“I knew that Doug was the one when he got on his knees and prayed for me,” Wanda recalls of their college days when they first fell in love. “At that moment, I was 23 and he was 20. I was amazed that someone so young would volunteer to pray for me. I admired his openness about Christ. That moment stole my heart.”
“When I tried on the Mori Lee gown, I knew it was the one,” says Wanda. “It was beautiful. The details were perfect for any theme.”
Wanda’s bridal shoes took our breath away from the moment we saw them. Aren’t they divine?
“My hair was done by one of my best friends who is my stylist,” says Wanda. “I would have not trusted anyone but her to bring my 1920s pin-curls to life. She has been styling my hair for 10 years, and she knows me well.”
Not to be outdone, the groom brought his fashion A-game to the couple’s wedding day too.
“My makeup was done very impromptu by a Clinique representative,” says Wanda. “The person who agreed to do my make up was not going to make it in time so we went to the mall instead and took a chance. The makeup artist was great. She did a great job making sure I looked natural. I did not want to look fake. I wanted to look like myself because I do not wear makeup daily.”
Precious moments like this one belong on film. Absolutely beautiful.
“My bouquet was made out of roses, hydrangeas and feathers,” Wanda shares. And, what a lovely bouquet it was. Retro and romantic, for sure!
“I love his love for Christ,” says Wanda. “I feel confident to know that he is the head of our family. I know that we have great future ahead of us because of his beliefs.”
Wanda’s classy, vintage-inspired birdcage veil was the perfect accent to her retro-inspired gown. And, she wore it well!
“We went with the very simple and sleek 1920s look for the groomsman,” says Wanda. “Everything was selected by the groom himself.”
“As I began to spend more time with Wanda and got to know her better, I began to really admire the relationship she had with God,” Doug says of his wife Wanda. “Plus, her cooking put the stamp on everything. I felt like I could take her home to my family and she would fit right in, and she did just that.”
With every step she took on her wedding day, Wanda was surrounded by love. This photograph really captured the love shared between Wanda and her girls.
“It felt great to be a bride,” says Wanda. “I felt like the most beautiful woman on earth.”
Wanda’s bridesmaids looked absolutely lovely on the couple’s wedding day. We love those champagne gowns!
Say hello to Wanda’s gorgeous princess cut engagement ring. It’s a beauty!
We just can’t get enough of Wanda’s pre-wedding bridal portraits. Can you?
The bridesmaids’ dresses were selections from Alfred Angelo. “I wanted something elegant,” says the bride. “I did not want to do flapper dresses for them because I wanted their shapes to show.”
The groom and his groomsman looked mighty fine on the wedding morning. Custom suits work every time. Hey guys!
“Honestly, I was a ladies’ man,” the groom admits. “True love never crossed my mind, but once I met Wanda I knew it was possible.”
Regal invites welcomed guests to Wanda and Douglas’ wedding day.
“I love the way she loves me,” says Doug. “I also love the way she praises God. It always touches me to see her do so. It’s an unbelievable feeling!”
“To be honest, love was something that before Doug I never put too much thought into,” says Wanda. “I dated and I was okay with just that. He introduced me to the possibility of having a husband.”
“My dad walked my down the aisle,” Wanda shares. “It was his responsibility to show that he was passing his duties over to my husband.”
Wanda walked down the aisle to Robin Thicke’s sweet song “Angel,” and she tells us that Doug definitely shed a few tears of joy walking her march toward him.
“Our officiate was our pastor,” says the bride. “We selected him because he is the pastor we shared during our courtship.”
Wanda was absolutely glowing at the altar. “I felt ecstatic,” says Wanda. “It was finally here.”
“At the altar, I felt happy and my usual goofy self,” says Wanda. “We smiled at each other as we stood at the altar.”
The newlyweds made their union official with a romantic kiss and lots of cheers from their loved ones in the audience.
The new Mr. and Mrs. Hudson were all smiles on their way back down the aisle. We love matching “we just got married” grins. Don’t you?
“We originally wanted to have a summer Florida beach wedding,” says Wanda. “Before the engagement we had it all planned out. We would get married in Destin and only our closest friends and family would be invited. However, when we started planning, the popular beach locations were over our budget. So we made the decision to have it in Mississippi.”
“During our big entrance into the reception I felt like we were the most important people in the world at that moment,” says the bride. You were!
Wanda and Doug chose Tamia’s “Spend My Life With You” for their first dance song.
Guests traveled back in time to the 20s with the bride and groom for an elegant evening of romance.
The couple were fully committed to their Great Gatsby theme, complete with flapper dancers and retro grooves.
Wanda created centerpieces based on a photo she found online. The DIY bride skipped hiring a florist and created these beauties herself using flowers purchased on Amazon.com.
The misses had the honor of feeding her hubby his first piece of wedding cake.
“I never really dreamed about weddings,” says Doug. “However, it felt great to be a groom.”
The evening would not have been complete without a fun, vintage-inspired photo booth for guests to play in.
“We had a deejay, DJ Reginald Byrd,” says the bride. “He was great. He also provided some of our up lighting too.”
Of course the sweet couple had an even sweeter candy station too. We absolutely adore this reception!
“I wore the pearl bracelet Daisy wore in The Great Gatsby movie and my reception dress was inspired by her gold dress too,” says Wanda. “Our theme was very fun and playful!”
Did you enjoy Wanda and Doug’s wedding day as much as we did? Leave the happy couple a little comment love below! Want to see your wedding featured in Bridal Bliss? Email us now!