Cary Wedding DJ Photo Booth and Lighting at the Matthews House

Cary Wedding DJ Ceremony, Reception, Photo Booth, Lighting, and more! Cary Wedding DJ Photo Booth & Lighting A Real Cary Wedding – feat. DJ Ceremony, Reception, Photo Booth, and Lighting Adam & Olivia’s Late Winter Wedding at The Matthews House in Cary North Carolina
 
 
Adam & Olivia got married this past weekend – and their wedding was full of magical moments, ecstatic joy, and a few surprises that made guests say this was the best wedding they’ve ever been to.
Our newlyweds met online two years ago and, according to Olivia, it was “Love at first swipe.” Their first date was to a local brewery and the conversation was even headier than the brews. Olivia likes to say that Adam fell in love with her French bulldog, Luna, first, but Adam knew he was going to marry our eponymous bride before the date had reached its second, third, or fourth hour.
He proposed on her birthday, somehow managing to keep it a secret despite having her friends and family involved! She’d thought it might be coming, since all her friends were getting engaged, but he’d kept it secret until she’d convinced herself it wasn’t happening any time soon. “I thought I was going crazy!” she confessed.
Once they got engaged, the hard work of planning a wedding got under way. First steps included finding the perfect venue and securing their date. It wasn’t until after checking out venues across the Triangle that they found and fell in love with Cary wedding venue The Matthews House .
The Matthews house is a local favorite for couples planning events from 15-200. If that seems like a huge discrepancy, it would help to know that couples get access to not just the gorgeous reception hall in the back, but they also get the Victorian glory of the historic home, including its parlors and dining rooms. They also provide most of a couples needs, including tables, chairs, and linens. With Southern Harvest Wedding Catering as the on-site caterer as well – couples get to have a gorgeous event and a gourmet meal.
They put together an all-star team as they built their event, and it was full of amazing surprises and unmitigated joy throughout.
They’d initally reached out to Stylus wedding DJs after meeting us at a bridal show in March of 2021. Back then, the question of whether or not they’d be able to hold their event, even 11 months later, wasn’t clear. It just so happened that their wedding was on the first weekend that local mask mandates were dropped and people were excited and enthusiastic to participate – especially after nearly two years of safety precautions!
They’d chosen Raleigh wedding photographer K. Star’s Photography to document their day – and what a great choice it was for this young couple who loved her bright and romantic style and easy professionalism.
The final piece that set the stage for their surprising and delightful ceremony was Raleigh Interfaith Wedding Officiant Ann McKenzie . This ceremony featured so many surprising elements that allowed the couple, their friends and family (and Ann’s storytelling, and the way she gets to know her couples) to be on full display.
Just wait til you hear about what happened… The Wedding Ceremony – an in-depth review It was an outdoor ceremony in late February so the couple made the choice to provide custom fleece blankets at every other chair, allowing guests to share the blankets if they needed and to take them with them as a great memento of the day’s events.
As guests were seated to a custom playlist of soft acoustic guitar favorites for the prelude, we put a lapel microphone on the groom, Adam, and an over-ear microphone for our officiant Ann Mckenzie. While we didn’t have any readers during the ceremony, we did prepare two additional handheld microphones as a back-up – just in case someone got added last minute or, in case of extreme sunspot activity, as audio reinforcement.
We also had two subwoofers for the ceremony – and you’re about to find out why.
The ceremony began with the Seating of the Parents, for which we played the Vitamin String Orchestra string quartet version of “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” by the Beach Boys. As Grandma Jean, and the honored parents and family members took their seats, we gently faded the music down and left a momentary pause to puncturate what came next…
The moment the first plucked strings of Dr. Dre’s “Still Dre” instrumental stirred, everyone started looking around with wide eyes just to make sure they weren’t the only ones hearing it. Then, the bass hit, and the reason for the subwoofers became as clear as the notes themsevles. The groom and his groomsmen, dressed to the nines, paraded in to the rolling sub-bass and perfectly balanced instrumental. They took their places up front to wide smiles and knowing glances.
Next, it was our bridal party’s turn. The bridesmaids came in to an instrumental of Usher’s “Yeah” and the party vibe for the ceremony was in full swing, even as we had to seamlessly loop the instrumental to make sure the music would cover the whole bridal party, since they were walking in individually and there were so many women who wanted to be part of this special day! Trailing behind the bridesmaids in his most adorable finery was their 3 year-old nephew as the ringbearer who delighted guests with his dapper dance down the aisle.
No one was ready for what happened next. The couple wanted to set the scene so the song they picked for who came down the aisle, Adam’s best man, was perfect. Billy Squier’s “Stroke” began one of the most memorable moments of the reception as the Flower Dude confidently strutted to the back, then threw open his jacket to reveal a fanny pack/belt bag full of flower petals. All credit to his preparation, because he looked liked like a brawny construction worker ice dancer as he gracefully peppered petals from his outstretched hands to delighted guests, then promenaded one row up to drop it down, with surprising skill, almost as though he’d eith taken the care to practice just how to make the most of this raucus and hilarious entry, or he was just naturally that flexible, athletic, and – dare we say – sassy. Grandma Jean wasn’t even trying to hide her laughter as she clapped and cheered with the rest of the guests as our Flower Dude made the most of his time on the runway.
Once he took his place up front – Ann Mckenzie asked the guests to stand as the instrumental for One Direction’s ‘Olivia’ set the stage for our beautiful bride’s entrance from the front of the Victorian glory and Southern finishes of the Matthews House, escorted by her dignified father performing a duty that was very clearly one of deep pride and profound joy. Her wedding dress was expertly chosen to reveal both her fun loving character and her unique personal style – all emphasizing the distinguished beauty a wedding dress can capture. With all of that said – the most radiant part of the entire procession was her smile, and the look on Adam’s face as he watched her approach.
Once they’d reached the front, Ann Mckenzie regaled guests with the love story of our newlyweds and her storytelling was on full display. It was clear that she’d taken the time to identify what they loved about each other – and it helped make their ‘I do’ moments even more poignant.
During the ceremony, they decided to include a wedding tree planting. An opportunity to grow more than a marriage, it’s a unique way to include a great Unity Ceremony (Click HERE for more unity ceremony ideas). Since the TV show Jeopardy is a big part of what they enjoy together (ask anyone who knows them – they’re really passionate about it)- they decided to include the Jeopardy “Think Music’ theme as they made their way over before Ann McKenzie started explaining the meaning behind it.
Once they’d made their way back, they said their vows, and as they were pronounced husband and wife and introduced as the newly-minted Mr. & Mrs, they kicked off the celebration with Lil Nas X’s “That’s What I Want” (the edited version). As our newlyweds headed off for photos with K. Star’s Photography, the guests headed over for cocktails and socializing under the portico and in the courtyard which The Matthews House had decorated and added lawn games for guests to enjoy.
The reception followed, and Stylus has prepared a number of elements to make sure everyone had a great time, including elegant uplighting, a custom GOBO (monogram in light), a gorgeous all-white DJ set-up, and a Rustic Wedding Photo Booth –  you can view the review video to see how it went 🙂