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Rachael & Mike: An Outdoor Wedding in Fridley, MN

A promise is a promise. But when Rachael came across Mike playing guitar with friends at a college party, she made a promise she didn’t realize she’d

A promise is a promise. But when Rachael came across Mike playing guitar with friends at a college party, she made a promise she didn’t realize she’d keep. The Bride Rachael Olson, 27, pharmaceutical sales rep The Groom Mike Walsh, 26, insurance sales The Date July 23 When Rachael asked him to play “One Sweet World” by The Dave Matthews Band, Mike reluctantly told her he didn't know how. “So I told him I would marry him some day if he could learn to play the song by the next time I saw him,” she says. “Sure enough, two days later, he knew how to play the song!” A few years later, Mike decided to call her on her old promise. With help from her mother, a jeweler, Mike designed a ring just for Rachael and arranged a surprise proposal at home. “He said, ‘Rachael, I have a few things I want to tell you. I love you, and I want to love you for the rest of your life,’” she remembers.

The couple gave their florist Brenda Cornelisse a color scheme but otherwise let her have creative freedom. Their trust paid off: “The flowers looked incredible, more perfect than I could have imagined.”
The Formalwear
The Formalwear
The couple was ecstatic about the groovy, funky, three-tier cake. “Robin at Gateaux created a masterpiece. Our guests didn’t think it was real!” says Rachael.
Rachael let her seven bridesmaids choose their own dresses, guided by the 1950s theme, their own creativity, and a simple color scheme of pinks and greens. “My friends have different personalities, bodies, and styles, and I didn’t want to make them the same,” she says. “Some of the dresses were custom-made, one was vintage, and some were bridesmaid dresses.”
The Bridesmaid Bouquets
Mark Scannell, a friend, officiated at a ceremony featuring the Mexican wedding tradition that employs the lazo (a special rosary or chain that’s traditionally placed on the bride). “We used the same lazo chains that my parents used in their ceremony 34 years ago,” says Rachael. “My mom combined the chains with a rosary, and my sister and Mike’s brother placed the combined strands on us to seal the union.”
The Bridesmaid Bouquets
The Couple