From a Vibrant Color Palette to Late-Night Beignets, This Couple Highlighted the Best of New Orleans at Their Spring Wedding

Abbey Hale and Duncan Lindsay first met at a summer camp dance in North Carolina when they were just kids. “He went to an all-boys camp and I went to an all-girls camp and the two camps got together each summer,” Abbey explains. “We danced for a few summers in a row and then would keep in touch on AIM.” As social media evolved, so did their connection. Abbey notes that they'd find each other on each new platform they adopted, and when they finally became Instagram friends in 2019, something changed. " He slid into my DMs and invited me to a Mets game, and the rest is history!" she says.

A few years later, in December of 2022, Duncan proposed in their first shared apartment together in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. After enjoying a nice dinner out in Manhattan, he led Abbey back home where a ring box had been carefully stashed near top of their Christmas tree. “It was perfect and very low key,” the bride remembers. 

The couple enjoyed being engaged and wedding planning for nearly two years, so when they finally swapped vows in the New Orleans Museum of Art’s Sculpture Garden on April 13, 2024, it all felt like a long-awaited dream come true. The locale was important to the bride: “My grandmother is from New Orleans and met my grandfather there when he was attending Tulane,” Abbey explains. “New Orleans is a city that is very special to my family and has always been a constant in our lives.”

As they started planning, the couple knew they wanted their wedding to showcase the very best of New Orleans and the season in which they were tying the knot, so a vibrant, spring-inspired color palette started to unfurl in their minds. "We wanted the décor to feel bright and full of vibrant spring colors," Abbey says. "New Orleans is such a fun, full of life place that we wanted the look to reflect that while also blending in with the beautiful surroundings of the park."

From a live oak altar framed with wild, locally-sourced flowers at their ceremony to a clear-top tent with hanging greenhouse-style installations at their reception, every detail reflected their vision of a vibrant celebration. Read on to see how the details came together with help from their wedding planner, Michelle Norwood, in the photos by Mo Davis Photography.

Abbey spent the wedding morning getting ready with her bridesmaids. She wore a white robe with lace detailing while her attendants wore matching green and white striped pajama sets. As a thank-you for being part of the celebration, the bride gifted them each important woman a pair of earrings from Gabrielle Jewelry, a brand known for casting lace into metals to make unique accessories. Abbey says, “We were able to cast one of the flowers from the lace on my wedding dress into some really unique earrings."

The bride chose a floral lace wedding dress from Oscar de la Renta, which featured a high neckline. When Abbey initially tried the dress on, it was in a mermaid silhouette, but she worked with designer's team to create an A-line version of the dress. “The fabric and the veil just had a very elegant New Orleans feel to me,” she explains. White Manolo Blahnik flats, dainty pearl and diamond drop earrings borrowed from her mother-in-law, and an Oscar de la Renta veil that matched her dress were her perfect finishing touches.

As for her big-day beauty look, Abbey decided on a half-up, half-down hairstyle and natural makeup prioritizing rosy cheeks. "I am very particular about makeup so just wanted it to be fresh and natural," she says.

Her petite, textural bridal bouquet featured white sweet peas and ranunculus, arranged by the team at Rosegolden Flowers. "I didn’t want anything too big or distracting," Abbey notes.

Abbey assigned each of her bridesmaids a color that fit with the couple's spring-inspired wedding color palette, then asked them to choose their own dresses. Abbey’s sister, Alden, served as her maid of honor and wore a custom Leesa Berry to incorporate the perfect shade of blue into the big day. “Everyone looked so beautiful and colorful at the wedding,” the bride remembers.

Duncan wore a bespoke two-piece tuxedo designed by Craig Robinson. Abbey gave him a pair of Fleur de Lis cufflinks from Mignon Faget to ensure his look had a New Orleans touch. His groomsmen wore tuxes from Suit Supply, and Duncan gifted each of them a pair of DiBianco black velvet loafers to wear on the big day.

Abbey and Duncan shared a first look in the courtyard of the Columns Hotel where they stayed for the weekend. “It was nice because it was all family and friends in the hotel so we didn’t have a lot of people intruding on the moment,” Abbey recalls. “We were just so excited to see each other and I was so excited for Duncan to see my dress!”

They exchanged written vows during the first look, ensuring that their promises were swapped during a private, intimate moment.

The focal point of the couple’s outdoor ceremony was a live oak tree. “We really wanted the florals to feel natural and wild,” Abbey says. The aisle was decorated with arrangements of carnations, yarrow, daffodils, ferns, foxgloves, lilies, tulips, and delphiniums in shades of yellow, peach, and blue. 

