We met at work when I (Alex) was fresh out of college. Eli had been with the company for a few years and was incredibly intimidating. He was this handsome, outgoing, successful salesman that everyone wanted to be. Little did I know at the time, he’s the biggest goof that would keep me smiling every day for the rest of my life. We never spoke for about the first 6 months on the job, and one day he randomly asked me if I wanted some Starbucks. I thought this was his way of flirting so I was nervous when he brought the coffee to my desk…then I found out he had gotten coffee for other girls in the office, which made me jealous so I immediately returned the favor by asking him out for a drink after work. The rest was history, and we’ve been together ever since.

I wanted to keep my dress shopping more personal to minimize others’ opinions, ensuring I got the dress that I truly wanted and not what others thought I should have; so, I only brought my mom and my sister along. I found my dress at the very first shop we went to, and it was only the second one I tried on! I put on several others, but I kept reverting to this one. When I wore it, I could just picture Eli’s face when he’d see me in it for the first time, and I felt so sure about this dress I didn’t bother going anywhere else.

Eli has always loved keeping his style up to date – he was pickier about his suit, bow tie, cuff links and shoes than the bride! He really wanted a classic look to match the overall style we were going for with the venue, which is why he decided on the classic, black tuxedo with silk lapels. Eli’s shoe game is like no other so, naturally, he had to go with an awesome pair of red bottoms to make a statement with the black ensemble.

We had looked at about 10 venues, and none matched both of our wish lists. We both agreed it needed to be a venue where ceremony and reception could be at the same place; minimizing travel times for our guests. Eli really wanted a venue that had both an indoor and an outdoor area so that people could enjoy the weather since Michigan only has a few nice months to do this. My big thing was I wanted a venue with a lot of character so that we could keep decorations minimal; I wanted the building to speak for itself and tell a story in its own. We were both getting fed up with disappointment after each venue we visited, and Meadow Brook Hall was the last one we looked at. We both looked at each other after we toured it, and Eli could tell by the look on my face that we wouldn’t be checking out anywhere else – we had found the place!

We still get goosebumps thinking back at how PERFECT the ceremony was. Our plan was for the ceremony to take place in the rock garden, and the rain almost ruined those plans. The weather was pretty doom and gloom; it came down to the wire on whether to move the ceremony inside and thank goodness we rolled the dice to keep it outside regardless of the forecast! The rain stopped as everyone took their seats, and as the Rabbi was pronouncing us husband and wife, the sun literally broke through the clouds and shone down on us as we had our first kiss. GOOSEBUMPS. The fact that the quartet played “Don’t Stop Believing” as we made our exit made it that much cooler.

After finding the venue, I knew exactly the theme I wanted – VINTAGE. The venue, Meadow Brook Hall (previously the Dodge family estate) was built in the 20’s and is so beautiful on its own that all I needed to focus on was the reception tent. I wanted the tent to flow with the mansion’s interior, so I stuck to a lot of gold and knew I needed candles and flowers with burgundy accents all over. Emerald City Designs helped me bring my ideas to life and it couldn’t have been more perfect! My dress had a long lace train, which went with the vintage decor, so I decided to keep with the aesthetic and go with the “classic Hollywood curls” hairdo to really tie everything together. From the venue, to the outfits, to the reception decorations, everything felt like we had gone back in time for the night.

I can’t thank our wedding party enough for keeping the dance floor poppin’ all night! There wasn’t a moment that the floor wasn’t packed. The Hora was part terrifying, part AMAZING; being up in the chairs looking down at everyone’s faces is a priceless moment – it almost made us forget how scary it was gripping to a chair for dear life. The DJ did an incredible job playing all sorts of music that got people of all ages out on the dance floor. Watching my grandparents get up and dance is a moment I’ll never forget; it was like a glimpse into our future.

Don’t fall victim to thinking you need to be everywhere at once! Don’t get me wrong, our wedding was the best day of our lives, but our biggest regret was not breaking away during the reception to have a moment for just the two of us to soak it all in. Talking to every guest is exhausting; you deserve a moment of solitude to truly appreciate everything happening around you. It happens in the blink of an eye, so make sure you have an amazing photographer to capture everything!

It’s impossible to describe how amazing Rachel is in just a few words; she lives and breathes to make her clients’ memories the best they could ever imagine. Not only did she drive 3 hours, with the flu, to take our engagement pictures, she still had more energy and enthusiasm than anyone else we’d ever met! That’s when we knew we were in perfect hands for our wedding day. She makes everyone feel so comfortable in front of the camera and has the brightest personality; making everyone laugh is one of her best qualities. Outside of her awesome character, her pictures are indescribable. She has a way capturing the candid moments so perfectly that when you look back at them, you go back to that moment and relive it all over again. Rachel’s artwork is a living, breathing time machine and we couldn’t be more thankful to have her capture the best day of our lives.

We were two college kids running around the big city!  We met while working at the same college dive bar on campus.  We were friends for over a year before we started dating and that friendship has continued to be the biggest foundation of our relationship.  Ever since that first kiss, our lives have been filled with love, friendship, and the best adventures!

