Christina and Liz’s coral and turquoise Atlanta lesbian wedding was suffused with soft hued blooms ranging from coral and peach to whites and ivories, gorgeous lace gowns and generations of family members coming together to support and celebrate the marriage.
From Mishaun Arrington Photography:
Liz and Christina met in 2006 while we were both attending Kennesaw State University. Liz was the chapter president of Omega Phi Alpha National Service Sorority and Christina was a member of the inaugural pledge class. Christina proposed to Liz by surprising her with a trip to New York City in July of 2015. They wandered all around the city as Christina (unbeknownst to Liz) searched for the perfect spot to propose. They got engaged at the beautiful Library Hotel in midtown Manhattan. Liz and Christina were married on June 10, 2016, at The Highland Inn Ballroom and Lounge. They decided to get ready together up until it was time to get in their dresses and then waited to see each other in their dresses until they were walking down the aisle.
Speaking of the dresses, they each scheduled separate appointments at BHLDN Atlanta, but used the same stylist. She was able to help them to select dresses that fit their personalities and complemented each other’s without them ever seeing each other’s dresses until they walked down the aisle. Having this secret until the ceremony was a very special part of the day. I loved Christina’s reaction to seeing Liz walking down the aisle. The ceremony was also Liz’s favorite moment especially hearing the words “I now pronounce you married.”
To me, the highlight of the day was the ceremony. Having known both brides through college and getting to watch their love story unfold over the years it was really beautiful to watch them become one. Liz’s mom and sister both had readings during the ceremony. Liz’s sister Emily read Justice Anthony Kennedy’s Supreme Court’s opinion on marriage equality. The couple also wrote their own vows and sealed a box with wine and letters to each other to be opened on their anniversary.
The reception was a ton of fun and really highlighted the couple’s personality. When planning Liz and Christina said that they aimed for a relaxed and upbeat dance party for the reception and I think that is exactly what they had! The reception was the highlight of the day for Christina, especially dancing with her 94-year-old grandma.
I asked Liz and Christina to sum up their overall wedding experience and they said “It definitely felt like a dream—seeing all the details we had worked on over the previous year come together so wonderfully and having all the people we loved together in one place. We felt supported and surrounded by love. We couldn’t have asked for a better wedding day!”
Photographer: Mishaun Arrington Photography
Wedding gowns: BHLDN
Caterer: Fox Brothers BBQ
Floral Designer: Gracie’s Garden Floral Studio
Event Venue: Highland Inn Ballroom Lounge
Makeup Artist: Intensify by Patience
Event Planner: Lionhearted Events
Bakery: Publix
Jewelry: Worthmore Jewelers
Submitted via Two Bright Lights
*You may wonder why we use terms such as lesbian wedding, gay wedding, queer wedding, trans wedding, marriage equality and gay marriage. We really don’t want to label our own weddings. It’s just a wedding!!! Love is love! We’re equal to our straight friends. However, if you consider the population of heterosexuals in the world versus the LGBTQ community, there’s quite a lot more of them than there are of us. Which means that in the Internet world, we’re a speck in the enormous wedding world. Which is fine. We love our speck. There’s glitter and fabulous cocktails and music on our speck. Now that we have federal marriage recognition in the United States (hooray! Marriage equality!), traditional wedding media outlets such as Martha Stewart Weddings, The Knot, Style Me Pretty, etc. are covering same-sex weddings in their own heteronormative but sweet ways—and they are using some of these search terms. And guess what, our community also is using terms such as gay marriage, lesbian weddings, gay weddings, two brides, two grooms when planning their weddings online. So if our community is actually going to find the resource that is going to help them plan their wedding with tailored language, knowledge and professional expertise truly geared toward them, Equally Wed is prepared to strategically use overt marketing tools of engagement. To search for equality-minded wedding vendors and venues in your community, click here. To submit a wedding, engagement story, personal essay, click here. To sign up for our mailing list, click here.
Equally Wed is a queer-owned privately operated global wedding magazine for LGBTQ couples. Our founders, Maria and Kirsten Palladino, launched Equally Wed in 2010 after having trouble finding supportive wedding vendors and LGBTQ visibility in wedding media when planning their own Atlanta, Georgia, wedding. The graphic designer/web developer and editor/writer decided to do something about it for their community. The name Equally Wed, the heart with an equal sign in it and the phrase “equality-minded wedding professionals” are all registered trademarks of Palladino Publishing, LLC.
