N I C O L E + C H A Z
Lovebirds Nicole and Chaz tied the knot on the 24th November in their hometown of Frederick, Maryland (USA). Easy-going bride Nicole says, “The best advice I can give anyone on their wedding day is, do not stress. Things will go wrong, things you cannot control, so let everything roll off your shoulders and truly enjoy the day.” Her advice is to smile hard and laugh often, after all it’s the most memorable and amazing day of your life, so you may as well enjoy every second of it!
F R O M T H E B R I D E
How we met…
I first met Chaz at Firestone’s, a restaurant in downtown Frederick, MD in January of 2011. Chaz was home for Winter Break during his first year of law school, and a mutual friend introduced us at that time. When I left Firestone’s that night, Chaz begged my friend for my number and my friend was more than willing to help. Despite Chaz’s best efforts, while back at law school in the days following our introduction, I was not very interested and our talks fizzled.
In April of 2013, Chaz was out celebrating after having just finished his final law school classes and he again saw me at Firestone’s in downtown Frederick. This time around Chaz and I had many more mutual friends. Chaz found a seat next to me and talked to me about a wedding he was supposed to attend just a few weeks away and about the fact that he still needed a date for it. I proceeded to tell Chaz how much I loved weddings and in the days that followed Chaz convinced me to be his date for the wedding. I almost backed out of the date at the last second, but my friends convinced me to go. The wedding ended up being a blast, and the rest is history!
When we knew it was love…
I think we both knew it was love when we realised how comfortable we were around each other so early on. We would make fun of each other, laughed a lot, and enjoyed doing the little things together. We just truly enjoyed being together.
The engagement…
On a Friday night in early November, 2014, Chaz and I headed over to a friend’s house for what I thought was our friend’s birthday celebration. Many of our friends were at the get-together, but I was the only person in attendance who did not know the real reason for the celebration. At one point in the evening Chaz decided to liven up the party and take centre stage in front of everyone. He claimed to have a new magic trick involving a deck of cards that he wanted to show off.
Chaz asked me to help him with the trick. Chaz had me pick four friends from the group and those friends were then each asked to leave the room and randomly pick a card from the deck. Meanwhile, I was asked to guess and write down what four cards my friends would randomly select. My friends then came back into the room and handed the four selected cards to Chaz. Chaz then handed the four cards to me and told me to flip them over, one by one, to see if they matched the cards I had predicted and previously written down. As I began to flip the cards over, I (albeit delayed) began to realise that the cards read “WILL-YOU-MARRY-ME?” At that moment I was so shocked that I looked at Chaz and asked “Is this real life?!” Chaz then got down on one knee and proposed in front of all of our friends. I was so excited, I failed to give a true “yes” or “no” answer, but, at that point, it was safe to assume that I said “YES!”
T H E W E D D I N G
Our dream wedding…
I have always dreamed of a romantic, glam wedding. Being that we had a fall wedding, berry-tones was the perfect colour palette and adding gold accents gave it that extra spark of glam. I called our theme Berry Tone Glam.
The ceremony…
The ceremony was held at Saint John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church, in Frederick, MD. I grew up going to school at Saint John’s; meanwhile Chaz’s parents and grandparents were both married at Saint John’s. Getting married at this church meant a lot to both of us.
The reception…
Dutch’s Daughter in Frederick, MD.
Our photographer…
Martyr and Lee Photography, did our photos. My friend referred them to us and I loved their style of photography. You really got the best of both worlds between Steph’s soft digital pictures and Johnny’s black and white film photos. After meeting with them we knew they were a perfect fit for us. It was easy to see how passionate they were about their work, they had this great energy about them. They were absolutely amazing to work with.
The gown…
I purchased my wedding gown from Love Culture. It was a mermaid style, with a tulle bottom; it was very whimsical, yet soft and elegant. Designed by Lazaro; I had always dreamt about wearing one of his gowns. When I first tried it on I instantly fell in love and knew it was the one.
Styling inspiration…
I saw a colour swatch of ‘berry tones’ and instantly fell in love and knew that was the colour theme I wanted to go with. I wanted to do something unique and different from what everyone else is doing and I did not see a lot of weddings in the berry tone theme.
Pre-wedding celebrations…
As an Arab tradition, family and friends gathered at my parents’ house, where my bridal party and I were getting ready. They were all there to witness my entrance down the stairs and help celebrate our big day. Essentially this is an Arabic version of a first look, except without the groom, but with all your family and friends. Everyone piled into their cars, following our Limo Bus to the ceremony, honking their horns in celebration the entire way to the church.
The bridal party…
We had eight bridesmaids and eight groomsmen. My side consisted of my three sisters, my sister-in-law, two cousins, and two friends. Chaz’s side consisted of seven friends, and my brother (his brother-in-law).
