Michael and Brittany Marry on St. Patrick's Day at 1705 Prime in Raleigh

I couldn't be more pleased for Michael and Brittany!  My husband and I sat next to them at the DPAC performance of 'Avenue Q' and I liked them immediately.  It was a Yelp event and that meant we had even more in common.  They're a wonderful couple who enjoy having fun and who treat each other with love and affection.  That I got to marry them was a real bonus.


I was glad their day was a glorious one in this mild winter we'd been having.  The first perfect Saturday for an outdoor wedding.  Thank you first to Tonya, of Poprock Photography for these wonderful shots.  She was a joy to work with, has a classy style, and definitely fit in with the spirit of the wedding.

The steps of 1705 Prime (part of Rocky Top Catering)  provided a lovely backdrop, and Brittany's aunt, a cellist, and members of the NC Symphony orchestra graced us with beautiful music.  Thanks, too, to Lenny Fritts, who is always a wonderful DJ to work with, and a consummate professional.  He provided the music for the reception and the amplification for me for the ceremony.


Jennifer Carlin, the events coordinator at 1705 Prime, did a great job, too.  I am so appreciative when their is supportive staff provided by the venue.  It makes all the difference in making sure not only the big needs are taken care of but that the small needs are, too.  Everyone breathes a little easier.  And that's important for enjoying a wedding.


Brittany and Michael wanted a ceremony that was warm and loving, that was about them and their love.  They both are close to their families and it showed.  Brittany's two sisters were her attendants and Michael's four brothers were in attendance and giving him the playful teasing only close brothers can give. 


Brittany made special bouquets for herself and her sisters with jewelry included with the natural flowers.  It was really stunning and I'd never seen it done before.

Michael didn't lose the opportunity for the BIG KISS and pulled it off with style.  But first, there was a veil to contend with.

I don't know who provided these lovely confections but I'll have to ask.  They are really gorgeous.

1705 Prime has a wonderful wood dance floor inside with a very intimate feel for the restaurant. 

I think it's one of their best features.

The wedding party after the ceremony, just moments from celebrating.

In their wedding blessing I said, "We wish for you joy - a joy that makes you laugh out loud.  A joy that lights your eyes and fills your soul, and a joy that shouts to the world of your happiness with one another."  And indeed I wish that for them - for every day of their lives.

Christine and Christopher October 17th at Jones Chapel on Meredith Campus

I love it when a couple makes their wedding truly their own. And Christine and Christopher did just that. From our first meeting in January until their wedding date on October 17th, it was a delight to work with them. (Thanks first to Wake Forest Portraits for these wonderful pictures. It was a joy working with them.)

They had a very modern romance, meeting while living on two different coasts of the US, having long conversations on the phone and racking up the frequent flier miles as they determined that this was the person they each wanted to spend their life with. Then, joyfully, two years on the same coast as they deepened their love to this day of wedding.

Christine's father, Donald, walked her down the aisle, but only after a a formal entrance of very happy parents, wedding party and their flower girl and ring bearer (brother and sister), all in ivory and red with black formal attire for the men and the one Groom's Woman. Christine carried a beautiful antique prayer book holder in her hand containing a book of prayer and a copy of the Old Testament, accomplishing her 'something old' as well as something meaningful and memorable.














Jones Chapel on Meredith Campus is elegant and stunningly beautiful. Janet Cherry, a professor at Meredith College played 'The Forrest Gump Suite' on the piano as special guests, the groom, and I entered. Then she played 'Benediction' on the organ as the wedding party entered. 'Benediction,' written by John Stevens, was arranged especially for Christopher and Christine by Christopher's brother, Cameron. Christine and her father entered to Pachelbel's 'Canon in D,' wonderfully sonorous on that beautiful pipe organ.

Christopher's father, Mark was his Best Man, and Christine's mother, Catherine, was her Matron of Honor. At the beginning of the ceremony, one family member from each family lit a red candle in honor of the family members who could not be with them this day, but who were still with us in spirit and love. Then Christopher's mother Reneé read 'The Art of a Good Marriage" by Wilferd Arlan Peterson.

