Featured Bride Friday: Melissa

Congratulations to the beautiful couple!!

What was it like working with Charlotte’s?

Awesome! My consultant Sara was AMAZING! She was there for me every step of the way! From finding my perfect wedding dress, to the frantic, stressful search for the hottest bridesmaids dresses! She was there for every phone call, appointment, & late night e-mail. Also, Summer made the dreaded tuxedo shopping very simple. Jeremy and I pretty much disagreed on everything dealing with tuxedos. Summer helped us find a tuxedo that he liked, and, well, I LOVED! My groom and his groomsmen were absolutely handsome! I had Cheryl do custom alterations on my gown, to make into the perfect dress that I envisioned. She was able to create a handmade ivory bow tie, and add 40 yards of hot pink tulle to my dress. Every part of working with Charlotte’s was fun! They listened to my crazy ideas and they never told me no. Instead they worked with me and made me feel like I was truly their only bride!

Melissa's beautiful Gown

The wedding party

How did you and your fiancé meet?

We met at our place of work, KWIK TRIP! He transferred to my store from another store because we needed some extra help! I remember the first day he came to work at our store. He walked in like he owned the place. Little did he know that this was my store. What started out as a fun, yet flirty two year friendship, turned into late night joy rides, long chats about life, and a crazy love story!

What was your favorite part of your wedding day?

Our carriage ride! This was gifted to us, from my Mom & Dad. Our horse and carriage picked us up at our church on King Street, & just like a fairy-tale we galloped to Riverside Park, where our wedding party greeted us. At first Jeremy wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. He said his friends were going make fun of him for riding a "Cinderella Carriage" (Which, YES they did!) But honestly, it was the only 15 minutes of our entire wedding day we got to spend together alone. And waving at the hundreds of honking cars!!

How did he propose?

We went to the Twin Cities to celebrate our two year Anniversary. Jeremy got us a hotel room for the night because the next day we were going to hang out at the Minneapolis ZOO. Our room was amazing and it even included a huge Jacuzzi. We decided it would be fun to take a bubble bath. We didn’t have real soap to make bubbles so we improvised with shampoo. Before we knew it, we were laughing hysterically, bubbles were everywhere! There were so many bubbles that they overflowed onto the floor. We couldn’t even see each other! Jeremy was swimming around looking for something, which confused me. He looked as if he was looking for something. Come to find out, he had the ring on the Jacuzzi ledge, and he thought it was going to get lost in our Bubble filled hotel room. Jeremy finally swam his way to the ring, and then made his way back to me. He held a little black box in front of me, looked at me with his crazy big blue eyes, opened it, and said "HERE”. As we both held each other, hugged and cried I knew that he probably had been rehearsing a "Will you marry speech," in his mind all day long, over, and over again, but in the moment all he could say was "here." It was the cutest moment ever and this was our absolute perfect proposal!

What is one piece of advice you would give brides that are just beginning their search for the perfect wedding gown?

Even though you think you know what you want in a wedding dress, don't be afraid to try on the complete opposite! Take risks, and don't be afraid to stand out! It's your day, so be loud! When you finally get that crazy feeling in your stomach, and you think to yourself, this is the dress. Guess what, it is, so STOP SHOPPING! Nothing compares to the dress that gives you that special feeling.

 Photos courtesy of Emily Schmidt