Ashley+Stephen, In Action Photos

Happy October! We have finally entered the new engagement season!

If you are like us, your Facebook news feed is blowing up with ring photos and updates in relational statuses. This is such a fun time of year!

On another note, I am so excited to share some of the images from Ashley+Stephen's wedding! We loved working with Cheyenne and Geoff Schultz and seeing their stunning work. To see Cheyenne's full blog post on the wedding, visit here.

Enjoy!

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[Just in case you missed the last journal post - listen to this LIVE recording of us playing a wedding in September while you scroll through the photos! Shutter-Hutch {photobooths+videography}]

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Venue | Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden

Photographer | The Schultzes

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Ashley+Stephen, Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens

I had anticipated this wedding for quite some time! Ashley had quite the time with the wedding planning. What should be a fun process turned out to be tricky and difficult. During the first few months of our correspondence, she went from waiting for a wedding venue to finish construction to needing to quickly book another venue and refine the guest list.

In the end, everything turned out absolutely beautiful and stunning.

Beauty for Ashes Photography - Wescottage Music

Ashley was glowing as she walked down the aisle. Stephen was tearing up. Some of the sweetest moments.

I'm definitely a fan of scripting your own vows. I think the best combination is when couples script their personal vows and then do the "repeat after me" vows.

Ashley and Stephen had such sweet things to say about each other and truly were soaking in the moments and were overwhelmed by the beauty and significance of their marriage. We all couldn't help but smile and stifle our giddy squeals as we shared in their excitement.

CEREMONY SELECTIONS:

You Raise Me Up [Mothers/Grandmothers]

Love Story [Flower Girls/Ring Bearers]

A Thousand Years [Bride]

Best Day of My Life [Recessional]

[all of these are under our music samples page]

After the Ceremony, we headed over to the Cocktail Hour location. The hour was cut short because the area was attacked by bees!  

COCKTAIL HOUR FAVORITES:

Ho Hey

The Prayer

Time to Say Goodbye [Con Te Partiro]

All of Me

Marry Me

We loved working with Cheyenne and Geoff Schultz again! They produce beautiful work and are always so pleasurable to be around. Head over to their photography blog to view some of their work and to see how cute Cheyenne's baby bump is! We're looking forward to see the photos from this wedding. View Ashley+Stephen's engagement session here.

Venue | Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens

Musicians | Wescottage Music

Congratulations to the new Mr.+Mrs. Crandall!

Laura Lee+Stephen, Victorian Crow's Nest

Laura Lee contacted us back in December of 2014 for her August 2015 wedding. However, since a family member already had a contact with musicians, she decided to book them instead [and we're all for using friends and family in your wedding!]. Fast forward about 7 months.

I got a phone call from Laura Lee and she explained that there were some difficulties with the other musical group. Amazingly enough, we still hadn't been booked that day! I loved how her wedding came together, and by the next day, we had everything nailed down and ready to go!

Before the Ceremony began, Laura Lee's friend sang a solo of Great is Thy Faithfulness. I love it when weddings begin with a powerful hymn like that. It prepares everyone for the sacred union and puts everything into perspective.

Although we don't have any photos of us during the wedding, here is the list of music we played!

CEREMONY SELECTIONS:

Great is Thy Faithfulness [Soloist]

Wonderful, Merciful Savior [Mothers/Grandmothers]

Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring [Bridal Party]

Canon in D [Bride]

Best Day of My Life [Recessional]

Canon in D is such a popular and common piece for weddings. Some don't like it because it's played so much. Consider why it is played so much:

It's absolutely beautiful! The melodies are woven together to swell in sound and harmony [which is perfect for processionals!]. It also has a very simple chord progression - which means that it's easy to end the song at any point. We also create our own version of the piece, so we never play it the same way twice. It's so much fun!

If you are a Bride, and someone tells you not to use a particular piece/song because it's overused, consider what they say, but make the decision yourself. I would totally use Canon in D for my wedding because it's beautiful [even though I've played it countless times - even a pop version of it].

Congratulations to the new Mr.+Mrs. Parker!

