The Beverly Country Club/Chicago Illinois wedding, Meghan and Brian-
This was my first wedding at the Beverly Country Club, and I’m happy to report I was not disappointed. Megan & Brian just were glowing the entire day, and the darling little flower girls gave me lots of great photo ops.
Megan bought her dress from the Glamour Closet in Chicago ivory satin gown was a Vera Wang sample. The flower girls dresses were ivory satin Us Angels dresses from Nordstrom Bridal.
Liz Claiborne from DSW.
Ceremony: Christ the King Catholic Church.
I love this moment.
Reception: The Beverly Country Club
Flowers: Flowers by Color. bridesmaid dresses at White House Black Market.
Wedding cake: Sweet Mandy B’s
DJ : Drew from Fig media.
We snuck out for a few night time photos.
My favorite groom photo 🙂
From the Bride…
Bridal Gown: I wanted the wedding to be “simple yet elegant” starting with my wedding dress. However, this was the hardest and most frustrating part for me. After shopping at countless bridal shops in the Chicago area and St. Louis and trying on innumerous dresses, I found the perfect dress for me at Glamour Closet in Chicago. The dress is an ivory satin Vera Wang sample. I had the alterations done at Davis Imperial Cleaners with the assistance of Katurah and they were terrific!
Ceremony: Christ the King Catholic Church: Fr. Tom Conde officiated at the ceremony and it was beautiful. Fr. Tom made the ceremony very personal and welcoming, and was particularly helpful with all of the children that participated in the ceremony. The music, provided by Knox & Zelnis, was gorgeous and I loved the violin accompaniment.
Bridesmaids dresses: I found the bridesmaid dresses at White House Black Market. They were black satin and organza and looked like real dresses, not your typical bridesmaid dress. The flower girls dresses were ivory satin Us Angels dresses from Nordstrom Bridal.
Reception: The Beverly Country Club is a hidden gem. It is a beautiful venue with amazing grounds on the golf course which Hilda took full advantage of for pictures. We knew at the tasting that this was the right decision for us. The food was delicious and they were very flexible. We loved the Elmer’s sundae dessert option. Suzette Ryan was great and walked us through the planning process. Dan Cullinan was there to make sure the event went smoothly and was extremely accommodating, even when I broke their chandelier… Oops! http://beverlycc.org/
Wedding cake: Sweet Mandy B’s: I knew from the beginning that my wedding cake could only come from Sweet Mandy B’s. What can I say about Sweet Mandy B’s other than everything in this bakery is a food coma and my wedding cake was no exception. We had yellow cake with vanilla butter-cream frosting and vanilla and/or chocolate butter-cream layers and it was phenomenal! The bakery decorated the cake with simple beading and my florist added the fresh flowers. My guests were upset that they only had one piece! http://sweetmandybs.com/
Favor: Cupid Candies is the most delicious chocolate/candy/ice cream shop anywhere. I grew up coming here after a good report card and wanted my guests to have a little taste of chocolate heaven… and a Chicago south side favorite. Cupid even printed our names and wedding date on the boxes for us. The chocolates were so fresh it was incredible. I wish I had ordered extra! http://www.cupidcandies.com/
Flowers: Flowers by Color : Mary, from Flowers by Color, was the best. She took my vague description of what I wanted and put together absolutely beautiful and elegant bouquets- They were perfect! Her ideas for the centerpieces made the tables look stunning and were still very “me.” There were several different arrangements in various sizes and the look transformed the room. Not only were the flowers beautiful but Mary helped coordinate at the ceremony so that everything looked great and ran smoothly. She exceeded my expectations in every respect. http://www.flowersbycolorchicago.com/
Shoes: My shoes were the ivory satin version of my bridesmaids black ones. Liz Claiborne from DSW.
Tux: Men’s Warehouse. The guys looked dapper and the multiple locations were essential for our groomsmen and ushers. We made sure to inform the guys of the negotiated price before they went to rent the tuxes which turned out to be a necessity.
DJ : Drew from Fig media. Drew was a huge help in mapping out the reception. He took our likes/dislikes and created the perfect playlist while still incorporating the many varied requests of my guests. Plus he was fun and easy to work with. Our guests told us later the music was “totally you” which was exactly what we were hoping for. http://figdeejay.net/chicago-wedding-dj/
Photo-booth: The photo-booth provided by Shutterbox was a must. We have called it “the babysitter” since it entertained the kids all evening. However, it also was a big hit with the adults. For our guestbook, we had guests glue in a copy of their photo-booth photo and sign it. We also loved having a digital copy of all the shots, especially the ones that didn’t make it into the guestbook! http://www.shutterboxphotobooth.com/
Veil/hairpin: The Left Bank is a great bridal accessory shop in Lincoln Park. They made my veil in 2 weeks and it was stunning. My hairpin was purchased from there as well and was just my style, “simple yet elegant.” http://www.leftbankjewelry.com/
Hair/Makeup: Everything’s Relative in Oak Lawn. The owner, Joan Rowan, was amazing! I will forever be grateful that Joan opened the shop on a Sunday morning for my bridal party and to Jessica, Kim, and Katherine for coming in on their day off. Jessica took a few of my example photos and designed a fabulous up do. She was also great with my 4 year old flower girl. Kim created the beautiful hair styles for the bridesmaids. Katherine did the makeup and we looked great all day! http://everythingsrelativesalonspa.com/
Wonder Nails in Evergreen Park. Su and Tom and their staff were wonderful. They closed the shop to accommodate our party. My parents brought mimosas and breakfast, which I highly recommend. It was great fun.
Our table cards were photos of Brian and me at different ages, an idea my sister found on Pinterest. It was a big hit… although people kept saying how much Brian and I looked alike as children.
Favorite wedding related purchase? My photographer!! Hilda (and Carol) were such fun to work with and key to guiding us through the wedding day. From formal pictures to the cake cutting to navigating around to all our guests, they are clearly experienced pros with a great eye. Brian and I were wishing they had come with us on our honeymoon to Italy to make sure we had beautiful pictures of that as well!
Favorite wedding memory? There are so many favorites! The most emotional was the moment I saw Brian as I walked down the aisle with my dad. Thinking of it still brings tears to my eyes.
Something you wish you would have done differently? Everything turned out beautifully but as much as possible, I recommend not waiting until the last minute for anything.
Any advice for Brides-to-be? Enjoy every minute, don’t stress, it is what it is … go with it and have fun!”
Needless to say the photo above is my favorite! Please leave a comment here on stop by and say hi on Facebook.
