Shannon and Steve’s wedding was filled with unique touches, I loved all the fun details…top hat, walking cane, white gloves, peacock feathers…this wedding had it all! The best part though (for me anyway) is how much trust they put into their vendors. That’s how it should be! You do your homework, you get referrals, but the day of the wedding you just let your vendors do their ‘thing’ and you get enjoy the reward of all the planning! Shannon & Steve, hope you love your photos as much as I loved creating them 🙂
I’m not kidding when I tell you I lost my mind when I took this photo, it’s my all time #1 favorite artsy photo EVER!!!
Venue –
Hotel Arista I loved everything about this place, and cannot wait to go back!!
First looks do not take away from the emotions of the ceremony…see?
Oh, yeah! Did I mention the rings arrived on a shark, yep they did!! It was a surprise from the groom 😀
Love working with Anita, not only are her ceremonies heartfelt and funny, she knows to step aside during the first kiss.
From the Bride….
‘Venue – Hotel Arista – They had the contemporary look we were looking for and they could accommodate our large wedding very easily. The service was amazing! Davina, the wedding planner, was fabulous. She had great ideas. The service, from the food to the hospitality staff, was excellent! I can’t wait to go back! – http://www.hotelarista.com/
Jewelry – Harry W. Yaseen Jewelers – Larry (the current owner) has an amazing array of jewelry. I absolutely love my engagement ring and wedding band. My wedding necklace and earrings are blue pearls. They are so pretty and unique. The service is top notch! Also all price points are offered. If you are in Naperville, please stop in a take a look. – http://www.yaseens.com/
Bridesmaids Dresses – twobirds Bridesmaid – We actually tried on these dresses at a shop but I ordered them directly from the manufacturer. They were happy to send samples of the colors and answer any questions. Plus I loved the convertible dress idea. The emerald color is gorgeous. – http://twobirdsbridesmaid.com/
Bridal Gown – Wolsfelt’s – This is actually the first place I tried on dresses. They have a variety of sizes and styles. I got to try on the most dresses at this shop. The experience was fun, and the staff was so friendly. I also did not feel rushed as I did at other places. My mom also found her MOB dress there. Plus the alterations department can’t be beat! I really love my dress and veil! – http://www.wolsfelts.com/.
Hair Decorations for Bridesmaids and Bride – sweet grass mill from Etsy – Jade (the owner) was a joy to work with. I scoured the internet looking for the right peacock hair acessories for me and my bridesmaids. She was professional and sent things very quickly. I think all the hair fascinators are very well made. I highly recommend her work. – https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetgrassmill
Flowers (Centerpieces, Boutonnieres, Corsages) – Jane’s Blue Iris Ltd. – We worked with Jane to figure out our centerpieces because we wanted to incorporate lights. It was great to put all three of our heads together to come out with a wonderful idea for them. They took my peacock theme and completely ran with it. They did a phenomenal job!!! – http://www.janesblueiris.com/
Bridal and Bridesmaid Bouquets – I made them myself out of coffee filters. 🙂
Hair – I had two hairdressers come to take care of all the gals. Angie Borzym of Lockport (815-685-5740) and Joanne Vick of McHenry (815-344-2307) did wonderful work! Angie took all my suggestions (not a lot of curls and a braid) and make a super unique hairstyle. These women really know what they are doing. They had to take care of 6 women and only 2 of them had trials done beforehand. Seriously they do great hair!!!
DJ – Dj Harsh – Dj Harsh is fun loving and oh so funny. But he knows when to be serious about the music. He did a great job announcing and Djing. He handled really wacky requests with aplomb. He is also great about giving you suggestions when you are a ta loss of what song to pick for something. Be prepared to laugh! http://djharshchicago.com/
Officiant – Anita Vaughn – Anita Weds – Anita was phenomenal as our officiant. She came up with creative ideas of how to do what we wanted and really made our ceremony ours. She fully embraced our geeky side. We had so much fun with her! http://www.anitaweds.com/
Cake – The Cakery – Bob and his crew did an amazing job on our cake. It not only tasted really good but it also looked beautiful. And Bob is so creative. I was not worried when I told him what my colors and theme were and let him do his thing!!! http://thecakeryinc.com/
\ I think my dress and veil was my favorite purchase. Everything just came together so easily from the shoes to the jewelry.
My favorite wedding memory? Man, there are so many good ones. It is really hard to choose. But I think the one that comes to mind is when I saw Steve for the first time once we were all ready to go. It was such a beautiful moment full of emotion and love. He blew me away with how good he looked in his tux. To follow that, it was so neat to everyone all dressed up and looking so good. We felt surrounded by love and happiness.
Something I would have done differently? The planner in me wants to give you the answer while the bride in me wants to give you a completely different answer. So first the bride’s answer is I would not change a thing. The day was full of love, and we were surrounded by family and friends. And I got married! Ok now the planner in me. I wish I had asked for some of the “special” parts of our wedding to be announced or explained better to our guests. For instance, we had a photobooth that would provide the pictures for our guest book. Some of our guests took full advantage of it but I know some guests did not figure out the photobooth was there until later. Was it really a big deal? No but it is still something that bugs me a little bit after the fact.
Here are the tips I found invaluable:
1. Something will go not quite how you want on your wedding day so make peace with it now. Once your wedding day is here, you just need to relax and go with the flow. Everything will work out as it should. Really the main thing is that you get married to the one you love! 2. Do your research. By this I mean, read books and blogs. Now I would recommend books such as “Offbeat Bride” and “A Practical Wedding”. Websites like The Knot and Weddingwire are not bad. I did use them but the one that really helped me emotionally was OffbeatBride.com. It helped knowing I was not alone in the problem I was facing or how I was feeling. 3. Choose good vendors. They are there to support you and make your day what you want it to be. Also trust them. You, the bride, do not have to know everything that happens in a wedding, especially if it is your first one. Let your vendors give you tips because they do this day in and day out. Yes I can tell my cake baker what color I want the cake to be but I also ask him to help me in designing how the cake will look. I am not a cake decorator but I can hire one that does good work and trust that he will do a good job. Let your vendors do what they do best. Or why hire them in the first place? 4. Pinterest is lovely for ideas but understand that centerpiece you are drooling over may only look effortless because it costs a ton of money. Use the pictures for inspiration, not trying to copy that look or item exactly. You want your wedding to be unique, not a copy of someone else’s vision. 5. Don’t be afraid to dream big and make this wedding your own.”
