Yellow and Gray Wedding in Atlanta by Sophia Barrett Studios: Kimberley and Omar

Kimberley and Omar met in their high school Spanish class, and they have been together ever since. After dating for 8 1/2 years, Omar proposed to her while they were attending a wedding in Jamaica. Soon after, Kimberley excitedly jumped into wedding planning, and the couple boldly decided that they would plan their entire wedding! How did they do it? They found their dream vendors on Google, shopped at Ikea, ordered table numbers from etsy.com and got their billy button reception flowers online as well. They bought fresh lemons from the farmer’s market to compliment their modern gray and yellow color scheme. Be sure to read the bride’s description of how she pulled off a glamorous wedding on a budget. You will truly be inspired by the style and ingenuity this creative couple put into the “do it yourself” aspects of the wedding! Sophia Barrett Studios captured all of the love and beauty of Kim and Omar’s nuptials, including the most heartwarming shots of the cutest ring bearer ever!

• Bride: Kimberley Cooper (Belinfanti)- Registered Nurse
• Groom: Omar Belinfanti- IT Consultant
• Date: 07/12/2012
• Location:  Old Courthouse on the Square Decatur, Georgia

How They Met

We met in our high school Spanish class; I was a junior and he was a senior. We started dating a year later.

The Proposal

We dated for 8 1/2+ years before he proposed to me when we were in Jamaica for his close family friend’s wedding.

We had been dating for so long that I already knew when he bought the ring, and I suspected that he was going to propose in Jamaica. He woke up early the first morning that we were there, and was ironing his clothes while I was still trying to sleep, but I saw him staring at me. So I turned over, and the next time I opened my eyes he was staring at me AGAIN, but was kneeling down beside the bed. I asked him why was he staring at me again, and he replied, “So that we can get engaged.” I noticed him staring at something above my head just as I was asking, “Are you serious?!” I turned to look (while still laying down), and when I did, I literally hit my head on the open box! (This is a typical Kim & Omar moment for anyone that knows us!) After we both laughed for a second, he told me that I was the only person that he wanted in his life forever and that he loves me. Then he asked me to marry him, and I said… Yes!

Description of Event

We planned our wedding ourselves. I did most of the research and when it was time to narrow it down, Omar would help. Most, if not all, of our vendors were found just by doing a Google search. All of our vendors were wonderful and provided advice along the way.

We decided in the beginning that we wanted to pay cash for our wedding, which we did, and we used the budget tool on weddingwire.com to help us. We did good staying within budget, but it was challenging when it was time to decide on the centerpieces for the reception tables. We did not want to spend money on a bunch of flowers that were going to die, although it would have been nice to be able to. So instead, after brainstorming for quite some time, we decided to do them ourselves. We bought the vases and table number holders from Ikea, ordered the preserved billy buttons from afloral.com, bought the lemons from our local farmer’s market, and had the table numbers made by a vendor on etsy.com. In the end, it was nice seeing everything come together and knowing that we planned everything ourselves, and made our own centerpieces!

We did not have a theme, but when we did the tour for the Old Courthouse on the Square, we knew it was the place for us. We loved the architecture of the Courthouse and how the color scheme of the Courthouse went along with the colors we chose for our wedding, which were grey and yellow.

Wedding Style

The first wedding dress I tried on was at a Bridal Event that I went to with Omar and my mom. I did not expect to try on dresses that day, but since we were looking at them, the owner wanted me to try some on. The first dress I tried on I liked and Omar did too, but it was out of budget. Later on Omar told me that he almost had tears in his eyes looking at me in the dress. After that day, I decided that he would not see me in anymore wedding dresses until the day of our wedding.

It did not take me long to find my dress. I already knew what I wanted – something strapless that was form fitting from my bust to my hips and flared at the bottom. I went to one bridal store with my mom and tried on a few dresses, but none of them felt like “the one”. So I made an appointment for David’s Bridal and took my mom and two Matron of Honors with me. We pulled several different types of dresses. The first dress I tried on I decided to humor my mom and one of my friends who wanted me to wear a big Cinderella-looking dress; I hated it! The second dress was a lot better, but still wasn’t quite “the one”. The third dress was the charm and the one I decided to buy. My other friend actually picked it out, and at first I wasn’t going to try it on because it was several sizes too small. I warned the bridal consultant when she came in to help me put the dress on, but she told me that if I really liked it, then we would try to make it work. The dress was everything that I was looking for and then some!

