Marissa and Will's Family Farm Wedding

Horse Farm Kentucky Wedding

From the Bride: My husband Will and I met one fateful weekend in October in Lexington, Kentucky and we were married in that very place three years later. It didn’t take us long after our engagement to decide that we were going to have a big Kentucky wedding. My inspiration started with our color palette and built from there. Our venue was an easy choice, my husband’s family horse farm in Versailles, Kentucky, which was absolutely perfect for our wedding in every way. Our welcome bags included postcards of horse farms as well as our wedding map which outlined all of the Kentucky-based wedding festivities for the week. We had Kentucky Hot Browns served during the cocktail hour as appetizers, a flaming horse head displayed across the entrance of the tent during the cocktail hour, bourbon flavored cake and desserts with horseshoes drawn on top, the tradition of bourbon buried the week prior for good weather, and the list went on.

The wedding events kicked off the Thursday before the wedding, where our immediate family and wedding party took a trip down the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, making stops at Woodford Reserve and Wild Turkey distilleries. Friday consisted of my bridal brunch in downtown Lexington at Shakespeare & Co, followed by a quick trip to the races at Keeneland. The rehearsal was at our church in downtown Versailles and the rehearsal dinner and welcome party were held at the Mansion at the Marriott Griffin Gate Resort.

Throughout the wedding day I had “snapshots” of favorite moments, the first one being when my Mom gave me my Grandmother’s pearl necklace, and the second was when I walked down the stairs and saw my Dad for the first time; we both cried and it was so special. The next was my first look with Will. We were both flooded with excitement and emotions and we just held each other, smiled, and cried. We had a traditional Christian ceremony where our friend (and Will’s former UK football teammate), Michael Aitcheson married us. It was short and sweet but so beautiful. Walking down the aisle with my Dad to our string quartet (SMT Music) playing Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” was another snapshot of mine that I’ll treasure forever. After the ceremony, Will and I exited the church to all of our friends and family tossing rose petals and cheering as we walked down the steps, another snapshot of mine.

Details of the cocktail hour included a string quarter playing softly in the background, a bourbon barrel bar which served our Signature Cocktails (mine being an Apple Cider Mule served in copper mugs and Will’s being an Old Fashioned), passed hors d'oeuvres inclusive of Kentucky hot browns, caprese skewers, and bacon wrapped dates, string lights hung throughout the trees with lanterns and candles hanging down with flowers flowing out of them. During the cocktail hour, Will and I took advantage of the sunset and got a few extra, but extra special, photos in, where we took a walk around the lake and had the opportunity to take it all in, just the two of us, before the reception, another special snapshot of mine.

Our reception was described as “epic.” The highlights (and snapshots) of the reception included my Dad’s speech, our first dance, my cousin Josh singing “Shout” and Will and I putting on a performance to it, the Kentucky tradition of digging up the bottle of bourbon, dancing and more dancing, late night food of McDonald’s Happy Meals, and Will would say the cigar bar which much to my dismay, my Dad provided. At the end of the night, we had a fun and festive “sparkler exit” into a vintage Rolls Royce where we were whisked away and brought to our wedding night suite. It was a magical evening and weekend and is one we will never forget.

Photography: You Me Picture| Location: Versailles, KY | Venue: Charred Oaks Inn, First Christian Church of Versailles, Fidler Family Farm| Florals: Bel-Air Florist| Wedding Planner: AshBy Wedding & Event Planning|Event Designer: Jeannie Smith, Professional Bridal Consultant Caterer: Bayou Bluegrass Catering | Cake: Sweet Lilu’s | Rentals: Entertaining Elegance, Special Events | Music: Ceremony - SMT Music, Reception - The Company Band | Transportation: Gold Shield | Hair & Makeup: Salon 1013 | Credits: Wedding Map Designer - Stephanie Krout