Trolley Barn Wedding | Mishaun Arrington Photography

I am so excited to share Karen and AJ’s gorgeous wedding! Karen and AJ were married at the Trolley Barn in Inman Park.

I always love hearing about my couple’s proposal stories, here is what Karen had to say about their proposal: “In December 2017/January 2018, we traveled to Connecticut to visit Karen’s parents for Christmas, and then to India to spend a few weeks with AJ’s family in Bangalore and Kerala. When we returned to an uncharacteristically freezing Atlanta on Saturday, January 13th, we discovered that the heating system in our loft had gone kaput. We called an HVAC repairman but they wouldn’t be able to come by until Monday, and so we spent the next couple of days huddling together under piles of quilts and drinking cups of hot chai. By the evening of the 14th, we were tired and cold and fell asleep at 6 pm. When I woke up, it was midnight on the 15th (my birthday), and I awoke to AJ holding a candlelit birthday cake and saying “Happy birthday!” Still under the covers, I blew out the candles and opened the birthday gift he handed me (new tennis sneakers). AJ then said “There’s one more thing” – and got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. Of course, I said yes!”

I had so much fun with Karen and AJ at their engagement session earlier this year and I was so excited to see them again on their wedding day!

My favorite part of Karen and AJ’s wedding day was their first look. They are so sweet together and I loved watching AJ’s face light up when he saw Karen for the first time. For their first look, Karen chose this cute little park that is right down the street from the Trolley Barn. When she first moved to Atlanta her apartment was close to the park and she passed it all the time. I loved that it had a little extra meaning to her.

I asked Karen if they were happy they did a first look and she said; “It was one of the best decisions we made – we were both a little nervous and stressed by that time of the day (edit: AJ says “I wasn’t nervous!”), so having that alone time in a quiet park away from all the action was super calming and really helped us to get in the right frame of mind.”

The ceremony was so beautiful. Karen said that she was a little nervous about tripping over her dress walking down the aisle, but she walked down flawlessly!

Karen and AJ’s reception was so much fun. From the speeches to the nonstop dancing, you could tell they were really loving every minute of their day surrounded by friends and family who love them!

When I asked Karen what her favorite part of the wedding was, she said: “There were many, but both of us really loved having so many of our closest family and friends – as well as some family and friends who we hadn’t seen in a long time – there to celebrate with us. It felt like a big family and friend reunion!”

I asked Karen if she had any advice for couples planning their wedding and I love what she said: “Make sure that your wedding ends up as a reflection of who you are individually as well as a couple. There are so many different wedding ideas out there, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and swayed in different directions. Stay true to your style! Try to keep things in perspective and remember the most important thing – you are getting married!”

I wish Karen and AJ many more years of love and happiness!!