Simply Elegant Nashville Wedding captured by Meredith Teasley
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Elegant Cannery Ballroom Wedding by Meredith Teasley Photography

Ellen and Collin’s Cannery Ballroom wedding was simply elegant! We love a classic wedding! While their decor included soft pinks and golds, their effortless vibe made the room stand out in the most flawless of ways. Not to mention, the two looked suave in their timeless attire! This day was all about having a fun celebration and these photos by Meredith Teasley Photography make us want to jump right in! Keep reading to see more about their day!

Tell us about your engagement!

Ellen: I actually had convinced myself that my (now) husband, Colin, was going to propose last summer! He assured me that he had a plan, but patience is not my strong suit. When he didn’t propose that summer, I kind of gave up guessing when it would happen and just trusted that it would happen soon enough. We traveled to Nashville, where I grew up, for Thanksgiving. His parents also came, which I thought it was just because they had never seen Nashville before. My birthday also happened to fall on Thanksgiving last year, so I thought if it were to happen at all that trip, it would’ve happened that day, Thanksgiving/my birthday. When it didn’t happen then, I was fine and figured maybe over Christmas. We had plans to go out to dinner with some of my high school friends on Friday night to celebrate my birthday. He kept changing the reservation time on me which was driving me crazy because I am quite the planner! We ended up picking up one of my friends, Lindsey, and her boyfriend, Darragh, (visiting from NYC) on the way to dinner.

When we got in the car, Darragh mentioned wanting to stop by the Parthenon on the way to dinner because Lindsey’s grandmother apparently mentioned at Thanksgiving dinner the day before that they should see it while in town. Me, being a freak about being on time, and just genuinely not wanting to go to the Parthenon, tried to convince them that we should just go straight to dinner. Colin was driving the car and was driving in the complete opposite direction of where I was telling him to go to get to the restaurant, and started driving towards the Parthenon. I STILL was not catching on to any of this. We get to the Parthenon and once we climb up the stairs, I notice that Darragh and Lindsey started walking the complete opposite direction of Colin and me. After thinking that was odd, I immediately figured out what was happening!

Colin was really quiet and nervous and I was trying to talk to him and calm him down. We walked to the opposite end of the Parthenon and he got on one knee and popped the question! Neither of us remember what he said but all that matters is that I said “YES!” A bunch of my high school friends, and even my college roommate (who drove up from Birmingham!!), were hiding and popped out and surprised me. I was so happy! I thought we were still going to dinner with all of these friends, but we drove to a different restaurant than what was planned. We walked into a private room and both sets of parents, my cousin, aunt, and uncle were there to celebrate with us! They bought a cake and balloons and we had a wonderful dinner celebrating our engagement. It was so nice being surrounded by so many people we love on that special day.

What was the vision for your wedding?

Ellen: I really wanted to keep things simple! After we picked ONE at the Cannery Ballroom for our reception, I knew it didn’t need much decor. We had some string lighting and uplighting, light pink napkins, and beautiful floral arrangements at each table. Guest experience was my number one priority at my wedding, and I personally don’t think over-the-top floral, drapery, etc. makes a wedding any more FUN than not having those things. Having a great DJ was a big priority of mine and he absolutely killed it! He kept the party GOING and the dance floor was packed all night long.

What was your theme and what inspired it?

Ellen: Our theme was pretty classic, light, and airy. I always wanted a summer wedding and we had the most beautiful August day to celebrate. Our ceremony was pretty traditional with beautiful music from a trumpet and organ. Our reception was a little bit rustic with the beautiful exposed brick at ONE, but overall pretty classic and traditional as far as decor goes.

Can you share any special moments or highlights from your wedding day?

Ellen: Singing “Dixieland Delight” at our reception was so much fun! This is a song that is played at Alabama football games and with Colin and some of my family members being Alabama graduates, we had a lot of people there who knew the song. It brought back so many memories from college, going down to Tuscaloosa every weekend to see Colin. Another fun memory from our wedding was during our grand exit, everyone started chanting the Eagles fight song. Since Colin is from Philadelphia and since we live there now, we had a lot of guests in from Philly. It was so fun yelling the song as the car drove us away!

What are some tips you can share with other brides planning their weddings?

Ellen: Don’t feel like you need to overdo it with decor! If a venue is pretty enough, let that shine! I also think all these signs brides are into are just a trend and mostly unnecessary. Assign a friend to take photos during the day! Waiting for your professional photos to come back is TORTURE (we got lucky and only had to wait about 3 weeks and we LOVE THEM), but I was so sad to only have a few to look at right after the wedding. I wish I had someone taking pictures while we got ready, hung out, danced, etc. just to have some before the professional ones came.

GET A GOOD DJ/BAND! They will seriously determine how fun your reception is! Try and have FUN at your own wedding. I truly enjoyed myself at the reception and I even had people compliment the fact that they could tell I was having a good time. For how much money we paid for the day, you better believe I’m going to have fun! Too many brides are so stressed on their wedding day, that I think they forget to let loose and celebrate. HAVE FUN!

What a fun day! And Ellen, we love your advice! Thanks so much to Ellen and Collin and to Meredith Teasley Photography for sharing this simply elegant Cannery Ballroom wedding!

Credits

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Wedding BeautyBlowout Co.WEBSITE
Wedding Dresses & Bridal FashionAzazieWEBSITE
Wedding Planning & DesignMarcia Husband
Food & BeverageBurton Catering
Rentals & DecorEventworksWEBSITE
Cakes & DessertsDessert DesignsWEBSITE