The Concord Farmhouse Winter Wedding - Knoxville Wedding Inspiration
Winters in Tennessee are usually incredibly mild, but our first blustery, chilly, and overcast day of the season coincided with this session, our winter wedding inspiration styled shoot. Held at a local farmhouse, The ConcordFarmhouse as it has been named, we wanted to channel the rustic nature of the venue in styling elements while also ensuring wintery details were highlighted.
The farmhouse, built in 1905, sits on 2 ½ acres in the small town of Farragut within Knoxville. The home feels like a step into the country amidst a city setting as it surround by woods and features a classic Southern-style covered porch. The historic home contains many original finishes, and the owners also built much of the furniture displayed in the home, including the large over-sized farmhouse table styled for this shoot. Aside from the classic white exterior, towering white columns, and quaint green shutters, this house also boasts private gardens and a phenomenal ivy archway utilized in some of our shots.
The first decision we made regarding this inspiration were the gorgeous jewel tones that were incorporated in the floral, place settings, cake, and even the makeup. These hues evoked a winter vibe, and the copper accents through the handmade candle holders and mugs added a warmth and richness that made these colors pop even more. Lovely fur stoles paired perfectly with the flowing white Azazie gowns that allowed for graceful movement, and our groom’s navy suit featured a cozy tweed vest and tie necessary for a cool outdoor winter wedding. The rich black dahlias incorporated in the stunning bouquet and table garland also carried into the groom’s boutonniere, which was ornate but inherently masculine. Deep shades of red were also prominent on the handmade cooper calligraphy place cards at each guest’s seat. Plump berries on a spiced three-tiered naked cake and bright pink and red cranberries strewn along the table made up the other fresh elements along with deep purple plums as the centerpiece for each place setting. Fruit was another defining component of this inspiration, and we wanted all of the choices to feel like the perfect winter edibles.
These photos make us want to snuggle up with a warm drink, but we also wanted to convey a timeless elegance with a bit more dramatic look to welcome the colder weather. Rustic, simple, and classic, we hope this farmhouse styled shoot leaves our readers feeling inspired to embrace a winter wedding.
The Concord Farmhouse | Echelon Florist | Azazie | Unique Settings and Rentals | Whisk N' Batter | The Tristar Scribe | Regal Tuxedo | A Ribbon's Nest | Mrs. Box | Pier 1 Imports | The Find Lab | Off the Top Barbershop | The Hair Life by Elisha | Edienna Smith with Bluzybuffs | Ashley and Christina Harding
Knoxville Botanical Gardens Engagement - Cory + Matthew
Knoxville Botanical Gardens is one of our favorite places in town to shoot, so we were thrilled when Cory and Matthew chose to do their engagement photos here. What made this session even better was their decision to incorporate what we’ve dubbed a prosecco picnic, where we captured some of our favorite shots of the couple sharing a drink on a plaid blanket. These two are super playful, and we spent much of our time with them laughing and listening to them tell stories of their first encounters to their blossoming relationship and eventually their decision to have a brunch wedding (heck yeah...marriage and mimosas) this Spring.
For a different vibe on the same day, we also traveled to downtown Knoxville where the two got cozy rooftop and incorporated some cute props and a wardrobe change. We encourage our couples to bring multiple looks, usually one dressy and one more casual for engagements, and we often encourage a setting for the engagement that provides a different background or vibe than what they will have on their wedding day.
We are in love with these candid moments of Cory and Matthew, and we hope you feel the love as you scroll through this feature as well.
Elkmont & Spence Cabin Smoky Mountain Engagement - Stephanie + Addison
One of the perks of having our permit to shoot in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is meeting people from all over the country who travel to Gatlinburg for vacation and ask us to capture some memories with them. Stephanie and Addison made the journey with their pup all the way from Dallas, and since this is still one of our favorite sessions in the Smokies, we wanted to highlight their beautiful engagement today.
This couple perfectly planned their wardrobe and fully embraced one of our tips for our sessions. We always suggest that couples bring two different looks, one that is dressy and another that is more casual. As we've posted photos of these two, everyone has raved over Stephanie's gold Badgley Mischka dress from Rent the Runway. We loved this sparkly floor length gown against the wooded backdrop of Elkmont.
