Catherine and Conner's Sunny Fall Wedding in the Blue Ridge Mountains

Catherine & Conner’s wedding at Blowing Rock Country Club can be summed up in one word, joy! Every moment from their first look to their color palette to their dance party was filled with joy from start to finish.

We caught up with Catherine and Conner to hear all about their wedding in Blowing Rock, NC. In this post, we share their love story, hear reflections on the wedding planning process, and see stunning photos from their day by Nicole with Boonetown Story. Let’s dive in!

Their Story:

What started out as a connection through mutual friends, led to a love story filled with adventure and joy.

Catherine and Conner met in Denver, CO through mutual friends in June 2020. Catherine had just moved to Denver from Charlotte and her friends had a backyard get together where Catherine met her friend Natalie’s former roommate, Conner.

They bonded over both being from the south (Catherine from Charlotte and Conner from Atlanta) and their love of the outdoors. Soon after they went on their first date in Washington Park. They had snacks and wine and the conversation flowed effortlessly. They went on many adventures that summer from backpacking to mountain biking and hanging out at each other’s houses playing cards with roommates.

Conner asked Catherine to officially be his girlfriend that September. The adventures continued over ski seasons, summers camping under the stars, spending time with each other’s family members, and getting to know each other on a deeper level. The more time they spent together the deeper in love they felt. After almost 2 and a half years of dating, Conner proposed on a hike in November of 2022.

Musings from Catherine & Conner on Wedding Planning:

What was your favorite part of wedding planning?

“My favorite part of wedding planning was working with Meris and her team! Each time we had a call scheduled, that morning I would get nervous that I forgot to do something or I let something slip through the cracks. After an hour on Zoom with Meris I always left the call feeling reassured and EXCITED (not nervous) for our wedding day. Not to mention we laughed a lot on these meetings too, which is one of my favorite things to do.”

What is something you learned throughout the wedding planning process?

“I learned that if you plan your wedding the right way, and with the right team, the day of your wedding (and even the wedding week) will actually be stress-free. I was so thankful I was able to enjoy every second of my wedding week and left the details and day of logistics to Meris and her team.”

What is something (if anything) that didn’t go as you originally planned on the day of your wedding and how did you respond?

“Honestly everything went so smoothly! It actually did end up raining during the dinner portion of our wedding. If you would have told me weeks in advance that this was going to happen I might have been upset. But when it did happen I was happy. I was happy because it did not rain during our ceremony! And everyone was safe inside enjoying dinner. I was also happy because the rain shower made for an amazing sunset and all our guests were outside afterwards taking amazing pictures. Our photographer also got some great sunset photos of Conner and me.”

What is your favorite memory of your wedding celebration?

“My favorite memory was the ceremony. I was shocked to realize I actually was not nervous when it was finally time to walk down the aisle. Walking into the lakehouse and seeing the beautiful flowers, all my friends and family, and Conner standing at the end of the aisle – I truly don’t think I could have been smiling any bigger. I loved saying our vows in front of all our family & friends – making everyone laugh and cry. It was so special and I’m also so glad my friend Mike filmed our ceremony on my phone setup on a tripod because we will have that memory forever.”

What advice would you give to a couple who is currently planning their wedding?

“I would say do not let other people create stress for you. People always talk about how stressful wedding planning is but it does not have to be so stressful if you are organized and do a little bit at a time. Do not wait to write all your thank you notes at once (so overwhelming!) and invite your friends to give speeches during your rehearsal dinner. You will be surprised at how many people want to share a funny or touching story about you and honestly there is no better feeling than that!”

Final question, do you have any vendors you would like to shout out that made your day happen?

“Hannah Hunt with Golden Thistle – my flowers were INSANE, Nicole Roberts with Boonetown Story – we met for the first time on my wedding day and she immediately made Conner and I feel so comfortable, Shear Shakti – Charlotte did my hair and Jess did my makeup and they nailed it, Blowing Rock Country Club – Linda helped us plan and was so delightful and easy to work with, The Whole Shebang – when I was walking out for our reception exit I looked at Meris and was like I am actually sad that the planning process is over because I am not going to get to see you anymore!! Ha”

The feeling is mutual! We are always so sad when the planning process is over for our couples, but we are elated to see their vision come to life and experience the joy on their wedding day. This feeling has been so strong this season, that we started The Whole Shebang Community Newsletter to keep in touch and stay connected with our couples [and others who want to connect]! If you’d like to join click HERE.

We loved every second of the planning process with Catherine and Conner. See the joy and love that was seen in every moment of their day in the gallery pictures below from Nicole with Boonetown Story and check out their rocking vendor team!

Vendor Team: