Special thanks to Dayana Cagle of CDM Photo Studio who provided many of the photos in this post. 

Indigo Falls

A while back I told you about our daughter Malorie and her engagement to Gavin, and things have been in a whirl ever since but I finally have a moment to share some photos with you. This will be a three part series because there’s so much to share! We’ll start with the venue. Malorie wanted an outdoor wedding—and her parents all agreed (there are 4 of us) that outdoor was fine so long as we had a good Plan B option. Most outdoor venues don’t have a pretty option for inclement weather. You may be stuck renting a huge tent which is not a decision you can leave until the last minute. After looking at a couple of other venues, Mal and Gavin settled on Indigo Falls, a lovely place outside Dallas, Georgia, that was built specifically for weddings. Not only does the facility have this beautiful outdoor area, but just in case it rains there’s a quaint chapel right up the hill that seats 250.

It was all perfect!

Indigo Falls Chapel

The reception hall is awesome too. It’s down the road from the chapel but no cars are allowed to park there, so guests walk down a pathway around the lake straight to the reception hall. There are candles in the trees and along the walkway. Malorie and Gavin got married in October so the leaves were turning and the entire property was gorgeous. And in the basement of the chapel is a wonderful bridal suite and a groom’s suite where everyone can get ready.

IMG_1209 IMG_1207

And so the wedding planning commenced. Our bride picked out her dress early on, she picked the venue, she approved the band and chose the music, and after that she turned it over to the moms. You see, Malorie was finishing graduate school to be a nurse anesthetist at the time of planning the wedding and her focus had to be with her classes and her clinical rotations. So her mother, Rhonda, and I planned the wedding together. When we needed Malorie’s input we would ask her but for the most part she wanted us to make decisions because all the little details that were so important to us just weren’t that important to her. I know what you’re thinking…I’m the stepmother of the bride and I planned the wedding with the mother of the bride? My husband’s ex-wife? Well, yes, that’s exactly what happened. I don’t think of Rhonda as my husband’s ex-wife…I think of her as my daughter’s mother…and my good friend. We’ve been a family for almost 17 years, so of course from time to time we did have some issues. But we always prioritized Mal and we have always interacted as courteous adults to one another. Over the years we have become friends and today I can honestly say I cherish that friendship and I know she feels the same way. And Mal’s dad and stepfather are friends as well. Our sweet daughter is one lucky young lady and she knows it! And that’s all we’re going to say about that.

Malorie and her moms

Out went the Save the Dates…

Save the Dates

And later the invitations. The invitations were actually quite a process for us. Rhonda and I are both detail-oriented people (we are pretty sure this is not what Malorie called us during this time) and we went back and forth over every single detail of fonts, colors, wording…but we were pleased with how they turned out. We opted for a more formal invitation because even though the venue was rustic the wedding ceremony and Malorie’s dress were rather formal.

Wedding Invitation

Our venue was pretty remote so we included detailed instructions for out-of-town guests and we also provided a bus from the hotel to Indigo Falls and back.

Response card and travel Wedding calligraphy

Isn’t that calligraphy lovely? My dear friend MaryEllen wrote it for us and she is doing it again for Brian and Caroline’s invitations. We are so grateful to her! If you’re interested in hiring her, please let me know! That gets us up to the day of the wedding. I’ll show you the venue and decorations and then we’ll go into the ceremony and reception. Since Indigo Falls is pretty remote and we had a lot of out of town guests, we painted these signs to place at strategic spots along the highway.

wedding road signs

The reception venue was decorated beautifully.

reception hall

Each table had unique centerpieces.

Rustic centerpiece for tables

And the food…our caterer, Atlanta’s Finest, was awesome and we had a ton of food. They also provided the florals and decorations, including the bridal bouquet and the wedding party flowers.

Wedding Food

Here’s the menu:

  • Passed hors d’oeuvres: stuffed mushrooms, crab cakes, meatballs
  • Tropical fruit and cheese display with assorted cheeses, cheese spreads, and crackers
  • Carving station with prime roast beef, grilled pork tenderloin, lemon peppered turkey breast, and honey glazed ham.
  • Pool of jumbo shrimp
  • Chicken tenders
  • Mashed Potato and mashed sweet potato bar with toppings
  • Macaroni and cheese bar with toppings
  • Salad boat with broccoli salad, Caesar salad, and Chinese cole slaw
  • Green beans
  • Gourmet dessert bar
  • S’mores bar outside by the fireplace

The wedding cake was provided by Confection Perfection—and was the best cake I have ever tasted and I have craved it ever since:

Wedding Cake

You’ll notice there are a lot of love birds throughout this wedding. Early on, Malorie said something about love birds and Rhonda latched onto the idea of having a love bird theme…and we ran with it! We went a little crazy with love birds, to the point where our daughter said, “No more!” Which of course just encouraged us to find more love birds!

wedding napkins

We even had love birds on the programs…

Rustic Wedding Program rustic wedding ideas

That’s it for part one of this series. I wanted to give you a good idea of the venue and set-up. Next we’ll cover the ceremony and then the reception.

Rustic Southern Wedding Part Two: The Wedding Ceremony

Rustic Southern Wedding Part Three: The Reception

Vendors:

Venue: Indigo Falls Events

Caterer/Florist: Atlanta’s Finest Catering and Event Planning

Photography: CDM Photo Studio

Hair and Makeup: Fringe Hair Salon, Augusta

Wedding Cake: Confection Perfection

Bus (transportation from hotel to venue and back): MTI Limo & Shuttle Services, Inc.

Limousine: Cumberland Limousine

Invitations: The White Crane, Augusta, Georgia

Lucy standing behind a counter with a cheese board and glass of wine.

About the author

Hi, I’m Lucy! I’m a home cook, writer, food and wine fanatic, and recipe developer. I’ve created and tested hundreds of recipes so that I can bring you the best tried and true favorites.

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