You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep
because reality is finally better than your dreams.
~ Dr. Seuss~
Blake & Julie were married on September 3rd in O’Fallon, Illinois. I just adore this couple and was so excited they chose me as their wedding photographer. I’ve know Blake for over 15 years. He and my Brother have been such great friends growing up. (The tall groomsmen in the photos is my brother. He’s not hard to spot!) The wedding day was filled with such sweet, tender moments. The first look, first dances, etc were filled with so much emotion. I got a little teary eyed myself! Everything was just perfection.
Well…except for the rain. We were on our way to Forest Park for photos when the sky turned black. The winds were howling & it started to pour….and then the hail started coming down. It was craziness! We pulled over in Forest Park and waited for the system to move out. The temp went from 100 degrees to 70 after the rain. It was a blessing in disguise! We ended up with perfect sky & temps…and perfect photos!
Here’s a few from their sweet, love-filled day!
Julie was such a great wedding planner. Each detail was thought of & everything was done with perfection. She was sweet enough to share with us the vendors that she used!
Hair & Makeup – Studio Eleven Salon, Maryville, IL
Florist – Michael Stevens
Church – St. Clare, O’Fallon, IL (gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!!)
Reception – Scott Club at Scott Air Force Base
Cake – Exquisite Cakes, St. Louis, MO
Dress–La Sposa purchased from Simply Elegant Bridal, St. Louis, MO
Tuxes – Stallone’s Formal Wear
Musicians – We had a friend and family member sing at our ceremony. They did an amazing job and gave me goosebumps!
DJ – Memories Productions (Their set up was great!!)
First dance song– This Kind of Love by Sister Hazel
Funniest memory from your wedding day? The funniest moment for me and all the bridesmaids was trying to get me into my dress. It took a good 20-30 minutes to hook all the buttons and the only thing that seemed to help was when I would stick out my rear end. I got extremely impatient so I decided to eat a brownie as they buttoned. The girls got a big kick out it!
What was your favorite detail from your wedding day? My favorite wedding detail was the nacho cheese fountain at the reception. Ever since I saw it on a wedding blog, I knew I had to have one at my wedding. It was a big hit!
Any advice you would give to future brides and grooms?
1) If you are willing to break tradition, I would recommend seeing eachother before the ceremony. Not only was it a special moment for us, but It eased both of our nerves so much and helped the day go smoothly.
2) Have a few friends help you out the day of the wedding. Without the help of my 2 friends, I would have been stressing out over all the details. They helped me out tremendously and I could not have done it all without them.
3) Most importantly, don’t stress if your day does not go 100% as planned. Mother nature may just have a plan of her own or you may not be on “schedule” but at the end of the day you will be married to the love of your life, which is the only thing that matters 🙂
Would you change anything if you did it all over again? Absolutely nothing! Everything turned out perfectly.
Where did you go on your honeymoon? We went to Riviera Maya, Mexico and stayed at Secrets Maroma Beach. It was absolutely beautiful and a well deserved, relaxing vacation after all the stress of wedding planning!
Anything else you’d like to include from your day? I would like to thank Kellie and Tim for helping our day go smoothly despite hold ups at the church and hitting a monsoon on our way to Forest Park! You both captured our day so beautifully and made it perfect for us!
There were so many amazing photos from their day…I had a hard time deciding which ones to use for their slideshow!
Perfect! Julie looked so amazing – Blake looked nice too! 🙂 Kellie you did such a fantastic job capturing such a beautiful couple. I LOVE every picture you took, I’m not sure you ever narrowed them down!!!
I just love every single one of them! I could look at them everyday (which I think I have so far). It was such a great day and you captured everything beautifully!! Perfection!
p.s. I am totally jealous…I want your job!