Our Elopement Was Special Because...

Hi Friends! As usual, it's been a minute since I've written a post. As you know, I don't like to write just for the hell of it. I like to have a purpose; something to say. I've realized, however, that I'm not that great at telling you about our elopements that have happened; how cool they were and/or what made them special. So I'm going to start a new series and try to keep it going for awhile. I want you to see beyond the few pictures that I post on Social Media to see a full picture of an elopement. My hope is that this will serve a couple purposes:

1. If you are new to this concept and still trying to decide if an elopement or micro wedding is something you're interested in, I want to help you understand how elopements/micro-weddings/courthouse weddings work.

2. I want to inspire you! I want you to see how these amazing couples have added their own personalities to their events so that you too can jump in and make your elopement YOU.

I'm not necessarily going to go in date-order for these events, so with that being said, I'm going to start with a super fun April elopement/micro wedding with Rachel & Andrew.

I remember in the first few emails between myself and these two, Rachel told me what she and Andrew would look like when we met. She described Andrew as being “really tall with a long beard.” I was like “hmm… that’s the exact description of my husband. I think we’re going to get along…”

We met at Amelie’s, and it was immediately obvious that we were kindred spirits. These two laughed easily and were the perfect kind of chill. Rachel & Andrew booked, and we landed pretty quickly on the Rose Garden at Independence Park - one of my favorite places in Charlotte. Recently renovated, the rose garden is the perfect spot for an elopement. On the day of, it did not disappoint.

I walked up to the garden on their elopement day and was delighted to see Andrew riding towards me in his 3 piece suit on a yellow bike. I burst out laughing. Just as before, I knew this was going to be amazing.

Rachel & Andrew decided to have an elopement wedding party SORT OF. What does that mean? Well, they asked their close friends to dress a certain way, and they walked down the aisle in pairs, but they didn’t actually worry about them standing up front for the ceremony. And check this out - they picked a tie color for each of the groomsmen, then just had the girls pick out a lace dress to match. It. Was. Perfect.

Rachel asked me to make flower crowns for herself and each of the girls.

The garden makes for a perfect aisle, so Rachel walked down with her sweet dad.

Andrew’s reaction was everything. He kind of laugh cried, and he had everyone tearing up. Actually, this whole ceremony had everyone tearing up. These two. OMG.

After the ceremony, we of course did family pics, then I stole Rachel & Andrew for photos around the gorgeous Independence Park.

R&A had asked ahead of time about getting a picture with the Charlotte skyline in the background. We decided to go to Elizabeth Street and get a few pictures there.

Our bride and groom planned a super unique reception party and asked me to come take pictures there as well. They rented the bottom floor of Dillworth Grill, which is a great spot! They had a DOUGHNUT TABLE which will forever be one of my favorite things. The details here were fire, with tiny gold dinosaurs decorating all the tables, vintage vases collected at thrift stores by the bride’s dad, and a sign-in book that was actually a huge dictionary. The idea was that guests found a word in the dictionary that meant something or was advice for the couple. They would highlight and write a message. I mean, c’mon - it does not get sweeter than that.

I'm so honored to have been a part in Rachel & Andrew's day, and I hope you found something to take away from their super cool elopement. What are your ideas for your elopement? I wanna hear about them!

-Charity

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