“Let life unfold.”

The quote above is words we live by. When people begin letting go of what they cannot control and embracing the unknown ahead, beautiful things happen. Memories are made. Real ones. Carelle and Bernie took this same stance for their destination wedding in New Orleans last month, and guys… it was a good one. No wait… let me rephrase it. It was a great one.

We get asked a lot if weddings planned to the minute make us more at ease, and the response we give shocks people. We personally love the wedding days that are loosely structured, the ones that avoid the rigidness we all know weddings can be. Sure, there are elements that should have a timestamp on it like your ceremony time, etc. But it so important for couples to understand that weddings never go completely as planned, and when you’re willing to let go of the elements you can’t wrangle, beautiful things happen. Things you never dreamt would happen to you.

Conversing with Carelle over the last year had been nothing but wonderful, so we had high hopes for her and Bernie’s wedding day at the always gorgeous Race and Religious. We were completely blown away. Carelle greeted us with the warmest and most grateful of hearts. Her kindness and appreciativeness for everything thus far set the tone for the rest of the day. She wore her mother in laws wedding dress for her wedding, and she and Bernie decided to do a first look and snap a few photos around Race and Religious before heading out to St. Louis Cathedral that afternoon. Following the ceremony, a cocktail hour took place in the alley next door where everyone sang songs in both English and Spanish, embracing all cultures present. After spending some time outside getting a few drinks in, we followed a local second line band into the streets and watched as Carelle and Bernie along with their closest friends and family took over the streets of New Orleans. Every second line is loads of fun, and probably a highlight of the wedding day, but I’ve personally not seen a bride have as much fun as these two. Carelle danced and sang so much you could see the occasional tear stroll down her face from the amount of happiness she was experiencing. That is exactly why we do what we do. For people like these two.

After the second line, we filed into the buses nearby and trekked over back to Race and Religious where a beautiful reception set up was awaiting guests. Every detail down to the food, cake, flowers and ambiance was perfect. There was nothing planned for the reception, the couple only wanted everyone to enjoy themselves and have the time of their lives. And that they did. Not long after the sun went down, it began to rain. That did not stop the fun from happening, in fact, I think it only encouraged it. Folks began dancing in the rain, changing back into their normal clothing, and some, including the newlyweds, went upstairs, put on their swimsuits and jumped right into the pool. You can tell from every photo just how much fun every single person there was having, and we will be forever grateful to have captured every moment. What a beautiful day this truly was.

Planning: Brooke Casey Weddings

Cake: Sweet Life Bakery

Band for Second Line: Kinfolk Brass Band

Venue: Race and Religious

Catering: Black Pearl Catering

Florist: Antigua Floral

DJ: DJ RQ Away

Lighting: Firefly Ambiance

Signage: Ebb and Flow Ink

Hair and MUA: Glam Nola

Lounge: Distressed Rentals and Revival