Lis Simon Bride Carly

T H E L O V E S T O R Y

“We both grew up in Rochester and sort of knew who each other were”.

Carly had gone to high school with Dan’s younger brother, but Carly and Dan had never actually met. Later on, the two played against each other in a city league volleyball game – “I thought he was super cute and added him on social media”. A few months later, she messaged him on Instagram! Their first date was snowshoeing followed by apps and drinks, all planned by Dan! Carly lived in Minneapolis, and Dan lived in Rochester, but thanks to covid, the long distance did not last very long. Her work allowed her to keep her job and move back to Rochester – and the rest is history.

T H E P R O P O S A L

May 21st, 2021

The couple took a trip up to Northern Minnesota, to visit Carly’s grandparent’s cabin and stay there for the weekend – “My favourite place in the entire world!” When they got to the cabin, Dan asked her to go down to the dock to watch the sunset. “He was so nervous that he almost dropped the ring in the lake!” Eventually, he got down on one knee and popped the question – “It was so special because it was just the 2 of us, exactly how I pictured it, in my favourite place!”

T H E D R E S S

Lena.

Dress shopping was amazing!! My little sister Lisa got engaged 3 months after us, so we went shopping together! We both scheduled appointments at Finery in Rochester.

The ladies at Finery went beyond their expectations! They suggested trying on dress styles that neither of them had thought of. Advised them about shoes, accessories, etc that they never would have known about. The sisters had seen the Lena dress on Finery’s Instagram and fell in love. Lisa, her sister tried it on first and decided it wasn’t fit for her barn wedding. Immediately, Carly knew it was gonna be her dress! Carly tried on the dress and it wasn’t even a question – it fit her theme perfectly! It was a perfect combination of simple and elegant. Lisa chose the Matilda dress, had it customised by her seamstress to remove the sleeves for dancing.

“We ended our dress shopping day by trying on our mom and grandmothers’ dresses. It was one of the most special days of my life and I will remember it forever!”

W E D D I N G & R E C E P T I O N

October 22nd, 2022  at The Skyroom at Red Wing Golf Course

The Skyroom is absolutely stunning!

The venue was remodelled in November 2019, making the interior up to date and modern: white walls, dark beams, wooden cross back chairs, and brick fireplace. Since they had a fall wedding and the sun set during cocktail hour, Carly wanted the entire venue lit up with candles: “I had over 250 candles!”

It was a beautiful October day, 70 degrees in Minnesota! Their guests spent cocktail hour hanging out on the wrap around balcony, while Carly + Dan took sunset pictures. “The dance was amazing!” Carly and her mom curated a playlist that caters to all generations! To top it off, the DJ killed it – “the dance floor was full the entire time!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM YOUR SPECIAL DAY

Anecdotes from the Bride:

I’m torn! There were so many amazing moments! Walking down the aisle was amazing! Seeing Dan smiling back at me.

During our ceremony my bridesmaid Danielle sang our song to us! That was a beautiful moment.
Dan and I were the last ones to leave our reception, we had the limo to ourselves. Instead of going straight to our hotel the driver drove us around for half an hour. It was just the 2 of us and we got to talk about our amazing wedding day! I will cherish that moment forever.
We did a song race! To kick off our reception our DJ played one song and we had to try and take a picture with every table before the song finished! Everyone got really into it and set the tone for the energy the rest of night!
The pictures are hilarious and amazing! Who else can say they have a picture with every person at their wedding?

PREPARATIONS AND INSPIRATIONS

Carly had always thought that she wanted a boho wedding, after choosing her dress and the venue, the theme became a combination of boho and elegant. Her décor was simple yet classy, just like her dress! The venue was stunning by itself, so they didn’t have to do much. Carly envisioned a floral backdrop for the ceremony, she wanted it to be big and stunning – and it was.

Pinterest and Instagram were the two platforms she used for inspiration – “I’ve had a wedding board on Pinterest since high school! A lot has changed since then, except my colour scheme”.

HONEYMOON

Carly and Dan spent 3 amazing weeks in Egypt!

From Carly

Trust your vendors! They are the experts! They have your best interest in mind, and they want the day to be just as successful as you want it to be. Ask for their opinions and ideas.

Special thanks to:

We found our venue first. Dan and I both love golf so we kept our search to golf courses in Minnesota. Now we can go back on our anniversary and play a round! Some of our vendors; florist, food, dessert, transportation, and DJ were preferred vendors for our venue. A few were friends, like our wedding planner and videographer. The rest I found on Instagram!

Dress: Finery Bridal Chic

Photographer: Morgan Maxine Photography

Videographer: Billy Bjork

Wedding Planner: Realm Planning

Florist: 651 Studio Floral

Hair: Hair by Maddie Gienau

Makeup: Andrea Reis Makeup

Wedding Singer: Tony Cuchetti

Rings: SJ Jewelers

Food: River Valley Catering

DJ: Instant Request

Dessert: Emily Grace Cakes

Transportation: Eddie’s White Glove Shuttles