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Lauren & Chris • Topeka Country Club Wedding

The Wedding of Lauren & Chris at Topeka Country Club

Lauren & Chris tied the knot on 5.30.20 at Most Pure Heart of Mary in Topeka, Kansas. Although they had some changes in plans due to Covid-19, and could only have immediate family present at the church while the rest of their guests greeted them outside as the new MR. & MRS! They then got to celebrate once again with their guests on 7.11.20 at the Topeka Country Club for their formal reception. Lauren and her bridesmaids spent the morning getting pampered by Kelly Hilmer for hair and Jordan Schick for makeup.

Wedding Attire

Lauren wore a beautiful high neck gown from Celebrations of the Heart with intricate lace and beading detail. Her bridesmaids looked stunning in floor-length, blush color dresses. Chris and his groomsmen looked very handsome in their navy suits with a blush tie from Macy’s. Lauren and bridesmaids carried beautiful bouquets from Blooms on Boswell, in Topeka KS.

Ceremony

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, their church was only allowing immediate family and bridal party in the church. As the church doors opened for Lauren to walk down the aisle, you can see the heartfelt reaction from Chris as he sees his beautiful bride for the first time. Once pronounced as married, the couple proceeded outside to find all their guests waiting and greeting them.

Reception

Lauren & Chris made their grand entrance into their reception at the Topeka Country Club where all their friends and family anxiously waited to see the newly married couple, due to most not being able to attend the ceremony a few months prior. Their friends and family toasted to the new couple and then enjoyed a great dinner. After dinner, the bride and groom got to share the dance floor together for their first dance to “Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” by Haley Reinhart. Lauren had a surprise for her new husband, and he went to take her garter off, and he was “ICED” by his wife, which was a good laugh for all in attendance. They danced the night away with their guests, making it one to remember!

Laramie & Bobby • Willows Bend • Carbondale, KS

Laramie and Bobby tied the knot on 06.20.20, at Willows Bend in Carbondale, KS. They were able to celebrate with all their friends and family in attendance, making for a day filled with so much love. Complete Weddings + Events photographer, Tony, captured the summer day!

The Venue: Willows Bend

Willows Bend is located in Carbondale KS, just 15 minutes south of Topeka, KS. With it’s a unique, rustic yet elegant design, this venue has become very popular among couples. It sits on the gorgeous Carbondale lake that makes for the perfect backdrop to their outdoor ceremony location. When you walk inside your eyes are drawn to the tall ceilings and exposed wood beams as well as the gorgeous view of the lake that is often the backdrop to the head table. The bridal suite, built in bar, and new lighting system is also a huge hit with couples.

Wedding Attire

Laramie wore a beautiful, strapless, A-Line gown with simple touches of beading throughout. She purchased her dress from Love Bridal Boutique in Jacksonville, FL. The Bridesmaids all wore short black dresses while the men wore black suits with a red pocket square and bow tie from Men’s Wearhouse.

The Ceremony

As guests arrived they filled out bucket list cards for the couple to enjoy throughout marriage. They then took their seats outside overlooking the lake and the beautiful gazebo ceremony location. Laramie processed down the aisle to “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran with her dad by her side, and her groom in tears after seeing her for the first time in her wedding dress. Reactions like those are what make for the best photos that they will look back on for the rest of their life. Laramie & Bobby shared an intimate moment with each other during their ceremony and lit a unity candle together. The couple processed out to “Lost In This Moment With You” by Big & Rich.

The Reception

The wedding party was introduced to the reception to “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO. As the couple was announced into the reception (“God Gave Me You”-Blake Shelton) as the new Mr & Mrs, they got to partake in a special tradition at Willows Bend and rang the wedding bell signally a new marriage. Once they made their way down the staircase they headed over to their beautiful three tiered red and white cake made by HyVee and Laramie got away with smashing it into Bobby’s face. The couple and their guests then enjoyed tasty BBQ catered by Hog Wild. After dinner, they shared their dedication dances with each other. First Dance song was “With You I Am” by Cody Johnson, Father/Daugher song was “Just Fishing” by Trace Adkins, and mother/son song was a mashup of Disney’s “Under the Sea” and “Mom” by Garth Brooks. The couple and their guests continued to dance the night away on the dance floor as well as got quite the show from Bobby during the garter toss.

