Bright Inspirational Real Wedding stories

CC & Marty: A Cultural Wedding in Ipswich, MA

CC and Marty lived in the same dorm their freshman year at Duke University, but it took four years before they realized they were a perfect pair. The Bride Anne (CC) Lee, 30, pediatrician The Groom Marty Frenzel, 30, computer programmer The Date September 20 CC and Marty took dance together the...

A Formal Wedding in Houston, TX

The Bride Allison Heeg, 23, a petroleum engineer at Marathon Oil The Groom Alex Sandlin, 23, a store director at Billy Reid The Date July 10 Allison and Alex decked out their formal interfaith wedding in blue, their favorite color.

Genelle & Kevin: A Fall Wedding in Chico, CA

Former coworkers and Chico State alums Genelle Molina and Kevin Lauderbach first met while working at the same gym in college. Kevin always watched to make sure Genelle made it to her car safely after closing, so she returned the favor by helping Kevin with his lap swimming. One day after a half-...

A Modern Wedding in Baltimore, MD

The Bride Alison Case (Casey) Weinberg, 28, an attorney at Stein, Sperling, Bennett, DeJong, Driscolle & Greenfeig The Groom Keith Florance, 29, a senior consultant for Deloitte Consulting The Date May 15 Bright yellow bridesmaid dresses inspired the yellow, red, black and white color palet...

A Casual Wedding in Newport, RI

Wendy and Michael met while working together at Massachusetts General Hospital and later reconnected at the hospital's coffee shop. The Bride Wendy Kobayashi, 31 and works in radiation oncology clinical research The Groom Michael Folkert, 35 and is a resident in radiation oncology The Date Octob...

An Outdoor Wedding in Napa, CA

When their best friends tied the knot, Kristy and Mark wound up in the same wedding party. The next day, Kristy went on a two-week hiking trip and her luggage was stolen. She told her new friend Mark about it and was touched when he sent a care package of items he thought she’d need. They arrange...

An Outdoor Wedding in Austin, TX

Stephanie had just moved from Colorado to Texas when she met Jeremy while out cycling. They got to know each other on long rides on nearby trails and soon realized that they had a lot in common -- including matching Subaru wagons. After two-and-a-half years together (and many, many miles), the co...

A Traditional Wedding in Boston, MA

A friend of Alyssa thought she’d hit it off with Bryan. She was right! After a night out with mutual friends, Bryan called Alyssa to set up a Friday-night date. The Bride Alyssa Dionne, 28, account manager at a technology consulting firm The Groom Bryan Johnson, 32, senior manager at a financia...

Rebecca & Ben: A Casual Wedding in Redlands, CA

Rebecca and Ben hosted a ceremony and reception with a fiesta theme at the home of the bride's grandfather. Because Ben had spent extensive amounts of time in Mexico -- where he learned to love the culture and language -- the couple wanted to create a Mexican fiesta-theme wedding. The invitations...

Xylina & Eric: A Destination Wedding in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Xylina and Eric planned a destination wedding with a funky orange and green color palette, a custom-built dance floor, and an exotic-flavored cake -- all to take place in Mexico with 58 of their closest friends and family. The Bride Xylina Burns, 32, teacher The Groom Eric Osland, 38, mortgage c...

Jennifer & Gene: A Destination Wedding in Guanajuato, Mexico

Minutes before his wedding ceremony in Guanajuato, Mexico, was to begin, Texan native Gene Bellamy was busy haggling with a mariachi street band. That's the thing with a destination wedding, says the bride, Jennifer Vick. You have to be the kind of couple that can be flexible and just accept that...

Alejandra & Victor: A Cultural Wedding in Rincon, Puerto Rico

After initially connecting in college, Alejandra and Victor lost touch for six years before finally meeting up again. When Victor had a dream about Alejandra, he decided to reconnect with her. Soon after, Victor traveled from Mexico to Texas to spend a week with her. I realized that Ale loved me ...

