A Traditional Red and Gold Wedding in Bellingham, Washington

Monique and John met each other at the Honolulu Zoo -- after winking at each other on Match.com. After some nervous jokes and awkward pauses on the first date, the two decided that they had something special. "During our initial months of dating, he was deployed for seven months at sea. Before he left I told him that when he gets back we're going to get engaged -- not the most subtle hint, but we needed to say it out loud before being apart for so long.," says Monique. "The seven months were long and challenging, but he returned and we fell back in to our routine with ease." After a romantic and quiet evening at their apartment soon after John returned home, he dropped down to one knee and proposed. The two decided on a Christmas wedding -- which automatically decided their color palette of red and gold, according to Monique. "As we were married in a church, which was decorated beautifully for Christmas with white poinsettias, candles, gold wreaths and red bows, we didn't have to add anything to our ceremony. I chose a simple bouquet of red roses and gold baby's breath for me and my maid of honor, while the flower girl carried down a bright red carnation ball. For the gents, we had simple red rose boutonnieres," she says.