In 2007 Adrienne Renée Laborde was living in Atlanta and visiting New Orleans for the weekend to attend the wedding of her good friends, John and Courtney Guste. Sue Gilly, a friend of Corinne Laborde, Adrienne’s mother, mentioned that there was a great guy she wanted Adrienne to meet.
All throughout the Gustes’ reception Sue tried to introduce Adrienne to Lucas Henry Ehrensing Jr., but the two were never in the same place at the same time. Adrienne, being aware of Luke, made sure to introduce herself after the wedding when a group of friends were discussing where to go after the reception. The next night they went to dinner with a group of friends, kept in touch and began to date.
On October 16, 2009, exactly one year before the couple would get married, Luke proposed to Adrienne at his family’s summer home in Lacombe, La. The two went canoeing on Bayou Lacombe where Luke had hidden an ice chest in the woods with champagne the day before. What Luke didn’t know was that there was a festival happening almost directly across from where he hid the ice chest, so he had to improvise and propose a little further away from the planned spot so the crowd didn’t witness their intimate moment. That night, both Luke
and Adrienne’s parents came to Lacombe to celebrate with a
dinner at La Provence.
On October 16, 2010, Adrienne and Luke married at Immaculate Conception Jesuit Church, where Adrienne had attended growing up. Monsignor Christopher H. Nalty officiated the wedding.
Adrienne’s Grecian-inspired silk tulle gown with French lace embellishments by Martina Liana was purchased at La Raine’s Bridal Boutique in Atlanta. She wore a matching French lace bolero and an antique lace veil borrowed from her matron of honor, Jennifer Favrot Smith.
Her bouquet included white and plum-throated cymbidium orchids, white dahlias, ivory and dark green starts of Bethlehem, stellata and poppy pods, white snow berries and barred lemon woodduck feathers tied with a velvet plum ribbon.
Her bridesmaids wore one-shouldered, flowing aubergine chiffon dresses by Bari Jay. Emily Fitzmorris Birtel and Jennifer Favrot Smith served as matrons of honor. Charlotte Bush, Luke’s niece and goddaughter, served as flower girl.
Luke and his groomsmen wore traditional tails from Perlis. Peter William Ehrensing, Luke’s brother, served as best man.
The reception was held at the New Orleans Country Club. James Clawson of Urban Earth designed all the flower arrangements.
The fall weather was so pleasant that several of the dining room tables were moved outside to the veranda so that guests could view the candlelit lanterns that adorned the magnolia tress.
Chef Chris Tafarikis of New Orleans Country Club catered the food. He created several new items requested by the bride and groom that were a huge hit.
Shirelle Royal of Royal Cakery designed the five-tier white almond cake with buttercream icing to carry out the wedding’s elegant-yet-earthy theme, decorated with winding green sugar art vines and clusters of live cymbidium orchid blooms; and the table skirt was custom-painted with a trellis design by Sherry Haydel.
Shirelle also created Luke’s groom’s chocolate cake with cream cheese and caramel filling topped with a duck, swamp leaves and cattails – a true edible representation of Luke’s love to hunt.
Adrienne surprised Luke right after the cake cutting with a Coldstone Creamery ice cream cart. The cart served Adrienne and Luke’s favorite flavors, specially named “Bride’s Bliss” and “Groom’s Guilty Pleasure.”
Joe Simon’s Jazz Band performed during a cocktail hour, followed by the Atlanta Showstoppers. Adrienne and Luke’s first dance was to Rod Stewart and Chaka Kahn’s duet of “You Send Me.”
Julia Bailey served as photographer for the wedding; included shooting a “first look” of the couple before the ceremony underneath the club’s famous oak tree. Studio Vieux Carre served as videographer for the wedding.
Adrienne and Luke honeymooned in Africa, spending eight days on safari in Kenya followed by four days at the beach on Pemba Island in the Indian Ocean. The two live in New Orleans where Luke is vice president of Thigpen Construction and Adrienne is an assistant marketing manager for Luzianne Tea at Reily Foods Company.
