Kelsey + Connor by Toni Angelina Photo - Together Journal

I dreamt of a summery, outdoor garden wedding, filled with warm colours and blooming wildflowers: romantic, nostalgic, and elegant.

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…

Kelsey: I’m an artist and recent full-time illustrator for custom artwork—including wedding stationery! I am an avid documenter of life through photography, scrapbooking, and journaling. An ideal day for me would start with a glass of iced matcha, be filled with brunch, thrifting vintage treasures, hand-sketching new designs, and exploring somewhere new, and would end on the couch, curled up under a blanket with a book next to my husband. Connor inspires me to say “yes” more than “no,” to be more spontaneous, and to always ask the waiter for their personal recommendations. As a result, I find myself hiking up to the tallest peak of the mountain with him, finding the best soup dumplings at a small, hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant, and realising that spending time in sunshine does indeed make life feel better.

Connor: I am an Atlanta native, born and raised. I am an older brother, a son to two wonderful parents, and now, a husband to a loving wife! Professionally, I’m a Deloitte Strategy Consultant focused on data analysis and process improvement. Beyond work, staying active is key – competitive pickleball, volleyball, and workouts keep me grounded mentally and physically. Additionally, I love playing chess and spending time with the amazing friends Kelsey and I have in the city. Kelsey and I love exploring and trying new things, whether it be ranking every fast-food soft serve ice cream or hiking a mountain in a storm, I know that my life will always be an adventure with her :).

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?

Although we unknowingly grew up 15 minutes apart, we met years later through mutual friends while attending college together (Go Jackets!). Our first real conversation was at Kelsey’s apartment—Kelsey, in comfortable slippers and pyjamas, opened the door to greet a mutual friend and Connor, who was dressed in a loud, red and green Christmas suit, coming from a themed party. Our friend who wanted to stop by unwittingly became the third wheel to our conversation as we quickly began animatedly discussing our shared dream of one day studying abroad in New Zealand and Australia. For the weeks that followed, we found every excuse to see each other and made sure to be at all the group viewings of The Bachelor, Saturday night dinners, and dance parties that followed.

Kelsey: I was pleasantly surprised at how immediately we hit it oﬀ and had so much to talk about. Most of all, we had so much to laugh about. From the beginning, I found Connor to be charming and intriguing. I couldn’t believe someone as inherently well-rounded as him could still be so humble.

Connor: I could immediately tell that Kelsey was smart, kind, and had a great sense of humour (she was tolerating my suit after all). Our conversation flowed even upon our first meeting!

When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?

Kelsey: Falling in love with Connor was easy. From the beginning, I could envision our lives together very clearly. He always volunteers to do the dishes, actively listens before speaking, and reminds me not to take life too seriously. I like to think of our relationship as two opposite magnets— Connor on one side as an analytical, chess-playing athlete, the other side being me, a talkative, heart-driven creative— being irrevocably pulled together in a way that perfectly balances and pushes each other. When, as an introvert, I realised I never grew tired of being with him, that I would be content to spend all the rest of my everyday Tuesdays with him that make up a life, that’s when I knew he would be my forever.

Connor: There wasn’t a particular “aha” moment that I can point to when I decided I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Kelsey. Instead, I believe it was a collection of the most beautiful small moments that showed me who she really was – she consistently looked to actively care for others, she showed up and prioritised me, she found beauty in the world in ways I could not, and I always found myself wanting to see her more, even if we had just separated after being together for the past 48 hours. Growing to know her true character over time made me feel so confident in our future.

Tell us about the vision you had for the mood and style of your wedding. (theme, key styling elements, florals, colour palettes, etc.).

Kelsey: I have always been vintage-inspired, so when I envisioned our special day, I dreamt of a summery, outdoor garden wedding, filled with warm colours and blooming wildflowers: romantic, nostalgic, and elegant. I wanted our guests to feel like they had stepped into the backyard garden of a Jane Austen novel. From the silhouette of my dress, the hand-me-down pearl earrings worn by my mom on her own wedding day, the white, handheld wedding-favor fans, the fonts on our stationery and signage, to the simplicity of our cake’s buttercream and baby’s breath design, each detail was intentional in making our wedding look and feel like an intimate, Victorian, garden-party wedding. I even specifically asked our florist to avoid large roses; they felt too traditional. Instead, she perfectly curated wildflower arrangements and bouquets that felt whimsical and free. Above all, we wanted the mood to feel joyful, sentimental, and special— with lots of space for celebration and dancing throughout the day!

What styling and visual elements worked best for you? (could be things, the florals, particular hire products or your marquee, etc., something the stylist created or simply just the scenic beauty of your location or the existing design of your venue).

