I feel like if I went to this wedding, I’d still be talking about it to this day. You know how some weddings are just totally fabulous and the bride and groom think of absolutely everything? Well, this is one of those weddings. From the 16 piece swing band to the vintage arcade games, this wedding must have been off the charts fun! Pen/Carlson captured it all and you can click here for even more.
Don’t miss their fab wedding film from I Do Films!
From the Bride… My favorite DIY project was the creation of our custom postcards, which we created in lieu of a guest book. Marc and I are huge movie lovers, so instead of doing a typical guestbook, we decided to do postcards. But we decided to print a different image on EACH postcard — each one a screen grab from a moment of love in all our favorite films. We pre-addressed each postcard to our home and stamped them. Then we had suitcases filled with postcards and pens, and beautiful signs explaining what to do. We even found an antique mail sorting panel to put the cards in once written. At the end of the event, my mom collected the postcards and sent them to us in small chunks after we got back from our honeymoon. It was a great way to keep remembering the event over a longer period of time and made the joy of the wedding last that much longer. Plus, it was fun to see what movies each of our friends and family picked!
We had to move our ceremony inside at the last minute due to a SEVERE storm that came all of a sudden, but we made it work and still beautiful. Our good friend Doug married us atop the stairs at Architectural Artifacts while the crowd sat patiently below drinking delicious infused ice waters handed out upon arrival and fanning themselves with ivory fans to combat the Chicago August heat and humidity. With the help of my event planner and designer, Erin Patrick (now with Todd Events), Marc and I used our vision to borrow from the MANY antiques the venue has to offer (and will lend to you for your event!) to create vignettes with an eclectic and vintage look that was uniquely ours for the night. Lots of illumination kept the venue warm and sparkling like it would have done in the ’20s, and instead of over the top flower arrangements, we used many many clusters of unique flowers in a variety of beautiful crystal and metal vases. White lace patterned ginger jars graced our sweetheart table to separate ourselves from the crowd — as did antique white dining chairs. And every table was laded up with floating candles, candelabras, and candles atop candlesticks that danced and flickered around the room, bringing it to life, and reflecting in the many pieces of metal, glass and crystal decorating the room. We continued this theme of “collections” in flowers, and displays, and even to the cakes. Instead of having one massive cake, I decided to have a “collection of cakes.” Seven beautiful cakes were displayed on a vintage cart – each one beautiful in it’s own regard, but linking back to each other in color, ribbons, lace, cameos and rhinestones – so that they reflected both my dress and the invitations that originally kicked off the event designs. I worked closely with Amy Beck to make these come to life, and keep a theme so that they all felt of the same family. The rest of the food, was equally impressive, as Food Evolution brought to us an amazing four-course meal, in addition to signature cocktail and regular cocktails at the cocktail hour with heavy apps, and they ended the night with a large variety of late night snacks.
For the start of the reception, into the first few hours of dancing, we had an amazing 16-piece swing band play. Then for the second half of the night, we had a DJ come on to really take the crowd to the next level and really just DANCE the night away. For those who didn’t like to dance, we made to sure have an alternate entertainment. We rented six vintage arcade games that were located just off the dance floor, so everyone could still hear the music and see each other, but not necessarily dance. It was a great way to keep people entertained, and it was especially fun to see older aunts and uncles let their child side out and compete against each other again. All in all, it was an amazing event that we are very proud of. We worked really hard to put it together, and it was totally worth it. We could not have been luckier to have such an amazing wedding and are so thankful to all those who helped make it happen for us! Please see the list of credits below, and ask them to make your event just as amazing – as I could not be more grateful to them for making my dreams come true!
Wedding Photography: Pen/Carlson / Wedding Venue: Architectural Artifacts in Chicago, Illinois / Event Planning: Erin Patrick McDonald / Wedding Cinematography: I Do Films / Catering: Food Evolution / Wedding Cakes: Amy Beck Cake Design / Cake Topper: Lollipop Workshop / Invitations + Branding: Camden Richards of Liminal Press + Bindery / Band: Alan Gresik Swing Shift Orchestra / DJ: Style Matters DJs / Decor: Formerly EP2 Productions / Favors: Garrett’s Popcorn / Accommodations: Hotel Allegro / Vintage Games: Chicago Pinball / Transportation: Aries Charter Transportation Inc. / Welcome Bags, Dancing Shoes, Tags, Signage, Post Card Guest Book, Seating Cards, Favor Labels, Ring Holder Book, Cake Station Signs, Welcome Bag Ornaments + Bridesmaids’ Jewelry: DIY by the Bride / Weekend Brochures: DIY by the Bride & Groom / Wedding Dress: Justin Alexander Signature via Bride & Gift Bridal Store / Bride’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Bride’s Jewelry: Custom + Family Heirlooms / Bride’s Veil: The Left Bank Bridal Finery / Hair: Renee Feldman / Makeup: Darcy Lynn McGrath (DarcyLynnMcGrath@gmail.com) / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: BHLDN / Bridesmaids’ Jewelry: Cuttlefish Jewelry (Owned by the Bride) / Robes: Sandmaidens Sleepwear / Groom’s Suit: Hugo Boss / Groom’s Shoes: Bass via Amazon / Groomsmen’s Suits: Wilke Rodriguez via Men’s Wearhouse