Aimee and Ben tied the knot one year ago today at Kendall College. The space had a rustic feel- featuring exposed bricks,  and windows all around overlooking the beautiful Chicago skyline. Plentiful glimmering candles were set in the windows for extra ambiance. See photos of their wedding below by Kristen Barker Photography.

9114a1fd2ffc7cbcfcfc9a2d3c5282c1832b29fc9032c2a33c76149898cbUpon arriving, each guest was greeted by the couple into a cocktail hour. Once their guests had arrived and settled, they moved towards the chuppah and began the ceremony. The wedding had a very intimate feel, despite the larger guest list.

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f78718dec1a72f8b1b5858258d2d2643def9399bThe couple’s centerpieces were a combination of candles accompanied by lovely orchids from Ashland and Addison. Their color scheme was very simple and elegant – black and white. They wanted to embrace the fact that their wedding was in the middle of January. Snowflake details were featured on their invitations, so they kept the winter theme going through their escort cards and their sweets table backdrop. They chose to do a bunch of little pastries and four or five different cakes. Guests freely came up and selected which desserts they wanted.b3e8691fc983b9f3a87ed4db290e920df17906f59c6c92225df1b047bf80

890369c12c9f54eb3292e464aa56e4ba6cebfe2118578d18969bfd6b4ab0ef444f2ee5c01dcb8235After exchanging their vows, there was a long cocktail hour that featured a chef demonstration by a Kendall College alumna. They had a New York style reception that was all about dancing. Guests got up in between courses to dance for a few songs, making the reception feel more interactive.

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c6f6b6d0373d92f320ba6b1cce0bcedbea508698After dinner, the whiskey bar opened up. The groom picked out three to five nice whiskeys and guests were able to go up to this separate bar to enjoy them. (Wedding Tip: Instead of having a full open bar for the entire event, offer one main bar that is beer and wine, and then after dinner have another specialty bar open up that is just a whiskey, craft beer, or cocktail bar. This will minimize the cost of booze!).

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At the end of the wedding, their guests got into a giant group and swayed arm in arm, singing a song to the couple as they danced in the middle. It was a lovely and sweet moment. Aimee and Ben’s wedding was the perfect first wedding of the year.