Elegant New Orleans Wedding rooted in tradition

Cali & Andy’s New Orleans soiree is the ultimate inspiration for a timeless French Quarter celebration that will have you pinning until your heart’s content. Cali’s TARA KEELY wedding gown is swoon-worthy in and of itself but pair it with a loving groom in a timeless tuxedo and we are completely smitten! Planned and styled by BROOKE CASEY WEDDINGS, these images by MARISSA LAMBERT capture the day beautifully!

Gorgeous bride Cali tells us, ‘Both my husband and I love all things rooted in tradition, and with New Orleans as the backdrop of our celebration, it wasn’t hard to dream up a classic, traditional, and elegant wedding in the Crescent City-the city where we met and fell in love. We let the city be our guide and inspiration with our ceremony in the chapel of Sacred Heart (one of the most historic Catholic schools on beautiful St. Charles Avenue), followed by a streetcar ride and Second Line (a parade through the streets led by a brass band) leading to our ceremony in one of New Orleans’ timeless courtyard restaurants: Broussard’s. It was the perfect celebration of love in the city we love AND fell in love in!”

HOW DID YOU MEET? Andy and I met in our Masters Program at Tulane University in New Orleans before we both started medical school. I remember meeting him at orientation and thinking, “I really like this guy”! We actually became great friends and study buddies before we started dating. Our Masters degrees are in Cell and Molecular Biology, but I think Chemistry is what we honoured in that year.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROPOSAL: Andy and I were both 4th year medical students and had already matched into our residency programs in Birmingham, AL (he in radiology; me in pediatrics). Although we were both so excited about matching at our first choice residency programs, it was definitely sad moving away from New Orleans. It was our very last day in the city before moving, and knowing how bummed I was to be leaving, I was thinking Andy was just being extra sweet by setting up an adorable brunch in his downtown apartment.

With classic jazz music playing in the background, we had Cafe du Monde beignets and mimosas while overlooking the city. It was perfection, but I was totally clueless about what he had in store! Towards the end of our meal, he told me he had one more thing for me in the fridge. Being the foodie that I am, I thought for SURE it was going to be a Debbie’s Does Doberge cake waiting for me in the fridge – one of my favourite NOLA things that I was going to seriously miss once we moved (seriously y’all– try the salted caramel one: you won’t regret it!). I turned around to look for my cake in the fridge, and when I turned back around to ask Andy, “What the heck, where’s my cake?!”, he was down on one knee.

I cried (think Kristen-Bell-sloth-meltdown-cry!), said “YES!”, and after calling our closest friends and family to announce the exciting news, we lunched at Cafe’ Amelie (where we had Debbie Does Doberge for dessert, of course!). Cue Hoku “Perfect Day” (Legally Blonde fans, you know) – and picture a montage of us frolicking around the French Quarter then meeting up with my parents that evening at The Carousel Bar for celebratory Pimm’s Cups. It was truly the perfect day.”

TELL US ABOUT FINDING YOUR WEDDING DRESS: For me, wedding dress shopping was simultaneously the most exciting and most dreaded part of wedding planning. My mom passed away from breast cancer when I was young, and while I was SO looking forward to trying on all of the beautiful gowns, it was hard not having my mom by my side for the experience. I also wasn’t able to shop with my friends and family all in the same outing due to living out of state, so I ended up going to different boutiques with different groups (one with my girl friends, one with my family, and one with my mother-in-law). I had already tried on numerous dresses and narrowed down what I was looking for before happening upon THE one. My sweet mother-in-law actually came in town (all the way from Massachusetts!) to help me get settled in our new home in Birmingham, Alabama, and we went to the most precious shop in Mountain Brook Village: The White Room. The ladies were so kind, helpful, and accommodating, and as soon as I tried on the Tara Keely ball gown with Jim Hjelm lace overlay, we knew it was THE ONE. It was the special mother-daughter moment I had dreamed of having, and sharing this moment with my soon-to-be mother-in-law is one of my most cherished memories of the planning experience. She and the women at the White Room made what could have been a really tough experience a wonderful one. They are THE best!

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE OUT TO A COUPLE PLANNING THEIR WEDDING? The best advice I can give to a couple planning their wedding is to do your best to enjoy it! All of the decisions to make, timelines to meet, and money to spend can be stressful, but at the end of the day, what this is all about is celebrating you and your love together: the rest is just details! Keeping that in mind (and having an amazing wedding planner to handle most of the logistics!) kept us sane and enjoying every minute of the special time that is being engaged.

MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT? How could I ever pick just one?! I still cannot get over the whole weekend. Having all of our family and friends together in one place to celebrate was pretty unreal. I’m from Louisiana, Andy is from Massachusetts, and our friends and family are so spread out geographically that having everyone in the same place at the same time was seriously the best wedding gift of all. One moment that stands out is right after making our exit from the reception– As we pulled away from Broussard’s in a horse-drawn carriage and the sounds of everyone cheering for us faded, we finally had this moment to ourselves to reflect on the day… I looked over to Andy, shouted “We’re married!!” and had this whole teary-eyed moment of overwhelming emotion and excitement of starting our lives together.

TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR HONEYMOON: Andy and I honeymooned on St. Barth’s at Cheval Blanc’s Isle de France. We spent 10 days lounging in the sun, dining on incredible cuisine, and enjoying being newlyweds in absolute paradise. The beaches are immaculate, the food was something to write home about (and when home is New Orleans, that is saying something!), and our gorgeous private hilltop bungalow and dipping pool tucked away in the lush gardens of the resort made it nearly impossible to leave.

DESCRIBE YOUR WEDDING FLOWERS: Our wedding flowers were made up of lush greenery with a mix of white and ivory blooms including garden roses, eucalyptus, and lamb’s ear. The arrangements and bouquets were done in a way that felt organic and true to a New Orleans courtyard garden party-simple, fresh, and elegant beauty.

FAVOURITE DETAIL OF THE DAY: With both my husband and myself being physicians and self-proclaimed nerds, we wanted to tie in some of those “nerdy” elements but without overdoing it. Some of our favourite subtle touches were the drink signage, signature cocktail, and the groom’s cake. The drink signage for our signature cocktails read, “Have a Drink: Doctors’ Orders!”; one of signature cocktails was called a Transfusion (vodka and ginger ale with a splash of grape juice and a twist of lime); and the groom’s cake was a tower of Oreo’s (the groom’s favourite snack) topped with a Golden Snitch cake ball (we’re both quite the Harry Potter fans). To make the Golden Snitch cake topper even more special, it was made by one of my dear friends, Candace Greer, of Candace’s Cake Balls.