Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food
  • Holidays & Entertaining
  • Home & Garden
  • Style & Culture
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • These Haircuts Are Going To Be Huge in 2021

      The trendy haircuts you’ll be seeing everywhere next year. Read More Next
    • How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More Next
    • The Right Way to Heat a Pre-Cooked Ham

      It's so easy, trust us. Read More Next
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food

    Lost Cakes of the South

    These simple and spectacular Southern cakes deserve a comeback
    • All Food
    • All Recipes
    • Holidays & Occasions
    • Quick Fix Suppers
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Casseroles
    • Healthy Recipes
  • Holidays & Entertaining

    Holidays & Entertaining

    See All Holidays & Entertaining

    70 Wedding Vow Examples That Will Melt Your Heart

    Fight writer's block and find ways to express your love with these romantic, funny, and short wedding vow examples.
    • Christmas
    • Entertaining
    • Thanksgiving
    • Southern Weddings
    • Easter
    • Kentucky Derby
    • Valentine's Day
    • 4th of July
    • Mother's Day
  • Home & Garden

    Home & Garden

    See All Home & Garden

    7 Paint Colors We’re Loving for Kitchen Cabinets in 2020

    ‘Tis the season to ditch your all-white palette in favor of something a little bolder and brighter.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Before & After
    • Inspired Communities
    • Curb Appeal
    • House Plans & Builders
    • The Grumpy Gardener
    • Plant Names A-Z
  • Style & Culture

    Style & Culture

    See All Style & Culture

    50 Books Everyone Should Read in Their Lifetime

    Curl up with a classic!
    • Southern Culture
    • Hair
    • Travel
    • Beauty
    • Pets
    • Southern Fashion
    • Healthy Living
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Southern Living
  2. Southern Culture
  3. Garden-Inspired Wedding

Garden-Inspired Wedding

By Jennifer Bonds
January 19, 2011
Skip gallery slides
Save FB Tweet
Credit: A Bryan Photo
Caroline and Clark wanted their wedding in Nashville, Tennessee to feel more like a garden party than a wedding.
Start Slideshow

1 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Their Story

Credit: A Bryan Photo

The old adage “absence makes the heart grow fonder” has proven true once again. Though Caroline Estopinal and Clark Brewer dated for six years, they didn’t talk much about getting married. But while she studied in Italy and he worked in New Zealand, everything changed. The pair met up on the Amalfi Coast, where Clark had a surprise—a hand-forged ring and a proposal. They later married in a European-style chapel and celebrated with guests in the backyard of Caroline’s parents’ home. “We wanted it to feel more like a summer garden party than a wedding,” says Caroline. “And we were inspired by the farm-to-table look to keep it warm, relaxed, and intimate.”

  • Love It? Get It!
  • Wedding Coordinator: Susan Smallwood; 12southevents.com
  • Photographer:A Bryan Photo; 205/222-2207
  • Wedding gown: Chris Kole, The Cotton Bride; 718/729-9878
  • Groom's Tux:Street Tuxedo; 615/771-0948

1 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Wedding Venue

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Built in 1928, the Wightman Chapel in Nashville is on the National Historic Register.

Love It? Get It!
Ceremony Venue: Wightman Chapel, Scarritt-Bennett Center; 615/340-7500

2 of 16

3 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Caroline's Bridesmaids

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

The bridesmaids all wore the same dress by Bari Jay.

Love It? Get It!
Bridesmaids' dresses: Bari Jay
Flowers: Julie Brown Interiors; 615/300-5795, and Garden Delights; 615/599-9950

3 of 16

Advertisement

4 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Ceremony

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

The couple chose the Wightman Chapel for its Gothic architecture, which reminded them of their European engagement.

Love It? Get It!
Ceremony Venue: Wightman Chapel, Scarritt-Bennett Center; 615/340-7500

4 of 16

5 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Garden Rose Bouquet

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Garden roses in various shades of pink give the bouquet dimension.

Love It? Get It!
Bride's bouquet:
Julie Brown Interiors; 615/300-5795, and Garden Delights; 615/599-9950

5 of 16

6 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Family Traditions

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Caroline carried the same Bible down the aisle as her mother and grandmother and also wore the same earrings.

6 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Transportation

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

A trolley took the wedding party from the ceremony to the backyard reception.

7 of 16

8 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Reception

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

The backyard reception was inspired by the movie Father of the Bride. Long tables accomodated 275 guests.

  • Love It? Get It!
    Creative design/styling:
    Caroline Brewer Styling; cge.brewer@gmail.com
  • Flowers:Julie Brown Interiors; 615/300-5795, and Garden Delights; 615/599-9950
  • Catering:Martha Stamps Catering; 615/983-8850

8 of 16

9 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Vintage China

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Inspired by her grandmother's love of china, Caroline decided to serve dinner on mixed china patterns. Instead of renting so many different sets, she and her mom scoured thrift shops, flea markets, and antiques stores to collect enough to serve all 275 guests.

9 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Five-Tier Wedding Cake

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

"I wanted the frosting to look unpretentious— like my grandmother had iced it,” Caroline says of her towering, five-tier cake.

Love It? Get It!
Wedding cake: Jackie Brown of Gracious Goodness Cake Co.; 706/534-1374

10 of 16

11 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Groom's Cake

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Clark’s groom’s cake took the realistic form of a pair of hiking boots—reminiscent of his time in New Zealand.

Love It? Get It!
Groom's cake: The French Confection; 615/244-3967

11 of 16

12 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

The Reception

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

The patio offered a casual space for guests to relax.

Love It? Get It!
Flowers:
Julie Brown Interiors; 615/300-5795, and Garden Delights; 615/599-9950

12 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Drinks

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Servers passed drinks during cocktail hour.

Love It? Get It!
Catering:
Martha Stamps Catering; 615/983-8850

13 of 16

14 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Celebrate!

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Clark and his pals celebrated with a game of touch football.

Love It? Get It!
Groom's/groomsmen's tuxes:
Street Tuxedo; 615/771-0948

14 of 16

15 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Their First Dance

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Caroline and Clark have their first dance on the dance floor illuminated by simple, inexpensive white lights hung from the trees.

Love It? Get It!
Lighting:
Nashville Event Lighting; 615/414-6724

15 of 16

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 16

Save FB Tweet
Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Wedding Favors

Credit: Photo: A Bryan Photo

Erin Duffy, a friend of Caroline's, decorated mason jars for kids to catch fireflies.

16 of 16

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Jennifer Bonds

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 16 Their Story
2 of 16 The Wedding Venue
3 of 16 Caroline's Bridesmaids
4 of 16 The Ceremony
5 of 16 Garden Rose Bouquet
6 of 16 Family Traditions
7 of 16 Transportation
8 of 16 The Reception
9 of 16 Vintage China
10 of 16 Five-Tier Wedding Cake
11 of 16 Groom's Cake
12 of 16 The Reception
13 of 16 Wedding Drinks
14 of 16 Celebrate!
15 of 16 Their First Dance
16 of 16 Wedding Favors

Share options

Pinterest Mail Email iphone Send Text Message Print

Login

Southern Living

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Books from Southern Living
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Southern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

View image

Garden-Inspired Wedding
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.