Erika and Doug got married on April 22, 2018. It was such a wonderful and joyous day, kicking off our 2018 wedding season of amazing couples! Erika and Doug were kind enough to do a little write up for us today! Read below for a first hand account of their day and enjoy the photos too!
The girls started their day getting ready at the W Chicago City Center hotel. We ate bagels, drank mimosas, and got our hair and makeup done for the big day. The boys spent the morning having brunch and getting ready at Doug’s brother’s condo in the Ukrainian Village. The boys then traveled to the hotel where Doug and I had our first look on the mezzanine overlooking the bar of the hotel. We were so excited that our wedding day was finally here.
After taking our first look photos, the bridal party walked to the Chicago Board of Trade Building and took some iconic Chicago wedding photos. Jamie and Eric were helpful directing us with the shots which really helped us lose those wedding day jitters! We then boarded a bus and drove to Lurie Garden in Millennium Park where we took photos with our bridal party and families. We also ventured over to the Modern Wing of the Art Institute and captured some photos there. It was a chilly overcast day for mid-April, but everyone was excited about the day and had a great time taking photos. Finally, we loaded back onto the bus, everyone enjoyed a beer from Rhinegeist (one of our favorite breweries!), and headed off to GHL.
When we arrived at GHL, we took a moment to admire the flowers and the decor before being tucked away to the back room. It seemed like in no time our ceremony was about to start. Our wedding was officiated by our good friend Eric Johnson who did an amazing job telling our story and celebrating our love with all of our friends and family.
After the ceremony, we took a few moments to ourselves to enjoy a glass of champagne and eat some hors d'oeuvres before taking family portraits. Jamie and Eric did a great job bringing together our excited family members together to capture family studio portraits. We were even able to sneak in one drink with our friends and families before making our entrance into the reception.
The rest of the night was spent enjoying amazing food from Food For Thought, cake from Amy Beck Cake Design, and dancing the night away with tunes from our incredible DJ Jennefa. It was the best day to start our married life together, and we are thankful for the amazing pictures we have to help us remember this day! - Erika and Doug Tanaka
