Weddings In Arkansas
Chantel + Jeremy
Mulberry // 9.12.20
A good cause first brought Chantel Shuler and Jeremy Neville together. “I was hosting a bar crawl to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation on Dickson Street in Fayetteville,” Chantel recalls. Jeremy came to the event and the two were introduced by a mutual friend. …
Ada + Sean
Springdale // 10.31.20
Distance couldn’t keep Ada Sochanska and Sean Parham apart. The couple, who met while in undergrad at Colorado College, started a relationship knowing Sean would be attending medical school in Little Rock while Ada would stay in Colorado after the pair graduated. After a couple of years long distance, Ada moved to Little Rock to start physician assistant school. “Once living in the same city, we knew without a doubt we would spend the rest of our lives together,” Ada says.
After five years of dating, Sean decided to propose during a Christmas celebration with both of their families. “My parents are originally from Poland, where Christmas Eve is not only a big holiday but also filled with traditions, so I wanted to introduce all of our traditions to Sean’s family,” Ada says. Meanwhile, Sean concocted a plan to get her out on their back deck alone that night while their guests watched from indoors. “I’ll never forget the smiles and hearing the clapping as soon as I nodded my head yes and how happy I was to share that moment with everyone,” Ada says.
Sean is from Fort Smith, while Illinois is home for Ada. Knowing they would have family and friends traveling from several regions for their big day, they looked for a location that would make the trip convenient as well as memorable for guests. Northwest Arkansas checked a number of these boxes, and they booked Sassafras Springs Vineyard & Winery as the venue. The two had initially set the date for an April wedding, but after COVID-19 impacted plans, they rescheduled to Halloween—their favorite holiday. Going for a “playful, tender, and eclectic” vibe, they invited guests to wear costumes, incorporated special Polish traditions into the day, and danced the night away. Ada and Sean currently live in Little Rock and are planning a delayed honeymoon as travel restrictions ease.
We wanted the day to be a big celebration where we could have all of our friends together, thank them for their support of our relationship, and let them know how much they mean to us.” —Ada
Enchanting Venue
Ada and Sean exchanged vows they had written for each other in front of Sassafras Springs’ old world-inspired Chapel Ruins. Both working in the medical field, safety during the pandemic was of prime importance to the couple. Chairs were arranged to allow for socially distant spacing between the ceremony’s 60 guests.
Autumn colors in bouquets and the floral arrangements lining the aisles brought a bright touch to the natural setting.
Masked Affair
Since the pair were to be married on Halloween, they invited guests to wear costumes. The artist who made Ada and Sean’s invitations also painted custom Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, masks for the two to wear as a nod to the holiday the next day.
Standing at the altar, everything was right in the world for about 45 seconds…It was just us two, and it was exactly what I wanted.” —Sean
As favors, guests received small bags containing dried flower petals and Arkansas quartz crystals, which have become a favorite of Ada’s since moving to the Natural State.
Resources
Bride’s gown She Said Yes Bridal Cakes Briar Rose Bakery Catering Catering Unlimited Entertainment (reception) Diamond Empire Band Florals, paper goods, and wedding design and coordination Bartus Taylor, Buzz Events Photographer and videographer Erin Wilson Photography & Films Rentals Eventures Party Rentals and Pretty Old Stuff NWA Venue Sassafras Springs Vineyard & Winery
Kristen + Wesley
Little Rock // 7.11.20
Mardi Gras will always hold a special place in Kristen (Warfield) and Wesley Coleman’s hearts; it was the day of their first date. Mutual friends had been trying to set up the two for a while, but with Kristen living in Jonesboro and Wes in North Little Rock, it proved to be a difficult task. Dinner was lined up for the evening but Wes was unable to attend. Kristen went on with her friends and afterward they decided to head to the train station for a Mardi Gras party. Kristen called Wes and asked if he was coming to meet her or not. “I’m on my way” was his response, and the two hit it off instantly.
After two years of dating, Wes was eager to propose and wanted to catch Kristen off guard. Kristen asked him to join her on a work trip to New York, and he seized the opportunity to plan a surprise during the getaway. On their first day in the city they had dinner at a restaurant under the Brooklyn Bridge. “Afterwards, we decided to get a picture under the bridge. We started to take a selfie and all of a sudden he got down on one knee,” she says. “I was completely shocked and could not say ‘yes’ fast enough.”
