Planning a Wedding in Rome? You’ll LOVE This Radiant Wedding at Norwegian Embassy in Rome
We Love This Classical Wedding in Thomasville, Georgia
Bride = Julianna Smith Hansen
Groom = Will Hansen
A short brief about you and your hubby, what do you do? Where do you live? How did you meet? Etc.
Shelly Lane Photography
We are both born and raised in Tallahassee, Florida, and currently reside there.
We actually became friends back in high school and our friendship continued in college, where I always made sure to give him some of my sorority branded t-shirts and branded swag when he came back in town to visit for holidays and long weekends (I attended Florida State University and he was at Auburn University)!
Shelly Lane Photography
After college (a little bit wiser and more confident), we finally began to realize there was something there more than just a friendship, but we were both nervous to take that step and possibly hinder our great friendship.
Photo by Langley Kate Photography
We were forced to eat brunch alone one Sunday after a few friends “bailed last-minute” – thinking there was a greater plan in motion that day haha! – and then we never looked back. 8 years later, we got engaged
I have worked in the public relations field for more than seven years at The Zimmerman Agency – and Will works at Moore Bass Consulting, providing landscape architecture and design throughout the Southeast.
Photo by Langley Kate Photography
How & why did you choose your venue and location?
We scouted numerous places in town before deciding on Pebble Hill in Thomasville, Georgia.
Luckily, Thomasville is just a quick 30-45 minute drive based on your location in Tallahassee – and we actually got engaged on the beautiful historic bricks in downtown Thomasville, known as the “City of Roses” so it only made sense to get married there too! We provided transportation to/from the wedding venue so our friends were able to get there easily and safely.
Shelly Lane Photography
What were the theme and vibe? And why?
We didn’t have an overall theme per se, but we did incorporate pink and green from start to finish as I am an avid Lilly Pulitzer lover and my favorite colors are pink and green! Ultimately, we wanted to have an elegant, classic, and timeless vibe.
Shelly Lane Photography
How did you choose the suppliers? Online, recommendations, etc.
We worked with John Gandy Events to make our vision come to life – John and his team are the best event planning and design firm in Northwest Florida!
From the moment we were engaged, we had a few vendors in mind based on past weddings and events we have attended, but John was a great resource in helping us 100% decide on who to use and how to make our wedding memorable for everyone involved.
Did you DIY? If so, where did you go for inspiration and tutorials?
Not sure if you would call this DIY or not, but I came up with the idea for the welcome bags and everything we wanted to include within them – including our favorite snacks, local items and our “Recovery Kits”.
My mom and I ordered the boxes, ribbon, and clear bags for the “Recovery Kits” and we put everything together in an assembly line in our living room. Will and I personally wanted our welcome bags to make our out-of-town friends and family feel special and know how much we appreciated them traveling the distance for our big day. They were a big hit!
Photo by Langley Kate Photography
We worked with local artist Laura Patrick of Lello Co. on our custom crest that was showcased on the front of the welcome bag and throughout our wedding details (save the date, pillows, cups, etc.). She truly did an amazing job and captured exactly what I was looking for – we wanted to incorporate pink and green (of course), magnolia leaves and a southern twist.
How did the planning work? Who helped? How long did it take to plan? How did you organize & schedule?
Our engagement was a little over one year – we got engaged on February 6, 2021, and were married on March 5, 2022. With my public relations background and type A personality, I am extremely organized and love to multitask.
Shelly Lane Photography
That said, I moved quickly on getting vendors secured and everything planned in a timely manner. My goal was to have everything finished before the holidays so I could sit back and relax leading up to the wedding. We did have a few details to hammer out leading up the big day, but nothing too crazy or over-the-top that we couldn’t handle
Photo by Langley Kate Photography
Our support team and wedding planning crew were both extremely beneficial in getting things done quickly and on our preferred timeline. My fiancé was always there for me when I was stressed out or feeling impatient with wedding planning tasks, but my mom was my go-to sounding board during everything (she has exquisite taste and is VERY honest).
Were there any fears or worries about the day?
As every bride would say… RAIN! While we did have a solid rain plan, every bride does worry about dealing with rain as it can mess up your entire flow of the event, especially if you don’t have a tent reserved as a backup plan.
Shelly Lane Photography
Getting married in early March can either be extremely cold or sunny and 75 degrees – a friend of mine got married the week before me and it was freezing (I mean high of 30’s), so I started worrying that we didn’t have anything to keep our guests warm if we did end up having a chilly evening (no blankets, heaters, hand warmers, etc.). We were very fortunate to have a beautiful day full of sunshine, love, and happiness.
Shelly Lane Photography
Shelly Lane Photography
Shelly Lane Photography
Any things you wish they did or didn’t do?
I love indulging in an espresso martini – so if I had to do one thing over again, I would have incorporated a late-night cocktail into our reception.
Shelly Lane Photography
Shelly Lane Photography
Advice for future couples?
My biggest takeaways from wedding planning are being able to compromise and knowing that you cannot control every situation (especially the weather). Additionally, be prepared to go over budget (it happens to the best of us and usually during the home stretch).
If you’re planning to have your own wedding in Georgia – a great choice for an awesome wedding photoshoot would be the Georgia Aquarium. If you’re traveling to Georgia for your BIG day, you can easily find hotels close to Georgia aquarium.
Want to see some more beautiful weddings we featured? Check out our Garden Weddings section.
