Now Reading
Relaxed and Elegant Wedding in Charlottesville

Relaxed and Elegant Wedding in Charlottesville

We love that today’s bride, Jamie, knew the importance of putting personal touches on her wedding day, so she set out to include as many projects as possible to make sure the day was tailor-made for her relationship with beau Nate. At the time of their wedding, Jamie and Nate had been together for nine and a half years already, so there was much to celebrate! Sera Petras Photography and Amore Events by Cody truly outdid themselves on this one.

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

From the bride, Jamie: We really wanted our wedding to be an intimate affair that truly reflected Nate and I as a couple. We originally thought we’d go for rustic elegance, but through the planning process, we ended up switching gears slightly to be more relaxed elegance, with a romantic feel. It was very important to us that our guests feel welcome and comfortable and that the day be filled with personal touches. I’m super detail oriented, and Nate and I have been together for so long [9.5 years on our wedding day! We met in college ;)], so it was actually pretty easy for us to make decisions and we knew immediately upon meeting our vendors who we wanted to have as a part of our day.

elegant wedding invitations - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

bridal fashion - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

bride getting ready - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

Kate Spade glitter heels - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

pastel wedding bouquet - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville
Bouquet recipe: David Austin Juliette roses, David Austin Patience roses, hydrangea, Queen Anne’s lace, ranunculus, dahlias, and seeded eucalyptus.

groomsmen in blue suits - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

pink bridesmaid dresses - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

Our ceremony also very much reflected us as a couple, from our individual and personalized vows (we each wrote our own) to our unique ceremony reading (a children’s book, “A Lovely Love Story”) to our amazing officiant who infused anecdotes about me and Nate throughout the ceremony. It was also very important to us that everyone have fun at our wedding, so a great band was high up on the list of must-haves. Our band kept everyone on the dance floor and I truly can’t imagine having more fun!

ceremony decor - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

ceremony processional - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

wedding ceremony - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

ceremony recessional - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

pink bridesmaid dress - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

We went with a neutral palette – blush, cream, white, gold, with navy added in for the men’s attire. I’m a huge fan of gold and glitter, so we included gold touches wherever it made sense. We also had custom drink stirrers with our monogram, straw tags with our wedding date, and napkins with personalized sayings. I am all about DIY because of the personalization that accompanies it, and some of my favorite wedding projects include the following: I made a word search about me, Nate, and our relationship to keep guests entertained while waiting for the ceremony to begin. I taught myself modern calligraphy and addressed all of our invitations myself, and I also created our cocktail hour, dessert table, and bar signage. I spray painted leaves gold and wrote guest names in calligraphy on each one to use as place cards. This was by far my favorite project, and one that I knew I would do from the moment we got engaged. It was super exciting to see it come to fruition and to hear our guests tell me how much they loved them! Our welcome bags included cookies made by my mom (some in the shape of Virginia and Vermont, to reflect our home states), granola made by Nate’s mom, maple syrup from Nate’s hometown in Vermont (his parents tap maple trees for fun), and Virginia peanuts in little burlap bags.

name card calligraphy - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

elegant barn wedding - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

seating chart ideas - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

papel picado flags - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

wedding calligraphy - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

See Also
Salubriawedding

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

Any advice for couples planning their weddings now? Yes, my biggest piece of advice is to have fun! Enjoy this amazing time with your fiancé(e) and don’t get overwhelmed by the decisions and the details. Wedding planning can seem daunting, but at the end of the day, all that really matters is that you’re marrying the love of your life – so don’t lose sight of that! Also, as an event planner myself, I can’t stress the importance of hiring at least a day-of coordinator. You shouldn’t be stressing about a single thing on your wedding day, and you will greatly alleviate (if not eliminate) any anxiety by having someone there to take care of the details on your big day.

unique place card - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

wedding drinks - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

sweetheart table - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

reception decor - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

To the Moon and Back cake topper - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

relaxed and elegant wedding in Charlottesville - photo by Sera Petras Photography https://ruffledblog.com/relaxed-and-elegant-wedding-in-charlottesville

View all images from this wedding in the gallery

Wedding Music:
Bridal Party Processional: “The City,” Joe Purdy
Bride’s Processional: “Hoppipolla,” Sigar Ros
Recessional: “Come on Get Higher,” Matt Nathanson
First Dance: “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” Ingrid Michaelson

View Comments (5)
  • Thank you for the amazing feature! This was one of my favorites weddings!

  • Thank you so much for featuring our wedding! We couldn’t have done it without Amore Events by Cody! And Sera captured the day perfectly 🙂

  • A truly wonderful occasion featuring two marvelous young people and a fantastic supporting cast.

    Grandma & Grandpa

Scroll To Top