It’s not every day that your BEST friend gets married (pretty much ALL of my friends are already married…eekk I’m getting old) so when she asked if I would photograph her special day I was a little taken back actually. Yes I was excited but at FIRST I was like “Oh Boy…ummm sure”. See my best friend is Melissa from Melissa Stallings Photography; she too is a Wedding Photographer. So it was a double whammy! Working for a friend and a wedding photographer…No PRESSURE right? Thankfully Melissa and Jerry are just SUPER sweet, so down to earth and overall just grateful people. Just knowing that they wanted and trusted me to document their day was such an honor and so exciting!

Melissa and Jerry did an AMAZING job really incorporating their style and personalities into creating the wedding they DREAMED of! From Melissa’s favorite color (MINT), her love of mixed matched Chinaware and flowers their decor was classy, chic, and boho. Melissa literally collected the stemware and chinaware for several months then spray painted all the mint pieces. They also have some crazy talented friends that created 8 tables out of pallets! And they were AMAZING! So much hard work was put into creating those tables for the reception! Their ceremony was held at a private location in which they have dearly named “Our Spot”. This spot of theirs is where they first met while Melissa was photographing a special session for Jerry and his two children Hudson & Leila who were both suffering from Batten’s Disease at the time. “Our Spot” was the PERFECT backdrop for their small intimate ceremony. Melissa and Jerry exchanged the most heartfelt vows and had a special balloon release in honor and memory of Hudson & Leila who were with us in spirit. I don’t think that there wasn’t a dry eye. After their beautiful ceremony their friends and family headed back to Melissa & Jerry’s house to get ready for the party!! I absolutely LOVED photographing the newlyweds in a place that means so much to them. Our portrait time together was AMAZING!! They are both so natural and comfortable in front of the camera so it was SUPER easy to have a TON of beautiful images of them! At the end of our portraits Melissa gave Jerry a special gift that she had created for him. Melissa created an album that was filled with all these AMAZING pictures of his two beautiful children. Watching this beautiful LOVE grow even during such a difficult time was empowering and endearing! Love really does conquer all!

Most receptions now days have crazy talented DJ’s who are getting the party going and keeping them on their feet while they dance the night away. In true Melissa and Jerry fashion they wanted to go more simple and laid back. While everyone ate we listened to a playlist they created for the reception. And when it came time for the first dance Melissa’s bother turned into the DJ for the moment LOL. After that Melissa and Jerry had everyone grab a few hay bales to make seating inside the garage while she had a bluegrass band take over the party. And this just wasn’t any bluegrass band…it’s one that her parents use to play in. They reunited for the wedding! How cool is that? Melissa and Jerry didn’t stop there to make the reception unique….they wanted to do a potluck dinner. So the guests each brought their favorite covered dish! I even managed with a little help from my hubby to make Ham & Swiss Sliders!! Talk about a BUSY morning!! After a delicious dinner we celebrated with the couple cutting the….CHEESECAKE! Yes Melissa and Jerry switched it up again!! They both have a LOVE of cheesecake so together they made their “Wedding Cheesecake”!! Told you they were totally different and just so unique when it came to creating their dream wedding! Oh and they even had quite the SURPRISE on their wedding day!! In the midst of all the wedding chaos their cat delivered FOUR healthy baby kittens!! So it was quite the conversation for the day to say the least!

Here is a little peek into Jerry & Melissa’s BoHo Wedding!! ENJOY!!

Seriously the FIRST time I have EVER used the front door was the backdrop for the dress shot…Couldn’t resist when it TOTALLY matched the decor!

ONE of my FAVE ring shots!! I LOVE how unique her engagement ring is!! And rose gold..total win win!!

Okay….So this is another FAVE ring shot!!! Those flowers and the rings…..SWOON!

When Melissa told me about her unique invitations I literally squealed with JOY! Who would have thought about having your invite printed on a handkerchief ?

This bouquet SMELLED just as BEAUTIFUL as it looks!!!

SO in love with Melissa and her little girl’s Flower Crowns!! They were PERFECT!!

To have seen this in person it was ABSOLUTELY breathtaking!!! So much hard work went into creating this vision!!

LOVE this shot that Katie Myrick got! Melissa and her mom stitched together the dollies to create a table runner for the cake table! It’s tiny details like this that I LOVE!

So this is CHEESECAKE!!! Can you believe it? And the bride and groom totally made it!!! And it was YUMMY!!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this!! This created the perfect transition into the reception area!

I LOVED the archway so much I had to hang the dresses from it!!!

I really loved this unique guestbook idea!! A friend of Jerry’s made this for them! And they can hang it later in their home! How neat!!

If you look closely at the clock it’s set to the time of the ceremony!!

I really LOVED the idea of Melissa wanting pictures of her helping her little one getting ready! Super SWEET!

SWOON!!! Melissa is so BREATHTAKING!!!!

 

So HAPPY with the JOY that Katie captured in this Shot!!! I really LOVE images like this!!

Hudson & Leila you were every part of this SPECIAL day!!

LOVE!!! This is that moment in between that you could easily miss!!

One of my FAVORITES from the portraits!! Such a beautiful family!!

Jerry was such a HANDSOME groom!!!

Melissa your so BEAUTIFUL and were STUNNING!!!

So THANKFUL for the portrait time we had together!!! With images like this I literally could have shot them for hours!!

Another in between moment that I’m so glad I got!!

All I can say is SWOON!!!!

Katie asked them to do this pose and they killed it!

Another one of my faves!!!

I love images with my couples interacting and this was perfect because he totally just picked her up on his own!!

Another GREAT and UNIQUE shot from Katie!!

Melissa’s Mom and Dad playing at her reception was so SWEET! I know they were truly honored to have been asked to play!

Oh Miss Sally…..ready to pick up the crumbs, get TONS of belly rubs and enjoy the party with the rest of us!

And THANK YOU Katie Myrick for second shooting with me! It’s always great to have an extra set of hands to help gather details and an extra set of eyes to catch all those amazing moments!

Ceremony | Private Location in Hertford, NC

Reception | Bride & Groom’s Residence

Florist | Yeopim Flowers

Decor | Yeopim Flowers & The Bride/Groom

Hair & Makeup | Molly of Glimmer Weddings

Bride’s Gown | Grace Loves Lace

Flower Girl’s Dress | Tea Princess

Invitations | The Polkadotted Bee

Tent | Friend of the Family

Cake | Bride & Groom

And here’s the momma napping as she nurses her babies!! She had a LONG day!