This past November we had the honor of working with and planning Danielle and Parker’s romantic, fall wedding at Homewood. We planned an intimate wedding ceremony in the Great Room in front of the beautiful, one of a kind fireplace followed by a fun, romantic candle lit reception. While the wedding took place close to winter, it was the perfect day for outdoor moments and wedding photos. Not only did we get to plan their special day, we also worked on their floral design which included vivid colors and lush arrangements. This wedding is a great example of how you can bring in fun, bright colors to you wedding no matter the month that it takes place!

FIRST LOOK & WEDDING PORTRAITS

Many couples have a difficult time deciding whether or not they want a first look! Danielle and Parker were the same. We have shared our thoughts about the subject previously, but ultimately, it is always dependent on the couple and what they feel is right for them! Danielle and Parker decided that they would want to do a first look before the ceremony and chose the romantic, intimate side porch of Homewood! Typically, the bride will approach the groom and tap his shoulder or say hello, but we love the sweet way that Danielle surprised Parker! As we mentioned before, this fall day gave us the perfect weather for outdoor moments and wedding photos. There are so many locations around the Homewood property for romantic wedding portraits. We especially love when photographers incorporate the stone structure of the venue itself in these photographs!

BRIDAL PARTY

Danielle and Parker started the day getting ready with their closest friends at a downtown Asheville hotel before they headed over to the venue! We love the elegant look of the bridal party! The bridesmaids wore long, emerald green dresses in varying styles. This is a great way to let your bridesmaids choose the style of dress they want while keeping the bridesmaids dress color consistent. The groomsmen had a classic, timeless look with black tuxes and black bowties. They finished the look with a crisp white pocket square to match their formal white shirts. This elegant look works with any color and so complimented the emerald green dresses really well in the bridal party photographs!

HOMEWOOD FRONT ENTRANCE

While Homewood’s unique stonework makes it beautiful on its own, we love bringing in some floral touches to the space for special wedding days! We stick with simple, elegant greenery as not to take away from the venue’s aesthetic. Since we were using a colorful floral palette, we wanted to use bright greenery to decorate the front entrance of the venue. We decided to use Smilax for this and it was a great fit!

In addition to simple greenery, we also placed modern gold lanterns down the front stairwell of Homewood. The gold element helped bring in a pop of color on the stairs while the real pillar candles in the lanterns offered a romantic glow and a warm welcome for wedding guests! This gorgeous front entrance also created the perfect place for the couple and their guests to take some memorable photographs throughout the day!

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INDOOR CEREMONY

There are two wonderful ceremony options at Homewood - the garden and the Great Room. One of the most unique and identifying aspects of Homewood is the beautiful, historic, stone fireplace in the Great Room. What’s even better than the visual appeal of it is that the fireplace is in perfect working condition and couples can choose to have it turned on for their ceremony. This unique element makes it the perfect spot for any indoor fall or winter wedding ceremony.

The antique, brass candlesticks are a great addition to the stone fireplace and create a classic, elegant look perfect for any wedding day. While some couples choose not to decorate the fireplace mantle, others want to tie in their floral design by requesting greenery or floral arrangements to be placed on the mantle. A combination of lush greenery and pops of wedding flowers make for a great backdrop for ceremony and pictures! We used a lush, mixed greenery garland across the mantle and draping from it to create a bright base for the flowers. Then, we brought in an assortment of varying wedding blooms to add some color to the garland and finished the look with clear, glass pillar candles to add some romantic lighting to the space.

We finished the ceremony setup by adding loose greenery to the antique chandeliers in the space and lining the ceremony aisle with loose, mixed greenery and clear, glassed pillar candles in varying heights clustered down the aisle. It was the perfect setting for a romantic, fall wedding ceremony with Danielle and Parker’s closest friends and family members.

GREAT ROOM RECEPTION

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed cocktail hour throughout the space while the Great Room was transformed for the newlywed’s wedding reception. The Great Room was filled with long guest tables and so we added long, lush garlands across the table acting as a runner and added pops of flowers from the wedding color scheme. These garlands resembled the ones on the fireplace mantle and helped tie in the floral elements throughout the space. The floral candelabras were provided by the couple and were added to the tables to add height to the design. The centerpieces were surrounded by a mix of assorted pillar candles and mercury votives. Since we used ivory linens on the tables, we added some color to the place settings with emerald green napkins and modern gold chargers. The organic look of the lush garland and wedding blooms worked well with the elegant and structured look of the gold candelabras and the gold chargers.

One of the reasons we enjoy adorning Homewood’s antique chandeliers with loose greenery is that it offers a unique and colorful element to the space. This also works as a great “backdrop” throughout the reception. The picture below of Danielle and Parker’s first dance under the chandeliers is a great example of this!

SUNSET PHOTOS & SPARKLER EXIT

When creating a wedding day timeline, we always leave time for sunset pictures! Wedding days take months to plan but pass by so quickly. Taking some time for sunset pictures during the reception gives the newlyweds a chance to spend some special moments together that they otherwise may not get. In addition, the golden hour light is a photographer’s best friend and allows for some unforgettable wedding portraits like the ones below! We especially love the added romantic glow from Homewood’s patio cafe string lights.

Once the reception ended, we lined the guests down the front stairwell for Danielle and Parker’s newlywed sparkler exit! Sparkler exits are a fun way to send off the newlyweds after their wedding day, but they also offer a lighting advantage for photographing in the dark! Talk about a romantic spark!