Duke Mansion Bridal Portrait, Leah

Leah didn’t spend a lot of time obsessing about the details of her hypothetical wedding when she was a little girl, but once she met Danner, she started to imagine how it all might look, the dress in particular.  What Leah saw in her mind’s eye was something lacy, classy, and fairly traditional, and she recruited her mom to give some help in the search.  As it turned out, her mom nailed it.  On their initial trip out to search for dresses—they went to White on Daniel Island in SC—Leah’s mom promptly produced a dress she’d found in her research and…voila.  In this case, the first time was the charm.  Leah tried on a few other dresses, but nothing else compared.  What made the moment all the more special for Leah was that her mom, her sister, and her mother-in-law were all there to share in the find.       

Leah says of the dress, which was by Anne Barge: “It had the lacy, traditional, and classy look I love, but I thought it represented me in that it had a little modern twist and flair to it so it wasn’t totally traditional or anything I had seen before.”  She especially loved the back of the dress, which had a deep V, lacy flowering, and beautiful buttoning.  And once she tried on the veil, she was sold.

Of course, a dress isn’t the only item on a bride’s to-do list.  To highlight the love she and Danner feel for their families, Leah took lace from her mother and mother-in-laws wedding dresses and wrapped it around her bouquet.  That the lace from all three dresses was nearly identical was a pleasant surprise.  On her right hand, she wore a blue ring in memory of her grandfather—her something blue. 

The location for the bridal portrait was The Duke Mansion, which Leah loves because it’s the epitome of Southern, and she knew it would represent her roots so well.  She loves the garden area, and knew the surroundings would look beautiful in photographs.  They did look beautiful, and so did Leah.    

Hair and Make-up: Lindsey Reagan Thorne

Floral Design: Lily Greenthumbs

Dress: Strasbourg by Anne Barge

Location: The Duke Mansion

You can check out images from Leah and Danner’s romantic engagement session HERE.