Sarah & Fred: A Formal Wedding in Orlando, FL

Every bride has one or two things that are particularly important to her. For Sarah, these are family and music. So when she wed her partner of six years, Fred, those two elements played prominent roles in their wedding. The Bride Sarah Balog The Groom Fred Worroll The Date January 18 Fred has...

Nicole & Mike: A Modern Wedding in Detroit, MI

Inspired by the city of Detroit, Nicole and Mike chose black, red, and hot pink wedding colors to create a retro vibe. We definitely wanted our wedding to have a romantic, fun, yet not too traditional feel to it, says Nicole. THE BRIDE Nicole Karapetian, 31 THE GROOM Mike Boland, 30 THE DATE Se...

Deanna & Mark: A Fall Wedding in Pittsburgh, PA

Of her wedding-style inspiration, Deanna says I love leopard and I wanted to pull off a very fun, classy, elegant, nontraditional look. When I told my in-laws-to-be, they thought I was nuts! But Deanna and Mark pulled it off: Subtle leopard print details gave their wedding day that little bit of ...

Emily & Nick: A Formal Wedding in Tarrytown, NY

As 115 wedding guests inside the Zion Episcopal Church anticipated the start of a wedding, bride Emily Cobb and her bridesmaids were strolling the path to the church, singing Going to the Chapel. It was the perfect beginning to a wedding celebration full of music. The Bride Emily Cobb The Groom ...

Meri & Stephen: A Winter Wedding in New York, NY

Rich red tones brought warmth to Meri and Stephen's chic city winter wedding, complete with an orchid-covered huppah and 11-piece Motown band. THE BRIDE Meri Capone THE GROOM Stephen Selver THE DATE February 2 How they met is one of those serendipitous, New York-style twists of fate: Meri Capo...

Alyssa & Vincent: An Outdoor Wedding in Rye, NY

After exchanging waterside vows, Alyssa Carrera and Vincent Messina hosted an autumn gala with a sea glass-green theme on the Long Island Sound. The Bride Alyssa Carrera, 33, social worker The Groom Vincent Messina, 35, investments The Date September 24 It was love the first time NYU grad stude...

Mehgan & Reese: A Colorful Wedding in Captiva Island, FL

After a romantic proposal during a horseback ride on a beach in Costa Rica, Floridians Mehgan Silcox and Reese Rollings started planning their beach-themed wedding. THE BRIDE Mehgan Silcox, 26 THE GROOM Reese Rollings, 29 THE DATE October 18 All the elements -- from the stationery to the aisl...

Tammy & Phil: An Outdoor Wedding in Monroe, CT

Tammy and Phil decked out their reception site with robin’s egg blue and brown, which acted as both an attractive color scheme and a tribute to the bride’s great-grandmother. “She always wore it,” Tammy says, “and looked great in it!” The Bride Tammy Weiner, director of new business development...

Claire & Michael: A Red Wedding in Long Island, NY

Mike and I first connected because of our mutual love of drama, says Claire. Her initial theater tete-a-tete with Michael was thanks to two British lads the couple both traveled around the globe with at different times. Claire kept in touch and invited the guys to New York to celebrate the millen...

Jaimie & Brian: An Outdoor Wedding in Goldbar, WA

Jaimie and Brian were engaged for eight-and-a-half months -- “just enough time to plan the perfect wedding,” says Jaimie -- before tying the knot on a summer evening at a rustic Seattle lodge. The Bride Jaimie Abbott The Groom Brian Burton The Date July 31 Jaimie, 29, and Brian, 27, both teache...

Karen & Billy: A Formal Wedding in Houston, TX

After seven years of dating, Karen McCallister and Billy Thomas decided not to waste any more time being engaged. Instead, they planned a formal, classic, Texas to-do over the next six months and pulled off a flower-filled celebration of love. The Bride Karen McCallister The Groom Billy Thomas T...