Shanae and Daviyon’s love has endured distance and space.
After meeting through mutual friends and later connecting on Facebook, the couple started dating long distance as Shanae completed college at UNC Greensboro. Eventually, Daviyon would move to Greensboro, only to be stationed in California when he joined the U.S. Navy. Together they have been through living in different states, two deployments, and missed holidays, but they have grown stronger and closer through these challenges.
Daviyon proposed in the city that initially brought them together- Greensboro, NC. They both love fall and winter holidays, so Daviyon’s Christmas proposal was perfection. As the clock struck midnight, he proposed to her in front of a 40-foot-tall Christmas tree in Center City Park. The same spot where they took their first Christmas photo together 6 years before!
Their fall wedding was full of DIY moments and personalized touches. Shanae shares, “Our style was timeless, rustic, and elegant. We chose dusty rose, ivory, black, gold, and natural greenery for our color palette.” They wanted the vibe to be casual but elegant, so guests enjoyed a pizza food truck and ice cream bar for dinner. There are so many Pinterest worthy moments in this charming firehouse wedding, and luckily, Shanae shares all of her unique wedding details below.
Enjoy!
- Couple: Shanae & Daviyon
- Wedding Date: Oct 26, 2019
- Wedding Location: Goldsboro, NC
How They Met
Shanae and Daviyon met on October 31, 2010 in Greenville, NC through mutual friends. A few months later Daviyon found and messaged Shanae on Facebook and that is where it all really began! In September of 2011, Daviyon lived in Goldsboro, and Shanae lived in Greensboro attending UNCG; they began a long-distance relationship. Shortly after, Daviyon moved to Greensboro to be with Shanae.
Fast forward almost one year later, Daviyon joined the Navy and the couple would become long-distance lovers once again. Together they have been through: years living separately in different states (at the time Shanae was living in North Carolina and Daviyon living in California where he was stationed for his job in the US Navy), two deployments, and missing many holidays together, but they have grown stronger and closer together through these challenges.
The Proposal
Daviyon’s favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and Shanae’s is Christmas. Last year the couple got to spend Christmas together and experience one of their favorite traditions of driving through Sunset Hills in Greensboro to admire all the Christmas light displays throughout the neighborhood. After driving through Sunset Hills, Daviyon took Shanae to downtown Greensboro and as the clock struck midnight got down on one knee and proposed to her in front of the 40-foot-tall Christmas tree in Center City Park where they took their first Christmas photo together 6 years before! #bestchristmasgiftever
Wedding Inspiration
My wedding was perfect! Everything came together better then I could have imagined. I am a very visual person so during the planning process it was hard for me to visualize how all of my ideas would actually look together. I was very nervous but at the same time a bit surrendered to it . The only thing I cared about was marrying my now husband.
The inspiration behind our day was to have a casual but elegant environment where our friends and family could party the night away with us to celebrate our union. We both just wanted to have a good time. You could see that by the casual dinner style (pizza truck, ice cream bar) we chose but with elegance in the decor.
It “Was Always You” was our theme. It wasn’t an overwhelmingly obvious theme, but I had some personalized touches of that sprinkled throughout. For example, our head table had a beautiful gold banner with the saying, and we did a pizza truck for dinner and I had an engraved pizza cutter made with the saying as well. Our style was timeless, rustic, and elegant. We chose dusty rose, ivory, black, gold, and natural greenery for our color palette. During the ceremony, we did the lighting of the unity candle to incorporate our religious traditions/beliefs.
How did you personalize your wedding?
Yes I LOVE anything monogrammed or personalized so of course I had to incorporate that in my wedding also. I have listed them below.
- Food truck
- Bride and Groom custom painted denim jackets for sparkler exit
- Pizza cutter-Ice cream bar with toppings
- Shotski (Bride and groom took a celebratory shot together on a small wooden board shaped like a ski. The board was engraved on the bottom with our wedding hashtag, date, and last name)
- “It was always you” cake topper and head table banner
- Guests flip flops and glow sticks/necklaces
- We put various songs on the tables and when the DJ played the song that is how the table knew they were dismissed to go down to the pizza truck to get their food. The guests had to dance on their way.
