Barn Wedding With Elegant Southern Style

It's all in the details for this charming barn wedding in the heart of East Tennessee. See how this couple celebrated their big day in Southern style.

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January 12, 2016

By: Keri Sanders

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Love at First Site

This picturesque spring wedding was held at the Allandale Mansion barn in Kingsport, Tenn. "Kingsport is a small, quaint town with few outdoor venues," explains the bride. "We knew we wanted a rustic vibe, so when we visited Allandale, we fell in love with its beautiful weeping willow trees and big, open barn."

Collin + Megan

Collin and Megan Napier went on their first date in college after meeting through mutual friends. "It was obvious on the first date that we shared so much in common: our faith in Jesus, family experiences and that we're both horrible with song lyrics," laughs Megan. "We continued dating for three years until Collin proposed, and we got married a year later on April 5, 2014."

Spring's Bounty

The bride's bouquet was a gorgeous blend of spring colors, including peach and red ranunculus, yellow billy balls, peach roses and chamomile. Megan's dress was handmade and passed down from her mother. "My dress was made by my Grammy," says Megan. "It was fashioned after my great-grandmother’s dress (that burned in a house fire). When my mom pulled the dress out of storage, it was in perfect condition. My Grammy re-worked the dress a little to fit my style. We made so many fun memories working on the dress together. "

Not Just a Plaid

Collin has always been fascinated by his family’s Scottish heritage, so he made sure to incorporate the family tartan in ties and bowties. "I ordered the fabric from Scotland, and my incredibly talented mom sewed the ties and bowties for me, the fathers and the groomsmen," says Collin. The boutonnieres were made of billy balls and green hypericum berries.

A Sock Story

"We searched high and low for fun socks to give the groomsmen as part of their wedding gifts," says Megan. "Ultimately, we landed on the stripes because they were classy but still unique."

Party People

With over 200 guests in attendance, Megan and Collin couldn't help but feel the overwhelming love and support from their friends and family on their big day.

Order of the Evening

To keep everything in order and let guests know how the evening would proceed, a charming hand-written sign explained the order of events.

Picture This

"We incorporated an app (Cluster) that allowed our guests to upload pictures so we could make an album," says Megan. "My mom created the 'I Spy' game in order to spark creativity and encourage guests to use the app to share their pictures."

The Simple Things

"We love to walk around downtown and stop in one of our favorite stores to get bottled sodas as a treat," explains Megan. "We wanted to offer bottled sodas to our guests because it’s one of those fun treats that you rarely see anymore."

Sweet Tea Toast

"The Champagne went missing, so we ended up toasting with sweet tea, which made me so happy because anyone that knows me knows that I’m a sweet tea addict," smiles Megan.

Words of Wisdom

For their guest registry, the couple made a book of their engagement pictures where guests could sign and write memories or advice. "It’s something we keep on our coffee table to look back and remember the huge support system we have surrounding us," says Megan.

Hashtag Gold

As soon as they got engaged, a close friend started coming up with wedding hashtags. "When she sent #NapierEverAfter, we both thought it was great, so it stuck."

Let the Games Begin

Since they wanted to be sure guests would have fun during the reception, they set up horseshoes and cornhole boards. Megan remembers the excitement she felt when she and Collin arrived at the reception and saw everyone enjoying the games. "We looked at each other and smiled so big. This was exactly what we pictured!"

Sweet and Simple

A beautiful three-tiered cake was adorned with peach and orange ranunculus, which was an ode to the bride's bouquet. White buttercream frosting covers a moist strawberry cake — the perfect choice for springtime!

Understated Elegance

Subtle decor, including old windows, dark greenery and an exquisite silver platter, characterizes the tasteful vintage feel of this sophisticated barn wedding.

Coffee Cake

Collin's cake was chocolate on chocolate with plenty of coffee beans on top. "We spent many hours in coffee shops during college, and every time we go on vacation, we find a fun coffee shop to visit. We love great coffee," says Megan. In fact, the couple's first date was at a coffee shop on campus.

A Personal Touch

Megan says, "Anyone that knows Collin knows his passion for coffee. He loves roasting coffee, so he roasted the beans on the cake in his first homemade roaster."

Jumping the Java

According to Megan, Collin couldn't even wait for her to try his decadent groom's cake. "He cut into the cake and was trying to take a bite without me! We were laughing about how he could not wait one more minute to get a taste of his cake."

He Said, She Said

Before dinner, their DJ surprised them with a game of trivia. They both held one of Megan's shoes and one of Collin's shoes. The DJ then asked a series of "Who does this sound like?" questions, describing different situations and letting Megan and Collin answer by lifting the shoe of the person they thought the description matched. "Our guests loved it, and we all laughed so hard when we answered differently, because it undoubtedly caused a silly dispute."

Surprise Song

One of the highlights of the wedding took place when Collin surprised Megan by playing "Stand by Me" by Ben E. King on his violin. "He started playing, and I was immediately blown away," says Megan. "Our bridal party walked up on stage halfway through and surrounded us swaying and snapping."

Making Memories

"When he was done playing, he put down his violin and asked me to dance," remembers Megan. "Our wedding day was incredible, but his song was so thoughtful and was the absolute best gift!"

Soap for the Road

Some of the couple's friends make homemade soap and were kind enough to make 300 bars for Megan and Collin to give as wedding favors. "I had this vision of using a wax seal on our invitations, but we didn’t receive the stamp in time. It worked perfectly to package the little bars of soap," says Megan.

Spirited Exit

"We had bubbles for the guests to blow at us as we left, but no one could find the box of bubbles anywhere when it was time for us to leave," explains Megan. "So, our friends and family made a tunnel of spirit fingers as we made our getaway."

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Photo By: Andrew & Erin Photography

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