D A N I E L L E + M I C H A E L
Danielle and Michael’s speakeasy-style wedding was full of classic Old Hollywood style charm and beautiful heartfelt surprises. The couple was married in the church Danielle’s great-great-great grandfather built in Iowa, upon settling in America.
F R O M T H E B R I D E
How we met…
Michael played in the band at Calvary Saint George’s Church in NYC. After weeks of talking Michael finally got around to asking me out for dinner.
We knew it was love…
We found out we both have a secret, or not so secret, wish to be pirates.
Our engagement…
On the beach in Atlantic City, NJ. Michael had planned to propose at the Surf Lodge in Montauk, NY where we had shared a memorable weekend early on in our relationship. While driving out for a weekend getaway to the Hamptons, the hotel Michael had booked called to notify us they had over-booked and actually had no rooms available. Neither did any of the other hotels in the Hamptons. We went for dinner in East Hampton and then back to NYC and decided to head to Atlantic City the next day. Michael’s plan of a beach proposal took place just a bit further south down the coast than planned.
T H E W E D D I N G
Our dream wedding…
A modern yet classic day celebrating us along with our story. From feathers to the bear ice sculpture, we shared hints of our nicknames for one another (he calls me Bird, while I call him Bear), along with my love for fashion and Old Hollywood and his love for music. I surprised him with the ice sculpture, while he had planned a surprise original song to serenade me.
The ceremony…
St. John’s Lutheran Church Osage, Iowa. My great-great-great grandfather, upon settling in America, built the church we married in.
Our photographer…
Our photographer was Annabel Hannah. My sister Dana is an architectural photographer and knew Annabel from school in Santa Barbara, CA. Annabel lives here in NYC and Dana connected us with her. What did we love about the pictures? Just look at them! Annabel is incredibly talented and made us feel so comfortable.
Our videographer…
We used Darren Miller Films. My brother, and groomsman, is a videographer and gifted us a wedding video that captures the day perfectly, while even managing to have some fun! We had no idea what to expect; we’ve never seen a more beautiful video.
The reception…
The Historic Park Inn Mason City, IA. The hotel, the last standing Frank Lloyd Wright hotel in the world, set the backdrop for the speakeasy themed evening. Our guests drank beers out of brown paper bags and cocktails from personalised teacups and saucers.
Pre-wedding celebrations…
We held a rehearsal dinner for our wedding party and out of town guests at my favourite Mexican spot in Mason City, Pastime Gardens. While we hadn’t envisioned wearing a sombrero it sure makes for a great memory!
The bridal party…
Six bridesmaids and six groomsmen. Bridesmaids – Maid and Matron of honour were my two sisters, Mike’s sister, two friends from home, and one friend from NYC who I met at school at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). Groomsmen – the best man was Michael’s best friend and former bandmate from home, my brother, my sister’s husband, another friend and formal bandmate, a roommate from college, and a friend from NYC.
My bridesmaids wore full length Pistachio coloured dresses from Bill Levkoff and Yosi Samara bridal flats. The groomsmen wore navy tuxedos with black bowties by Michael Kors from Moorman Clothiers in Mason City.
The groom wore…
A navy tuxedo with black bowtie by Michael Kors from Moorman Clothiers in Mason City.
The gown…
As I work in fashion, finding the perfect dress was not an easy task. My mum, Michael’s mum and sister, and one of my bridesmaids, came to NYC for a weekend booked full of dress appointments. My style is very modern and my requirements were no lace and no sparkles. I must have tried on over 100 dresses, finding many that were pretty but none that I felt was the one. After trying on all of the gowns I felt lost and was going to schedule appointments to retry the top contenders.
As my mum was getting ready to head back home to Minneapolis we were researching any other places I should go and she came across the Glamour Closet. A few days later I stopped there by myself just to see what they had before I dragged my bridesmaids to any more shops! Before I knew it, there I was alone with the kind ladies at the shop, crying in my Carolina Herrera gown with lots of lace and sparkles! The dress was absolutely perfect, it was modern yet reflected 1930s glamour of the day and believe it or not, needed no alterations!
The veil I designed and made with my bridesmaid whom I met at fashion school. For the reception I swapped the veil for my great-grandmother’s vintage hair comb.
Flowers in the bouquet…
I debated between a colourful bouquet and white flowers and ended up siding with white. I wanted everything to be classic. My bouquet was made up of peonies, garden roses, mini calla lilies, sweet peas, and ranunculus. The sweet peas were hard for Becky, from Scent From Heaven, to get but I’m so thankful she was able to source them as they smelled amazing and added a beautiful texture to the bouquet. The bouquets and boutonnières were wrapped with Michael’s gold guitar stings.
Reception styling…
The hotel really speaks for itself. I didn’t want anything to distract from the beauty of the hotel and also wanted to keep it simple and true to the speakeasy feel. White, gold, and the greenery helped to mix in with the décor. Palm leaves and gladiolus flowers along with tall cylinder vases with floating candles were the basis of our table settings along with “tea” cups and feather pins guests had fun accessorising with.
