Elaine and Jordan's rustic wedding on a Camp Hill Alabama farm

Every now and then I procrastinate on blogging a particular event – usually because there’s a big story to tell, and the thought of condensing it into just a handful of pictures and words is overwhelming. Elaine & Jordan’s wedding (held just outside Auburn, on a farm owned by Jordan’s family) was one of those events. You might remember me posting this easygoing couple’s San Francisco engagement session, featuring a couple of things that are totally “them”: coffee and their black goldendoodle Carl. So it’s no surprise their wedding day featured a mixture of things that say “Elaine & Jordan” – a little quirky, a little traditional, a little glam, a little rustic, and of course, a lot of Carl. 😀

The quirky invitation suite featured custom illustrations of the couple, the barn, and the dog, with a side of pancakes and coffee.

cartoon illustrated wedding invitation suite wedding rings on rustic deer antler lamp Elaine wore a pop of glam under her lace gown, in the form of Jimmy Choo shoes with a gold mirror finish on the wedges. To be perfectly honest, they were kind of bad*ss. During the reception, she switched to a pair of crisp white Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars.

Since it rained before the wedding day, there were some muddy areas and lots of bugs out. This duo (who have known each other since they were 10 years old) braved the flying wildlife and made the trek out to a nearby field for their first look. The bridesmaids (wearing a variety of styles of navy dresses) and groomsmen joined us shortly after via golf carts.

black and white bridal portrait in alabama field bride and bridesmaids in alabama field

The entire event was expertly coordinated by my friends at Invision Events, including the smallest details, like the ribbons used for the hanging lanterns and the mason jars that lined the aisle. Everything was going as planned as the string quartet began playing the ceremony music, until it was time for ringbearer Carl to come down the aisle. Here’s a little tidbit to put into your “life lessons” file: when a very large goldendoodle doesn’t want to do something, you’re probably not going to be able to make him. When Carl hestitated at the back of the aisle, Jordan (who had already made his entrance, along with the bridesmaids and groomsmen) called and walked toward him to encourage him to make his way down, but the dog decided to go for a little romp instead. So Elaine and her parents continued with the processional, but you’ll be glad to know that Carl did join everyone shortly after, on his own schedule. 😉

Elaine’s uncle was the officiant, which was apropos since Elaine was a flowergirl at his wedding. He made the ceremony one of the funniest I’ve witnessed in a LONG time, reading from a Star Wars notebook Elaine & Jordan had given him. Most days, he works as a doctor, but he mentioned that had he not been officiating, he would probably be the one taking lots of pictures. So much to everyone’s surprise (and laughter) he decided he should just go ahead and get his shot out of the way at the beginning of the ceremony, and proceeded to bust out his phone. I didn’t notice until later that Carl totally photobombed the picture I took when that happened (see if you can spot him below). My favorite part was probably during the vows, when the officiant breaks the vows into short phrases and has the bride and groom each repeat them. This is a shortened version of what actually happened, but it went something like this:

Elaine’s uncle: “I, Jordan, take you Elaine to be my wife”

Jordan: “I, Jordan, take you Elaine to be my wife”

Elaine’s uncle: “for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health”

Jordan: “for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health”

Elaine’s uncle: “as long as we both shall live”

Jordan: “as long as we both shall live”

Elaine’s uncle: “Oh”

Jordan (slightly confused): “Oh?”

Elaine’s uncle: “yeah”

Jordan (now smiling): “yeah”

Of course, Elaine got the “oh yeah” treatment added to the end of her vows too. I was dying.

After the ceremony, we made sure to get a few portraits with the big teddy bear Carl before the reception, which was set up at the barn. Marquee lights in the newlyweds’ initials adorned the side of the barn, while the escort cards featured an illustration of their favorite pooch. During cocktail hour, guests enjoyed sipping from copper Moscow Mule mugs (which doubled as wedding favors), and burned messages into a Jack Daniels whiskey barrel that acted as a guest book. Flowers by Hothouse Design Studio decorated the reception tables, along with small cakes (in addition to the bride’s and groom’s cakes), and paper lanterns that bore the names of Elaine’s family. Inside the barn, laser cut star-shaped pendants hung from the ceiling, and galvanized buckets displayed table numbers.

After dinner was complete, the toasts were the first sign that this reception was gonna get really interesting really quickly. Elaine & Jordan were completely surprised when the best man’s toast started out typically, but then a guitar was brought out. Elaine’s dad welcomed everyone to “L.A.”, meaning Lower Alabama. Elaine danced as they cut the cake, and ate cake off the cake server. The groom’s cake was a replica of Jordan-Hare Stadium – I know, you’ve seen Jordan-Hare cakes on this blog before. But when it has built in STADIUM LIGHTS, you know this reception is gonna be next level. I haven’t even gotten to the part with the foot beating yet.

I’ve witnessed more than my share of Asian wedding traditions, from Vietnamese tea ceremonies to Chinese door games. Most of them are intended to prove the groom’s “worthiness” and/or give him a chance to “earn” the bride by either completing a specific task and/or paying respect to her family. The Korean tradition of beating the groom’s feet was a new one to me, but from what I gathered from a little Google-ing, there are a couple of explanations as to why it’s done. Most websites said it’s intended to test the groom’s strength and character, and show that he’s strong enough/good enough to take care of the bride. Other websites said it was supposed to increase the groom’s….um…”wedding night strength”, if you catch my drift. I’ll let you decide which one is accurate!

After Jordan’s feet got a good old fashioned belt whipping, Elaine changed into plaid and overalls, a late night snack appeared in the form of Chick-fil-A, and a Bongzilla emerged. Yes, you read that correctly. The band from Mississippi, Compozitionz, worked overtime because the party got CRUNK. Many thanks to Elaine & Jordan for letting me be a part of it, getting smooshed on the packed dance floor was totally worth it!