the first time in over 5 years! Another special moment was surprising my new bonus-son, Zane (who decided his title for the wedding day should be Zane-of-Honor) with a dedication to him during the ceremony. We wanted to not just highlight our relationship as a couple, but also point out how important he was as we were becoming a family.
Congratulations to Elise and Bryan! We loved showing off your colorful farmers-market inspired wedding featuring Emerald Empire Band!
