Couple Spotlight: Rachel & Bobby

It's the height of wedding season here at All She Wrote and that can only mean one thing: a flurry of newly engaged couples are picking the attire, venue and invitations that will make their big day uniquely their own. One of our own employees, Rachel, recently tied the knot in a stunning May 9th ceremony and we could not wait to hear all about her special day.

The Meet Cute:  Bobby and I met through my college friend, Lisa, who worked at the Alzheimer’s Association with Bobby. We met on the corner of Jackson and Wells before our first date. I worked right across the street and he passed that corner on the way home every day. 

The Proposal:  The evening started out as a normal walk, but Bobby had so much more planned. We got to the zoo and he proposed right at the entrance because he couldn’t make it any further on the walk down to the pond! It is a spot we love to walk through, and he knew it would be a special memory. After that we celebrated with pink champagne, lilies, and a romantic dinner at Piccolo Sogno.

The Invitations: I knew I wanted an invitation with fun gold print, and the gold polka dot liner because it went with our whole vision. My mom came and looked after Bobby and I got engaged, and we recreated the suite with some of our own ideas – it turned out better than we could have imagined! My mom did the calligraphy for the save the dates and the invites.  

The Big Day: We both didn’t want to see each other before the ceremony, so we took a picture on either side of the door of the bridal suite. It’s such a special picture to capture the moment right before the ceremony. Bobby said seeing the doors open was one of his favorite moments. The ceremony was so personal to us, and at the cocktail hour we had so many guests tell us it was one of the best ceremonies they had been to because Father Paul had us face all of our guests throughout. We wanted to share some of our favorite drink and snacks with our guests so we created speciality drinks and served mini pretzels with cheese, and short rib tacos later in the night at the reception.

The Lessons Learned: The last few weeks were definitely hectic tying up all of the loose ends, but it was fun to be able to do it together. We wanted to just enjoy this time while we were planning our wedding and preserve the organic feel of the day.

Bride’s attire: Alvina Valenta | Hair & Makeup: Robert Jeffrey Salon & Reiman Condron Beauty | Groom’s attire: Groom’s own tux | Planner: Bee for the Day | Invitations: William Arthur by All She Wrote | Photographer: Colin Lyons Photography | Flowers: Jazzy Flowers | Music: Deja Vu Band | Ceremony: Saint Francis Xavier | Venue & Catering: Venue One Chicago | Cake: Groom’s cousin