Once home, the two began planning for a spring wedding. After touring Goodwin Manor, they knew they had found their ideal location. “I always wanted an outdoor wedding with a beautiful view and perfect weather,” Kristen notes. “The whole place was just a dream.” Originally scheduled for the first weekend of May, the two pushed the big day to July 11 when the pandemic began. “An outdoor wedding in July would not have been our first pick, but we were so anxious to finally get married,” Kristen says.
After the ceremony, dinner, and dancing, guests lined the path where Kristen and Wes made their exit amidst sparklers to a honeymoon in Destin, Florida. Shortly after, they finished building their first home together and now reside in Little Rock.
One of the best things I did was take a look at the entire setup before the ceremony. Once everything starts you don’t really have time to take it all in.” —Kristen
Natural Beauty
Kristen selected a palette of white and pink for the floral design, which was created by Silks A Bloom. “They did an amazing job making my dreams come true,” she says, noting the installation on the tree and a garland of blooms that draped to the floor on the head table were two of her must-haves. During the ceremony, the two also planted a unity tree together that is now at their new home.
The tiered cake featured layers of traditional wedding cake, strawberry, and lemon. The same flowers seen throughout the celebration cascaded down its sides.
On the balcony of Goodwin Manor, overlooking their guests, Kristen and Wes shared their first dance to Ray LaMontagne’s “You Are the Best Thing.”
Resources
Bride’s gown, bridesmaids’ dresses, groom’s and groomsmen’s suits She Said Yes Bridal Cake Michelle Linda Mayer Custom Cakes Catering Crave Catering Entertainment (ceremony) John Jarboe String Quartet Entertainment (reception) Central Arkansas Entertainment Floral design Silks A Bloom Hair Kristina Loesch, The Fix Salon Makeup Carly Westerman, Pout Photographer Meredith Benton Fine Art Photography Rentals A Perfect Bloom Florist & Wedding Rentals Rings Sissy’s Log Cabin Venue Goodwin Manor b MWB Films Wedding coordination Shannon White
New takes on traditional wedding gown shapes—for both the bride and the girls standing by her side
Anne Barge “Eiffel” strapless Mikado silk trumpet gown with detachable puff sleeves and Mignonne Gavigan winged earrings. Unveiled Bridal Collection, Little Rock, unveiledlittlerock.com…
Boldly Beautiful: An empowering message of self-love inspired this bright and beautiful styled shoot
Elizabeth Salazar, Bri’Ana Meriweather, Christina Gu, and Nathalie Carney
Every woman should feel beautiful in her own skin. This was the core belief behind wedding videographer Olivia King’s desire to create a styled shoot celebrating a diverse group of women. “It stuck with me that when I’d be scrolling through Instagram, I didn’t see a lot of diversity in wedding editorials,” she says. “As a wedding vendor myself, I shoot so many brides who all look different. I know there are beautiful brides in all shapes and sizes, and I want to celebrate that.”…
Lynzie + Colton
Perryville // March 21, 2020
Once it’s set on a calendar, it’s rare that a wedding date gets moved up. However, when COVID-19 hit, Lynzie Thoman and Colton Wylie adapted plans for their April 2020 wedding not by postponing it, but instead by moving it up five weeks.
On Friday, March 20, they realized the wedding was not going to look like what they had imagined. “I still remember Colton calling me at work,” says Lynzie, who is a nurse and was in the middle of a 12-hour shift. “He said, Why don’t we just get married tomorrow?” Lynzie agreed, but the two weren’t set on a location until she thought of the place where they went on their first date: the Ouachita National Forest. With breathtaking views and natural scenery as their backdrop, the top of the hiking trail at Flatside Pinnacle couldn’t have been a more romantic venue. With 11 guests in attendance and Lynzie’s dad serving as the officiant, the couple exchanged vows, focusing on their love for one another in a time of many unknowns.
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Laura Beth + Nate
Conway // July 25, 2020
After meeting through a mutual friend while attending a golf tournament in Stuttgart, Laura Beth Wortman and Nate Smith dated for nine months before he popped the question. On that special day, Nate told Laura Beth they were headed to the horse races in Hot Springs. While en route, his dad called and asked if they could stop by their farm to help him with a stalled truck. The story turned out to be a hoax, and Nate proposed on a beautiful bridge on the property on the spring day. “The proposal was magical,” Laura Beth recalls. Immediately following, the couple celebrated with a party at the bride-to-be’s parents’ home.
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