 

Day & James | Abe & Jake’s Landing | Lawrence KS

Day & James Lawrence, KS Wedding

Day & James tied the knot on 6.14.20, at Abe & Jake’s in Lawrence, KS. They celebrated a little bit differently than expected due to COVID and only had close friends and family in attendance, making for an intimate wedding. Day & her bridesmaids spent the morning getting pampered and drinking mimosas while the groomsmen simply sat back and relaxed.

The Venue: Abe & Jake’s

Abe & Jake’s Landing is located in downtown Lawrence, KS on the Kansas river. Its unique industrial charm makes it one of Lawrence’s most popular wedding venues. You will enter this unique venue by walking over a bridge that is a staple to many couples’ wedding pictures. Inside you will find yourself walking through their domed hallway onto their top floor where they have unique office and meeting spaces. Down the wrought iron staircase you will love the industrial and rock architecture of the main space. Don’t forget to check out their custom bar, retro phone booth, and deck area overlooking the Kansas river.

Wedding Attire

The day wore a simple off the shoulder ball gown with an elegant jeweled accent belt from Coco Melody. Her veil was trimmed with lace and she topped off the look with a gorgeous tiara. Bridesmaids wore dark burgundy long dresses while the men looked snazzy in their navy suits from Men’s Warehouse. The groom wore a light grey suit from Express. Day’s beautiful bouquet of different shades of pink along with the other bridal flowers was provided by Stems Event Flowers.

The Ceremony

The bridal party processed into the ceremony space to the song “Best Part” by Daniel Caesar, H.E.R. Day made her way down the staircase and met her mother at the bottom of the stairs where they walked to meet James while “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Stringspace was playing. Their ceremony was short and sweet and you could tell by the way James looked at Day that their dreams were coming true. As they were pronounced new Mr. & Mrs. the DJ played “You Are The Best Thin” by Ray Lamontagne.

The Reception

COVID may not have given them the largest crowd for their wedding, but that didn’t stop Day and James along with their friends and family from having a good time. After taking some beautiful pictures around the venue the couple made their way back into the party while the DJ played “L.O.V.E.” by Michael Buble. HyVee provided great food and a beautiful tasty cake. Silk flowers in mason jars adorned the tables with what we never thought would be a staple at weddings…hand sanitizer. 🙂

Their family and friends toasted the couple and soon they got to share their first slice of wedding cake and get to the dance portion of the evening. Day & James danced to “Good for Me” by Above and Beyond and James danced with his mother to “Sweet Baby James” by James Taylor and Day danced with her mother to “Sea of Love” by Phil Phillips. Day and James spent the majority of their time on the dance floor the rest of the evening and once again you could see in the way they looked at each other how much they were in love.

 

The Difference Between a Wedding Planner & Wedding Day Coordinator

When you start planning a wedding, you may be wanting to enlist in the help of a wedding planner or a wedding coordinator. While hiring these individuals to assist in facilitating your perfect wedding day, you may wonder what the differences and similarities are between them. While at first, they may seem pretty much identical, they are actually pretty different.

June Reviews | Kansas Weddings

June Reviews

We were so excited for weddings to start happening again, with all this craziness going on around us! Thank you to our June clients enough for all the kind words they had to say about our staff and services.

We wish the best to all of you in your futures together, and thank you again for allowing Complete Weddings + Events to be apart of your special day!

Sarah & Earl | Seven Dolors Catholic Church | Manhattan, KS

Congratulations Sarah & Earl!

They tied the knot at the beautiful Seven Dolors Catholic Church, in Manhattan KS and were able to share in their joy with family and friends at the Manhattan Catholic School Gym.

Like many others right now, they were given the difficult decision to cut their guest list in half and have just family and a few close friends present. They didn’t let that get in their way and although tears were shed in the process their love prevailed.

Seven Dolors Catholic Church Ceremony

Sarah & Earl’s wedding took place on a hot June day with a 2:00 pm traditional catholic ceremony at Seven Dolors Catholic Church in Manhattan, KS. Sarah’s mother and father walked her down the aisle where she finally got to marry the man she says God brought into her life for a reason.

