BRANDON AND CHARLENE STRAYHON
Met in 2009. Our connection, no matter how hard we tried to fight it, lied about it (lol) was unstoppable and unbreakable even by us.
There was nothing traditional or the norm about our union but we stayed the course because we truly love each other.
The most important thing to learn about love is that it is not perfect, it takes hard work.
Here is how our Wedding Journey unfolded.
The theme was The Twilight Zone and our About us page on the wedding website fills in all those gaps, if you are wondering why.
I knew beginning with the Engagement Photos and the engagement rings that the details would be extremely detailed and super important. So I am going to break down the things you did see and the things (that due to a much smaller number of guests than planned for and expected) you did not get to see. I put a lot of effort into each detail and enlisted the help of some awesome custom creators along with myself and my Husband to capture the vision in an elegant and beautiful way.
ENGAGEMENT PHOTOS
We decided to go with one of our favorite Twilight Zone episodes… The Chaser.
It is the story of a man in love with a lady who barely notices him. He goes to a bookstore that also sells spell potions and bewitches her into loving him. It is an episode from Season 1 of the Twilight Zone. We wanted to recreate the feel and look of that and another vintage style Twilight Zone type shoot that we did at a well known cemetery here in Atlanta. My Atlanta BFF took those photos ( Kara Patterson) and she also ended up being our Officiant for our wedding)
I enlisted the assistance of a custom dress maker off Etsy for my white dress for the shoot and then I did the extra work and added the star appliques.
Etsy Store : Fashionlacedesign
We wanted an engagement shoot that was classy and elegant but without paying an arm and a leg for it, ( the rest of the wedding already took our arms and legs lol) So this was the way to go for us. My husband’s engagement shoot fashion was a mixed effort of JcPenney and Amazon.
We booked a local hotel for The Chaser photos and then took it to the Cemetery for the rest.
To keep with the vintage Rod Serling Twilight Zone episodes we edited the images in all black and white.
WEDDING PLANNING (DECOR AND VENUE)
For our Venue, the Groom wanted elegant and upscale with the ability to have a nice package for food, bar and lighting. So we landed on Briza on the Bay. The staff there from Gerry (contracts), Harry (event planner) Nelly (Their in house planner) and the Chef.. it was amazing. My month of and day of planner was Iliany Events out of Miami.
For Decor there were a lot of things you did not get to see and experience due to those who requested invites and those who got invites, not being courteous and not responding. I completely understand and accept those of you who were adult enough to contact me and explain why you could not attend. However, those of you who acted as if you were coming and did not…. that was not okay.
Let’s get back on topic. The details for this wedding were EVERYTHING.
I painstakingly drew sketches, typed up documents for my planner. I planned this wedding for two whole years.
I purchased all of my own decor except the draping and uplighting the venue provided.
So the things you didn’t get to see due to the number of guests being lower than expected:
Hand Blown glass cylinder vases with water floating black and white beads and white candles floating on top.
Gray ostrich feathers, I believe in the end the planners only used the white and black.
Sparklers meant to be photographed when we left the party.
Menus that myself and my Groom designed for our guests to take home along with the favor boxes.
Things you did see although not all of them:
We spent days and several hours on making the menus, and plot cards for each table setting.
There were supposed to be 10 tables and we ended up with five.
It was supposed to showcase all 10 episodes that were most important to us.
I made and designed all the Twilight Zone graphics for the wedding . We really wanted our guests to learn more about The Twilight Zone.
Each table had plates that sat on silver chargers and on those , there was supposed to be ( and some were used) a menu ( we painstakingly glued them after printing them to black cardstock paper, and we did the same with the plot booklets) a plot booklet which showed an image from each episode and the plot for each episode. Forgive us if this is in here twice, but on each table were 8-9 inch tall table name holders that mimicked the Twilight Zone symbol. I have included smaller ones I have here in the gallery so you can see it closer.
We had favor boxes filled with the following , authentic Twilight Zone trading cards, a box hand decorated with a thimble in it from the episode The After Hours, A scroll sealed with Twilight Zone stickers with info on the episode The Chaser and personalized black and white swirl lollipops. All in vintage black and white striped favor boxes.
For the table number holders , each one was an episode name and the tall holders featured a base that mimicked The Twilight Zone symbol.
There were tiny diamond shaped rhinestones and black and white striped table runners on each table with Ostrich feather centerpieces, ( as mentioned above the second centerpieces with the beads and candles did not get presented as we wanted due to lower number of tables)
When you entered the space there was a white sofa area that was the Groom’s lounge. We also had a Twilight Zone sign designed by me, letting everyone know where to sit. We also had an image of us from our engagement shoot also decorated by me.
On my grandmother’s memorial table, I had her bio I wrote, a drawing I did of my childhood home and photos of my Mother Eunice and my Grandfather Robert.
We also had really awesome silver masquerade masks and the favor boxes on that table.
The most important thing on each table were custom glass boxes with frosted custom made The Twilight Zone decals. We filled those with small cool white LED mini balls to create a glow on the table.
The uplighting in the room was a glowing blue.
