Melissa + Michael’s Wedding Day Pros
PREMIER HEARTLAND WEDDING IDEAS VENDORS
Wedding Planning Make It Happen Events
Floral Shelly Sarver Designs
Rentals Beyond Elegance Event Rentals
ALL VENDORS: Photographer Justin Salem Meyer Photography | Ceremony Valley Church | Reception World Food Prize Hall of Laureates | Caterer The Des Moines Embassy Club | Cake Little Blackbird Bakery | Hair & Makeup Salon Spa W | Wedding Dress Schaffer’s Scottsdale, Pronovias | Menswear Macy's | Stationery LanaDreams | Napkins Screen Print The Side Garage | Jewelry/Accessories Ames Silversmithing | Live Painting Laura Todd Art | Signs BDI Signs & Graphic Design | Reception Music Cocktail Hour: Dueling Fiddles, Reception: Something Blu | Transportation Majestic Limo | Officiant Pastor Linton Lundeen | Hotels Surety Hotel, Hilton Des Moines Downtown, Embassy Suites by Hilton Des Moines Downtown
See all the vendors we LUST for, that can help you with your big day!
Midwest boy meets Southwest girl.
It’s the little things and moments that make a wedding special. For Melissa and Michael, their wedding had the perfect details uniquely fitting for them. Originally from Arizona with an education in California, Melissa moved to Iowa after graduation, while Michael was born and raised in Iowa. The two met at the Greater Des Moines Leadership Institute's Community Leadership Program and worked together on a committee. At one of the meetings, Michael overheard Melissa looking for a date to the Iowa State Fair. The couple never expected that Michael would propose at the same fairgrounds two years later.
To help make their wedding day unforgettable, Gina Cramer of Make it Happen Events quite literally made their day happen. “It was a quick match when I met Gina,” Melissa mentioned. “Our personalities paired well, she was confident in and encouraged my ideas, and she provided guidance without taking control.” The couple were incredibly grateful for her help and loved all the memorable details, including floral, food, and music, Gina helped them arrange.
Do things your own way.
Constructing a wedding that is unique to you is challenging. However, Melissa made it a point to create an unforgettable wedding that would surprise and delight guests. One of her special details was having a private dinner for her and Michael. Melissa wanted to have a moment away from guests with all the attention and movement a wedding can bring. It was a cherished part of the day that helped the couple celebrate.
Melissa wore a timeless off-the-shoulder dress paired with a lovely bouquet by Shelly Savers Designs, full of pink and cream flowers. Making their wedding more unique, they decided not to have a wedding party. “Not having a wedding party meant our friends and family got to be guests. And that was so fun! No stress. No wedding fatigue. We all got to have fun,” Melissa told us. The two enjoyed being able to see their friends and family in the crowd as they said, “I do.”
Special touches make the day.
Their wedding reception was at the World Food Prize, a beautiful venue that left Melissa speechless after visiting. Instead of a wedding day full of everything, they held a wedding weekend! After the reception and wedding Friday, they had a “first-day” soiree Saturday and a farewell brunch Sunday. Having a weekend allowed them to relax more and celebrate their way.
It’s your wedding, not the guests. So having special touches that complement your relationship makes the event all the more perfect. With Michael’s Midwestern details and Melissa’s Southwestern influence, the weekend was the perfect mix of them both. Even the food showed the relationship through Midwestern beef tenderloin with Southwestern Mexican street corn. There were so many details that made their day special.
