A morning ceremony and brunch reception, complete with coffee bar and barista I might add, sounds delightful, no? Top that off with an adorable couple, bridesmaids rocking fabulous shoes, and flowers from Sylvia’s of Arlington Heights that seem to jump off the screen – and I’d say we have a winner of a wedding. Each image from Dawn E. Roscoe is just as beautiful as the last, so head on over to the full gallery for a full dose of lovely.
click here for the full wedding gallery!
From the Bride…I had always dreamed of having a morning wedding and a brunch reception. Eric and I aren’t big drinkers and after all the weddings we’d been to he game for something a little different. My three top priorities were: venue, photographer, band. According to my dad, we hit the “ball out of the park,” on all three. My family church isn’t beautiful or traditional, but it’s where I grew up and it holds a special place in my heart. We live downtown Chicago, but both families are from the suburbs, so we decided on the most urban of suburban venues, the Metropolis Ballroom in Arlington Heights, Illinois. About 40 minutes outside the city, it was a quick drive for most of our guests. The floor to ceiling windows and dramatic ceilings took our breath away when we first saw it. And it didn’t disappoint on the big day.
We are Catholic and the wedding ceremony was very important to us. We asked our best friends to sing for us in our choir. It was such a treat to hear our friends use their talents and support us with love and song on our most special day! We had three priests at the wedding, each from a different part of my life at our family parish. Having all three of them there was so special. I interviewed about 15 photographers before deciding that Dawn Roscoe was the right photographer for us. It was the best decision we made. Photography was so important to me – capturing the little moments that might be missed was the number one important factor to me. Dawn did an outstanding job. We added the photo booth as another way to document the big day, and the photos are hysterical! It’s fun to see our usually serious friends and family get silly! The mustaches on a stick from Etsy were a big hit! The 16 piece orchestra rounded out our classy daytime wedding. Live music was also at the top of my priority list and it couldn’t have been better. The Swing Assembly in did an amazing job. We asked for swing and big band hits – they did not disappoint. I am still getting compliments on how amazing the music was – they even brought a male and female singer! My dress was a plain Emerald gown with a custom sash and two different jackets. I knew I wanted a ¾ lace jacket for the wedding, but that I wanted to change into something a little more fun for dancing. In the bridal salon one day we tried on this little jacket by *** just for the fun of it and four women who didn’t know us walked all the way to the back of the salon to tell us we had to buy the bolero. It was settled. We had the lace jacket and sash custom made and then I changed when it was time to head into the reception into the bolero. Such drama!
The bridesmaid dresses were Alfred Sung, and they were perfect for an afternoon wedding on the cusp of fall, but with summer weather. For me it was all about the SHOES and DETAILS for my girls. Each girl received a pair of teal BP shoes in a pump or a sandal – and her very own personalized accessories. It was so important to me that each of my best girls be individuals. They are each so special to me in unique ways – so why should they all look the same on my wedding day!? Flowers were lower on my priority list, so I was surprised when they became more important as our planning went on. I’m 6 feet tall, and I was going to be wearing A LOT of dress, so I knew I was going to need A LOT of flowers. I told Sylvia’s I wanted a bouquet so big I would need a wagon to hold it. And they didn’t disappoint! I think my bouquet weighed 12 pounds! Sylvia’s went out of their way to pull out all the fall stops for our flowers. I still get compliments!
Since the wedding was in the morning and the reception was in the afternoon, we decided to have a coffee bar and barista serving lattes and other espresso drinks all day – and then we pulled the coffee theme throughout the wedding. When you walked into the cocktail room and reception you could smell the espresso brewing! We’re big coffee drinkers, so it was a real treat! We got so many compliments on the coffee bar! The reception ended at 5, which gave Eric and I about 2 hours of sunlight with Dawn by ourselves. It was the best decision I ever made, for 2 reasons. First, Eric and I got to spend some time just the two of us between festivities. The drive to our shoot locations was one of the best of my life – with my new husband! And reason two, I was willing to walk around the woods in my wedding dress because the wedding and reception were over. We got some AMAZING shots in the daylight. Dawn did an amazing job capturing our joy and love that day, just the two of us. When the sun set and the light was gone, Eric and I said goodbye to Dawn and headed to my parent’s house where the post-wedding BBQ was underway. It was the most perfect day!
Photographer: Dawn E. Roscoe / Venue: Metropolis Ballroom / Band: Swing Assembly / Florist: Sylvia’s of Arlington Heights / Hair: Styles Down the Aisle / Dress: A L’Amour and Custom by Sara C