My dress was a Galina Signature design. It was actually a discontinued dress so I had to have it ordered from another David’s Bridal in another state. The good thing about that is that I got a really good deal on the dress. I believe the original price was $1,000+, but I only paid $399 + taxes and the garment bag for it to be shipped in!

At the last minute I decided to find a dress to change into during the reception because after I went to two or three fittings for my wedding dress, I decided that there was no way I was going to be able to wear that dress the whole evening. I bought a one-shoulder mid-thigh length dress from David’s Bridal as well. However, I enjoyed my wedding dress so much and it felt much lighter after I decided to bustle it for pictures, that I did keep it on for most of the evening.

My advice for brides-to-be is to get the dress that you love and are comfortable wearing, and be sure to include money for alterations in your budget. Also, after you buy your dress that you know is “the one” do not continue to look at other wedding dresses!

Culture

We incorporated “Jumping the Broom” into our ceremony. I was never the little girl to dream of how I wanted my dream wedding to be, but I did always know that if I had a wedding ceremony I wanted to jump the broom. Jumping the broom is a symbol of sweeping away the old and welcoming the new, or a symbol of new beginnings. It also stems from a time when slaves’ vows were not legally sanctioned. Therefore, they sought the legitimacy of marriage by jumping over the broom and into the bonds of domesticity. For our ancestors, this small ritual was a legal and bonding act connecting them with the heritage of the homeland and giving legitimacy, dignity and strength to their unions. In their eyes this union was now sanctioned by “the almighty” (source: http://www.african-weddings.com/jumping_the_broom).

We also incorporated the “rock ceremony” into our wedding ceremony. It is not really cultural, but we liked it and included it because we were able to give small stones to each of our guests, including the bridal party, officiant, and ourselves, and we all made a wish and/or blessing for our marriage. We then collected the stones to keep them and display them in our home.

Lastly, Omar is from Jamaica. So our DJ played an excellent mix of reggae that got a lot of his family and our friends on the dance floor. It was a sight to see!

Most Memorable Part of the Day

The most memorable part of our wedding day was the First Look. I had originally discussed it with Omar, but he said he did not want to do it because he felt that it would ruin the moment of seeing me come down the aisle. However, when we met with Sophie to discuss our wedding photography she brought it up. She told of her own experience and just from that alone Omar was sold on the idea.

I enjoyed the First Look because it literally allowed us to be able to see each other before the wedding without having to wait all day until the time of the ceremony. One of my absolute favorite pictures is from the First Look. It also allowed us to be able to take pictures with the bridal party before the ceremony and just joke around and have fun before the ceremony.

For those that are hesitant about a First Look and if it will ruin anything, we personally do not feel so. We both cried doing the First Look, I cried before walking down the aisle, and then I cried doing the ceremony! The First Look only made me us feel better about the evening ahead.

You Make Loving You So Easy

From the Groom…The thing I love most about Kim is her ability to sympathize with people. She is the most caring person I know when it comes to other people.

From the Bride…The thing I love most about Omar is how I can look at him, especially his eyes, and tell how he is feeling regardless of if he is happy, sad, etc.

Vendors

• Photography: Sophia Barrett Studios (www.sophia-barrett.com)
• Venue: Old Courthouse on the Square (www.dekalbhistory.org)
• Caterer: Soiree Catering and Events (www.soireeatlanta.com)
• Cake: Celso’s Cakes
• DJ: One Sound and Entertainment (onesoundandent.com)
• Officiant: Rev Dawn (seventhsenseproductions.com)
• Wedding Dress: David’s Bridal (designer – Galina Signature)
• Bridesmaids’ Dresses: designer – Bari Jay
• Tuxedos: Men’s Warehouse (designer – Calvin Klein)
• Videography: D&R Films (www.dandrfilms.com)
• Florist: Atlanta Wedding Flowers (www.atlantaweddingflowers.com)
• Save the Dates and Wedding Programs: Magnet Street (www.magnetstreet.com)
• Wedding Invitations: Sophia Barrett Studios (www.sophia-barrett.com)
• Jewelry: Solomon Brothers Fine Jewelry (www.solomonbrothers.com)
• Makeup: Rahle Barrett