Photography by Carrie Guggenmos of Sur la Lune Photography

Michelle and Tyler have celebrated their first year anniversary, but their Cedarwood wedding is still a much talked-about event! Art was a unique theme that colored both their wedding ceremony and event styling, so we asked Michelle and Tyler to share insights on their love and  ‘painted wedding’ on May 27, 2018 at Historic Cedarwood.

1. Color and Art seem to be important components. Why?
I think most people that know me (Michelle) would tell you that color is just who I am. I tell everyone that rainbow is my favorite color. It therefore came as no surprise to Tyler (or anyone else involved in the wedding) to hear that I wanted the “theme” of our wedding to be rainbow. Tyler, on the other hand, will tell you his aesthetic is “clean and professional.” After sitting down at our planning session with Ashley she immediately knew how to balance this. She knew exactly how to pair the classic clean elements of a wedding with pops of color to bring both of our personalities to life. Color and art became important components of our wedding day because they were ways in which we were able to incorporate our personalities into our wedding day, but they were also tokens of our day that we would be able to take home with us and display for years to come. As our photos demonstrate, we had a picture on display from Verrier Handcrafted that is now nestled among our wedding photos, a gorgeous watercolor Ketubah that now hangs above our bed, beautiful photos that capture not only the vibrant colors from our day but also the in-between moments that remind us exactly how we felt, as well as a beautiful piece of original art on our gallery wall that serves as the perfect reminder of both who we are and the wonderful day we had celebrating our relationship.

2. Tell us about your live wedding artist. Who is she, your relationship with her, and any other details you want to share?
Tyler and I had been together for 10 years before getting married. I mention this because we had a lot of the items that a newlywed couple needs with regard to home goods, etc.. That’s why when my family asked what they could get us I drew a blank. We wanted something meaningful that we would have forever. I was also drawing a blank when it came to what to gift Tyler on our wedding day. I came across our artist’s page by mutual friends. We are both from Kentucky and went to small colleges 30 minutes from one another so I had already seen a lot of her work and knew that I loved her use of color. I originally reached out to Kayla Weber Art because she was taking commissions. I had seen that a number of her clients had commissioned her to paint their childhood home, first home, etc.. I decided a painting of our first home in Nashville would be the perfect gift for Tyler on our wedding day. Once I was on her site and talking to her about Tyler’s gift, I saw that she did live wedding paintings. Tyler and I had played around with the idea of hiring a live painter, but when making that decision it’s very important to find someone who captures your aesthetic. Up until that point I hadn’t found an artist that would produce a painting that we’d want to hang on our wall for years to come. It’s like finding your photographer or venue, you just know when it’s a good fit. Tyler and I both agreed that a live painting would not only be the perfect way of remembering our day, but would also be so neat for our guests, and would be a meaningful gift for our family to give us. We also agreed that Kayla’s style was perfect for us. The way in which she incorporates color into ordinary images is exactly what we were looking for and we knew she’d be able to capture the beauty of our day.

Kayla was absolutely amazing. She helped us work through what part of the day we wanted to capture, and then wowed our guests by live painting every detail of our ceremony as it unfolded. The final product is the focal point of our living room, and to this day I am still amazed at how well she captured the likeness of both of us! We also opted to have her paint our guests and it’s so neat that you can pick out who is who, especially since she captured the family members who gifted us the piece. Kayla is so incredibly talented and having her capture our ceremony in a piece that we’ll be able to pass on to our children is so special

3. Elements of the day that stand out for you and Tyler
Everything! I say this all the time, but the only time I (Michelle) cried on our wedding day was when we saw the Cedarwood Team’s final ‘product’ under the pavilion. Seeing everything come together in a way that was beyond our wildest dreams was surreal. The way in which the team was able to perfectly bring out our personalities in the subtlest of ways wowed us throughout the entire evening and beyond. The day was beyond our wildest dreams. The paper goods were beautiful, the flowers were gorgeous, the string lights in the barn were romantic, the band sounded amazing, the food (including the cake) was delicious, and it just seemed as though there wasn’t a single detail that was overlooked. Everything moved so seamlessly too, and we both so appreciate all of the hard work behind the scenes that went into making sure we were able to take in every moment. Additionally, we received so many comments about how much people enjoyed utilizing the entire property. Everyone (including us) loved that we moved from space to space which allowed everyone to see every aspect of the Cedarwood property that we fell in love with. I believe it was also a huge reason as to why the dance floor remained packed all night! Of course our first look in the treehouse was perfect. It was so nice being able to break away and share those precious moments together before the night began – and the backdrop there is breathtaking. I know it’s not necessary an “element of the day” but we both loved having our wedding at Cedarwood. We knew going into it that it would be amazing, but words can’t express how blown away we were by everything at the end of the night. The property alone is beautiful, and the Cedarwood team is able to capture a couple’s personality. The property is a blank canvas and adding touches that embody the couple here and there allows everyone to feel the presence of the relationship they’re there to celebrate.

Michelle and Tyler, Thank You for making our world a little brighter. We know your lives will be filled with laughter and color, and we enjoyed learning the “inside scoop” about your unique Cedarwood wedding day experience.  Thanks Sur la Lune for sharing your photography with our blog.

The Cedarwood Event Team