1. Real Weddings

Melanie & Shawn: A Traditional Wedding in Jekyll Island, GA

Though their relationship first took flight in 2000, Melanie and Shawn were literally flying high a few years later. They met when Melanie was a medic

Though their relationship first took flight in 2000, Melanie and Shawn were literally flying high a few years later. They met when Melanie was a medical student and Shawn was chief resident of neurosurgery at a New Orleans hospital. The Bride Melanie Hodge, 32, radiologist The Groom Shawn Clark, 42, neurosurgeon The Date September 13 Their friendship turned into more, later that year. In 2001, Shawn opened a practice in Virginia, and an interest in radiology brought Melanie to a program in Pittsburgh after that. To make visiting each other easier, Shawn got a pilot's license and bought a single-engine plane. Eight years after they began dating, while on one of his trips to see Melanie in Pittsburgh, Shawn proposed on the wing of his plane at the airport.

Melanie and Shawn exchanged personalized vows and read two poems: No, I'll Not Take The Half, by Yevgeny Yevtushenko and I Carry Your Heart With Me, by e.e. cummings.
Instead of a guest book, guests wrote wishes on a propeller.
Bejeweled, green shoes added a pop of color to Melanie's look. The kitten heels gave Melanie a little extra height without sacrificing comfort.
Originally, Melanie wanted to let her hair down for the reception, but it was so hot on the wedding day, she kept it up all night. A fragrant gardenia highlighted the classic chignon.
A black scrollwork pattern and the couple's monogram dressed up the classic white programs.
Echoing the bloom in her hair, Melanie's bouquet contained gardenias. Lush hydrangeas and a collar of leaves filled out the arrangement.
A white scrollwork pattern and a custom monogram decorated the three-tiered cake.
The couple shared a spin to Frank Sinatra's Come Fly With Me, performed by the reception band, Equinox.
A black-and-white checkered board housed the white fleur-de-lis printed cards (a shout out to the couple's time in New Orleans where Melanie attended undergrad and medical school, and Shawn did an eight-year residency).
Green mums gave a burst of color to the black napkins, toile runners and white linens.
The Favors
Melanie and Shawn left their reception surrounded by their guests holding glittering sparklers.