Real Wedding Q&A: Amy & Mark

How did you meet your Fiance? It was a surprisingly hot day on March 15, 2012 which happened to be the first day of the NCAA Basketball tournament.  Eric was at a bar called Pour House with the guys gambling and watching the games. Later that evening, Amy came to the bar with her co-worker, who just so happened to know Nikhil (a groomsmen).  Amy was ready to cheer on her Cyclones and decided to sit across from Eric (lucky for him).  She overheard a bet Eric made on Red Lobster and declared it was the 'dumbest' bet ever.  This prompted the two to begin talking for the rest of the night which led to their first date the following Tuesday.  The two have been inseparable since. Tell us about the proposal! Amy was in Minneapolis for a day trip on Friday (09/26), she had a return flight arriving at 4:00 which would give her ample time to make their 7:00 dinner reservation. Unfortunately this Friday was the day of Aurora Air Tower fire, which meant Amy was stranded in Minneapolis until Sunday. Luckily, Amy decided to rent a car and make the 7 hour drive home.  During the drive, Amy told Eric she would need a big glass of wine. When she arrived home at 10PM, Eric immediately said "let's go to the roof, I have a bottle opened."  The roof was covered in candles and rose petals, champagne was on the table with 2 dozen red roses and "A Whole New World" was playing in the background.  Eric then got down on his knee and asked the most important question of his life, "Amy, will you marry me?"  (She said yes.)  They gazed out over the city discussing which of their friends and family they would tell first. Eric told Amy to turn around. To her surprise, Amy saw both families present in the doorway. The families celebrated until 2:30 AM and continued the celebration throughout the weekend. The engagement was perfect despite an unexpected 7 hour road trip and a cancelled dinner reservation :) How did you choose the location for your wedding? What type of venue were you looking for? We emailed over 30 different venues throughout the city.  We knew we wanted something that represented Chicago and could fit 250+ guests.  We visited 5 different locations, when we walked in the library we knew it was perfect for us. How did you decide on your bridesmaids dresses? Tell us about your experience at Bella! As it turns out it takes a lot of effort to look effortless, but luckily Bella made the process super easy!  My MOH, Amanda, and I went to Bella on Sunday and spent about an hour with her trying on dresses.  Bella picked out around 15 different options, we narrowed it down to 10 to try on, and then picked out the best dress (including a backup) for each girl.  I wanted to pick out a unique dress for each bridesmaid based on their individual style; Bella made this easy (and fun) to do.

Who designed your bridal gown? Where did you get it? My gown was part of the Demetrios Bridal collection at Macy's.  My mom and I went shopping on a Monday and had a blast; it was such a special moment to share between the two of us!  I would recommend doing wedding dress shopping on a Monday; you'll get lots of attention as the stores aren't packed and you won't feel rushed. What was your favorite part of the day? It's hard to pick a favorite, but I loved our first dance.  We did a slow dance to "A Whole New World" that transitioned into a choreographed dance to "Shut Up and Dance."  This was a great way to kickoff the dance party! What inspired you when you were planning your big day? This sounds cheesy, but it was our relationship that inspired us throughout the planning.  We love Chicago, it's where we met, it's where we live/work, it's where are life is and we wanted the wedding to represent that.  We also love having fun and wanted our guests (bridesmaids included) to feel comfortable and welcomed...we didn't want anyone walking away saying they didn't have fun.

What advise do you have for other brides? Cliche and not original, but have fun!  You are going to have to make lots of decisions, you will start spending hours thinking about things you didn't know you cared about, but through it all remember to sit back and enjoy it.  Eat the extra desserts at the caterer tasting, lose a couple of hours of sleep so that you can catch up on your TV shows with your finance, call your mom to talk 30 minutes about signature drinks, do it all and have fun!  The planning process goes fast and the day goes even faster, try and be in the moment and take it all in.  It's a blast!