For a couple that spent most of their relationship flying to see each other a travel themed wedding only seemed appropriate. Ashley and Brandyn chose Key West for their destination wedding and it provided the perfect tropical atmosphere for their laid back affair. The bride decorated with vintage airplanes while mini flight cocktail kits were gifted as wedding favors. Rustic White Photography captured every detail of this couples travel themed wedding day to perfection but don’t take it from me, see for yourself below! How did you meet? Though we met many, many years ago, it wasn’t until I moved across the country that we reconnected. I was living in Los Angeles while Brandyn was still in Atlanta, and Brandyn got stuck at LAX one afternoon. A mutual friend suggested that he might call me to grab a beer and pass the time (we now suspect this friend knew what he was doing all along.) We ended up at a good dive bar with a great jukebox and it proved to be the perfect formula for us. Brandyn suggested we might meet up again, and I thought it was a long shot, as we were both busy professionals with very different lives living on different coasts. After many failed attempts at setting a date to get together, he asked what I was doing the following weekend, since his plans had fallen through. I was going to visit my sister in Hawaii, and told him he was welcome to meet us there (trying to call his bluff.) He proved me wrong when he slid into the seat next to me on the flight from LAX – HNL!What is your proposal story? My father, who passed 10 years ago, was a pilot. His first job was here in Atlanta flying out of the Peachtree-Dekalb airport. Brandyn arranged to take an open-air sunset bi-plane out of the same airport, and we sat side by side (with pilot Odie behind us) on a beautiful evening. Through the old, temperamental headset, he popped the question. I had to ask him to repeat it a few times before he finally got out the ring and pointed and said “this!” Odie then decided it was time for some acrobatics. I get insane motion sickness, so that was not my favorite part of the outing, but smiled all the way back to the airport nonetheless.Tell us a little a bit about your wedding: We had been to Key West on a trip very early on in our relationship, and it was there Brandyn told me that he was going to marry me one day. I told him he was crazy. But he proceeded to point out all the places we could host wedding events, and swore we would get the same band we saw one night at the Green Parrot. The morning after the engagement, he asked if we could nail down a date and a venue (he is a PLANNER.) Through a champagne headache, I offered that he had already planned the whole thing, so why re-invent the wheel? Key West it was. Summer was too hot, fall is for football, and winter for holidays, so we picked April 21. As a designer/art director who worked in events for many years, I knew there was A LOT I could overthink, so I decided to go the complete opposite direction and aim for simple instead of perfect. I have designed about a hundred wedding invitations, but didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on myself, so I didn’t even design my own. We wanted the wedding to be as laid-back as possible, and the Audubon House was so beautiful it needed no decor, while Grunts had the perfect dive-bar feel that we are most comfortable in. We ended up booking the band we saw on our trip, convincing the food truck behind the bar (Garbo’s Grill) to stay open for the reception, and everything was perfect.Did you have any DIY, handmade, or personal details: As mentioned, my father was a pilot (along with both of my grandfathers as well as Brandyn’s grandfather), so I collected all the models of the planes they flew to use as centerpieces for the tables at the ceremony & cocktail hour. My friends and I sprayed the planes all a brass color because it was difficult to find them all with the correct paint jobs. Instead of a guest book, we had everyone take a photo of themselves with an Instax camera, then hang them from a handmade wood and marble stand my good friend Leslie made. They are pretty enough to put on the shelf at home, which was the whole idea. We also got a bunch of percussion instruments for everyone to carry along for the parade, second-line style. It was hard to find these in bulk without being all sorts of wacky colors, so they also got a coat of the brass paint. I designed and printed the programs myself, and made the little baskets they were carried in.

Photography: Rustic White Photography | Ceremony Venue: Audubon House and Tropical Gardens | Reception Venue: Grunts Bar | Event Planning: Just Save The Date | Floral: Milan Event | Stationery: Minted | Hair: Studio Marie Pierre | Catering: Great Events Catering | Band: Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band | Linens: Milan Event | Catering: Garbos Grill | Makeup: Studio Marie Pierre | Ceremony Musicians: The Naturals | Accommodations: Sunset Key | Rehearsal Venue: Schooner Wharf | Groom’s Attire: Ralph Lauren | Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Groom’s Shoes: Gucci | Groom’s Bow Tie: Brackish Bow Ties | Wedding Ring: Na Hoku | Submitted via: Matchology *This post includes affiliate links.