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A White Wedding – Casey and Noah

We expect love at first site between a bride and groom, but a wedding gown?

According to Casey Silverman, she saw the gown long before she ever got engaged to Noah Weiss. When that moment did arrive, she actually looked in both Los Angeles and New York City, yet it was back home in Dallas that she returned to her first love – a unique-one-of-a-kind at the Carolina Herrera bridal boutique in Highland Park Village. The wedding gown was originally made for the Carolina Herrera bridal designer’s daughter. They made one sample and kept it in the Dallas store. Only one other person besides Casey commissioned the dress to be made and a painter “hand-painted” all of the floral on the layers of tulle. (Unfortunately for others the dress has since been discontinued).

As the photos below clearly show, the gown is breathtaking, but nothing outshines the love and joy so apparent between the bride and groom.

Bridal Gown: Carolina Herrera
Invitations: Jason McDaniel, Missing Q Press
Shoes: Classic Manolo Blahnik
Reception Dress: a fabulous Amsale mini-ivory strapless dress
Entertainment: Hunter Sullivan, reception and Emerald City, late nite
Photographer: Scott Hagar
Wedding Location: Ritz Carlton Dallas
Reception: Todd Event Design
Flowers: Todd Event Design
Cake by: Dallas Affaires

Featured Weddings: Elle & Brent

At first glance, Ellen “Elle” Warren and Brent Harman are every bit the modern couple: he is the president and CEO of a successful barbeque brand, Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse, and she is the co-owner of a high-end bridal salon, Warren Barrón Bridal. But their relationship, along with their March Dallas wedding, was spotted with details that made for a perfect combination of old and new.

The couple’s first meeting, a blind date coordinated by their shared banker, lasted twelve hours and was a virtual culinary tour of Dallas starting with lunch at Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse  and ending with stops at Fearing’s and Charlie Palmer. Their courtship lasted a year and a half, and Brent planned for a proposal that played off of one of his favorite dates with Elle – an evening where bad weather and a craving for dancing led the two to Elle’s boutique to dance to music played by an antique record player until three in the morning.

The day of their proposal, the couple planned on watching the Cowboy’s game with some friends at a bar, but thanks to some creative genius and a little fibbing from Brent, they ended up back at Elle’s boutique. The original site of their impromptu evening of dancing was set up with flowers and champagne. After she said “yes,” Elle opened a sealed letter that Brent had written years before, meant for his one true love to open on such an occasion.

Elle was perhaps uniquely suited to find the perfect wedding dress because of her experience in the industry, previously working for top gown designers Ulla-Maija and Angel Sanchez and then opening her own Dallas bridal boutique with friend Cecilia Flores-Barrón in 2006. She chose an Elizabeth Fillmore gown and accented the ensemble with a black birdcage veil from Leah C., “something borrowed” diamond earrings from William Noble, a Meridith Griffin for Elizabeth Fillmore necklace and Chanel shoes. Not to be outdone by his bride, Brent wore a Balenciaga suit with an Alexander McQueen shirt.

Dean Fearing, a close family friend of the groom, opened up his restaurant Fearing’s at The Ritz-Carlton for the couple’s reception and personally created a menu and unique wedding cake for the affair. The rest of the details for the couple’s intimate wedding (the 60-person guest list included mostly family and close friends) were made easy by Alison Baker of DFW Events.

Photographer/Studio: John Derryberry Photography

Flowers: Bella Floral

Hair & Makeup: Sonia Trevino Wedding Stylist (hair) & Mayra Rams-Sanabria of My Fabulous Faces (makeup)

Megan & Andrew – A Vintage Wedding

Andrew and I met in 2003 as Sophomores at Loras College in Dubuque, IA. Andrew held the door open for me and said it was “love at first sight” and had to find out who I was. We first became best friends which quickly grew into more. We had dated for five years when Andrew asked me to marry him. He proposed to me at our favorite Italian restaurant and had my entire family travel the two hours from my hometown to join us in the celebration. He even had my Nana picked up in Chicago by a limo to make sure she was there. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Family and friends mean so much to Andrew and I that even though we would be in a large venue, we wanted it to be an intimate gathering for those we love. What made it even easier to accomplish is that Jennifer Anderson was not only our planner through the process, but had become our friend. Without Jennifer, Vince at Kehoe Designs, and the Don Cagen Orchestra, the “vintage romance” atmosphere would have never come together into something so beautiful. At one point during the reception every single guest was on the dance floor having a good time. It was a night Andrew and I will never ever forget!

