Jennifer and Jordan have known each other forever. Their relationship evolved from friendship into true romantic love and one day it just clicked that they should be together. “No first dates, no drama,” said Jennifer. “Just us being best friends.”

On a getaway to Washington, DC to see a concert, Jordan proposed in their hotel room. This private couple did not tell anyone until the next day to properly soak in the first hours of being engaged, just the two of them.

On September 2nd, 2018 in front of 150 of their friends and family, Jennifer and Jordan married at Wisteria Ridge in Callaway, Va. After another venue fell through, they visited Wisteria Ridge and immediately fell in love with the breathtakingly beautiful scenery surrounded by the mesmerizing Blue Ridge Mountains. “It had everything we wanted, said Jennifer. “We could not have found a more beautiful place for us to begin our forever.”

Their ceremony was outside amidst nature, but it was still hot in the early Southern autumn so they elected to keep things short and sweet with vows they wrote ourselves.

Their officiant was a childhood friend of Jennifer’s who was ordained specially to perform the ceremony. Before they read their vows, Jennifer and Jordan chose to include their guests by allowing them to participate in a ring warming, during which their rings were passed along the guests to “warm them up” for the couple with prayers and good vibes. That way, the couple begins their marriage with the blessings of everyone they love.

Jennifer is a party planner by nature and she knew that she wanted a soft, romantic color palette with lots of creams and soft pinks. She made most of the decor herself, and it all came together beautifully. There were lots of candles and greenery, with pops of charcoal gray and rose gold. With a budget of $40,000 USD, they had the means to make her vision come to life.

Jennifer and Jordan wanted their guests to be wowed by all of their fun, interactive elements and attention to detail. They set up food stations throughout the tent so guests could mingle and eat when they wanted. They had a live band and an open bar that kept people on the dance floor all night. Outside the tent, they had cornhole and a whiskey and cigar bar set up around the fire pit. “Our number one concern, besides getting married obviously, was our guests having the best day ever, right along with us,” explained Jennifer.

For their floral design, Jennifer and Jordan turned to the local Thornfield Farms. They created beautiful arrangements with lots of pinks and creamy colors and eucalyptus for greenery. Jordan built the flower boxes for the centerpieces. For linens, they chose white tablecloths with runners made by a family friend in the perfect shade of blush. Jennifer handmade their seating chart and actually finished it up the morning of the wedding. She does not recommend this for other brides.

All in all they genuinely enjoyed planning their wedding. “Of course there were stressful times, worrying about our budget and everything coming together,” explained Jennifer. “But overall we had a lot of fun throughout the process.”

Jennifer’s biggest advice to other members of the Big Bride Club is to “Enjoy and embrace the chaos. You will miss it when it’s over.”

• Photography: Carly C Photography 

• Day of Coordinator: Angela Italiano

• Floral Design: Thornfield Farms

• Catering: Pumpernickel Pickle

• Gown: Essense of Australia via Studio I Do