Lauren & Dean’s Forest Hall Wedding

Lauren & Dean were married at Pittsboro Presbyterian Church on Saturday, with their reception at Forest Hall at Chatham Mills. Everything from mimosas in pajamas straight through sparklers was perfect, and everyone had giant smiles on all day. The couple’s personal vows in particular had me grinning.

They’ve known one another since they were kids and they were even boyfriend and girlfriend in 5th grade before going separate ways for a while. Their vows and the toasts and everything I heard from guests confirmed that, as the sign out front of the ceremony noted, they were always going to end up together.

I also loved all the personal touches that were part of the day, from Lauren’s jewelry to the centerpieces to the table names: things that a great marriage needs, like Laughter and Trust.

Forest Hall Wedding Team

Shoutout to the awesome team:
Planner: Harmony Weddings
Ceremony Venue: Pittsboro Presbyterian Church
Reception Venue: Forest Hall at Chatham Mills
Florals: Sweets and Stems NC
Hair: White Dress Collective from Samuel Cole Salon
Makeup: Emily Gray
Wedding Gown: New York Bride & Groom
Officiant: Evan Harrison
DJ: JD Silverthorne
Caterer: Pickle Jar Cafe
Bar: Carolina Brewery
Rentals: CE Rental
Transportation: Oak City Shuttle

Forest Hall Images

Lauren & her ladies got ready at Forest Hall, where the Harmony Weddings team was in action working together with Sweets & Stems to get the reception setup in place.

The wedding was the day before Fathers’ Day so of course after her mom buttoned her into her dress, Lauren had to have a first look with her dad. He was crying before he even turned around. My heart exploded!

I present to you: the new faces of Twizzlers. Also gorgeous ladies in green with some stunning bouquets! I loved the gold accents in with the flowers.

Meanwhile, the guys met up at the Church to finish getting ready before the ceremony (and to practice their saber arch – and they did a great job as you’ll see below!)

Pittsboro Presbyterian Church Wedding Ceremony

This church is so sweet! It’s right on the corner of the main circle in Pittsboro. If you’ve been to Pittsboro, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The sanctuary is quite small though, so there’s an overflow room with audio-visual equipment set up so whatever’s going on in the sanctuary gets streamed to the overflow room. Some of Lauren & Dean’s guests were in that room, so the processional started there and everyone wound their way around the building to enter the sanctuary too. It was so great that everyone got to feel part of the ceremony.

I love the way Dean is looking at Lauren while she’s putting on his ring.

Here’s that promised saber arch. Dean’s a West Point grad so his Army buddies (and his dad) are in their dress blues. The last saber arch we saw was dress whites, since James was a Coast Guard Academy grad. My brother went to the Naval Academy, so I just need an Air Force Academy grad to complete my set. I guess Merchant Marine too, because why not?

I always like to give some love to the parents in our blog posts. Especially when they raised such awesome people.

Forest Hall Wedding Portraits

One of the couple’s friends (who actually works with John) had a great classic car to bring the couple from the ceremony to Forest Hall (and then from Forest Hall to the after party), so we had to grab some quick portraits featuring said car. My dad would be super disappointed, because I’m not totally sure, but I think it’s a first generation Camaro (let me know if I’m totally wrong dad!).

Another Kivus & Camera wedding, another bride unashamed to be chugging beer in front of the camera 😂 – our couples are seriously the best.

And how about this wedding party?

Special shoutouts to Aneesa and Maid of Honor Sarah for giving that veil some air! Y’all are the real MVPs.

Forest Hall Wedding Reception

Let’s head inside Forest Hall and see the reception!

After four great toasts, the newlyweds had their first dance and parent dances. Lauren surprised her mom by dancing with her partway through the father daughter dance.

Then the dance floor opened and the couple’s guests did not disappoint.

Some people enjoyed the perfect weather outside too, with games on Forest Hall’s beautiful lawn.

What’s better than lawn games though? Cake. The answer is always cake. And when it’s a military wedding there’s a sword involved, which always makes things even better.

Speaking of military weddings, one of their friends who is currently deployed facetimed in to the party. What a joyful use of technology.

Just before blue hour slipped away, we stole the newlyweds out for a few nightime shots. I love that with two simple, quick changes (a different gel on my light and a white balance shift) I can turn the sky from blue to purple. PHOTOGRAPHY SORCERY.

Back inside for more partying! Thanks to JD Silverthorne there in the middle for keeping the party rocking.

And of course thanks to this lovely lady hugging on the bride. Aneesa is one of our favorite people to work with on wedding days. She’s always so organized AND happy!

The couple had a last dance, but Lauren’s bustle had fallen out, so as they turned her train was trapping them. Never fear, her sister Ashley was there to walk the train around with them.

Hurray for #rebrandingthefinleys! Thank you for letting us be part of your day!