When Maddie Luscy and Blake Carter thought about kicking off their wedding festivities, they knew just one party wouldn’t do. It’s not the Louisiana way, after all. With the help of wedding planner Taylor Quintini of Weddings Taylor Made, they decided on a two-tiered evening in the heart of the French Quarter, with an intimate rehearsal dinner preceding a welcome cocktail party for all the wedding guests.

“Since it was a destination wedding for many, the couple fell in love with the courtyard at Brennan’s, which is quintessentially New Orleans,” Quintini explains.

But that’s not the only Crescent City-inspired element of this celebration. The seated rehearsal dinner had New Orleans street names in place of table numbers, from Magazine Street to the ever-popular Bourbon Street. And when it was time for the rehearsal to turn into the welcome party, a second line around the block, led by Kinfolk Brass Band, was the ideal element to make the transition seamless.

“The second line was the perfect element to bring unique, live entertainment but also allow the venue to flip the courtyard space from a seated dinner to a welcome reception,” Quintini says, adding that splitting up the two parties allowed the couple to have intimate moments with close family and friends while still greeting all their guests before the following day’s events. “Giving the guests a different experience through the location, menu, atmosphere and entertainment is such a nice touch.”

Resources

Venue: Brennan’s

Planner: Weddings Taylor Made

Florist: Fat Cat Flowers

Hair and makeup: Flawless Bride

Signage: Jolie Rentals

Second line band: Kinfolk Brass Band

Umbrellas: GEM Printing