Sarah’s hair and makeup were provided by Makeup Artistry by Alexandra in Manhattan, KS. Sarah wore a stunning lace detailed A-line wedding gown from Celebrations of the Heart, Manhattan, KS, and Earl looked handsome in his black suit with a lavender tie from Men’s Warehouse. Bridesmaids wore different styles of long lavender dresses while the groomsmen wore grey suits with lavender ties. Bouquets and boutonnieres were provided by Peach Petal Design, Topeka Ks.  After the ceremony at Seven Dolors Catholic Church, the couple headed to the K-State Gardens to take some beautiful pictures together.

Reception

Their guests joined them in the Manhattan Catholic School gym for their reception where Sarah & Earl made their grand entrance to the Office theme song.  After their entrance, they cut into their cake that was provided by Alma Bakery out of Alma, KS while Sarah’s mom played the accordion. Dinner was provided by Karen Trindle out of Hutchinson KS.  After some sweet toasts from their wedding party and Sarah’s father the party started off with a fun game Complete Weddings + Events Kansas does called 5 Minute Photo. The couple goes around to the tables and takes a picture with each table and have to complete this task in 5 minutes or less. Their guests got creative with their pictures.

The dance began with a German tradition called the Grand March and soon Sarah & Earl were in the middle of their family and friends dancing to “Perfect” by Ed Sheeren. Sarah & her dad danced to “I loved her first” by Heartland and Earl and his mother let loose to “You’ll be in my heart” by Phil Collins. Later in the night, the couple played the shoe game which their guests thought was a hit. They also enjoyed the photo booth and danced the night away.

Megan & Mason Concordia, KS Wedding

Congratulations Megan & Mason!!!

“This is it, this is now, this is what I’ve been talking about
Looking out, can’t you see forever?
Take my hand, just take it in
This is a moment we won’t forget
On top of the world, here, together
If there ever was a time for a perfect kiss, this is it”

This is the chorus from their first dance song, “This Is It” by Scotty McCreery, and these words rang true when they embraced each other during their first dance together. You could truly see the love they have for each other at that moment.

Megan & Mason Concordia, KS Wedding

Although COVID-19 may have altered their original plans, love always wins. Megan & Mason tied the knot on 6.6.20, in Concordia, KS at the Concordia Fair Grounds. Megan wore a simple a-line bridal gown with beautiful intricate beading along the sweetheart neckline and the lace overlay was just gorgeous. Her dress paired well with Mason’s dark grey suit with a silver tie. We loved how Megan incorporated the loved ones they had lost with pictures on her bouquet. Their vibrant coral and teal color pallet was a great touch to their summer wedding.  Like many father-daughter first looks tears were brought to everyone’s eyes that witnessed. As she walked down the aisle wooden boards lined the aisle with the words from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

We can’t say enough nice things about their family and friends who were a blast to work with.  We loved their wood detailing on the wedding cake and the M & M monogram was the perfect touch. Although, their friends and family were chanting “smash it”, Megan and Mason kept it classy during their first bite of wedding cake.

Megan & Mason Wedding Photos

The Kansas sky did not disappoint during their sunset photos near a railway in Concordia, KS. Check out their wedding photos below!

 

 

Wedding Dresses | Kansas Weddings

Whether you have been dreaming about your wedding day since you were little or the notion never popped into your head till you heard the words “will you marry me”, one of the first things a bride thinks about is buying her wedding dress. There seems to be a lot of pressure to pick out the perfect one. With TV shows like “Say Yes to the Dress” the hype of the search is a bit overwhelming.  Finding the one you will love, your fiancé will love, the one that will make you feel like a bride should not be a daunting task.

I personally tried on what felt like a hundred dresses and even after I found “the one”, I would find myself second-guessing and even trying on more. It didn’t help that I worked right next to a dress shop and love all things wedding. 😊 I never had that emotional attachment to my dress while shopping for it, but after I wore it on the big day, I knew there was not another dress for the occasion.