Christopher and Christine included a Celtic Handfasting as part of their ceremony. The sash they used was from Christine's family tartan of the clan McLeod from her mother's side. We tied it in the shape of infinity binding their hands together, and blessing their marriage forever as we spoke the beautiful and timeless words of the handfasting.





I then removed the sash acknowledging that while it's impossible for them to be physically tied together all their lives, they will wear rings to symbolically honor the physical and spiritual ties they made this day.

I had the wonderful privilege of offering the blessing, 'Go now to walk the ways of the world together, and may your days be good and long upon the earth' after which they recessed to the wonderful Hogwarts Hymn from the Harry Potter movies - a shared favorite, and part of what brought them together.


They added some playful touches as they began their celebrating. Vern Bullock of Classy Transportation drove them to the reception in this beautiful ivory Excalibur, perfect for this beautiful fall day. And since Christopher and Christine had their wedding at 11 am, they had the whole day to celebrate.


They held their reception at the wonderful 1705 Prime in Raleigh. This picture shows Christine's mother and Matron of Honor making her toast to the couple. I love 1705 Prime because it's intimate and has a wonderful oval dance floor, bordered on one arc by a beautiful gray stone wall.




It also has room for cake, this one created by Cinda's Creative Cakes. The cake decoration is modeled after Christopher and Christine's invitation, bearing their monogram and copying its delicate scroll work.

I could go on and on about the fullness of love on this day for Christine and Christopher. I'm delighted that in their careful planning they created a spaciousness for their love to flow and breathe and be celebrated by all who touched their day. I was grateful to be a part of it.

And it was wonderful to hear from Christine after they returned from their honeymoon and got their pictures back with this thank you: "First I wanted to thank you so much for the wonderful job you did with our ceremony. It was absolutely perfect. It was so nice to feel relaxed up there and really feel the intimacy with Christopher. You took your time and really let us enjoy it all. We got several compliments from guests on what a wonderful job you did. You were so nice, made it easy from the beginning to put together such an important ceremony and were a great help at the rehearsal and day of. Thank you so much. I will treasure our ceremony always."

Kendra and Scott at 1705 Prime in Raleigh

I just got some wonderful pictures!









On June 20th I married Kendra and Scott at 1705 Prime in Raleigh on East Millbrook Road.

It was an intimate wedding site for their close family and friends and this was the perfect venue for it. Parents and honored guests sat in chairs facing the wedding party. Guests sat at tables in a semi-circle around the hardwood floor dance floor. This was also where Kendra and Scott and their wedding party stood.

We were all grateful on this hot summer day for this comfortable and easy venue.

Musicians played 'The Luckiest' when Scott entered with his parents. And indeed he and Kendra both beamed during their whole wedding.

They had some unique elements to their ceremony which befitted their fun personalities.

They said their vows with their hands placed upon a Scottish Oathing Stone (you can find out more about Scottish wedding customs here). This was a real stone from Scotland brought all the way here by Kendra's Maid of Honor who had flown in the night before. Kendra and Scott both placed their hands upon the stone then we said these words of introduction:

'The vows Kendra and Scott make together this day will provide a firm foundation for the life they share together from this day forward. To symbolize this firm foundation they will be borrowing from an old Scottish Tradition in which the couple will use an Oathing Stone to set their vows in stone.' They then proceeded with vows in their own words that they spoke to each other.

Their rings were carried into the ceremony each in its own beautifully decorated box carried each carried by an earnest young ring bearer. They were placed on the small table behind me until we were ready for them.















They ended with an Irish Wedding Blessing spoken by two young nieces:

May you always have enough happiness to keep you sweet
Enough trials to keep you strong
Success to make you eager
Friends to give you comfort
Wealth to meet your needs
Enthusiasm to look for tomorrow
And a growing love to make each day better than the day before.

Their ceremony was also rich in other music perfect for a wedding.
To honor those family members who had passed on their friend sang a beautiful rendition of 'I'll Be Seeing You.' And another friend sang the Sarah McLaughlin song 'Push' which was a particular favorite of theirs. I loved how their warm and loving personalities shone throughout the whole occasion. I wish them many blessings.