Lissie & David's Wedding!

Photographer: Clay Austin Photography | Bella Showroom: Charleston |  Designers: Alfred Sung Lissie & David's wedding is full of sweet southern charm! From their elegant outdoor ceremony, to their white tent reception, these high school sweethearts celebrated their special day right! We are also loving the bridesmaids dresses by Alfred Sung from #BellaCharleston....heart emoji!

How did you two meet?

We met in high school! We went to a small school in Columbia where everybody knows everybody. Even though he was two years ahead of me, we knew each other- probably because we saw each other in detention! We started dating because I was visiting my best friend (and future MOH) for the weekend, and that sneaky girl told him I'd be in town. He made it a priority to meet up with us, actually spotting her while he was riding with a friend down King Street, and made him pull over and jumped out of the car! It was his birthday, so my bestie always says she never has to get him a birthday gift again.

Details on the proposal!

When we first started dating, I lived in Columbia and he lived in Charleston. Whenever I would come down for the weekend, we would always hang out on the dock at his house, just the two of us! After he and his roommates moved out of that house, they bulldozed it, but left the dock. One weekend, we were heading to Columbia, and we had to run to "pick up a friend." Turns out he was "running late" so we had time to stop by the old house and hang out on the dock. As we walked where the house used to be, I had butterflies as he told me it was where he first fell in love with me. On the dock, he dropped to one knee and asked me to marry him! I was so nervous to hug him, because I was afraid of knocking the gorgeous ring into the water! Two of his friends were hiding in the bushes taking pictures, and he pulled a cooler out from under the bench with my favorite champagne and my grandparents' crystal toasting flutes. We then hightailed it to Columbia, where he had another surprise! Our friends and family were waiting to celebrate with us at his parents' house!

Location, location, location! How did you choose your venue? What type of venue were you looking for?

Y'all. My location. It was my one and only choice! We got married at the Lace House in Columbia, SC- right next door to the Governor's Mansion. It's actually traditionally used as the Governor's guest house. We invited around 500 people, so we needed plenty of space. The Lace House is the only venue I visited, and I actually scheduled the appointment before we got engaged (don't judge me- Saturdays in May go fast!).

Who designed your beautiful gown? Where did you get it?

I got my gown from Maddison Row in Charleston! I've always been madly in love with Monique Lhuillier- I told Lindsey at Maddison Row that Monique just understands me! I only took my mom shopping with me, but I had my MOH on standby. I wanted a full lace dress and tried on tons of gorgeous lace dresses, but this one didn't have a scrap of lace on it! I was down to two dresses and prepared to walk out of the dressing room and thought to myself, ok, this is what David will see when I walk down the aisle. As soon as I opened the dressing room curtains, I knew it was the one!

Describe the wedding. The look, theme, style, colors, etc.

My wedding was exactly what I wanted/planned! We wanted our wedding to be traditional and formal, but not stuffy, with delicious food, personal touches, and everyone we loved! I wanted to WOW my husband, and then have a dance party! So we brought out glow wands once it got dark and danced the night away.

I have a crazy sweet tooth, so I also wanted a candy bar and a showstopper of a cake! My husband went to The Citadel, so we roped in a few of their traditions as well. We entered our reception through a sword arch, but instead of having cadets form the arch, we had several of his classmates do it! We cut our cake with one of the swords, which was terrifying. I thought we were going to slice the cake in half. I'm not sure if the third one is something just my husband and his friends do, but it's been done at every Citadel wedding I've attended. They sit the bride down and serenade her with "You've Lost that Lovin' Feelin'". Our guests loved it!

Tell us about your bridesmaids dresses!

My bridesmaids dresses were long strapless Alfred Sungs in navy blue dupioni! The color was gorgeous in person and even better in the pictures! I knew I wanted the girls in that beautiful, formal full skirt. I had been a Bella Charleston bridesmaid a handful of times, and knew my girls would be shopping with Allison. One of my bridesmaids actually had her appointment on the same day I did. I must say, I have some wildly attractive friends!

Any must haves, must dos, or can’t live withouts? Anything you would do differently?

Must haves definitely include amazing food- you and your guests are going to be dancing all night, and you'll need fuel to keep you going! I have so many must do's, but I'll try and keep it short. Must love your vendors- they're bringing your vision to life. Plus you'll be spending allllll dayyyyyy with your photographer and videographer. Must eat! I know I talk about food a lot, but my mom has always told me food is fuel. Wedding weekend is a marathon, not a sprint! Must look around at some point, whether it be during the ceremony or the reception. This exact group of people will never be in the same place again. They are all here to support you and your relationship. Feel loved. Feel really, really loved.

During our vows, I got choked up. I looked at my husband, who was in the same boat. He was making a weird, trying not to cry face, and I thought he was making fun of me. I told him to shut up, and everyone heard! I told my husband to shut up during our wedding vows. Oops. The only other thing I would change would be the date. The Lace House had a couple of May dates to choose from, and the date I chose turned out to be college graduation weekend. In Columbia. Again, oops.

Favorite memory? Just one? How about three?

It RAINED on my wedding day y'all. My outdoor, garden wedding. And the weather that morning says 0% chance. Weather channel lies (don't look at the weather on your wedding day. There's nothing you can do about it and you'll just obsess over it). My husband says that although we buried the bourbon, it was still sticking out of the ground a little bit, so it just rained a little bit.  To keep me from finding out, my maids closed all the drapes in the bridal suite and turned up Taylor Swift so I couldn't hear the rain pounding on the roof. We had a dance party to Shake It Off on repeat. I was told it "might" rain. I didn't know it was actually raining until it stopped.

My wedding planner brought my husband and I a tray of food (seriously how much can one girl talk about food?) and let us chow down while we were signing our marriage license. It gave us a minute to look at each other and our rings and let it set in- we did it. We got married. As our first dance song said: signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours!

We left the reception in my dad's first car. My parents left their reception in the same car! It's a stick, which neither I nor my husband knew how to drive, so he spent the day before our wedding driving around Columbia with my dad. The groomsmen all pitched in and pushed us away, even though I think he did a great job driving :)

PS- if you're anything like me, bring your own tambourine!

WANT MORE FROM THIS STUNNER? WE DO!!!

https://vimeo.com/131886741 Video Credit: Cinema Weddings