April & Tim's hot summer style still turning heads - Wedding Wire Blog Feature

Even a year later, April and Tim's vibrant summer wedding at The Hermitage, home of President Andrew Jackson, is still being applauded for its unique style! Enjoy this WeddingWire.com blog feature - love it!

A romantic spring garden wedding at CJ’s Off the Square Featured on Wedding Wire!

We are delighted to announce our first WeddingWire Blog feature! WeddingWire.com is a fantastic, user-friendly resource for brides-to-be and vendors alike. We’ve been a part of the WeddingWire family nearly since the beginning and have nothing but great things to say about them! Their blog editor, Jeffra, has an extraordinary eye and does a wonderful job creating inspiration boards and picking real weddings to help brides create their ideal look. I’ve been combing her posts myself, looking for great ideas and references for my best friend’s wedding in California next April!

Enjoy the feature! Congratulations again to Jenn & Jason.
http://blog.weddingwire.com/index.php/weddings/real-tennessee-garden-style-wedding-jenn-jason/

Monique Lhuillier Invitations Are On Sale

On Sale Through June 30, 2010

Just in time for your fall wedding, all invitations, save the dates and wedding programs from the Monique Lhuillier Fine Paper Collection are 15% off the list price. Call today to make an appointment to view this beautiful collection in person and feel the luxurious papers, ribbons and accents that make this collection so special.

(615) 465-8099

info@williamsoncountyweddings.com

Invitation of the Week

One of my favorite parts of the wedding planning process is helping our clients select their invitations. We carry some of the best paper products in the country and it is so much fun to find a creative way to bring the look and feel of both the couple and the wedding into a printed piece.

I especially love this design by Checkerboard that features the couple's wedding colors of rich, french blues and creams. The formal monogram is gorgeous and can easily be repeated in all of their wedding stationary from thank you notes to programs.

I hope you enjoy it too!

--CJ

New Invitation Collection Now Available

Williamson County Weddings & Eventsis thrilled to offer a brand new collection of invitations created by local designer Shannon O'Kelley of Southall Eden. This new collection features many bright and beautiful designs on some of the coolest papers we have seen yet! What we love about this collection is how many ways you can customize the look. Brides who are looking for something totally different will love the fresh take on the traditional invitation. You can add layers, pockets, ribbons...the possibilities are endless! Call today to set up an appointment to view this stunning collection. We can't wait to see what you think!

(615) 465-8099

Thank you to Phindy Studios for the fabulous pics.

A Charming Southern Wedding: Jill & Chris - October 24, 2009

I'm so excited to finally share this wedding with you! Jill & Chris and I had over a year of anticipation (and lots of fun) to plan their wedding at Belle Meade Plantation on October 24. To show you the great time we had during the process, I'll share this snippet from Jill's blog during her planning:

When we first met her we walked out of there and Chris said "sold!" And that was exactly the way I felt. She is so laid back and easy to talk to . . . exactly what we need!

I think the point I knew it was a perfect match was when she asked if we had a vision or "theme" we wanted for the wedding. I looked at Chris (as I did on many of the questions once I had exhausted my choice of words - about 5) and as he tried to describe our taste including the words "sophisticated hillbilly" she started laughing and put a big star next to it on her paper. She said "Well if I ever lose our vision I will refer back to this!" :-)

I'd had some doubts about if I was doing the right thing . . . is the extra work and stress worth the money we would save doing it ourselves? What would people think? Well, I got over that really quick after our meeting last night! I walked out knowing 100% we made the right decision. She met with us for an hour and a half discussing our thoughts on how we want everything and started to plan the timeline of the wedding and reception. Most importantly I think is that Chris and I both walked out excited about the wedding and not stressed. If she has the ability to do that at every meeting and get things done I am all for it! 

While the "fun" part of wedding planning is so creative and enjoyable, what Jill describes above is really my main goal. I want you to feel relaxed and taken care of during the process, as if I'm here to throw a party in your honor that you get to simply walk in and enjoy!

The intimate ceremony was held just before dusk in the Boxwood Garden for her 100 guests, and officiated by the always wonderful Ralph Griggs. If I do say so myself, these were the cutest flower girls and ring bearer around! Their enthusiasm turned into running down the long aisle and everyone loved it. We also served hot chocolate and hot spiced tea in the garden as guests arrived to combat the chilly air!

(This is one of my favorite pictures ever, by the way.)

To achieve their look and feel, the Carriage House at Belle Meade was a perfect fit. It has a rustic, country feel without taking it as far a renovated barn. Her color scheme was black, white, and red with a Baroque pattern that was echoed throughout the event.

To honor their Kentucky heritage, we named the tables after past Derby winners, and each guest received a commemorative 135th Anniversary Derby glass - conveniently in our color scheme!

