Valerie & Jon's Ivy Room Wedding - Part 1

When Valerie first reached out to me about planning their wedding, she mentioned in her inquiry form that they "would like a wedding that incorporates the city while having outdoor elements at either the reception or the ceremony. We're both laid back and outgoing and would like a wedding that reflects our personalities." The Ivy Room was the perfect Chicago wedding venue that fit their vision to a T... a downtown venue that has the most gorgeous, intimate, ivy-covered courtyard (hence the venue name!), perfect for their wedding ceremony.

And throughout our fourteen months of planning together (planning afar, as they are both Brooklynites), they truly were one of the most laid back couples I've ever had the pleasure of working with! They weren't looking for tons of different choices; they trusted me to present them with 2 to 3 great vendor options in each category which they considered thoughtfully, and made their decisions quickly, and decisively. Talk about DREAM. CLIENTS! I'm so excited to share their beautiful wedding photos, courtesy of Steve Koo Photography! By the way, I love working with Steve; together we are like a well-oiled wedding machine :) Here are their photos from the first half of their wedding day.

Fun Fact: Both Val and Jon are twins! Val has an identical twin sister, and Jon has a fraternal twin brother!

Val's dress and all her accessories were a complete reflection of her laid back, modern but romantic, and a little bit of boho-chic aesthetic!

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Florist extraordinaire, Flor del Monte, created a lush, effortlessly textured bouquet in shades of white and purples with soft, trailing greenery. Val's bouquet (above left) incorporated white dahlias, garden roses, burgundy ranunculous, astilbe, lavender freesia, and eucalyptus.

Both Val and Jon got ready at the Intercontinental Hotel Chicago, a few short blocks from the Ivy Room. So close that they didn't even need to hire any wedding day transportation, they just wanted to walk from point A to point B! Easy peasy.

This staircase (above) in the lobby of the Intercontinental Hotel is gorgeous, and perfect for a few quick shots with the groomsmen! And also in the lobby was a shoe shine station, so when better to get your shoes shined than on your wedding day?

And somehow, Val unexpectedly got upgraded to one of the hotel's most premier suites (she said she had no idea why, but THANK YOU!). It was huuuuge, and so gorgeous that on the day of the wedding, we ditched the original plan of having the First Look across the street at the Wrigley Building. Instead, we decided that this gorgeous staircase was the ideal spot for them their First Look! I love these photos of Val gliding down the staircase in all her wedding finery.

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Yes, Val's bridesmaids ALL WORE WHITE!! They pulled this off perfectly, with Val in her long white gown, while all the bridesmaids were in short white cocktail dresses and neutral strappy sandals. Believe it or not, this actually goes back to an old tradition: in the "olden days", Brides and Bridesmaids would all wear white in order to confuse and ward off evil spirits who wished to harm the bride. This, obviously, is a much more modern and chic version of that tale!

This staircase (above) in the lobby of the Intercontinental Hotel is gorgeous, and perfect for a few quick shots with the groomsmen! And also in the lobby was a shoe shine station, so when better to get your shoes shined than on your wedding day?

And somehow, Val unexpectedly got upgraded to one of the hotel's most premier suites (she said she had no idea why, but THANK YOU!). It was huuuuge, and so gorgeous that on the day of the wedding, we ditched the original plan of having the First Look across the street at the Wrigley Building. Instead, we decided that this gorgeous staircase was the ideal spot for them their First Look! I love these photos of Val gliding down the staircase in all her wedding finery.