Anna & Jaymee's Wedding - Tara Lauren Real Love Tara Lauren

Anna & Jaymee’s wedding was an elegant fusion of modernity and vintage romance, and was a true reflection of the bride and groom’s sweet love story.

Of her MAYA gown, Anna said: “The MAYA gown was actually the first dress I tried on, and I had it picked out and bought it before we had anything else planned for our wedding! I wanted to be a bohemian bride with an air of elegance and minimalism, and the MAYA gown is legitimately the wedding dress of my dreams.”

Names: Anna & Jaymee

Wedding Date: 07/23/2021

Guest Numbers: 90

Wedding Location: The Hive on Hubbard, Chicago, IL

Photographer: Christina Ney Photography

Tell Us Your Love Story

How did you meet?

Jaymee and I met in a very ‘typical’ fashion, at a bar on Cinco De Mayo, 2017. We were both living in Des Moines Iowa at the time. I was in nursing school and Jaymee was the head soccer coach at a nearby college. I was supposed to be on a date with someone else and Jaymee got dragged out by his friend Kev (who ended up marrying us). Apparently, he started talking to me when he did so Kev wouldn’t talk to me first! We both tried playing hard to get, but it didn’t last very long. From there on out we didn’t look back, and the rest is history! We have since then moved our wedding date back an entire year, moved to the New York Metro area in the middle of a pandemic, I became a COVID RN, and we adopted our fur baby Linda T – all before ACTUALLY saying I do in front of our friends in family. We wouldn’t have had it any other way!

How did he put a ring on it?

With our jobs, our schedules are always crazy busy and it can be difficult to see each other. So, we got in the habit of writing each other little messages on post it notes and putting it on the bathroom mirror. In keeping with that tradition, in March 2019, Jaymee and I were celebrating Valentine’s Day a little late. We had just gotten back from dinner when he gave me my Valentine’s Day card, and in the card he wrote, ‘Go look at the bathroom mirror’. I was so confused until I walked into the bathroom and on the mirror was a post it note that said, “Will you Marry Me?” When I turned around, he was in the hallway on one knee with the most perfect ring in his hand. I, of course, said YES!

Where did you draw inspiration from?

The general decor of the wedding was inspired by our style. A little bit modern, a little bit vintage, and a little bit romantic, but in general comfortable and approachable. The use of modern gold lanterns, cut crystal and flickering candles made the lighting soft and warm. But the use of Italian ruskus, lavender and mirrors for signage framed in gold vintage frames made the room romantic and feminine.
The inspiration for the smaller details were inspired by both of our lives up until that point. Whether people realized it or not, many of the pieces used or foods served represented Jaymee and I as both individuals and as a couple. Examples of this included tons of heirloom pieces from weddings past, like the tea cup Jaymee was gifted at his dads wedding when he was 7 and the crystal candle sticks used at my grandparents wedding. Our guests signed post it notes as a form of guest book, they waved American and English flags as we walked down the aisle, and our first dance song was chosen purposely because we knew our friends and family would start to sing along, which actually ended up becoming a giant dance circle.

What made the wedding personal to you?

Everything! Besides all of the things listed above, it was personal because many of our close friends were involved in the wedding. Our good friend Kev married us, Jarron was our MC, my good college friend Tina was our photographer, our DJ was a friend of Kev’s, my bridesmaid Ashley did every single piece or written signage, and my maid of honor, Jen, designed and made all of our invitations, programs ect. It was truly a group effort. Mine and Jaymee’s favorite aspect of the wedding was sitting back and seeing everyone happy, healthy and enjoying time together. There was so much love and excitement in one room!

What were you most nervous or excited about?

The craziest part of the wedding day was that I wasn’t nervous at all! All of the hard work was done, I knew I had an awesome group of people helping me, and at the end of the day, as long as Jaymee and I were husband and wife, all was going to be good. Funny thing to note though: During our vows we 100% forgot to exchange rings. No one noticed either! Jaymee and I didn’t notice until we were having a moment to ourselves! During our thank you speech we lovingly called out Kev, asking him if he was forgetting something in his suit jacket pocket. We then proceeded to exchange rings at our reception!

Jaymee and I were most excited about seeing our friends and family again. We are blessed with such amazing people and legitimately just couldn’t wait to spend the weekend with them.

Now, the most important part – the Dress!

Tell us about your dress?

I LOVED MY DRESS!! It was actually the first dress I tried on, and I had it picked out and bought before we had anything planned for the wedding…we didnt even have a date! My style is what I like to call a mix of modern and boho. I like to feel feminine but I am not an overly glitzy girly type of person. I was worried I would have to work really hard to find dress without rhinestones and pearls so I focused on looking for lace appliqué that gave a really modern texture but was still romantic, feminine and, of course, bohomian. The MAYA dress is legitimately the dress of my dreams! It was everything I wanted in a dress without even knowing it. The first thing everyone said when they saw my dress was “Anna that dress is you!” I loved the deep V and open back! An added bonus was that the dress was comfortable and light enough that I could join in on the dance floor all night, and even be tossed in the air by the groomsmen a handful of times!

What stockist did you get it from?

Lovely Bride, IL

What was your most memorable moment from your day?

Jaymee’s entire family still currently lives in England so we tried so incredibly hard to get them to the states but because of COVID, none of them could physically be there for the wedding. The fact that neither his mom or dad would be there was very hard on Jaymee. Without either Jaymee or I knowing, each of his family members overseas sent his best man, Fabio, videos wishing us well for the day of the wedding. Fabio and another groomsman, Johnny, put the videos together and played them during our reception as a surprise! It was amazing surprise, especially for Jaymee. Obviously, nothing could replace them physically being there, but that was a close second and it allowed everyone that is so special to us across the pond to be a part of the wedding day. We are hoping to have another wedding celebration in England next summer!