Flowers and decoration vendors…
Reception Flowers – Baker’s Floral – Mason City, IA.
Decorations – My mum is an amazing decorator; I was so lucky to have her to help me plan the entire look and feel.
Cake – Hy-Vee East of Mason City
Invitations – The Paper Nest, Iowa City. I goofed and forgot to bring an extra set of them to be photographed with our detail shots on the day of. The custom letterpress invitations set the tone including speakeasy membership card.
The menu for the evening…
I was in a rosé champagne mood while Michael is a classic Macallan 10 scotch man. Guests were invited to a cocktail reception inside the Skylight Room at The Historic Park Inn.
Cocktail Reception
Meatballs with Bourbon Sauce
Tomato Basil Bruschetta
Greek Salsa with Pita Chips
Meal
We wanted our guests to enjoy a truly Iowa menu with a farm to table feel. Yes, there are pictures of me eating the corn on the cob in my wedding dress!
Iowa Chop with Apple Cranberry Chutney
Tomato Roughy Salad
Coverleaf Rolls and Butter
Corn on the Cob
Oven Roasted Red Potatoes
The bomboniere…
Guests took home the custom speakeasy tea cups and saucers. We have heard from our guests they are great for eating ice cream!
Memorable moments…
The ride in the limo to the church with my bridesmaids. The 30-minute ride was perfect as we were able to just relax and have fun. Michael’s three requests for the wedding were seeing me for the first time as I walked down the aisle, an amazing live band and marble cake. I will never forget the feeling of walking down the aisle with my Dad to meet Michael. Our band the Gatsby Gang with Jason Price Music was beyond what we expected and we compromised on a white cake with marble sheet cakes.
After exiting the church, Michael and I took a moment to have a glass of champagne in the bus we were heading to the reception with our wedding party in. We also slipped up to our room so I could take off my veil before heading into the wedding reception. These few moments of just us made the day even more special.
Having our family and friends with us to celebrate the day. We debated getting married here in NYC and for all the times during planning I swore we should have just eloped, I am so thankful we were able to get married in my home state with so many of our family and friends. My grandmother passed away just this past October from ALS and she was at our wedding cheering us on; I am so thankful we were all able to share the moment together.
Surprises…
I call Michael ‘Bear’, HyVee helped me to get a bear ice sculpture at the entrance of the reception without him knowing! Michael sings and plays guitar, I always used to joke with him as to why he never wrote a song about me. During our reception he surprised me with an original song.
Our wedding soundtrack…
Shake it Off – Taylor Swift (Seriously, just relax!)
Sugar –Maroon 5 (Bridal Party Entrance)
You & Me – Dave Matthews Band (First Dance)
You are the Sunshine of Life – Stevie Wonder (Father/Daughter Dance)
God Only Knows – The Beach Boys (Mother of the Groom/Groom Dance)
Can You Feel the Love Tonight – Elton John (My cousins and I sang this song for our grandparents, who were married over 59 years, at their 40th wedding anniversary party)
Empire State of Mind – Alicia Keys
M A R R I E D L I F E
Our honeymoon…
We went to Antigua for the honeymoon. Beyond the much appreciated relaxing time and the pool and the beaches we topped our trip with a day on the D-Boat.
Future plans…
Just being us and seeing what life has in store. With Michael working in the television and movie industry and me in fashion, NYC is home. We are enjoying our life with our dog Arnie and each other.
In 40 years we hope to…
Feel the love we had for one another on our wedding day along with the added love and understanding of the years.
W O R D S O F W I S D O M
On planning…
My sister gave me this advice, and I still didn’t listen, go easy on Pinterest. Yes, there are so many beautiful pictures but the hours, maybe days I spent pouring over images left my mind spinning. Stay true to you as a couple and think about your venue and you will go in the right direction. Sorry to my mum and bridesmaids for the non-stop Pinterest photo overload at all hours of the day!
Dance lessons! Wedding planning is crazy, we were so thankful to have one night a week to devote to us. We had so much fun performing our foxtrot dance to You & Me by Dave Matthews Band for our guests. We loved Robert at You Should Be Dancing in NYC.
The wedding day…
Just relax and enjoy your day! I will never forget the feeling waking up the next morning thinking, did that really just happen? It was absolutely perfect. Sure a few things didn’t go as planned, but our amazing vendors and family took care of everything with most of the glitches going unnoticed by us!
Photographer Annabel Hannah / Videographer Darren Miller Films / Reception The Historic Park Inn / Pre-wedding celebrations Pastime Gardens / Gown Glamour Closet / Bridesmaids’ dresses Bill Levkoff / Bridesmaids’ shoes Yosi Samara / Groom and groomsmen’s suits Michael Kors from Moorman Clothiers / Invitations The Paper Nest / Band Gatsby Gang with Jason Price Music / Dance teacher You Should Be Dancing