As we embrace fall today, join us in the mountains with Stephanie and Addison who will be married soon in Texas. We wish them a lifetime of love and happiness!
Tsali Notch Vineyard Wedding Styled Shoot - Kathryn + Hunter
Styled shoots are always a great chance to try out interesting poses and direct the models to achieve beautiful images representative of our style; however, Kathryn and Hunter, the gorgeous couple featured today, didn't need any direction from us at all, and we were so excited to capture their natural interactions with one another.
Kathyrn's dress was her own, and we love it when our brides or ladies that we shoot choose a flowy dress. We can catch amazing moments of movement, and the desire to sway or spin comes naturally with such lightweight fabrics. A simple dress with a special touch, like Kathryn's gown with lace sleeves and scoop back, can sometimes be underestimated, but being comfortable and easily achieving graceful movement is invaluable on a long wedding day and results in super elegant images.
Our favorite styling element of this shoot was the basket used to house Kathryn's flowers. This unique spin was a perfect alternative to a traditional bouquet, and it meshed flawlessly as a whimsical touch amidst the vineyard setting.
Kathryn and Hunter impressed all the photogs who came together to network for this styled shoot, and we are thrilled to share this bridal inspiration with you today.
The Dress Theory | Sarah Seven | Beauty by Blair | Hair by Christi | A Blooming Collective | Vintage Inspiration Rentals | Tsali Notch Vineyard
Knoxville Botanical Gardens Bridal - Alisha
A lush garden setting, a pink floral headpiece, crystal embellished Badgley Mischka heels, and a stunning Essense of Australia gown with champagne undertones comprised the details of this bridal, but Alisha's natural beauty is what really made this session a standout (only enhanced by gorgeous hair from Whitney Evans Beauty and stunning makeup by Chelsey Hobbs). The Knoxville Botanical Gardens was the setting for this pre-wedding shoot with our gorgeous bride, and we couldn't have been happier with her choice to meet us here. With stone pathways, a new area that feels like an entrance to a secret garden, and rustic balcony walkway, KBG feels like a blooming getaway considering it is just outside of downtown Knoxville, and this background only added to the elegance portrayed in these images.
Alisha's bridal session was actually a gift from her bridesmaids, and we adored them for choosing to provide her with such a meaningful gift. Despite having to re-schedule twice due to rain as well, this this sunny evening around sunset turned out to be absolutely perfect. We are always excited when our brides opt for this extra shoot because it allows us to take a ton of additional bridal photos in a low pressure and much less stressful situation than the wedding day, and we can get a little more creative with posing (which I'm sure Alisha can attest can be a leg and ab workout as well).
Take a trip to this garden retreat with us today through Alisha's bridal, and look out for an upcoming feature of Alisha and Evan's Rivershack Farm wedding.
| Knoxville Botanical Gardens | Essense of Australia | Monica's Bridal | Whitney Evans Beauty | Chelsey Hobbs | Melissa Timm Designs |
Knoxville Botanical Gardens Engagement - Kendall + Nathan
These two made the journey from Jefferson City to meet us at the always gorgeous Knoxville Botanical Gardens for this amazingly beautiful engagement. We hit it off with these two instantly, as we made a connection over their profession. Kendall is studying to become a teacher, and Nathan currently teaches history, which we truly respect and admire (as Jason is the son of a teacher and I'm a former teacher of 8 years).
We could not have styled these two any better had we chosen their outfits and accessories ourselves. Nathan's button up and gray pants (funny fact...we're pretty sure Jason had on the exact same pants while photographing this shoot) meshed perfectly with Kendall's phenomenal blush gown. The flattering cut and flowing fabric made this dress a perfect choice for a spring engagement and combined flawlessly with Kendall's touches of gold in her jewelry.
We truly enjoyed spending the evening with these two and getting to know them better, and we cannot wait for their wedding this June. We are so excited to share the memories created with these lovebirds, and we invite you to explore the gardens with us through this elegant engagement.
