September Bride: A Wedding Planning Update
Like most girls, I’ve dreamed of being a bride since I was little. Last year my dream came true. I’ve been engaged since January of 2022, and my wedding is September 23, 2023. The last few months have been full of wedding planning. I’m a very decisive person, so this feels like second nature to me. I keep telling my mom “I love being a bride!” It’s everything I thought it would be, full of lists and spreadsheets. A virgo’s dream really.
Now that we’re six months out, I thought I’d give a sneak peek into the big day. I’m a pretty private person for being a blogger, especially when it comes to a once in a lifetime day like my wedding. But, I want to look back at this post someday and remember all the fun details that went into planning the best day of my life.
The Big Ticket Items
I knew from pretty early on that I’d be marrying Scott. So, the almost 6 years we’ve been together I’ve been preparing for this day. When we got engaged we were really quick to set a date and start looking for the most important vendors: venue, caterer, dj, photographer. September, in my mind, is the perfect month to get married. We’ll have the best weather of the year in Illinois, comfortably warm with lots of green foliage still on the trees.
Our venue is a restored ballroom from the prohibition era, built in 1915. It used to be a dance hall and jazz club. In fact, Louis Armstrong performed at this venue back in 1966. At one point it was a car dealership with a bootlegged alcohol business in the back. When the owner restored the space he sourced chandeliers from a restaurant in St. Charles, Illinois that closed down. That restaurant was where my parents got engaged. Talk about fate! This is the only venue we viewed and we knew it was perfect. We signed the contract the next day.
We went to a wedding expo in my hometown a month after we got engaged. One of the caterers was serving fresh fried chicken. If you know anything about the Illinois Valley, it’s that we love our fried chicken. Rip’s restaurant is famous for it, and people come from across the county to try it. Scott and I agreed that it was love at first bite.
The Aesthetic
We are definitely leaning into the prohibition era, 1920’s, Gatsby-esque vibe for our big day. That doesn’t mean we’re having a themed wedding. I’m taking inspiration from dark supper club lighting, brass accents, and champagne toasts. The day will feel like you’ve stepped back in time to when the ballroom first opened. The amazing thing about a historic venue is that it doesn’t need a lot of decoration. I’m notorious for being the queen of neutrals, and my wedding isn’t any different. We’ll have lots of greenery and white florals, with pops of black.
I can’t tell you any more without giving all my secrets away. I will be posting a full update early October about our big day. Please drop any questions or topics about wedding planning you’d like me to cover in the comments below. You an also follow me on Instagram @oliviajoehl for sneak peeks leading up to the big day!