For the ceremony and reception I had pedestal stands with led faux crystal candles and a custom made backdrop I had made to capture The Twilight Zone symbol.
Our chairs provided by the venue were clear with white cushions to contrast all the black.
To tie it all together we had the episode Time Enough at Last playing on the projectors. It was also supposed to show The After Hours in rotation as well, but for some reason it only showed the Time Enough At Last episode.
We purchased these items from:
Amazon
Oriental Trading
E favormart
Buy Ostrich Feathers
Hobby Hobby
Etsy Sellers:
Twilight zone frost decals : Fireside Gifts
Twilight Zone stickers for scrolls nikitysplickity
Wedding rings : ParieJewelry
Gray Swirl fascinator headpiece : MillinerySupplyShop
Custom Twilight Zone Swirl Backdrop : CraftyFabricCustoms
Hand Blown Glass Vases : VallariDecor
Canvas Print of us : ForeverWeddingCrafts
Twilight Zone Trading cards: JakesComics
Items used to build up my crown : RookieBits , BlissfulSilks ,juliecollings , 32NorthSupplies
Original crown before additions: LuxWeddingTiara
WEDDING STATIONARY AND GRAPHICS
I really wanted to capture The Twilight Zone at every angle of the venue and space.
I made all the graphics and the stationary, with the exception of the invitations which came from Ana’s Bridal invitations.
I printed them all and then myself, the Groom and Kara Patterson cut and glued for weeks. We were still gluing and preparing the morning of the wedding. Below are images of the graphics we used to create the place settings and table settings.
VENDORS AND DESIGNERS
A special thanks to our vendors:
Pristeena Adams and her baking crew from Publix : for the beautiful black and white wedding cake and swirl cupcakes. ( Also a special shout out to her for bringing the party to the party!)
Briza on The Bay : Beautiful venue, phenomenal food and drinks and great execution of what we wanted and needed. The waterfront view and the waterfront cocktail hour was the bomb.
www.brizaonthebay.com
Custom wedding gowns:
Ceremony and Second dress for reception by Erica Angeline, I sketched what I wanted and then she with her expertise made them even better and brought them to reality. She spent 18 mos on the ceremony gown for which the word ROYAL may even be an understatement and 6 mos on the reception dress. Custom couture that was worth every penny.
There was a 3rd custom piece that I could not wear. I trusted it would fit exactly then when time to get dressed it was too big in the bust area so I had to put back on the reception dress. That 3rd piece was custom created by Oyemwen and will be worn, once altered for my 1st anniversary pics and date with my Husband.
My month of and day of planner ( I did most of the planning on my own) Iliany Events. She was amazing and actually allowed me to preship all my items to her home.
THE DJ : Cliff love, who traveled all the way from Salisbury Md.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Maximillian Shoots from Miami
Sprinter Van Limosine :
NRD LIMO LLC |
Dressing Room rental : Double Tree Hilton Biscayne Bay
Venue For Wedding and Reception : Briza On The Bay
THE WEDDING FASHION
I had two Bridesmaids whose lives made them unable to come. Their dresses were beautiful floor length vintage tulle over lace dresses, with keyhole chest opening in pale gray/silver from Cocomelody.
My two daughters of honor: 2 outfits
1st beautiful black sequined evening gowns from Fashion Nova, with Silver and rhinestone wedge heels ( also Fashion Nova)
With black ribboned Rhinestone belts from Amazon.
Custom 3d flowers added on bodice and Hand Sewn by me.
Their second look: Pnina Tornai for Azazie. Black sequined pants jumpsuits.
Grooms’ suits :
Both from The black Tux,
First look : Black satin Lapel formal tux with a black rhinestone tie from Cocomelody ( the tie is from Cocomelody)
Second look : Suit purchased from The Black Tux. Grey suit. He has a second silver sparkle tie from Cocomelody but decided to wear the black with both outfits.
The Groom also wore a pocket watch and cufflinks , a gift from the Bride!
Brides dresses : Custom gowns by Erica Angeline
Brides shoes, Betsy Johnson and Steve Madden
FOR THOSE WONDERING ABOUT THE BLACK DRESSES: I have always been fashion forward. I only wore a white dress the first time to make my family happy. Black was always my preference. Also My Groom’s favorite color is Black so it tied in perfectly with our theme and he loved it.
Brides Dress for Marriage License meeting : White bubble dress with 3d roses by Fashion Nova
THE RINGS
We knew we wanted black. My engagement ring is black gold, art deco filigree with a 2 carat black diamond. His engagement ring in Tungsten with black sapphires.
Our wedding rings are black Tungsten custom made by a jeweler on Etsy with silver meteorite, yes real meteorite in the bands.
Mens Black sapphire engagement ring from Triton Jewelry
PRE WEDDING PHOTO SHOOT
Bride and Daughters and Officiant.
Custom Robe for Bride by Rosie Red Corsetry from the UK.
Bustier from Yandy Lingerie
Black and rhinestone Bridesmaid robes Amazon
HAIR AND MAKEUP
Bride’s hair done by daughter Pajuah.
