Jane & Jordan were married in Newnan, Georgia on Saturday, November 18th. They met, like true millennials, on Tinder and had their first date at a bar near Jane’s house in the Inman Park neighborhood of Atlanta. They drank hoppy IPAs and played darts before going for a long walk in the beautiful (and closed) Oakland Cemetery. As it started to drizzle, they had their first kiss and five months later they were engaged.

Jordan proposed on a lazy Saturday morning in their home, while they were having coffee, with Jane’s grandmother’s vintage, art deco ring, which he pulled out of its hiding place in his wardrobe before dropping to one knee. Jane can’t quite remember what he said, but she definitely cried.

They chose to get married outdoors in Newnan, Ga. for the beautiful natural backdrop. Jane & Jordan live in the city of Atlanta, but they wanted a much more rural setting for their reception and especially for their ceremony. A majority of their guests came from out of town and they wanted their wedding to have an authentic Southern feel to it. In fact, they named their tables after famous Atlanta landmarks meaningful to them in order to give out-of-towners a tour of their favorite places. The escort cards were postcards of these landmarks and guests found their tables by retrieving the corresponding postcards with their names from a vintage library card catalog Jane found at a thrift store.

When it was time for the ceremony, everyone made their way to an old pecan tree on the property, appropriately monikered “The Wedding Tree.” The bridal party processed to “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles and Jane walked down the aisle to a favorite song of hers, “Sweet Jane” by the Velvet Underground.

In terms of theme and décor, they did not do much because they really wanted the venue to speak for itself. Their amazing florist, Britt from Marigold & Moss, sourced exclusively local flowers for bouquets, table centerpieces, and an amazing greenery installation over the dance floor.

There were no official “wedding colors” and Jane chose floral, boho-style bridesmaids dresses from ASOS with ballet flats from Free People for her girls and the guys wore classic, black Calvin Klein tuxes.

The stables, which housed the reception, were full of greenery, candles, and twinkle lights to keep everything as natural and simply elegant as possible. The meal was Southern, soul food served family-style, which made simple table settings a necessity. 

The couple’s caterer, Lori from Elegant Expressions Catering, also kept with the homegrown Atlanta, Southern vibe with a perfectly curated menu. They served buttermilk fried chicken and Sweetwater 420 braised short ribs with twice baked potato casserole topped with applewood smoked bacon and roasted brussel sprouts. Everything came from local growers and was a truly authentic Georgia meal. 

Sustainability is important to both Jane and Jordan and they did not want their wedding to have a big carbon footprint.

Jane was named after her grandmother and she passed away when she was a baby so Jane really loved being able to incorporate her in that way. Jordan also proposed with her engagement ring as well so she really felt present in all parts of the wedding and planning process. They chose not to have wedding favors and instead made a donation to the Breast Cancer Foundation in her name, which was notated with small cards on the place settings.

Another was Jane’s Northwestern University Chi Omega sisters singing the traditional Chi Omega song “Shades” during the reception. It is about supporting your sisters as they start new chapters and true to the song lyric there were “toasts and singing.”

Jane and Jordan both have really large families so it was hard to narrow down a guest list, but they still really wanted an intimate vibe. At just under 100 guests, it still felt intimate, but there were also more than enough people to tear up the dance floor.

Advice from Jane: One of the biggest parts of the planning process for me was my dress. I ended up buying my dress for $80 on sale from ASOS Curve. Clothes are really important to me and I love shopping so I expected a lot from my wedding dress. A lot of my passion for dressing comes from my struggles to find cute, fashion-forward plus-size clothing. I really wanted to have that transformative “Say Yes to the Dress” moment and it never really happened, which at the time was heart-breaking for me. However, I did like my dress a lot and at the end of the day it’s just a dress. It doesn’t define me or my wedding and definitely not my marriage. A wedding is just a day. It’s all about the marriage in the end.

Advice from Jordan: Make sure you keep the focus on what is most important about the day – marrying your partner. Everything else is just noise. We had a lot of things go technically “wrong” – our rented buses broke down on the side of the highway on the way to our ceremony with most of our guests inside, a stray dog ran across the aisle as Jane was walking down, and our wedding arch (made by a family friend) literally broke apart as we were setting it up at the venue, but literally none of that mattered. We still had the best day with our best friends and our family supporting us.

• Photographers: Gemini and the Bear

• Day of Panner: Jodie Marchman

• Florist: Marigold & Moss

• Caterer: Elegant Expressions Catering, LLC

• Cake: Sugar Moon Bakeshop

• Cake-topper: Jordan Grace Owens

• Hair & Makeup: BLUSH studio

• Eyelashes: Blink & Wink ATL

• Wedding Dress Alterations: Demetra Rowan of Duchess Designs

• DJ: Rich Moran from Complete Music

• Wedding Dress & Bridesmaid Dresses: ASOS

• Veil: Twigs & Honey