1. Real Weddings

Amy & Ryan: A Summer Wedding in Omaha, NE

On an afternoon wedding filled with good food, fragrant blooms, and seashore-inspired details, Amy Cyr and Ryan Taro found inventive ways to honor the

On an afternoon wedding filled with good food, fragrant blooms, and seashore-inspired details, Amy Cyr and Ryan Taro found inventive ways to honor their two very different home states -- Nebraska and North Carolina. The Bride Amy Elizabeth Cyr, 30, surgical resident The Groom Ryan Thomas Taro, 32, project manager The Date July 9 Although Amy and her family are originally from Nebraska, Amy and Ryan actually live on the beach in Wilmington, NC, a historic Southern seaside town. One evening the couple -- who met online -- returned to the restaurant where they'd had their first date for a romantic dinner. A post-meal stroll on the RiverWalk in Wilmington's historic district turned into the perfect proposal. Ryan chose the ring himself, Amy says, and I love it better than any of the rings I originally looked at.

Amy and Ryan gave each guest pink sand dollar favors to match the cake -- a fitting memento of the day the southeastern seaboard came all the way west to Nebraska.
Although Nebraska and North Carolina wouldn't seem to have much in common (other than the happy couple themselves), Amy and Ryan found ways to bring a little bit of the Southeast to the Midwest for their wedding -- starting with the color theme. In April, Wilmington is absolutely covered with pink azalea blooms -- so the color was a nod to the South, Amy explains. Pale pink seashells and sand dollars also were prominent in the invitations, programs, and favors. Chocolate seashells also adorned the wedding cake.
Amy's satin Mori Lee gown was embellished with elaborate beadwork along the train, waistline, and bateau neckline. The bride's sister-in-law created a veil for Amy to wear at the ceremony, her mother loaned her earrings, and she carried her grandmother's handkerchief inside a shell-shaped, pearl-covered clutch.
The Hair
Outfitting Amy's two maids of honor and three bridesmaids turned out to be refreshingly simple -- and involved a trip to the hardware store rather than the salon! They lived all over the country and all had different figures and styles, Amy explains. So I found a paint chip card with our azalea pink shade, and sent one to each girl, then let them choose their own dresses. The result: a variety of lovely looks that suited each maid's style.
The wedding cake was decorated with white chocolate seashells and topped with a sand dollar.
The Couple
Amy and Ryan were married at Saint Margaret Mary Church in Omaha, which Amy's family has attended since 1980. My dad was really close to the pastor as well, and he had presided over my dad's funeral, so it meant a lot that he performed our wedding ceremony, Amy says. The beautiful church required no decorating whatsoever -- and even the weather cooperated: sunny, not too windy, not too hot-and-humid -- an amazing feat in Nebraska! laughs the bride.
Our florist did an amazing job, Amy declares. Delicate seashells glistened in all the bouquets and on the men’s lapels. Amy and her bridesmaids carried white and pink orchids, dahlias, roses, and gardenias -- another gorgeously old-school Southern bloom, in honor of Ryan's North Carolina home. Amy also wore a gardenia behind her right ear. It smelled so good!