Bridal Bouquet: White Garden Roses, White Fringe Tulips, White Ranunculus, White, Freesia, Hanging Amaranthus and vintage flower buttons.

Wedding Cake: The five-tier cake featured a different pattern design on each layer including the fleur de lis, Swiss dot, leafy scroll pattern and French design influences.

Place card table: Natural Manzanita Branches with hanging crystals and hanging votive candles, white orchids and white hydrangea

Centerpieces tables: Two types of centerpieces graced the tables. The centerpieces focused on shades of burgundy, merlot, and dark red floral with accents of orange, green, cerise and mango. The Flemish inspired designs set atop antique wood urns and were highlighted with colored votives.

Megan Bowers – Bride
Andrew Bernsee – Groom
Married October 10, 2009
Old St. Patrick’s Church
Renaissance Hotel Chicago
Event Planner: Jennifer Anderson
Photographer: KingenSmith
Florist: Kehoe Designs-Vince Hart, Vice President
Cake: Take the Cake, Mary Winslow
Orchestra: Don Cagen Orchestra
Hotel: Renaissance Hotel Chicago
Wedding Dress: Rivini
Brides Shoes: Christian Louboutin
Tuxedo: Brioni

Featured Weddings – Jeff & Michele – The “Door Lady” Plays Cupid

This love story started when Michele asked the door lady at the downtown Chicago building in which Jeff and Michele both lived, one simple question… “Who’s that cute guy?” After answering, the door lady approached Jeff one day while he was enjoying the building’s fabulous rooftop deck. She told him there was a girl in the building who had asked about him. He thought that was pretty cool and asked for the secret admirer’s phone number. He called Michele the very next day. Their first telephone conversation lasted four hours (Michele was out of town when she received the call) and they met in person a few days later. And the rest, as they say, is history…

Fast forward 2 years. On a relatively boring Monday in late April, Michele was on a call with her favorite client. After she hung up the phone, she turned her chair around only to see Jeff standing by her desk. She thought this was strange, but Jeff quickly explained that a mutual friend had let him into the building to hand out passes for a special promotion being held at the restaurant Jeff manages. Michele said, “Okay,” grabbed the passes and began to walk Jeff toward the door. As he was being hurried out, Jeff asked Michele to slow down, pulled her off to the side and out of the office walkway. It was there that he got down on one knee and revealed the ring that he had on his pinkie finger. After asking Jeff several times if he was crazy, Michele promptly accepted the proposal. Jeff gave an overhead thumbs-up and Michele’s coworkers (who had been peaking over the cubicle walls) began to cheer.

Michele had a pretty clear idea of how she wanted the wedding to look. It was very much a celebration, and the color scheme of the wedding should reflect that. “We chose Kehoe Designs because the design they offered us literally took our breath away. My bridesmaid Claire and I went to see what Pavel Juricek from Kehoe had designed and we were literally speechless. The design was far superior to anything else we had seen. The designers took what we described and made it even better,” said bride Michele.

“Two centerpiece designs were created for the dinner tables, consisting of a lifted arrangement featuring a lively display of floral alternating with a low collection featuring coordinating floral in multiple vases.  Much like the hotel itself (Chicago’s The Blackstone), each centerpiece design was eclectic, contemporary and very unique hosting a wide array of colors and textures,” said Lauren Peterson, Event Producer.

“The wedding was absolutely gorgeous. Everything looked amazing and the guests couldn’t stop talking about the flowers and how beautiful the room looked. Michele and I said that it exceeded our expectations,” said Anna Silverman, mother of the bride.

“I would not have changed a thing about our wedding. I was so happy, it was so beautiful and meaningful in all the right ways. It was emotionally and aesthetically the wedding of our dreams. The best part about our wedding day was being surrounded by everyone we love and really celebrating. It was everything we wanted it to be and more,” said Michele.

