Christie and Rich hosted an elegant black and gold New Year’s Eve wedding celebration surrounded by 340 of their family and friends! Their church ceremony was followed by a fabulous reception that kept people on the dance floor until the clock struck midnight. Ashley Steeby Photography captured every detail and Dairing Events made sure their wedding was perfect!
A New Year’s Eve wedding celebration in Jacksonville, FL
The Proposal
“After dating a little over 3 years I was really starting to get anxious, but I knew Rich would propose sometime soonish because we looked at rings a few months back. It was a Wednesday night and Rich invited me over for dinner. I didn’t really think much of it because it was a Wednesday night and I just came over after the gym. He made an AMAZING dinner and we opened a great bottle of wine. The apartment was very clean and as soon as I got there his twin brother, Brian, left which I thought was kinda weird but was also totally oblivious! We had dinner, drank the bottle of wine then I was tired and fun and decided I was ready for bed! The next day I went to work, he suggested we meet for lunch and I told him I had meetings all day but I would let him know. He said he would pick up Jimmy Johns and we could have a picnic at Treaty Oak. It was St. Patrick’s day and it was a little drizzly, but surprisingly I just went with it. We sat under the tree and ate lunch and all of a sudden he picked up a hat he had sitting next to him and stood in front of me. I could see there was something in the hat so my nosey self grab the hat and said “What’s in your hat!?” That’s when I realized what it was. I started crying and he said “Ok, calm down let me do this!” It was seriously the cutest and so low key and the most perfect, random day ever! He then told me he was going to do it the night before but decided against it once I put on my holey T-shirt and got in bed.”
The Wedding
“I always thought it would be so much fun to have a New Year’s Eve wedding and when Rich proposed in March I knew it was going to work out perfectly! My mom suggested the location and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it at first because no one really used that venue, but once I saw it I knew it would be perfect for our New Year’s Eve black tie wedding! I have been in 14 weddings and planned countless so I knew what I liked and what I didn’t like and to make it even easier I have known Adair for years and she knew my style and vision so that made everything super simple. I hated the idea of wedding colors so we went with black bridesmaids dresses which turned out to be gorgeous and everything else just fell into place after that. I didn’t want anything too themey and with it being on NYE we were able to just make it very classic and elegant. Adair and I decided it was kind of a black tie garden party kind of theme and everything came out to look exactly how I wanted!”
The Attire
“So one thing about it is I pretty much hate all wedding dresses. I knew 100% I didn’t want strapless and I was also pretty set on no lace. The weekend after our engagement Rich was out of town so I called a bunch of bridal boutiques in town to see if they had openings and the only one that did was One Fine Day. I did not think I would find my dress that day, but the first one I tried on was the one!! It was everything I wanted and I felt amazing in it. I didn’t make the decision that day because I thought I needed to look some more but after looking more I knew that dress was it! As for the guys, I knew I wanted a classic black tux and they all looked amazing! Guy’s attire is so dang easy!!”
Favorite Moments & Memories
“Our first look was one of my favorite parts and our last dance! We had THE BEST TIME at our reception. We made sure we danced, drank, and had fun with all of our closest friends and family. Rich and I are pretty goofy and sometimes forget we aren’t the only two people in the room.”
Artists
- Photography: Ashley Steeby Photography
- Event Planning: Dairing Events
- Ceremony Venue: Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
- Reception Venue: Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center
- Floral: Rose of Sharon European Florist
- Wedding Cake: Alleycakes Bakery
- Rentals: Luxe Party Rentals
- Linens: Beachview Event Rentals
- Hair: Blush and Mane
- Makeup: Carrie Wilson
- Wedding Dress: One Fine Day Bridal
- Bride’s Shoes: BHLDN
- Submitted via: Matchology
