Purchasing her beautiful Isolde gown from Lovely Bride Miami, stunning bride Kristen tied the knot in a sunny Florida.
‘As soon as I put it on, I was in love! It highlighted every part of my body that I felt confident in, and it seemed so unique to me! It was the perfect amount of romance and uniqueness that I was looking for! The detail of the lace was the selling point for me. It was so intricate and like nothing I had ever seen before on a dress.’
Names: Zachary & Kristen
Wedding Date: July 12, 2020
Guest Numbers: ~80
Wedding Location: Winter Park, FL
Photographer: Karmathartic Studios
Tell Us Your Love Story
How did you meet? Our story ultimately comes down to timing. It is often joked about how long it took for us to finally cross paths as we both went to the same small college and ran in the same circle of friends. Zachary even lived with my childhood friend at one point in college, yet we didn’t meet until after we had both graduated on November 7, 2017, at Improv Comedy Club in downtown West Palm Beach, FL. We were both invited to a group event by a mutual friend who was trying to set us up (though neither of us knew it at the time). Shortly after we met, we found ourselves at the same group parties in the following months, slowly getting to know each other. So much so that one night I told Zachary to his face that I’d never be interested in him (HA!).In January 2018, we were paired up together in the bridal party of the same friend who was trying to set us up, and well…it worked. After years of just missing each other, we went on their first date on January 17, 2018, and have been doing life together ever since.
How did he put a ring on it? Well, thankfully, Zachary decided to propose on the weekend Hurricane Dorian (a Category 5) was expected to destroy West Palm Beach, so everything was closing down! But, on August 31, 2019, after 24 hours of uncertainty, all of his back up locations closing down and dealing with a flat tire, he made it happen, and I said yes! It happened in front of a fountain just to the side of Restoration Hardware. We definitely were not allowed to be there and eventually got kicked out – but it made for a great story of persistence!
Where did you draw inspiration from? Zachary and I are both passionate about theatre! Going to see a play or musical is one of our favorite dates to go on! We really wanted to incorporate that into our day. So, the entire day was sprinkled with inspiration from theatre shows. Our programs were designed as playbills, our save the dates were created as promotional posters, our invitations were tickets, and we curated our own playlist that was full of our favorite musical numbers! It was full of nods to old Hollywood and overall had an old school theatre theme!
What made the wedding personal to you? There are so many things! I think the most personal thing was my dad, who is a pastor, officiated the ceremony. So, not only did he give me away, but he performed the ceremony, which was very special for my husband and I. It was the ultimate show of support for us!
What were you most nervous or excited about? Surprisingly I wasn’t nervous at all the day of like I thought I’d be! I was just so excited to get married to Zachary, finally! The timing felt perfect, even amidst all the Covid-19 chaos. I was just with my girls and my family having a blast in the morning, and then I got to marry one of my favorite people! It was the greatest experience!
Now, the most important part – the Dress!
Tell us about your dress? I ended up finding my dress by chance at Lovely Bride Miami! I just went in that day to narrow down which style I wanted because I had my eye on a few dresses at a shop in Atlanta. I wanted to make the most out of that trip, so I wanted to go in with what shape/style I wanted. My stylist, Dari, had a better idea of my vision than I did and brought out the Tara Lauren Isodle dress. As soon as I put it on, I was in love! It highlighted every part of my body that I felt confident in, and it seemed so unique to me! It was the perfect amount of romance and uniqueness that I was looking for! The detail of the lace was the selling point for me. It was so intricate and like nothing I had ever seen before on a dress. I ended up not getting it that day because I didn’t want to make an emotional decision, but after visiting a few other shops, nothing else compared. So, I canceled my trip to Atlanta and went back and bought it!
What stockist did you get it from? Lovely Bride Miami!
What was your most memorable moment from your day? Zachary and I were very intentional about carving out time during our wedding day that was just for us. We had traditional vows during the ceremony, but we also exchanged personal vows during our first look. It gave us the freedom to express our promises to each other without the pressure of everyone having all eyes on us. It was a moment just for us, which is exactly what I wanted our vows to be.
Vendors to credit:
Coordinator & Designer: Anna Caroline Weddings // Venue: Winter Club Events Venue // Florals: Fern & Curl Designs // Photography: Karmathartic Studios // Videography: Center Up Videography //Bride’s Ring: Olive Ave Jewlrey // Groom’s Ring: Groove Life