My name is Lindsay. I live in Asheville, North Carolina, by way of Texas. I grew up on a ranch, learning to barrel race horses like a true Texan! I moved to Asheville to be close to my grandfather and joined the police academy in 2013. I have made the Appalachian mountains my home. My partner, Amy, grew up in Asheville, but moved to Texas in 2011. She worked as a hairdresser and guest artist in hair shows in cities like New York, Houston, Chicago, and Austin. As a hairdresser she decided to take her craft back home to Asheville and open her business there.

Amy and I met at the hair salon! Let’s just say she gave me a haircut that changed my life. Literally. We had a mutual friend who went to Amy for really awesome haircuts, and she had told me to go see Amy. It took me almost a year to walk in that salon, but I was so glad that I did. She had me mesmerized: she was beautiful and absolutely stunning! Plus she gave me the most awesome haircut ever. The sparks were flying, and I had not felt this way before.

I left the salon not knowing how I was going to not see her again. I sat in the parking lot and contemplated how long it would be until my next haircut and if she would even like me the way I liked her.

Needless to say she felt the same way, and with a little courage, I asked her out. I was on duty one night, and she showed up with Starbucks and flashed me a smile that I’ll never forget. And so we began our journey of many more haircuts and getting-to-know-you dates. When we realized we both lived in Texas and had more and more in common everyday, we knew we had found our match.

I proposed to Amy. We had discussed with friends and each other about being proposed to and vice-versa. Amy wanted to be proposed to, so I intended on going all out with romance and dazzle. I rounded up a group of our closest buddies and started operation “Amy Will You.” From pumpkins to roses, we clambered up to the mountain peek of Craggy Pinacle, and even Hurricane Mathew made a debut.

I was beyond nervous, but so excited, and so sure: more surer than I had ever been before. [Editors note: we know "more surer" isn't a real word, but we love it anyway!] I got down on one knee and asked her to adventure through life by my side. She said yes! We celebrated for a moment, and all the while another surprise was still waiting: Amy had a ring too! She was grabbing something from her bag and then spun around and asked if I would adventure through life with her. A double proposal, unplanned, and yet so in sync. If that’s not meant to be, I don’t know what is.

We both have a love for rustic Texas, so we chose The Farm because it has that same feel. With the barn and horses, it's also very elegant and timeless. It captured both our personalities perfectly.

Our wedding bands were handmade by a local goldsmith, Susan, at Blue.

As a local to the area, Amy knew a lot of people, and we felt we wanted our wedding to feel like a community coming together to support and share in our love. Everything from the flowers to the photos were done by friends and family. Amy and I didn’t hire a wedding planner; we did everything ourselves. We wanted our wedding to reflect the magic we built together.

I wore a charcoal gray and black, handmade, tailored Italian suit. Amy wore a black and white hand-sewn champagne flute backless gown. Our attire was chosen to represent how we love to get fancy while being wild and free to be ourselves. A mix of tradition with edge. We handed out rose quartz to our guests to hold during our ceremony to charge with the energy around us. We also wore a rose quartz necklace as well. Amy’s "something blue" was her grandmother's ring; mine was a blue tie bar Amy got me for a wedding gift that was engraved with “Fancy AF.”

Our ceremony was full of magic. We both wrote our own vows. We spoke of the representation of the legend of the Wolf. How this creature has been a integral part of our relationship, through growth and protection. We had a friend call the corners and do a hand fasting ceremony and tie the ancient Celtic love knot over our hands while incorporating the elements of earth, air, water, and fire. The magic felt that day was unforgettable as guests have told us.

I built the music for the wedding based on songs that made me think of us and our love. Amy always said she was walking to the theme song of "True Romance," which was perfect. I had a bit of a time trying to figure out what to walk in to, but then decided to keep things light and epic and walk to the main theme of Game of Thrones. The GOT theme song also made another appearance later in the night for the cake cutting moments to gather everyone’s attention.

Our first song was “Can't Help Falling In Love.” It was supposed to be sung by Haley Reinheart but there was a little blooper, and the original played from Elvis. Either way, we danced without even realizing it until about midway through. The song is one of our all-time favorites.

We made a grand entrance into the reception to “A Little Party Never Killed Nobody” by Fergie & Q-Tip & GoonRock, which kicked off the party. Everyone thought we had rehearsed our dance, but in reality we were just doing what we do best and played and danced off of one another: no run-throughs, just us.

Music means a lot to us both, and I think we nailed it. Truly made the wedding that much more magical.

Our wedding reception was held at a local brewery. We wanted it to be relaxed and fun! We didn’t do any of the traditional toasts, we had our entrance dance and our first dance. And then everyone partied it down with local ales and wine. We had a slide show going and the dance floor was full! Our friends are DJs and they did the whole evening a fine job.

We chose Buxton Hall BBQ for our food, and everyone loved it. A southern tradition in North Carolina if you will, complete with hush puppies and collard greens!

Our decor consisted of white pumpkins and red and black dahlias and cala lilies. Pumpkins are significant because I asked Amy to be my girlfriend by carving pumpkins with “be my girl” on her porch as a surprise, then proposed with pumpkins that said “Amy will you marry me,” so it was only natural to have them in our fall wedding.

The night ended with our exit song and dance. We had an afterparty with friends who flew in from out of town. We stayed in a beautiful hotel downtown and stayed up late talking about how amazing it was to FINALLY be married!!!!!!! It was seriously perfect and the best day of my life.

Words by Lindsay, one of the brides, as told to Amber Marlow.
Video by Kathryn Ray of Evergreen Era Films.

VENDORS

Videography | Evergreen Era Films

Wedding venue | The Farm: A Gathering Place

Preparation venue | The Windsor Boutique Hotel

Officiant | Gage Racine

Florals | Amy Suddreth Ball at Haley's Garden

Catering | Buxton Hall BBQ

Amy's hair | Nicole Bohanon at Swell Salon

Makeup | Amanda Anderson at Doll Box Productions

Rings | Susan West at Blue Goldsmith

Jewelry | Jewels That Dance

KATHRYN RAY

Kathryn is a cinematographer with a gentle heart and a contagious laugh. She finds respite when immersed in the wilderness, sipping on Earl Grey Tea, and surrounded by people she loves most. As an adventurer with a traveler's spirit, she will always call the Blue Ridge Mountains home. She prefers hugs over handshakes, honesty over perfects, and individuality over tradition.