The Bridesmaids wore gowns from the Dessy Collection. I had all my bridesmaids’ wear different shades of berry tones, with colours ranging from a deep sangria, to lavender, to a fuchsia pink. The bridesmaids’ dresses ranged in style as well. The flower girl wore an ivory tutu with a leotard, like a beautiful ballerina. The groomsmen wore Black Vera Wang custom fit Tuxedo’s with a black three-button vest and a deep plum tie, while the Groom wore a traditional black tie. The ring bearer matched the Groom.
The florals…
I wanted my bouquet to have a soft and classic look. It was made up of soft white and pale pink roses with a collar of dusty miller. My bouquet was then wrapped with a rose gold, pearl rosary that was brought over from Bethlehem. It meant a lot to have a piece of the Holy Land with me. My bridesmaids’ bouquets included shades of red, sangria, soft pink, lavender, deep purple and berries.
The reception styling…
As soon as you entered Dutch’s Daughter, there were signs directing guests that read “This way to Love, Laughter, & Happily Ever After,” with an arrow directing you to go up the stairs. As you walked up the staircase to the ballroom, at the top of the stairs, you were greeted with a table with a beautiful floral arrangement, table place cards and wedding pictures of the bride and grooms’ parents and grandparents.
The venue was decorated with light pink up-lighting, which transformed the room. There were two tulle and string light backdrops, which added the extra sparkle to the room when you walked in. Guest tables were numbered with gold picture frames. The tables were decorated with shades of purple, red and pink flowers, and berries to fit the berry tone theme, as well as three-tiered floating candles, which added a romantic feel. The tables were also set with a dinner menu and a personalised stubby coolers, as a favour to our guests.
The sweetheart table was dressed with a chevron gold and crème sequinned table runner, covered in red rose petals, candles, and gold “Mr & Mrs” block letters. The card box was a birdcage, painted gold with a deep plum ribbon tied around it. Placed in front were gold block letters reading “Cards”. The guestbook was a photo album filled with pictures of the bride and groom, placed next to it was a sign reading, “Please sign our guestbook” in a gold picture frame. Placed at all three bars was a sign that read, “Trust me you can dance – Alcohol,” which was also in a gold frame. In a side room was a 10 x 10 customised Step & Repeat Photo-booth backdrop with customised props.
The menu…
We had a seated dinner where guests had the choice of Maryland Style Crab Cakes, Filet Mignon, or Chicken, served with a side of green beans and twice baked mashed potatoes. For dessert we had cheesecake and French macaroons and the late night snack was a French-fry bar.
The bomboniere…
Custom stubby coolers that read “Nicole & Chaz; 10.24.15; Frederick, Md” The back read “Love” except the “o” was replaced with a popular Maryland logo.
Memorable moments…
Some of the most memorable parts of the night included Arabic dancing traditions. At one point, some of our larger/stronger friends lifted us up on chairs on the dance floor, while everyone else danced around us. I also danced with an Arabic sword that symbolised power and strength. My mother brought traditional Arabic hats that were passed around to many of the guests as well. Finally, we also had Arabic drummers present throughout the evening to complement the DJ – the drummers were a big hit and let many guests practice on the drums throughout the night.
M A R R I E D L I F E
The honeymoon…
We honeymooned in Antigua and stayed at a small boutique resort called Hermitage Bay. It’s a five-star, all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean. From our hillside room with a private plunge pool overlooking the island, to the five-star dining and the amazing staff, this resort truly was a slice of heaven.
The future…
Since our wedding our family has grown with the addition of our boxer puppy, Champion. We hope to continue to grow our family.
In 40 years we hope to…
Be celebrating our wedding anniversary at Hermitage Bay, as happy and as in love as we are now.
W O R D S O F W I S D O M
On the engagement…
You are only engaged once, so embrace the excitement and love that you are surrounded by. And of course, wear your “Feyonce” t.shirt as often as possible.
On planning…
Plan ahead. The more you can finalise earlier the better. This will leave you with more time to focus on the small details. It also helps eliminate stress as you head into the final months or weeks before the wedding.
The wedding day…
The best advice I can give anyone on their wedding day is, do not stress. Things will go wrong, things you cannot control, so let everything roll off your shoulders and truly enjoy the day. Smile hard and laugh often, this will be the most memorable, amazing day of your life. Enjoy every second of it.
Photography Martyr & Lee Photography / Videographer Lee Russell Films / Florist Ory’s Florals / Lighting Amplified Lighting / Hair & Makeup JKW Beauty / Reception Dutch’s Daughter / DJ DJ Ramzy Haddad / Drummer The Handsmiths / Wedding Cake Mandy Trapaso / Transportation On the Town Limousines Inc / Invitations Carlson Craft / Wedding Dress Love Couture Bridal / Wedding Shoes Badgley Mischka / Bridesmaids’ Dresses Dessy Collection / Groom and Groomsmen Attire Vera Wang, Men’s Warehouse / Flower-girl’s Tutu Tutu Girl / Bride’s Earrings Etsy / Sequin Table Runners Afloral /Gold Wood Signs Etsy / Cake Topper Etsy / Birdcage for Cards Save On Crafts