Kira & Tyler’s Chicago wedding at The Geraghty: Just when you think you’ve seen it all, there’s more! Walking into this beautifully decorated space at the Geraghty was something out of a dream. The colors alone were mesmerizing, but the DETAIL! The detail was out of this world.
There were unforgettable food displays including a custom sushi bar and tequila bar, and a life-size cut out of Kira’s late father that later made its way to the dance floor.
As you began your walk through the candle-lit entrance to the reception, you felt as though you were walking through an enchanted forest. As you turned the corner, you immediately saw the bride and groom’s sweetheart table, and the amazing band greeting you warmly with live music as you looked over the colorful details of each table placement.
I asked Kira to tell me what they envisioned their ideal wedding to be like. Here is what she said :
“This is our reception for last years’ ceremony (which we held at our home with our immediate family). All of the guests streamed our ceremony from the comfort of their own homes. The idea is to make it a big party to celebrate our marriage and all of our family and friends finally being able to be together. We are surprising our guests with an airbrush artist as a funny nod to the forgotten days of bar/bat mitzvahs and to add a memorable, fun, and unique flair to the event.
My husband and I developed a renewed appreciation and love for trees and florals during the pandemic on all of our walks around the neighborhood, so I wanted to bring that theme into the wedding decor. I told Mathew I want guests to feel as if they are walking into an enchanted forest when entering the reception room, and I am excited to see what he comes up with!
My mom’s must have is a tequila bar. We decided to give the tequila bar a dia de los muertos theme to honor the culture of the neighborhood our venue is in and to do something unique and special to honor our deceased loved ones. For all events, my dad was always big on honoring the memory of lost loved ones by creating beautiful memory tables. Since he unfortunately is now on that list of lost loved ones, I really wanted to make sure that we honored his memory by creating a really special memorial “table.” I am also showing a little photo montage of pictures of my dad and I during the first half of what would have been our father/daughter dance. The song I chose is Jackson Browne’s “For a Dancer,” which is one of my dad’s (and my) favorite songs and has a really beautiful message about loss, death, and life after death. I also have a life-size cut-out of my dad (which was also at the ceremony) because that was the type of humor my dad (and I) have. My mom thinks I should dance with it (our family has weird humor lol) but I think that will be a game-time decision.
My whole life I looked forward to the father-daughter dance and the speech my dad would give at my wedding (he is the king of funny speeches!), so it has been difficult imagining a wedding without him and those things…but to be honest all of the changes with the pandemic kind of make everything a little easier because nothing is what it should be.
The majority of the details of the event is a surprise to both guests and even my husband – from the cocktail hour (e.g. sushi bar), to the air brush, to the frozen lemon/lime cocktails, to the Lou Malnatis pizzas. The only things my husband knows about are the band (which he chose) and the air brush artist. Everything else is a surprise (even the decor!). It has been hard to keep everything a secret from him and my family/friends, but my mom and I are excited to see their faces when they see everything!
We told the band we wanted the party to be like a big concert, and gave them complete creative freedom to jam out on any and all songs they want, for as long as they want. So it should be a-rockin’ good time!
We just want everyone to have fun and be happy :-)”
And fun and happy it was!
Their wedding creative team:
Venue : @thegeraghty
Design/lighting/Florist : @kehoedesigns @mathew_lahey
Caterer : @entertaining_co
Band : @goldcoastallstars
Makeup : @toshiszpyra
Hair : @erinahernbeauty_salonbuzz
Dress : @ultimatebridechicago / Dresser: Gwendolyn
Suit : @suitsupply
Video : @mirarweddings
Planner : #RevaNathan
Photo Booth: Record-A-Hit
Air Brush: Record-A-Hit
Late-night snack: Lou Malnati’s Pizza