Lashes on the entire wedding party by Pajuah.
Makeup we each did our own.
Special lipstick in honor of Martie Elzey, her favorite shade. Revlon Cherries in the snow.
GETTING READY FOR THE WEDDING AND OUR UNIQUE WALK DOWN THE AISLE
My Groom and I decided to spend the night together, wake up together and to walk down the aisle holding hands together. It is a strong display of unity and is not traditional. We didn’t want tradition, we wanted uniquely us.
THE OFFICIANT AND THE VOWS
My ATL Bff Kara Patterson officiated and we both wrote our own heartfelt vows to each other. My Groom’s vows absolutely touched my entire soul. It was beautiful and we plan on printing and framing our vows to each other.
THE FOOD AND DRINKS
Everyone has had nothing but rave reviews about the food! The cocktail hour food all the way through dinner service was amazing.
We had a great variety.
Guests enjoyed Cocktail hour outside at the waterfront with a beautiful view of all the yachts and boats on Biscayne Bay and then came back inside for a beautiful dinner.
Briza on the Bay’s Chef even made Vodka pasta, Linguine Pasta and Alfredo pasta from my recipes.
There was also their own Trofi pasta, honey mustard and honey glazed salmon, roasted chicken , peruvian rice, white rice, stir fry and crisp green beans and more. Dinner was delicious! Thanks so much to the Chef at Briza. My Mother in law was very, very impressed with everything and we were so glad that she and the guests loved the food.
For drinks we had an open 5 hour bar.
Myself and the Groom’s table was kept full of champagne and wine.
We also had a Bride’s signature Cocktail and a Groom’s signature cocktail.
Mine was a leches margarita and his was a black margarita. Both were delicious and sweet.
ALTRUISM (DONATION TO CHARITY)
I do not believe in wasting food so due to having so much excess food, I reached out to our host of our Air Bnb and he assured me he would find a good home for all the food we had. So hopefully that went to some homeless shelters and agencies in the Miami area. We just did not want to waste or throw away food. I even cooked the week leading up to the wedding and so we donated that food as well.
THE WEDDING WEBSITE
We knew a site from Zola or something cookie cutter was not us, so we designed our own website since we are web designers.
I did the pre wedding site and my Husband is now updating the site with photos and details from our wedding . We wanted a fully Twilight Zone immersed site and so that is what we did. It is very personal and full of details all about us and our love story.
OUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME
We had an amazing Air Bnb Rental for a week in Miami. It was a lovely two story big home in Little Havana. It featured two kitchens and enough space for ten people. It had a very southern old-fashioned feel to it. It came with an interesting cat and a Rooster and a hen. That rooster woke us every morning. Roosters are symbols of good luck so maybe that was a good thing. I personally am not a morning person, but the rooster did add character. Thanks to our host Julian Irbe for letting us use his home as our home away from home.
MISC INFORMATION:
The Bride and Groom walked in hand in hand as a display of unity to the Cornfield Chase by Hans Zimmer from the movie Interstellar.
Erica Angeline is the same dress designer who made RL ( the lead singer of the group Next) Bride’s wedding dress.
THE EMOTIONAL STUFF
First I want to say I UNDERSTAND AND ACCEPT MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS WHO LET ME KNOW THEY COULD NOT COME AND WHY.
So these following words are not directed at you. My Groom gave me the wedding of my dreams. He didn’t want a big wedding BUT he understood how important my Grandmother’s memory was to me and so he conceded. I understand it was Mother’s Day but it was Martie Elzey’s birthday and I simply was not going to get married on any other day.
Having my childhood friends who knew my Grandmother, whose parents knew my Grandmother was super important to me. Having my grandmother’s family show up was super important to me. She would have shown up and always did anything concerning her family and friends. She had a heart of gold. On my wedding day I was so happy to be getting married that for a bit I forgot that many asked for invites, many said they WOULD come but then just never spoke to me, contacted me after they got their invitations to confirm. It is very rude and inconsiderate to not RSVP. Even if the answer is no , that is better than ignoring someone honoring you by inviting you to their wedding.
My Groom and his family were more insulted and hurt for me than I was. My Groom does not understand how people who are supposed to love me could not be there for me. His mother also wanted to know why I was basically alone except for like 10 people who showed up for me and my Grandmother’s memory. He is not happy with how I was treated and I am not either but my Groom is not an emotional person and he really is disappointed and hurt for me. He knows I will appear strong but he also knows my heart is so big and full of love that I deserved better from those who I thought cared about me. We sent you the opportunity both on paper and virtually to be considerate enough to reply.
I am happy, I am married and I love my husband. I just thought however that it was important to let those of you, who were inconsiderate and said nothing to me know that you should have let me know you were not coming. I didn’t deserve to have no one there in my corner besides 10 people.
I extended olive branches, but I will never do that again. I only try once and when I feel like no one cares… I too stopped caring.
We are thankful so much to those who did come. To those of you who decided to not even show some manners, I wish you well.
I am a happily married woman to the man of my dreams and nothing and no one can take that away.
WITH LOVE,
THE STRAYHONS!!!