- Photobooth with props (the guests got to put a copy in our guest book and keep or email a copy for themselves)
- Guests filled out advice cards
- Guests highlighted favorite bible verses
- Groom gift (boudoir photobook, bottle of Hennessy and orange juice, glass that said groom, Mr. luggage tag, favorite candy, handwritten card)
- Bridesmaids’ gift (cozy pjs, wine glass, flip flops, jewelry)
Wedding Decor
Our wedding venue had so much character on its own like exposed white brick, beautiful sting lights, beams, just to name a few. I really wanted that to speak for itself. I believe less is more. I didn’t want to look back on my photos and question why I chose certain things. I wanted my decor to be simple, elegant, and timeless. We did greenery and candles down the aisle, on the ceremony arch, welcome sign, and on the tables. The signs, table songs and numbers, and guest flip flops (in case their feet hurt) were all DIY decor.
Wedding Florals
My flowers were STUNNING!!! I really no nothing about flowers and I am not a flower person so they were the least important part of my overall wedding style. I didn’t want to spend a lot of my wedding budget on things that die or would be thrown away at the end of the night. I gave my florist little to no input on the types of flowers I wanted. I told them my wedding colors and budget I had set aside for florals that was it! We used flowers for the bridal bouquets and greenery as centerpieces, ceremony backdrop, and other various places to enhance such as our welcome sign, cake table, etc.
Wedding Style
Lol, I feel like my wedding looks chose me! What I wanted was…..a white mermaid style dress with sleeves. I was fine with bling, or lace, or a combination of both, I didn’t have a preference either way. I wanted drama with low back and plunging neckline. I also originally thought I wanted a veil that covered my face, but after things started coming together, I opted for a cathedral length veil just in the back. I say all of that to say that everything I thought I wanted wasn’t actually what I picked (or what picked me). Some elements of my ceremony dress was what I had envisioned myself wearing like the low back, beautiful chantilly lace, and mermaid fit. Other then that it wasn’t what I had pictured myself in at all but it was PERFECT!
MY dress was sophisticated and timeless. I had a cathedral length veil with a lace trim that matched my dress perfectly. It had an illusion top/straps with a sweetheart laced neckline, and buttons that went all the way down the back and flared at the bottom and had a train. My hair was pulled up in a loose bun and I wore a pearl bracelet and pearl earrings that dangled. My shoes were an ivory slingback heel that tied up my leg.
My reception dress was my sexy dress (that was the compromise with my husband lol). It was white with a low back and the sides were sheer. The straps and bodice were beaded and blinged out with mixtures of silver, gold, ivory. It also had buttons all the way down the back and the sweetest part was every other button was made with the same bead/bling as the other parts of the dress. It also had a train that I had bustled so it wouldn’t get in the way. After all, this was my party dress and I LOVE to dance! I let me hair down for this look literally and paid it with a hair comb that held one side of my hair back. The hair comb also matched the beading on the dress. I paired this dress with beaded/bling sandals.
Most Memorable Moment
The most anticipated moment was seeing my groom at the altar. I love his style and swag on a normal day, but I have never seen him dress in a suit or tux before, so I could not wait to see him all dressed up! My bridesmaids saw him walk across the street when he was coming to the venue, and they were all screaming about how handsome he looked. They asked me if I wanted to look and I said no!!! It killed me, but I wanted the authenticity of seeing him for the “first time” as he stood at the altar and I came down the aisle! He did not disappoint!! Mmmm :) It is so hard to choose one favorite part of the wedding but I think it would have to be walking down the aisle to my now husband (we both cried the entire time) and exchanging our vows (they were so similar and we didn’t even see each other’s beforehand).
Wedding Advice
Yes! Sit down with your fiancé and determine what are the most important things to each of you and what areas you want to spare no expense (within your means) before you actually start planning. Most vendors in my experience are willing to work with you on budget and payment plans.
For my military couples don’t be afraid to ask for military discounts. Every little bit helps! Think about where you can cut costs so you have more to spend on your must-haves. For us it was our paper goods like invitations. I could not stomach hundreds or even thousands of dollars on something people would just throw in the trash later. We ordered our invitations from Shutterfly and had guest RSVP on our wedding website which also helped keep the cost down.
The wedding just like the proposal is a whirlwind. I don’t remember all the small little details so don’t get caught up on them. You spend so much money on this day and you don’t even get to enjoy much of it because you are taking photos or greeting guests. Keep it simple (but if that isn’t your thing that is fine too) and remember saying “I do” is the ultimate goal!!! Be thoughtful and take care of each other always!
Vendors
- Photographer: Kaitlyn Blake Photography
- Second Shooter: Tamsyn Jade Photography
- Venue: Firehouse Co.
- Bridal Dress Salon: Kleinfeld
- Floral Designer: BearFox Studios
Beautiful!!!