CARLY + BRENDAN

They grew up always knowing of one another, but it wasn’t until high school that they really became interested in knowing one another more. Brendan was without a doubt one of the nicest people Carly had ever met. A gentleman and a kind heart from day one. His first memories of her are how gorgeous she was (is), her warm smile, and also… how she is definitely not quiet.

They began dating in 2010. Dates at that time consisted of watching movies and getting Dairy Queen. Carly loves how calm and chill Brendan is.  “He balances me out and makes me realize not everything is a big deal.” She loves his humor. “He’s so funny but not in a loud, ‘wanting to make the whole room laugh’ way. More of a quiet funny – like without even trying to be.” She loves how supportive and encouraging he is – always making her feel special and telling her that he is proud of her.  “I love how hard she works with her online boutique and her hair stylist job, she goes beyond your normal scope of practice to be the best she can at her job. I love how much she cares/will do for other people/family.”  And she is likewise so proud of him.  “He is such a hard worker, whether it’s something in his actual job or something small around the apartment, super motivated So insanely humble, he works his butt off now and even in his past football career, but would never comment on his accomplishments.”

On February 13th 2021, It was valentines weekend and the two had dinner reservations at Curate in Springfield. They were at their apartment getting ready when Carly became a little suspicious. Brendan was acting a little different and seemed nervous. “He proposed just us two (and our dog Bo) in our kitchen and it was so sweet and special, just us how I wanted! Then we went to dinner to celebrate and went to Carlinville the next day to show our family and grandparents!” 

So many experinces and memories lead up to May 7th, 2022.  You can feel the rich, deep history these two share not only with each other but with everyone involved in their day. Their relationships are filled with deep love and support, and it’s very easy to see – even as an outsider – that the attributes these two describe about one another exist also in their friendships and their love for their families.

We had the honor of capturing senior photos for both Carly and Brendan. What an incredible joy to be chosen to capture this next chapter in their stories.  We are beyond excited and blessed to share this beautiful day with you! Enjoy Carly and Brendan’s wedding day!These two… it felt like taking photos of movie stars the entire day. Such gorgeous people inside and out!The venue at Pear Tree Estates in Champaign IL is just phenomenal. “I instantly knew this was the venue when we visited.  So beautiful and easy to work with. Love that everything was in one location and the house on the property is so great to have. So many people after the wedding said they were a little confused why it was in Champaign but after they saw the venue they knew why!! It was a bit windy outdoors, and with a large wedding party we were a little bit worries about getting photos of the group outside. We absolutely LOVED that Carly opted to do group photos inside Pear Tree Estates. The room and light were exquisite and made for the best photos – plus no one had to feel wind blown! Also have to give a huge shout out to the wedding party for being so accomodating and cooperative! There are times that bigger groups can be challenging, but this group was so great to work with.I love that Carly chose white for her bridesmaids’ dresses.  It went perfectly with her vision of neutral, clean, elegant, simple, and timeless.Carly walked down the aisle to an acoustic cover of Halo by Beyoncé. “All of my friends and family know I’m obsessed with Beyoncé and I love that I could incorporate her in a not so obvious way haha! The wedding party walked down to Beautiful Day by U2 which is a special song between my siblings and dad. He always blasted it in the car when we were younger and we would all sing along.” The staff at Pear Tree flipped the room for the reception and created absolute magic.  Loved EVERY detail about their reception.You show me a dessert bar and I’ll show you a girl with no self control.It’s the way he’s looking at her for me. I couldn’t not include this photo.First dance song: “A cover of you make my dreams come true When we are at home making dinner we always play music and we play a lot of 70/80/90s and that don’t always plays and we love it. So when I heard a cover of it I knew we had to use it! “Another thing I/we personally loved about Carly and Brendan’s day is that they allowed us to steal them from the reception during golden hour.  We get that it can be hard to break away from your celebration and time on the dancefloor with friends on your wedding day, but I assure you – golden hour and a bit of time to just be together is always worth it.Still flawless.Not our typical photo I would include from golden hour, but dang… they look like celebrities. (And I love catching a groom getting used to his wedding ring.)

At the end of the day Carly and Brendan felt “so, so genuinely happy  – and honestly so sad too. I did not want the day to be over and it absolutely flew by but now I find myself looking back at pictures and videos almost everyday.  Looking back there is not a thing we would change about our day. We both had the most amazing day and felt so loved!!”

Their advice for future brides and grooms: “Don’t worry about the small details!!! The weeks leading up to the wedding I panicked over the smallest things and it really doesn’t matter. Also the next morning we had brunch with the wedding party and friends that were in town and that was one of my favorite parts of the wedding- seeing everyone one last time before we all left town and talking about the wedding day made me so happy- definitely recommend doing this!” 

Special shout-outs: “From the moment we got engaged my sister Chloe sent me all the google docs and excel sheets I needed to stay organized and on top of things. She also communicated a lot with vendors which took alot of stress away. Pear tree was also so helpful and organized throughout the planning process. And of course Emilee Sherertz, our day of coordinator, who is so amazing and kept everything flowing the day of the wedding! We knew we wanted someone close to us to marry us so we asked my brother in law John. He had never officiated a wedding before but he did such an amazing job and I loved having him apart of the wedding.”

The two honeymooned in Riviera Maya Mexico and call Springfield IL home.

Carly and Brendan – you two are a dream!  We felt beyond fortunate to be chosen to capture your wedding day, and another big moment in your lives. Thank you for allowing us to be part of your memories. We are forever and always cheering you on! xo