Nightingale Nuptials, Part One

Posted on August 23rd, 2017

August 27, a day which means nothing to most people, is right around the corner.  Ian and I will be celebrating our first anniversary, which, coincidentally, is the one year anniversary of the best day of my life.  I did share a peek at our rehearsal dinner, but let’s just pretend like you’ve been itching to see photos from the day itself, and let’s also pretend like scrolling through the 1,200 images is not my favorite pastime and that I have many other interesting hobbies.  I’m breaking this into a few installments so your fingers don’t get tired from all of the scrolling.

Getting to celebrate my partnership with Ian with all of our friends and family was the biggest honor of my life.  Being surrounded by people who want to share in your joy and excitement is a deeply moving experience.  I do not take a single moment of the day for granted, from the solo run I took to clear my head at sunrise to the nightcap we shared with our close friends at the hotel at the end of the evening.  I try not to let perfect be the enemy of good, and yes, it might have been nice if it had not started unexpectedly raining while Ian and I were exchanging vows, but nothing could rain on my parade when bolstered by all that L-O-V-E!

My bridesmaids, mom, and I reported early for wedding duty at our club, where a carefully choreographed set of hair and makeup preparation executed by three amazingly talented professionals began.  Normally I have trouble sitting still and being patient during beauty rituals– 70% of my manicures end with me asking if I can skip the massage/lotion/whatever at the end so I can leave– but I wasn’t rushing a single moment of the day.  Yet even though 9am had sounded impossibly early when my (perfect, flawless) wedding planner had insisted on it, time flew by and before I knew it, we were getting in our dresses.

The Oscar de la Renta dress I wore is pretty much in line with the bridal vision I’ve always had for myself.  A simple, timeless silhouette, an unembellished fabric, but something I knew I could only wear on this one occasion.  I made a few modifications to the dress and added with a sash (thanks, Amazon) and chose accessories with meaning.  Since I had chosen my dress and did fittings in Seattle, it was a surprise to all of my girls, so I did a First Look with my bridesmaids, which was adorably fun.  If they don’t cry when they see you, they’re doing it wrong.

Then it was time for my First Look with Ian.  As I had indicated, I was on the fence of doing a First Look, and really ended up just defaulting to it because it was too difficult for us to figure out the timeline so that we could attend the cocktail hour if we did not.  My apprehension, as usual, ended up being unfounded.  It was beautiful to share the moment with him at the beginning of the evening, and it in no way took away from the moment we first saw each other walking down the aisle.

Our First Look location held special meaning for us, too.  Weddings are celebrated in traditional fashion at my family’s club by decorating the long drive with big bows hanging from the light posts.  Everyone sees the bows and knows there is a marriage being celebrated.  Every summer, I would see bows and feel so excited for the bride (who, most of the time, was someone I knew), and would look forward to the day when the bows were for me.  Meeting my groom on our wedding day under the ribbons was so emotional!

We had not taken engagement photos so this was our first time having pictures taken together, but our photographer, Kate, did an amazing job making us feel comfortable.  We were so swept up in the moment and in sharing it with one another that we forgot to be embarrassed!

Ian and his crew looked dreamy in their white dinner jackets.  The same ensembles worn at the same location by my grandfather on my grandparents’ wedding day sixty years earlier!

The photos were fun, but at this point I had one thing on my mind: time to get married!!