Kale grew up going to the same church as Alexandra’s Aunt Joy and cousin/best friend Hannah (Hannah would later become Alexandra’s Maid of Honor). On numerous occasions, Alexandra’s aunt told Joy that she should introduce Alexandra to Kale because she believed that they would really hit it off. Her aunt even explained this to Kale’s father after church one day! Finally, Alexandra decided to take matter into her own hands and sent him a friend request on Facebook. They started chatting frequently through the social media platform, and shortly after, Kale slyly gave Alexandra his number when he claimed his Internet was too spotty to chat through Facebook.
Shortly after, Kale asked Alexandra on a date. They went out at least once a week that summer and became official later that fall. Five years later, Kale proposed to Alexandra, and here’s an intimate look from their beautiful summer wedding.
THE PROPOSAL
We’d been dating for 5 years and went through a lot of changes together – graduating college, both moving to Chicago, starting our first post-grad jobs, etc. I was set to start grad school the fall of 2016, so we decided to take a trip beforehand. We went to LA, Vegas, and the Grand Canyon. Kale had always said he couldn’t wait to take me to the Grand Canyon because I’d never been. We arrived there and Kale excitedly showed me the amazing view. About 10 minutes later, he insisted we get someone to take our picture. He handed them the camera as I got set in front of the gorgeous backdrop of the Grand Canyon. Before I knew it, Kale was down on one knee, tears in his eyes, asking me to be his wife. Of course..I said YES. I’m so thankful for the great couple who was taking our picture because it captured all of our emotions in that moment! It was one of the best days of my life. We spent the rest of the day hiking around the Grand Canyon with Kale telling me all the details of ring shopping, asking my dad for permission, and about how he had told my brothers that he was going to propose. We spent the next day calling all of our friends and relatives to spread the good news! It was a beautiful few days!
GETTING READY
I always wanted to get married in the summer & we wanted about a yearlong engagement, so we were looking for venues with availability in late summer. It actually worked out perfectly. The moment we stepped foot at the site of our first venue tour, we knew we wanted to get married there. We didn’t even tour another venue! They had 3 dates left for 2017 and August 19th was the perfect date for us.
I was looking for a gown that had some unique aspects to it. I thought I had wanted a mermaid style dress, but once I put my WTOO Rowena gown on, I knew it was the one. I loved the lace detailing on the edge of the bodice, and the horsehair skirt with multiple layers and lengths had the perfect unique touch I wanted. I was shopping with my mom, grandma, MIL, and 2 bridesmaids. When I came out in the gown they all agreed it was the one. I found the gown on the first day we went shopping at the 4th shop we went to.
THE CEREMONY
I didn’t have one specific inspiration for my wedding style. I wanted the ceremony to be a reflection of the deep love Kale and I have for each other. As a couple, we love to have fun together and spend time with our family and friends, so we knew we wanted our reception to feel like the party of the year! It was by far the best day of our lives! It was amazing to have everyone we love and care about under one roof, celebrating this huge moment with us! We really felt surrounded by all of their love and support.
Our ceremony was heartfelt, emotional, and romantic. Our pastor Bobby made it very personalized. He asked our friends and family for words of advice and wisdom, which he incorporated throughout his message. He also recounted some of the most important moments of our relationship that we’d shared with him. We did traditional vows, but we also wrote our own vows. It was difficult for both of us to get through them. There was not a dry eye in the house, and the love in that room was palpable. I could not have asked for a more meaningful or beautiful ceremony!
Kale was a music major so his friend was our pianist & two of his other friends sang during our unity ceremony. It was great to have the personal touch. Instead of walking down the aisle to a traditional choice such as the wedding march or Canon in D, we walked down to a piano version of The Prayer.
At our ceremony, we used a Cord of 3 strands instead of a traditional unity candle. This was inspired by Ecclesiastes 4:12, which states a cord of 3 strands is not easily broken. The 3 strands we used represented the bride, the groom, and God. We had our mothers tie on our strands to a key ring at the start of our ceremony (in place of how they’d usually light the candles). During the unity portion of our ceremony, Kale & I braided the 3 strands together.
I loved our florist! She did an amazing job putting my idea of romantic garden florals into reality. The bridal bouquet was a hand-tied, half-wrapped bouquet with big champagne garden roses, pale green mini hydrangeas, drooping amaranths, and hints of larkspur and stock in lavender hues. The bridesmaids’ bouquets (also hand-tied and half-wrapped) were vibrant hues of purples and pinks, adding the perfect pop of color to the dusty lavender dresses. They had a mixture of larkspur and stock with beautiful greenery of seeded eucalyptus and dusty miller. I chose these types of flowers (with the help of my expert florist!) because I think that the garden type of flowers with drooping pieces and cascading greenery is so romantic. Personally I loved that style more than a formal, symmetrical bouquet. The men’s boutonnieres had elements that matched our bouquets and they looked fantastic!
For our bridal party entrance, we had our wedding party do a traditional entrance. Then for our bride & groom entrance, we were ushered in by a Lebanese Zaffe. My dad was born and raised in Lebanon, so we knew we wanted to incorporate some type of Lebanese tradition into our day. This is done at every Lebanese wedding. A troupe of men were dancing and playing the drums as they paraded us in and presented us to the crowd. We got the bridal party & families involved in doing a dabke, which is a traditional Lebanese dance. The troupe even did some sword-fighting as part of their performance! It was an amazing way to connect part of my heritage into our special day.
THE RECEPTION
Our reception was a party! We started off with a Lebanese Zaffe performance, which set the tone for a night of dancing and celebration. The dance floor was full the whole night! We had a photo booth, an awesome DJ, and we did a dessert bar (cupcakes, donuts, and baklava), instead of only a traditional cake. We did a sparkler exit which was an amazing way to end the night!
My first dance with my dad was a two-parter. We did a slow song to start, and then, because we had won a dance contest to this before, we fast-danced to The Twist.
Instead of favors, we decided to serve late-night food towards the end of the reception. My dad is a franchisee of Taco John’s, which is a token in my hometown. They are famous for their potato oles (which are kind of like an amazing form of seasoned tater tots), so we served those with melted nacho cheese & sour cream. It was a hit!
DETAILS
Wedding Photographer: Twa Photographic Artists | Ceremony Venue: Old Central Church at the Jacob Henry Mansion Estate | Reception Venue: The Victorian Ballroom at the Jacob Henry Mansion Estate | Wedding Flowers: Flowers by Steen | Wedding Cake: The venue, Jacob Henry Mansion provided the cake and cupcakes and Home Cut Donuts in Joliet, IL provided the donuts | Catering: Jacob Henry Mansion | Wedding Dress Designer (and salon, if applicable): WTOO by Watters Rowena Gown from A Joyful Occasion in Naperville | Bridesmaids Dress Designer (and salon, if applicable): Sorella Vita Maid Your Way from Brideside | Grooms & Groomsmen Attire: Groom got his custom-made suit by BLVDier and the Groomsmen got theirs from The Black Tux | Hair & Makeup: Hair by Alyssa Lamontagne and Make-Up by SLT Makeup Artistry | Music DJ: Non-Stop Entertainment; Zaffe: Chicago Lebanese Zaffe Group
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