The menu was Buttermilk Dipped Fried Chicken, Slow-cooked Southern Green Beans, Homemade Mac 'n' Cheese, Corn Bread and Biscuits, and even Banana Pudding in mini Mason jars for the groom!

One of my favorite parts of the whole day was how were were able to take the graphic from their custom invitation and use it on the cake - amazing job, Jay!

Jason Middleton of Middleton Entertainment did a great job keeping the dance floor full - and playing lots of Neil for Chris, of course! - and we had a great moment with Jill's grandparents who'd been married the longest and shared some sweet and humorous advice with the newlyweds!

Here are few more of my favorite shots, taken by the incredible Peter and Whitney of Dove Wedding Photography. I was so happy to finally have a wedding with them! They even got a shot of these rehearsal dinner invitations at Jack's BBQ we made for them from their engagement shoot!

Thanks Jill & Chris for such a fun experience working with you and your families - wish we could do it every year! :)

And always, a huge thank you to our wonderful vendors who make all of this a reality:




Photography: Dove Wedding Photography

Florals: Jimm Wright Designs

Rentals: Southern Events

Lighting: Nashville Event Lighting

Officiate: Ralph Griggs, M Th.

DJ: Middleton Entertainment

Guitarist: Rob Higginbotham, Nashville Wedding Guitarist

Cake: Maples Wedding Cakes

Catering & Bar: A Catered Affair

Custom Socials: Williamson County Weddings Boutique

Transportation: Music City Bus

Makeup: Amy Lynn Larwig

Invitation of the Week: Letterpress Details at a Great Price

Please, please, pretty please with sugar on top, will someone order this darling invitation! We just love the soft romance of the vintage garland details hand pressed into each card. With pale peachy pinks and taupes, this is a gorgeous look for any season.

The letterpress details gives this a soft and intimate feeling while the thermography printing of your own wording makes this incredibly affordable (compared to traditional 100% letterpress invitations). Here is the scoop:

Dimensions: 5.75 x 7.75
Printing: Letterpress graphic and raised thermographed text.
Paper type: Heavy weight eggshell cover stock with a felt finish.
Ink Color Shown: Brown

Price: Starts at about $400 for 100 invitations

Additional ensemble items include:
RSVP Cards, Reception Cards, Thank You Notes

Give me a call if you would like to see this lovely invitation in person. I would be so excited to introduce you to additional styles in this great line of affordable letterpress.

Williamson County Weddings & Events Boutique: (615) 465-8099

"Music City Magic" - A Summer Wedding in Nashville

Leah wanted a very formal, elegant and traditional wedding ceremony but wanted to cut loose and have fun at a laid back reception. We took her vision to heart and there was no doubt in my mind that the Wightman Chapel at Scarritt-Bennett Center would be the perfect location for the ceremony.

Working with floral designer Caprice Palmer, we created a modern focal point at the altar with tall, blooming branches in vintage garden urns with a bold, single line of white hydrangeas and dozens of candles. White rose petals and hydrangeas lined the aisle.

With thier southern roots and the last name "Lee," who could pass up such a perfect get away car. The couple made their grand exit from the church in none other than the General Lee from the Dukes of Hazard, a vintage replica owned by a family friends.

Finding the perfect spot for the reception was a little bit trickier. The couple was living in Memphis while planning a Nashville wedding which made it a challenge to visit locations. But after dozens of emails and hundreds of pictures, we finally decided on the Musicians Hall of Fame in downtown Nashville. It had the right vibe for a the laid back party Leah & Brent wanted.

We utilized a cocktail style floor plan to maximize the space and leave plenty of room of the dance floor. Using natural tones such as ivory, browns and greens, we were able to create a very casual but upscale look for the reception that just hinted at the elegance and formality of the ceremony earlier that day.

Chef's Market provided a delicious heavy hors d'oeuvres menu featuring many southern favorites such as shrimp and grits. Instead of a groom's cake, Brent had a white chocolate banana pudding passed before the sour crem almond wedding cake was served later in the evening. The dance floor stayed hoping all night with a great mix of country hits, top 40 and oldies but goodies played by the wonderful Nashvegas All Stars.

For more photos, please visit our portfolio.

CJ's Fall 2009 Open House Pictures!

We can't say enough about what a fantastic success last night's Open House was! Thanks to all our clients for coming and dreaming up their weddings, our potential clients considering CJ's for their big day, and of course all our wonderful vendor friends for their contributions and support! I'd put our wedding vendor community up against any city in the country, no doubt!

Please enjoy these early pictures from Shannon Jenkins Photography, and a big thanks to her for sharing them with us! More to come from her and our other photography friends who were so kind to come and shoot.