Lindsay & Steven Barsy
Photos by Emily Arwine Photography
Lindsay and Steven first crossed paths at a bar in 2011 but didn’t think twice about it. Yet fate seemed determined to bring them back together – seven years later, they ran into each other at a hockey game. “After that, he wouldn’t stop bothering me to hang out,” jokes Lindsay. Steven offered to help her move in exchange for a dinner date, and as Lindsay says, “The rest is history.”
The Detroit-based couple knew they wanted a destination wedding with an epic mountain backdrop. “We visited Chattanooga and fell in love with the city. We chose Grandview because it met all our desires. Steven knew it was the right venue when he saw the beautiful stairs I would walk down to marry him and start the rest of our lives together,” shares Lindsay.
Their early September wedding embraced the natural beauty of its outdoor venue and enhanced it with warm, earth-toned décor that Lindsay describes as “Sedona red rocks meets the lush green mountains.” The couple brought in wooden benches to complement the ceremony site’s cobblestone aisle and chose attire and décor with harmonizing shades of green, orange, and tan.
While the rainy weather was an initial disappointment, it graciously paused to allow the couple to enjoy an early evening ceremony and the reception afterward. Looking back, Lindsay adds that it “created a beautiful fog that our guests are still talking about.”
During their custom ceremony, Lindsay walked down the steps that had captivated Steven during their venue search, looking elegant in a crêpe gown with chiffon wings. Steven’s brother officiated, and close friends read the couple’s handwritten vows aloud.
Afterward, guests moved to Grandview’s front drive for cocktail hour and sampled from a massive charcuterie spread. The newlyweds arrived and a champagne tower kicked off the reception, held on the venue’s terrace. Grandview staff provided bar services and catered savory dishes, from red wine braised short ribs to three cheese risotto with a smoked tomato sauce. Later, the venue served Clumpie’s ice cream to refresh guests during the festivities.
Instead of closing the night out with a sendoff, Lindsay and Steven joined guests on a shuttle to downtown Chattanooga, where the party continued at local nightlife joints. “We chose to spend as much time together with our guests as we could, and we do not regret it!”
“Steven proposed to me at my eighth annual Friendsgiving surrounded by my friends.”
