Rachel and Michael got married one year ago at one of the finest hotels in Chicago – The Drake Hotel. Take a look at these great photos taken by Shane Welch Photography and re-live their big day!

RMbp-023RMbp-036The ceremony was full of Jewish wedding traditions, complete with the tisch and the bedeken. These particular aspects of a Jewish ceremony are focused on unifying the bride and groom’s families.

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To begin the wedding, the men danced in to greet the bride, and the bride sat on a throne of sorts. Once they signed the ketubah, Rachel was unveiled and the parents smashed a plate. From there, the couple proceeded down the aisle, and stopped under the chuppa. The ceremony was lively and joyous, and that is how the entire night continued.

RMcer-094RMcer-148RMcer-155RMcer-215After the lovely ceremony, guests gathered in the reception hall. The beautiful decor, centered on the colors purple and green, was done by Pollen – there were tall centerpieces with ferns dripping down. There were many lovely paper touches by Spilled Ink Press, that were all cohesive with the invitations. The couple really injected their personalities wherever they could. Since the groom is a big fan of Dr. Who, their card box was a Tardis.

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It was an East Coast style reception, where the guests danced to a live band – Don Cagen Orchestra – in between courses (and boy, did they LOVE to dance!). The guests put on a schtick for the newlyweds – where everyone made the couple laugh.

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Then they of course went into the high-spirited hora!

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Happy anniversary, Rachel and Michael!