Kelsey: The venue was very important for incorporating the overall vision of our wedding: the English butterfly gardens, historic white house with black trim and a wrap-around porch, and the arched, wooden ceremony backdrop were all important elements that tied together the vintage, romantic style for our wedding. There were colourful touches in the peach bridesmaid dresses, terracotta napkins, and blush accent ribbons, but I really wanted to let the stunning historical venue, natural butterfly gardens, and curated florals be the most beautiful visual centrepieces of the experience. Our florist was instrumental in continuing the whimsical, wildflower style in her arrangements for a cohesive vision. When we toured the venue for the first time, I could so easily picture Connor and me all dressed up together next to the ivy-covered porch railing, as well as getting ready with my bridesmaids inside the blue floral wallpapered house upstairs. A small detail on the grounds that really sold me was the lovely ceremony space right in the middle of the gardens. The large, white, wooden archway was so unique and romantic; I could instantly picture us beneath it, holding hands, saying our vows that would knit us together for the rest of our lives.

What did you enjoy most about the planning process, and do you have any tips for couples starting their wedding planning journey?

Kelsey: It was actually through creating our own wedding invitations and signage that inspired me to design custom work for others as well! Each of the little details really mattered to me in making our whole day feel very cohesive and intentional. I really enjoyed curating everything and seeing the pieces come together. My biggest tip for other couples’ wedding planning is to make fun dates out of it! We invited our parents to our catering tasting and enjoyed a delightful meal together, talking about our selections. We had dinner after our engagement photo session at one of our first date spots. We spent a whole afternoon on the rug in my old apartment compiling a playlist for our DJ, handpicking which Pitbull songs would get our loved ones on the dance floor with us.

Connor: I really enjoyed our vendor selection! It was fantastic to meet people who were genuinely invested in our relationship, excited about the prospect of helping at our wedding, and showed great enthusiasm for their craft. Your vendors so heavily influence how the wedding day goes, how comfortable you feel, etc., so I really appreciated having great people in our corner. As someone who didn’t necessarily have a concrete idea of what my wedding would look like, I also enjoyed working with Kelsey and seeing her talent and vision come to life. She cared deeply for the details of the wedding, and it was nice to see her so passionate about putting together something great.

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, and is there a story?

Kelsey: I love the nostalgic tradition of having “something borrowed, blue, and new.” My pearl earrings were the same ones my mom wore when she married my dad 28 years ago, and I borrowed a cousin’s wedding veil. I prayed my “something blue” would be clear, blue skies empty of any rain clouds when our day came. My “something new” was my wedding dress. Fortunately and unfortunately, I had a perfect vision of what I wanted. On the one hand, this made shopping easier because I could easily narrow down a shop’s selection based on my criteria, but it was harder on the other hand because it seemed my ideal dress was actually not made yet. After a few shops, I came back to the Madi Lane Jesse gown because of how much I loved the elegant simplicity of the square neckline, beautifully draped satin fabric, and a-line silhouette. I knew when saying yes to the dress that my vision would be completed in alterations. We added the romantic tulle sleeves of my dreams that, even in the heat of summer, I was obsessed with wearing. The custom sleeves were the perfect complement to my minimalist dress. When I detached them before our reception, I slipped on long, sheer statement gloves to complete my subtle second look.

Connor: We opted for a three-piece tan suit! I wanted to retain some formality by having a vest, but we chose the tan colour to feel more garden-esque and match the overall colour scheme of the wedding.

What was one, or two elements that were most important to you both that you were happy to spend a little more on? (food, photography, florals, the venue, your outfits?).

Kelsey: For us, the mementos that would become treasured keepsakes long after our actual wedding day had ended were really worth investing in. We wanted both the intimate and grand moments to be captured so we could reminisce on them together for all our years to come, which is why finding the perfect photographer and videographer was so important. Our photographer Toni and videographer Jaret were both such gifts to us, before, during, and after our wedding day. They captured the sweet, radiantly joyful, and absolutely dream-like quality our wedding day felt like to me. Our love story is forever memorialised in breathtaking images spread across photo books, framed on the walls around our first home together, in a beautiful film we want to make a tradition of rewatching every year on our anniversary.

Connor: We were more than willing to spend on the venue! We chose The Wildflower 301 because of its breathtaking gardens and emphasis on natural beauty. There was something magical about feeling connected to the Earth — the gardens oﬀered such a vibrant, living backdrop for our entire day. We loved the idea of our ceremony and reception flowing between the natural surroundings and indoor spaces. The venue also felt perfectly sized for our guest count — you want people to feel comfortable sitting during dinner, but you also want the dance floor to be packed! Investing in a space where nature and beauty came together was worth it to make our wedding feel incredibly special and full of life.

Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?

Connor: You envision your wedding exit as a smooth movie moment to bookend to a wonderful day. I placed Kelsey onto the back of the waiting convertible, ready for our big wave-and-drive-oﬀ scene. We smiled, waved, and waited for the engine’s roar… which never came. Turns out, our getaway car decided that precise moment was perfect for a nap. It refused to start. So, there we were, stuck on display. You could almost see the question marks forming over our guests’ heads as they just… stood there, watching us awkwardly maintain our ‘just married’ smiles and waves. Three minutes has never felt so long. Now, though, it’s impossible not to laugh about our glamorous exit sputtering to a halt before it even began. At least there was plenty of time to take photos of it!