The Smith Wedding: A Romantic, Garden-Inspired Wedding at the Columbus Museum of Art

Some weddings are all about the guest list, and some are all about the design, and Linda and Garrett’s wedding at the Columbus Museum of Art was firmly the latter. Garrett’s sister happens to be a wedding planner, and she was given full creative freedom to design the entire day from the ground up. What she created was modern, romantic, and garden-inspired down to the smallest detail. Somehow, she pulled it all together in just thirty days.

Their early April wedding day landed on one of those crisp, beautiful days where the trees and flowers were just starting to bud, which turned out to be the perfect backdrop for a day built entirely around design.

Every great design starts somewhere, and for this wedding, it started with the stationery. The velvet green and deep purple from their invitation suite set the tone for everything that followed. That same floral pattern was imprinted onto their custom dance floor and echoed again on the sweeping half-circle bar at their reception. It’s the kind of full-circle design detail that ties a wedding together: start with what you love on paper, and let it grow into everything else.

They chose the Columbus Museum of Art specifically because it gave them a blank canvas: a modern, expansive interior they could completely transform for the reception, paired with a courtyard just outside for the ceremony. It’s not your typical wedding venue, and that was exactly the point.

Amid all the design details, there were still a few unmistakably personal moments. Garrett saw Linda for the first time walking down the aisle on her dad’s arm, and partway through the ceremony, both sets of parents came forward to place a blanket over the couple, a quiet tradition that added so much warmth to an otherwise design-driven day.

Even the attire carried the design theme through. Garrett’s tux had a subtle floral texture throughout, with a bold red rose print lining the back of his vest, a small, unexpected detail that tied straight back to the day’s garden-inspired palette. Linda’s gown, by contrast, was flowy and whimsical, tailored to fit her baby bump, which she wanted featured in her portraits rather than hidden away.

When it came to decor this wedding was a masterpiece. The ceremony featured a platform cross surrounded by lush florals, with in-season blooms like hellebores and tulips leaning into that early-spring feel. Guests spilled outside the museum for cocktail hour, mingling to live music around a completely custom, hand-painted purple bar.

Inside, florals and draping ran from floor to ceiling with touches of velvet woven throughout. Floating floral centerpieces and abundant arrangements covered nearly every table, and even the paper details got the full treatment: guests were handed menu-style booklets for dinner, and the seating chart gave everyone a sneak peek of the reception design before they ever walked through the doors.


Before guests entered the reception, Linda and Garrett did a full room reveal, and getting to capture Linda’s reaction to seeing the finished space for the first time might be one of my favorite images from the entire day. I loved that I got to capture their reaction to seeing their hard work come to life. 

It’s not every day you get to document a wedding this layered, from the paper suite to the dance floor to the literal ceiling. 

PLANNING & DESIGN: MMJ Events
VENUE: Columbus Museum of Art
FLORALS: Prema Designs
MAKEUP: Almaz Faces
HAIR: Avola Lanza Hair Studio
CAKE: Scarlett Kilzer Chocolate
VIDEOGRAPHER: Flower & Oak
CONTENT CREATOR: Wedding Days with Dania
BAND: The Shaw Brothers
DJ: Josh Staley Productions
STATIONERY: Ink and Ivory
LINENS: Stradley Davidson Linen Collective | BBJ
RENTALS & DECOR: Aiden & Grace | PR Rentals
CUSTOM ACRYLIC: Road to Joy Designs
DRAPERY: Serendipity Designs

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Close-ups of your details, sweeping shots of your ceremony against the flower farm, or the magic of your first dance under twinkling lights — all these special moments are beautifully enhanced by the venue’s design. 

If you’re looking for a stunning wedding venue in Ohio that combines modern luxury with the beauty of nature, Magnolia Hill Farm is an unforgettable choice. Of course, you’ll want a wedding photographer at Magnolia Hill Farm you trust to capture these once-in-a-lifetime memories!

Reach out to me today and let’s begin planning your wedding journey at this incredible venue!