In Chicago, winter means polar vortexes, ‘dibs’, and always allowing extra travel time. It also means you can have a beautiful setting for a cozy, elegant wedding. When Billy and Kate originally came to Naturally Yours Events, they had their hearts set on a city, summer wedding in an industrial space. However, in a blink of an eye that vision changed after a visit to a Wisconsin country club where Kate’s family were members. A few different couples in her family got married there and as soon as Kate and Billy thought about it in the context of their wedding, they knew it was the perfect fit.
Right before their big day, a giant snowstorm came through and blanketed the entire grounds in picturesque white snow! With the help of Naturally Yours Events, this snow king and queen ruled their day by injecting their personalities into the space. They wanted to make their wedding feel like them and not like any of their family’s who had been at Big Foot Country Club previously.
They incorporated Chicago influences they would have wanted for a city wedding like growlers from local breweries, signature cocktails featuring liquors from their neighborhood distillery, KOVAL, in addition to personal touches like ‘Game of Thrones’ reception signage! Look through their magical day below captured by Couple of Dudes Photography.
How sweet is Billy’s face when he first sees Kate?!
Billy and Kate’s wedding party was nothing short of winter royalty with cozy shawls, mismatched blue and gray dresses, and classic dark gray suits.
We love these natural escort cards featuring an elegant gold and navy design reminiscent of the scales of a pine cone!
During the band’s break, Billy got on the mic and performed a surprise song for his new wife!
“More than the greatest love
The world has known,
This is the love
That I give to you,
Alone.”
Lyric from “More” by Bobby Darin
May life always feel like the joy of walking in a winter wonderland! Happy Anniversary Kate and Billy!
The team at Naturally Yours Events had a busy and exciting year, planning over sixty events, celebrating team engagements and expanding the wedding expo, Wedtoberfest, nationally! Every year we love reminiscing about our clients and couples who make us love what we do! Take a look back with us as we prepare for many more great events in 2019!
Wedtoberfest Styled Shoot for IndieWed Lounge at Ravenswood Event Center
Cheers to all the clients and vendors we worked with this past year. Thanks to you we earned The Knot Best of Weddings 2019 award! We are honored to be a top wedding planner in Chicago and look forward to planning more wonderful events in 2019! Happy New Year everyone!
When we asked TJ and Gina what their hobbies are, they responded with “nerding out”! After meeting through OKCupid they bonded over their mutual interest in Harry Potter and decided to carry the theme into their wedding. The venue of The Library set the scene perfectly for these two bookworms and their day was filled with personalized, magical details all captured by Aubrey Jane.
The bride’s bouquet featured a mix of real and paper flowers made from the pages of Harry Potter novels and the groom sported a yellow bowtie with his house’s (Hufflepuff) details. The wedding party was all coordinated in the colors of Hogwarts houses – yellow, red, blue, and green accented with silver and black.
TJ and Gina lovingly exchanged vows under a woodsy Chuppah with a Hogwarts flag backdrop. The ceremony blended the couple’s backgrounds with both Catholic and Hebrew blessings – plus some readings from the good book of Harry Potter and a goblet of fire unity ceremony!
Guests felt like they stepped right into Hogwarts with all the magical elements incorporated into the couple’s reception – from the ‘Three Broomsticks’ sign above the bar, to the Owl Post card box, to the individual wand favors which doubled as escort cards. Dinner tables were named after chapters from the books and adorned with potion bottles and book pages.
After ten years of marriage, Patricia and Fidencio celebrated their vow renewal surrounded by loving family and an abundance of fun! Originally married at City Hall, they fulfilled their desire of having a Catholic ceremony which took place at St. Francis of Assisi. Patricia and Fidencio enlisted the help of Naturally Yours Events to bring an elegant flair to their fiesta-inspired wedding at Catalyst Ranch. The cocktail style reception with their favorite Mexican dishes, bright florals and personal family touches created the perfect party atmosphere. See all the colorful details Cage and Aquarium beautifully captured from their day below.
It was important that Patricia and Fidencio’s children were an integral part of their wedding so they all served as bridesmaids, flower girls and ring bearer. During the ceremony, Patricia surprised her husband with a special performance by a Mariachi band!
The space at Catalyst Ranch fit the cocktail, fiesta theme with the venue’s eclectic furniture and bright color palette. It complimented the beautiful florals provided by Flowers By Stem and custom papel picados hanging from the ceiling.
Guests were greeted with margarita push pops and tasty cups of ensalada de fruta con chile – yum!
Salud to another 10 years Patricia and Fidencio! We had so much fun celebrating with you.
Congratulations on your engagement! You’re ready for the wedding planning to begin but aren’t quite prepared for the amount of questions family and friends are going to bring up over the holidays about your big day. On the other hand, perhaps you and your significant other haven’t taken the next step with an engagement and you’re prepping to field all the “When are you finally going to get married?” questions. [Don’t worry – proposal season begins with Thanksgiving so the ‘pop’ may be just around the corner, *wink wink*]. Either way you may not be able to avoid these conversations but you can learn how to navigate them in the best way possible.
First, have some answers ready to go. Before any family gatherings, discuss with your partner how you want to approach certain topics when they are brought up. Family will be excited to hear what your plans are but if you have short, prepared answers then you can keep their stream of questioning at bay.
It’s okay to not give or have all the answers. Sometimes family doesn’t need to know everything. If you have set a date or time of year for the wedding, are you sharing it with people at this time? If you haven’t booked some important pieces like venue, then it might be best to keep it to yourself before putting a date out there. Your aunt may start interrogating you asking if you’ve thought of X, Y, or Z, but if you just got engaged you obviously won’t have every aspect planned yet. Thank her for her input and say those are all great things to consider, then move on. There’s no need to get overwhelmed by not having an answer to every question.
Stand your ground. When relatives can’t stop themselves from inserting their opinions on things you’ve already decided on, gently explain why these choices are important to you and your partner. For instance, you have a lot of kids in your family but want an adult only reception or you’re choosing a venue that only allows for an intimate crowd. You can approach these subjects without turning into a brides/grooms – zilla and your relatives will appreciate the explanation of why these decisions are meaningful to you.
Know when to change the subject. When you are engaged and wedding planning, people tend to act like that’s the only thing you have going on in your life but that’s certainly not the case. Chat about your new promotion at work, the trip you just took, the new tv show you’re obsessed with or you can turn the conversation towards them and ask about new happenings in their lives.
Remember to have fun! Wedding planning is exciting and it’s fun to figure out your vision, then see it come to life. Unfortunately, one big stressor can be family conversations. Take a step back every once and awhile to keep in mind that you are marrying the love of your life which is the most important part. Need help along the way? Working with an experienced coordinator or wedding planner can relieve tons of the stress that can come with wedding planning. Contact Naturally Yours Events to get started!
Hello there! Thanks for visiting our blog. Naturally Yours Events is a full service event planning company in Chicago. We specialize in eco-friendly weddings and events that are unique and memorable. Like what you see? Let us know how we can help with your event. Email us!
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