On Thursday, October 29th, 2015 I had an initial consult in my studio with a mother of the bride, helping her daughter plan her dream wedding. We chatted about the couples love story, her and her husband’s own love story (27 years together at that point) and how she wanted the wedding planning process to be fun for everyone! I knew they were a KOWE couple/family and could not wait to meet Marissa and John.

Fast forward 1 year, 7 months, 12 days to Saturday, June 10th, 2017 – wedding day at the Hall of Springs.

Katie O’ says: “My heart is just SO full. Working together with this family and an amazing team of vendors is a perfect example of planning through our #KOWEcorevalues. We were able to share the love story, plan with passion, cultivate creativity and always keep family first. Thank you to the Valletta/Seagrave families for trusting us with such a special celebration. It was an honor to make your wedding day dream come true.

Mother of the Bride, Patty says: “I will never forget the first time I stepped into your office and met you for the first time. I knew right away with your personality and energy that you would be a perfect fit for us. I picked up the phone as soon as I left and told Riss, “you’re going to love her” and she immediately agreed after your first phone call. The entire year and a half is a blur but it led us to last week – starting from Thursday, things just went incredibly smooth from all of our meetings to the rehearsal and welcome party and of course the Big Day! I really don’t know how to express to you my gratitude for truly making Riss and John’s wedding day a fairy tale dream come true. It is evident that this is not a job for you – it certainly is your passion and the fact that you take every little or big decision so personally raises you above the cream of the crop. I can still see your face when you had us walk in to see the Hall in all of its splendor and it was obvious you wanted us to love it as much as you did. I can tell you that it far exceeded all of our dreams.
I know you are probably busy with your next wedding but you made us feel that we were your only clients (that is how present you were for us the entire weekend). Your team Rocked! Please extend my thanks to all of them as well. You have a great right-hand “man” in Casey and she is such an asset to you.
Please know that you will always hold a special place in our hearts and we will think of you often.”

Marissa & John say: “We want to thank you so much for everything you’ve done for the past year and a half! Our day was beyond anything we could have dreamed of, and perfect in every way. From the smallest of details to the amazing “Marissa” couch, you went above and beyond to make John and I happy. I also want to acknowledge how incredible you and your team were the whole weekend. We were stress free the entire time and were able to enjoy everything from beginning to end. Needless to say out guests were blown away, and it was certainly the party of our lives. Thank you again for everything!”

To view the full blogs visit: http://elariophotography.com/marissa-johns-hall-springs-wedding-photos/

We started the morning at the beautiful Pavilion Grand Hotel – their suites are perfect for getting ready!

Seriously loved these ombre Jimmy Choo heels – also her “something blue”!

Stunning Bride and Mother of the Bride, Patty! That dress was made for Patty.

First look at Congress Park!

Love this bridesmaid dress color.

Classic Congress Park & Carousel pictures. So timeless.

Shout out to Jenny C Designs for all the custom design work. We worked closely with Jenny to create their save the dates, invitations and all the day of items. A good friend used their custom crest to create this wine barrel piece for their home!

The week of the wedding we were going back and forth on whether to put up this tent for ceremony to protect guests from rain. Well it ended up being a gorgeous day but still helped to protect guests from the sun!

“I do!”

LOVE THIS IMAGE! John holding Marissa’s hand makes my heart melt – he is such a gentleman.

Team KOWE bringing the muscle on wedding day to make our couple’s wedding day sparkle! #YepWeSchlep

Officially trademarked this couch the “Marissa” couch. When helping to create their wedding day vision I found a similar piece on Pinterest, shared it with Marissa and we HAD to something like it for their head table. We worked with Total Events to source it just for Marissa & John’s wedding day! Total Events now owns it for future couples- just as them for the “Marissa” couch! ;). This was definitely the start and inspiration for the overall design.

Marissa & John wanted something different for their design & decor and I was all in! We worked closely with On Thai from Surroundings Floral Studio & Melissa from Total Events to create the next big trend for the Hall of Springs. Insert colored chiffon draping hung to create an amazing space with depth and texture, chandeliers and rich romantic centerpieces.

This “room reveal” was everything to me. Their reaction to seeing the room first time all dressed up was what I was dreaming of for months!

Father of the bride, Len toasting with the B&G

Marissa & John got engaged at a vineyard and wanted to incorporate their love for wine on their wedding day. Well Cider Belly Doughnuts created a custom doughnut that incorporated the wine from the vineyard where they got engaged – talk about full circle! #sharethelovestory

Time for sunset photos – how beautiful are these two love birds?

Dozens of planning meetings, numerous status calls, assembly of 100 welcome bags and handfuls of happy tears later, I am going to miss planning with these two families. Love to the Valletta-Seagrave families and happily ever after.
Keep sparkling,
Katie O’

Planning and Coordination: Katie O’ Weddings and Events
Ceremony & Reception: Hall of Springs
Caterer: Mazzone
Beauty: Make Me Fabulous
Ceremony Music: All Seasons Ensemble
Band: New York Players
Photography: Elario Photography
Videography: NuVue Cinema
Floral Design: Surroundings Floral Studio
Rentals: Total Events
Stationery: Jenny C Design