Couple: Michele Silverman & Jeff Schramm
Date of Wedding: 5.8.10
Venue: Blackstone Hotel
Floral & Décor: Kehoe Designs, Event Producer: Lauren Peterson
Photographer: Jai Girard

Featured Wedding: The Orient Express

Our StrictlyWeddings.com partner DFW Events shared with us a wedding they did several years ago that is a wonderful example of incorporating a theme and creating a uniquely beautiful wedding experience using textures, colors, food and more. We were in awe when we saw these photos. “Lindsay Oliver and Andy Klump met and fell in love in China, so it was only fitting to incorporate Chinese elements into their wedding at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church at The Dallas Museum of Art. This one was so much fun to be a part of! The bride and groom were extremely creative and a blast to work with,” says DFW Events.

Featured Wedding: Jenny & Jason – Indoor Drama / Outside Romance

Jason and I met through our mothers who were sorority sisters in college at Bradley University. During winter break in college, we were both home from school. One night, while waiting to be seated at a restaurant with my family, Jason happened to be there with his family. Our moms saw each other and immediately started catching up. They introduced Jason and I, and I thought that would be the end of it. Later that night, I was downtown with some girlfriends at a bar and Jason happened to be at the same bar. We talked that night but nothing came of it. That summer we started bumping into each other until finally we went out on a date. Nearly six years later, we were married!

Jason and I knew that we wanted to be married somewhere unique and not the standard hotel. At the same time, we wanted a place that was architectural and had an outdoor area. When we went to the Adler Planetarium, the gorgeous Chicago view, beautiful lines of the museum and window covered main room, immediately sold us.

The outdoor ceremony faced the lake and took place right before the sun set. The chuppah was earthy and the large floral aisle runners were enhanced with over-sized palm leaves. I wanted our reception room to look starry and lit from within. The exploding orchid centerpieces, blue beamed lighting and twinkle backdrop all were intended to give the feeling that we were on a boat or below a star-filled sky. The room is lined with square windows, which we replicated in the square patterned table linens. The fireworks outside made a spectacular view too! I liked the idea of incorporating the astrology elements with the decor of the room. Ryan was able to make the outdoor ceremony and inside room have two distinct looks that still blended together well. The outdoor scene was romantic and natural and the indoor reception was completely dramatic.

Couple: Jenny Wolin & Jason Muslin Wedding
Date: 9.6.09
Venue: Adler Planetarium
Floral & Décor: Kehoe Designs, Event Producer: Ryan Wille
Caterer: Food for Thought
Photographer: Gerber+Scarpelli
Gown: Vera Wang
Bridesmaid Dresses: Jenny Yoo
Cake: Take the Cake
Entertainment: The Bradley Young Orchestra
Written by: Jenny Wolin-Muslin

Featured Wedding – Brian & Jeff

It seems that it’s in those “chance” meetings that we are fortunate to find our life partners. For Brian & Jeff, it was a GLBT affinity group meeting at their company. It just so happened that the only seat unoccupied happened to be next to “this very handsome guy with very distinguished salt and pepper hair.”  Seven years later, they decided to take the big step and make the relationship official. For their honeymoon, they’ll wait and get out of the Chicago heat in August as they journey off for a 10-day Mediterranean cruise from Venice to Athens.

Officiate: Barbara Wyzkiewicz
Master Bridal Consultant: Frank Andonoplas
Location: James Hotel, Chicago
Tuxedoes: Calvin Klein
Rings: Tiffany
Cake: Swedish Bakery – chocolate with chocolate mousse and a yellow with raspberry and lemon mousse. All layers were covered in French buttercream with a chocolate fondant bow.
Flowers: Ann Held
Photography: Rick Aguilar

Romantic Wedding at Vanderbilt Mansion on Fisher Island

Elizabeth Greig had always had a passion for helping people; especially the Haitians and their medical care system. Unfortunately one month before her wedding, on February 20, the horrible earthquakes hit Haiti and Elizabeth felt she had no choice but to take a plane Port-au-Prince and help the distraught country and citizens.

Elizabeth said she felt a bit guilty about leaving the wedding plans to her mother, Margaret Greig, but that she was an enthusiastic planner. Plus Margaret had well-known designer, John Ansehl, create the concept for the dream wedding in Florida. Also with the assistance of Tom Kehoe and Kehoe Designs, each elaborate topiary, grand candelabra and exquisite flower would be perfectly set in place.