The couple set up a table with framed wedding photos of their family members, custom programs, and white parasols, which were offered to give guests relief from the springtime sunshine.

The couple hired a string quartet to perform during the ceremony. Their flower girls, dressed in white silk gowns and flower crowns, scattered petals down the aisle ahead of the bride's entrance. Then, Abbey and her dad walked down the aisle to a string rendition of "The Wind" by Cat Stevens. “Sadly, my dad passed away this fall and our wedding was one of the happiest moments I had with him,” Abbey says. "I’m just so grateful to have those memories with him.”

The couple’s officiant, Reverend Ed Bacon, married Abbey’s parents 33 years earlier, so having him preside over their nuptials felt especially meaningful. Since the pair had already exchanged their own personal vows, they swapped traditional ones before their guests. “I just knew I wouldn’t be able to keep it together if we read them out loud in front of everyone at the ceremony,” Abbey says.

After the ceremony, a traditional Second Line band led the couple and their guests to the steps of the museum for cocktail hour. One of the main reasons the couple opted to have a first look earlier in the day was so they could take part in this special moment.

Cocktail hour was held on the steps of the museum, where wildflower arrangements added vibrant color to the outdoor space and various styles of seating encouraged everyone to mix and mingle. Guests also had a chance to enjoy some of the couple’s favorite foods. “Most of the cheeses were cheeses that we selected and often eat at home,” Abbey says. “We love eating oysters when we can so we had oysters passed in little boxes.”

They also served two signature cocktails: “The Wodey,” which was named after their mini dachshund, and “The Merle," a nod to Abbey’s grandmother from New Orleans. “Her favorite drink is a classic whiskey sour so it was only fitting that it was The Merle cocktail,” Abbey explains. 

The couple’s reception took place underneath another live oak tree, but they covered this area with a clear-top tent, beige carpet, and neutral draping to ensure it felt different from the ceremony. To give the space a greenhouse-like feel, their florist added plenty of texture and greenery, including ferns and forsythia that cascaded down toward the dance floor. “Once the sun went down, the globe chandeliers really lit up the space and the floral installations came to life,” Abbey says. “Everyone kept discovering new details in the florals throughout the night. The result was just magic.”

Every reception table was decorated with unique, colorful floral arrangements, including everything from what the couple and their team called "floating gardens" to mixed centerpieces with blue and yellow blooms. The head table was covered in custom linens from Leontine Linens, while the rest of the tables were topped with either yellow or neutral linens. “The flowers combined with the yellow tones and lighting just made everything feel magical and golden,” the bride notes.

Duncan works in the music industry and plays the guitar, so the weekend's entertainment was a priority for him. “We chose just about every song that everyone heard on the wedding day so that what people were hearing was actually selected by us and is music that we listen to together,” Abbey says. They shared their first dance to Flats Weller’s “Aint Misbehavin.’”

The couple's four-tiered wedding cake was decorated with fresh flowers and a subtle stripe design. “The cake was lemon flavored and it was probably the best cake I’ve ever had!” the bride recalls.

As the dance floor started to fill up, Abbey snuck away to change into a vintage beaded mini dress she found in Los Angeles. “I wanted something that would be fun to shake around in!” she explains.

The couple hired local band Got Groove to keep guests on their feet well into the night, and the groom even joined the band for a few songs. “I’ll never forget Duncan playing on stage with the band,” Abbey says. “Everyone was loving it and it really raised the energy for the remainder of the night.”

The couple also opened up a special martini bar as the evening went on, and guests enjoyed either classic or espresso martinis named after the bride and groom's mothers. “We thought it was a cute way to surprise them on the wedding day!” the bride explains.

Abbey made one more outfit change during the reception: She chose a pink Taller Marmo dress with feather detailing for the last portion of the evening. The couple served some late-night bites, including grilled cheese sandwiches, pizza, mini burgers, and beignets, a New Orleans classic.

At the end of the night, the couple's guests sent them home in a flurry of bubbles.Abbey and Duncan spent their honeymoon in Vietnam and Indonesia. “We wanted to go somewhere adventurous while also having a beach moment so ending in Indonesia was the perfect combo,” the bride notes.

To couples with an upcoming wedding day, Abbey has these words of wisdom: “I think you just have to let everything go day-of. What will be, will be and ultimately the most important part is friends and family being together.”