Venue | Victorian Crow's Nest

Musicians | Wescottage Music

Hanna+Aaron, Andrew Jackson State Park

I've been so excited to write about Hanna and Aaron's wedding! This post has more personal notes since Hanna has been a family friend, and we were quite involved with her wedding.

First off, Bethany was a bridesmaid for the first time!

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Second, I did Hanna's hair and makeup.

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The rest of us played music for the Ceremony, and Bethany and I sang with our friend, Angela.

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CEREMONY SELECTIONS:

Be Thou My Vision [Mothers/Grandmothers]

A Thousand Years [Bridal Party]

Gabriel's Oboe [Bride]

Mercies Anew [Vocals: Jennifer, Bethany, Angela]

Lord Find Us Faithful [Hanna's brothers on Vocals, Lauren on Keyboard]

All of Me - [Recessional]

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Jon, my boyfriend, was the photographer as well! It was a blast to work together. When I wasn't getting Hanna ready or playing music, I helped second shoot. It was a busy, and HOT day! The weather was stormy right before the wedding began but miraculously cleared up in time.

So many times as a musician, we have the best views of the Bride and Groom's faces. We see the little interactions that no one else sees. We see the tears. We hear the little comments. We see them slightly shaking from nerves and excitement. I've always wished I had a camera with me to capture the photos no one else sees.

For the first time, this wish came true! After playing the processionals and singing, I was done with the music [since the recessional was only piano]. Jon left a camera in back for me, and I was able to capture some shots like the ones below. Hanna was thrilled to have photos from that angle, and it gave Jon the freedom to get photos from other angles.

Visit Jon's blog post of their wedding to see the full story of their day unfold!

Angela, it is always a joy to sing and play music with you! Blessings as you move to Africa next month to teach and to minister. We love you!

Congratulations to the new Mr.+Mrs. Berry!

Venue | Andrew Jackson State Park 

Musicians | Wescottage Music 

Photographer | Jon Courville Photography

Yelena+Bartek, Alexander Homestead

We are just now receiving most of the photos from our June weddings! We were a part of so many beautiful weddings with fantastic couples.

June started off with music at an Engagement Party at the Elizabeth Lawrence House at Wing Haven Garden. 

Live, tasteful, and elegant music at Engagement Parties is such a nice touch to make an event memorable and special.

We had two double header wedding weekends during the absolute hottest time of the year. Record highs - in HUMIDITY and HEAT! Thankfully, the weddings were so beautiful that it helped us and the guests stay cheerful during the entire Ceremony. :)

Yelena+Bartek

Everything was gorgeous. This Charlotte venue is on the corner of a busy intersection, but the trees surrounding the property create a secluded and intimate atmosphere. With Ukrainian and Polish backgrounds, it was so neat to see some fun cultural aspects to the Ceremony.

CEREMONY SELECTIONS:

Can't Help Falling in Love with You [Last Prelude song]

Come Thou Fount [Mothers/Grandmothers]

He's Always Been Faithful, Sara Groves [Bridal Party]

The Cello Song [Bride]

All Creatures of Our God and King - [Recessional]

Knowing a couple of the bridesmaids at the wedding also made for such a fun day! The creative team was a joy to work with, and we couldn't have asked for better clients. Enjoy the photos below by their fantastic photographer, Anastasiia!

To see more photos of this wedding, visit Anastasiia's blog!

Congratulations to the new Mr.+Mrs. Dyszkiewicz!

Venue | Alexander Homestead

Photographer | Anastasiia Photography

Musicians | Wescottage Music

Jamie+Patrick - In Action Photos

July has finally arrived with just a little less heat and humidity than June! Bethany and I played a wedding on Saturday as a cello duet, and it was the first since October 12, 2014, that we were inside! Indoor weddings are a dream for musicians. Outdoor weddings tend to produce beautiful photos, but they're typically not comfortable for anyone else [though there are rare cases of perfect weather]. Our instruments always appreciate stable environments with controlled temperatures.

On another note, we received the images from Sposa Bella Photography from Jamie+Patrick's beautiful cottage wedding at Old Edwards Inn! Lindsey and Craig, we so enjoyed working with you!

[You can read the details about their beautiful garden wedding here]

Next up will be a May recap [with some of the most exciting news to share!] and music lists for our many June weddings. Stay tuned!