Elizabeth married the love of her life, Jason Extein, near the old Vanderbilt Mansion on Fisher Island, FL. Everyone desired a colorful and tropical, yet classically sophisticated outdoor ceremony. Chicago based, Kehoe Designs, created thirty custom made ornate pedestals and matching urns to line the aisle. The urns alternated between hosting Sago Palms and orange topiaries, which were accented with floral rings and votive candles. A fifty yard custom made aisle runner lead the bride and her father to a glorious wedding canopy; which hosted hundreds of multicolored grapes, lemons, limes, clementines, pomegranates, orchids and roses. With every detail set in place, the sun shining brightly and enormous palm trees surrounding the couple and their family, Elizabeth and Jason recited their vows and were married!

They held their reception at Fisher Island Club in the Residence Courtyard. The room was lush and romantic. The fourteen tables were covered in a never before used gold and pink BBJ Linen. The centerpieces consisted of rich gold gilded candelabras filled with fuchsia, hot pink and light pink roses, orchids and hydrangea, while jasmine vine eloquently floated from the arrangement. The after party was a Moroccan themed lounge with masses of lanterns, pillows and sari’s. After a brief honeymoon to St. Bart’s, the couple continued on to Haiti.

Wedding Date: February 20, 2010
Décor: Kehoe Designs, Tom Kehoe
Consultant: John Philip Ansehl Design – 847.869.1112
Venue/Location: Fisher Island, FL
Photographers: Ryan Sjostrom & Miguel Irias

Featured Weddings – Sacha and Kevin – StrictlyWeddings.com

This is actually a fun “Harry met Sally” story …

Kevin and I walked the halls of Deerfield Highschool together 1994-1996, but because I was a senior and he a sophomore, we never met.

Although he says he recalls a glimpse of me walking down G-Hall, the only thing I recall is hearing his name when my soccer coach bragged about his star players on the boys soccer team. Years later, much after college,  we shared a cab together from the infamous late night bar, Burton Place, which only resulted in a short conversation and a 5 minute drive, dropped off outside my house with a simple thank you and a wave goodbye and without a single thought that this man I shared a cab with would one day be my husband.

Finally, about 2 years later, at a mutual friends going away party, we met again, and shared our first kiss that night. (I kissed him – I had to see if he was a good kisser!). We have been together ever since… HAPPILY EVER AFTER.

NEW YEARS EVE: December 31, 2009
VENUE: Salvage One
WEDDING PLANNER: Ryan Alexander Events
WEDDING INVITATIONS AND PAPER: U stationery Custom Boutique
FLOWERS: Jim McGuire with Bunches
FOOD: The Hearty Boys
BAND: Nicholas Barron
PHOTO: Jai Girard Photography
VIDEO: Jai Girard Photography

Featured Wedding – Eve & Philip – StrictlyWeddings.com

Our new StrictlyWeddings.com Dallas photographer partner, Anne Silverman, shared her beautiful photos of her daughter Eve’s wedding. The bride is a buyer for Gucci hence the handbag name card holders. The groom works in FInance, hence the bull and bear favors. Eve’s dog, “Lexi,” a Lhasa Apso was also an important member of the wedding party!

The bride’s diamond bracelet was a gift from her father from Bachendorf’s.

Couple – Eve Silverman and Philip Tedeschi
Church – Highland Park United Methodist Church/ Ritz Carlton Hotel, Dallas
Gown Designer – Pnina Tornai
Salon – Kleinfield Manhattan
Hair – Dawn Martin, Richard Hayler Salon, Neiman Marcus
Makeup – Mayra Rams Sanabria – My Fabulous Faces
Groom’s Attire – Polo Ralph Lauren
Bridesmaid’s Dresses – Vera Wang: Vera Wang New York
Flowers – Bella Flora of Dallas
Cake – La Gateau Cakery (Red Velvet)
Band – The Grooves from Austin
DJ – Ryan Kelley, Dallas
Lighting & Video – Lite Dallas
Rentals – BBJ Linen, TLC Event Rental
Bull and Bear chocolate favors – Morgan Chocolate