So, my number one advice would be is to not put too much pressure on the shopping experience. If you do not have this overwhelming emotional reaction it doesn’t mean it isn’t the one. I encourage you to try on the whole ensemble with the veil, jewelry, and with your hair and make-up done before truly making your decision.  I do believe you will know when the right one is staring you back in the mirror!

Be sure to scroll to the bottom to check out some of our favorite wedding dress shops located in Kansas.

10 Things to consider when buying Wedding Dresses for your Kansas Wedding

  1. Set a Budget- Know exactly what your top end is and do not be afraid to spend less…the price tag doesn’t always make it a better dress.
  2. Do your homework in advance- Research your dress shops. Read reviews about other bride’s experiences and get to know more about how your shopping experience will go with each shop. With that said also do some searching on what type of dress will work best with your theme or location. For example, choosing a heavy ballgown would not be ideal for your beach wedding.
  3. Each bride’s journey to finding her dress is unique- Do not compare your experience with others or TV shows😊. Your emotions may be completely different and that is ok.
  4. Choose your shopping crew wisely- Bringing too many opinionated people will not help you make your decision. You want an honest opinion, but you also need to be able to express your needs and wants and have those in your corner that will respect and listen to you.
  5. Allow yourself ample time to get your dress- Do not wait! It is ideal to find your dress at least a year to 9 months out especially if you know you will need to do alterations.
  6. Be willing to commit- Committing to a dress is hard. For me, it meant the search was over and I was having so much fun. I was an indecisive bride, but I believe you truly will know when you have found the one and try not second guess your decision.
  7. Be open-minded- If you do not find “the one” at the first shop you go to that is ok. If you do find “the one” after just the first dress, you tried on that is ok too.
  8. Focus on fit not size- Many brides need alterations on their dresses. Finding a shop that has a variety of sizes on hand and could help you envision what it will look like on your body type is important.
  9. Factor in extra costs- Alterations can be a game-changer on the initial price so be sure you are upfront with your needs so that the dress shop can take those into account when selecting your dresses to try on. Be sure to also add in the cost of accessories like the veil, slip, specialty bra, shoes, and jewelry.
  10. Try on a few things out of your comfort zone- Never thought you would like the ballgown or the mermaid style…try it on anyways. You might be presently surprised when you step outside of your comfort zone.

Paige & Anthony Micro Wedding Manhattan Kansas

Covid-19 changed their plans, but love remains!

Congratulations Paige & Anthony on your recent marriage! Covid-19 may have changed their plans, but they were still able to have an intimate ceremony with their immediate family and close friends at St. Isidore’s Catholic Church, in Manhattan, KS on April 25th, 2020. They chose to live stream the ceremony for their guests who were unable to attend. Following the ceremony, Paige and Anthony were able to enjoy their first dance along with sharing their first slice of wedding cake outside of the Manhattan, KS church. It may not have been the wedding they had been planning on, but they were surrounded by their loved ones and made the best of it.

Paige & Anthony Micro Wedding Manhattan Kansas

Complete Weddings + Events Manhattan, KS was honored to capture these sweet moments even if we had to be 6ft apart. Thank you for choosing us to be a part of your special day. Complete Weddings + Events, Kansas’ leading provider of event and wedding photographyvideographyday-of coordinationlightingDJ services,photo booth rental.

Wedding Cake Toppers | Kansas Weddings

Wedding Cake Toppers

Complete Weddings + Events Kansas took a glimpse into our favorite dessert…Wedding Cake! We found there is so much to learn about a couple from their cake topper.

From your traditional bride and groom figurines to wooden initials and barbwire, there is so much creativity and personalizing that goes into the design of cake toppers these days. Many couples find picking out the cake topper is harder than picking out the flavors of cake. The topper often helps bring the whole cake design together and it is what many couples keep for years to come. Be sure to let your cake designer know your plans for topper when choosing your cake design and don’t forget to take into account the size and weight of your topper when making your selection.

Below we have highlighted some of our favorites we’ve seen over this last year with our Kansas weddings. From family silhouettes to puzzle pieces the options are endless! Complete Weddings  + Events Kansas is honored to capture these details on your big day.