Drew rocked a black Ted Baker suit, a black Calvin Klein skinny tie, and black Wolf & Shepherd Chelsea boots.  Drew’s cuff links represented his favorite team, Liverpool FC! YNWA!!!

The groomsmen wore Indochino suits.

It’s very possible that I tried on five thousand dresses before purchasing this beauty.  I ended up with a gown from Spring Sweet, the most charming bridal boutique in my hometown of Holland, MI.  Finding my dress in my hometown made it that much more special and sentimental to me.

For my bridal look, I wanted something romantic with a vintage touch.  My overall look ended up having an Old Hollywood Glam vibe and I definitely didn’t hate it. The dress is  Willowby by Watters.

Salvage One was the perfect place for our Chicago Winter Wedding. The assortment of beautiful antiques made being stuck inside not so bad.  Salvage One was unique, romantic, cozy, moody, and everything else we could have wanted in a venue.  The Bride’s favorites: vintage church pews for our guest seating during the ceremony, countless vintage chandeliers, and the stunning stained glass. The Groom’s favorites: massive stone elephants that frame the wedding aisle, the trendy yet extremely cozy suites for the groomsmen and bridesmaids, and the gorgeous vintage bars.

The ceremony was our favorite part of the day. We highly recommend writing your own vows for anyone that is questioning it!

We had International Strings play our ceremony and cocktail hour!

Wedding Party Processional:  What a Wonderful World – Louis Armstrong

Bridal Processional:  Over the Rainbow – Israel Kamakawiwo’ole Version

Recessional Song:  Here Comes the Sun – The Beatles

The venue already had a lot going on, so our decor was pretty simple.  We had vintage rugs down the aisle, moody floral and greenery around the venue, and many many candles!  Our Florist, Persephone Floral Atelier, made the most romantic floral arrangements for our ceremony and reception.

We met our freshman year of college in the dorms at Michigan.  We became good friends and even lived together for two years.  We both moved away and never dated, but always kept in touch, and 10 years later something just clicked!  Things got serious quick – within 6 months Amy moved to Texas, a year later we got engaged then after a ~6-month engagement here we are!

Amy went looking for a dress with a BIG group – my mom, grandma, two future sisters-in-law, cousin, two aunts and maid of honor.  Luckily, B Ella Bridal in Plymouth, MI had the space and welcomed us with open arms.  Dominique, the stylist working with us, was amazing and he helped guide us through the process and kept our search focused while pushing me out of my comfort zone!  I ended up with the 2nd dress I tried on – nothing like what I pictured, but an amazing Moscato 2 piece! (I would highly recommend a 2-piece to anyone starting a dress search!!!)

Justin wanted a suit that was different from those he already had, and would continue to wear for other occasions – so he and the guys all ended up getting custom plaid blue suits!  Everyone got to pick inscriptions and fun fabrics for the inside which was a fun personal touch.

We wanted a venue that mixed our tastes of eclectic & traditional – the Masonic Temple in Detroit was perfect for this!  The huge, historic venue alleviated space concerns we had, the staff were AMAZING through both planning and event phases, and the look of the room night-of blew away our expectations.  We got married in the chapel there, by Denise Tucker of Perfect Day Celebrations, who did an amazing job, then had our reception and cocktail hour in the ballroom.  There were even huge spaces for getting ready on site!  The size of the venue and breadth of events held there was also great for pictures – we wandered around and ended up finding a roller derby setup, the main concert hall and even got to take some pictures on the roof!

The ceremony was great!  We kept it short and sweet with a couple friends speaking and let Denise do the rest.  We also went with a fun “newspaper” style handout we had seen at another wedding, which was a fun alternative to traditional program guides.

Another great thing about the venue was that it was already so decorative.  We didn’t want to add too much, so ended up getting no real flowers and decorated the room primarily with uplighting and gold & light centerpieces.  These were different on each table with geometric shapes, gold twigs and gave each table a little something different.  Our families, especially our mothers, helped so much with everything about this day – especially considering we were living out of state and couldn’t handle a lot of local things ourselves!

This was what we’d been looking forward to for MONTHS.  SO FUN.  Derek from The Block Party was our DJ and saying he was amazing was an understatement.  He guided the reception from speeches to dinner music to dancing and everything was perfect.  Our first dance was a blast and we had an enormous crowd, who all joined in with us towards the end.  We wanted this day to be about having a blast with people we love, and that’s exactly what it was.

Rachel was amazing!  Obviously she takes great photos but her personality fit great with us and we were instantly comfortable.  She also did a great job with our bridal party – we can be a chatty/distracted group – and made sure we got everything we needed.  She did great with going with the flow too since there were tons of last-minute picture requests.  We knew from reading her bio online she would be perfect, and she exceeded our wildest expectations!  Best day of our lives!

Do what you want to do, not what you *think* you should do.  We chose to have no flowers and no cake, and we didn’t miss either.  We also decided to go “Adults-Only” besides our 5 nieces and nephews.  This was tougher, but everyone understood and found sitters – and it allowed them all to stay later and party for longer with us!  Also – go with vendors that you trust and that feel right.  It will make all the difference!