The Wedding of Brittanie and Brad Hess: An Indiana Barn Wedding

Brittanie and Brad met way back in high school on a class trip to Chicago. These high school sweethearts began dating not long after that trip and spent the next few years studying together while attending Indiana University. Brittanie says, “Post-college, we moved to Charlotte, North Carolina for work, which is where we are to this day. However, we always knew we would get married back in Bloomington, Indiana. It felt the most like home, and where we had gone through so many life challenges together.”
 

Brad planned out an elaborate proposal for the woman that he had loved since high school. He convinced Brittanie to go to a wine tasting. She says, “Upon our arrival, I saw that Brad had strung photos of us, spanning all 7 years we had been dating, around the shop. It was a literal timeline of our life together. Next thing I knew, he was dropping onto one knee and asked me to be his wife. The owner of the shop photographed/videoed the whole thing and immediately popped champagne for us to celebrate. Next thing I knew, though, all of our family and friends came flooding in from the back alley with huge grins on their faces.”

When it came to planning, Brittanie focused in on who Brad and she were as a couple. She says, “I tried focusing on who we were as a couple and quickly realized the big, traditional, fancy wedding was not US. Rather, a simple yet elegant and natural wedding that had a killer party was more us. So, that began the theme and it somehow all came together.”

Brittainie and Brad went with a barn wedding. They wanted it to be down-to-earth, while staying modern. Brittanie adds, “We chose a barn venue as it felt the most simplistically elegant while also being affordable. I wanted to have a gorgeous wedding, but was not willing to go into debt for it. This venue gave us a romantic feel the day of the wedding, and also had great contingency plans in case Indiana decided to not cooperate and provide less than ideal weather.”
 

Advice from the bride

“My biggest advice is to incorporate at least 20 minutes into the schedule after you say ‘I do’ and before the reception starts to go be alone with your new husband,” says Brittanie. “Chances are that is the only alone time you will get all day. You need that time to process the fact that you just got married and celebrate! Trust me, you will treasure that moment more than you will by getting photos with some distant relative you hardly ever see.”

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