Lake Lure, North Carolina
We're completely breathless! Rylee marries in a gorgeous summer wedding. While there was a bit of rain, it didn't stop this bride from shining on her big day. Read on to see this gorgeous bride and her wedding day!
"The NIA dress is me. I’m not flashy, and the NIA gives off such a subtle/elegant shine and sparkle, unlike any dress I’ve ever seen. I’m a hippie at heart, so the subtle sequin flowers placed throughout the dress were perfect for me."
- Rylee
We're completely breathless! Rylee marries her love Jimmy in a gorgeous summer wedding. While there was a bit of rain, it didn't stop this bride from shining on her big day. Read on to see this gorgeous bride and her wedding day!
My hubby and I met while I was a bartender at an upscale sushi restaurant in San Diego, CA. He came in on a Wednesday night with one of his buddies and talked my ear off while we laughed all night until I closed.
Before he left, he drew a little guy jumping out of a plane along with his name and number on a paper napkin. I stopped him right before he walked out the door and handed him my name and number (Side note: I’ve never given out my number before). This guy had me so smitten; there was something so intriguing and enticing about him, but I told myself I wouldn’t reach out to him unless he did…not even 5 minutes after my shift, he texted me.
Now, I move at a snail's pace when it comes to dating, and with his traveling, it took us a few weeks to get together, and before we were able to see each other, we would talk every second of every day. When we finally did get together, he brought a friend with him to make me comfortable. After a few months of dating, there was a night when the power went out. He told me to go look at the coffee table, and on the coffee table was a little note that read, “Will you be my girlfriend? Yes/No” with a pen, and from that moment on, he has added nothing but happiness and color into my life.
We love traveling, hiking, camping, and taking in all of Mother Nature’s beauty. Shortly after we met, he had to deploy for 6 months, and a few months after that, we were scheduled to move to North Carolina.
In between his return and our cross-country move, we had a trip planned to Yosemite. This wasn’t unusual since we’re always traveling to new places to camp and hike. He invited one of our friends to come with us to be our “photographer,” which I had no idea about at the time. We ended up leaving one night early because my hubby couldn’t sleep, so he just decided to drive all through the night.
We arrived at Yosemite around 5am and started on our 10-mile hike. I noticed that our friend Luis was taking pictures of Jimmy on every corner of the mountain, and I just thought, “Okay, I guess he just likes taking pictures!” Once we got to the top of our hike, the view overlooked all of Yosemite; it had the valley and Half Dome in the background and was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. I was mesmerized and pulled my phone out to take a picture, then Jimmy grabbed my hand and asked if we could take a photo together.
He grabbed both of my hands and started saying the sweetest words, and of course, I immediately started crying tears of happiness. I was completely caught off guard, and all of the other hikers sitting behind us taking in the view started cheering! It was the most perfect day, a perfect view, and perfect weather…I could not have imagined it happening any other way. I almost fell off the mountain on our way down because I was staring at my ring the whole time!
Since it was close to our moving date (we were moving from California to North Carolina, and had a 23-day road trip planned), I just accepted the fact that we didn’t have time to have an engagement party, but little did I know, he planned a surprise engagement party for us the following week, and I had no idea! All of his family flew out, my parents were there along with all of our friends, and it was absolutely perfect. My favorite part about his proposal, our engagement party, and our wedding is that it represents us and our relationship. We’re adventurous, minimal, and being together is our greatest joy.
As a bride, you dream of your big day with clear blue skies, sun shining, and birds chirping; however, despite our dream, our day was nothing we dreamt of. From clear skies to monsoon and a flooding reception area, our dream day was slowly slipping away and there was nothing we could do.
I’d have to say the most memorable part of our day was seeing all of our guests who rushed outside in between thunder and lightning to stand outside in the pouring rain under tents just so we could have our special moment. The second I stepped foot outside, all of our guests started cheering while they watched me walk down the aisle, and it put the most heartfelt tears in my eyes. I will never forget that feeling and the reaction on my husband’s face as I walked towards him in the rain.
Most brides wouldn’t want to get married in the pouring rain, mess up their hair and make-up, and get their dress completely soaked…but I walked down that aisle as fast as I could to marry my best friend. All of our family and friends weathered the horrible storm with us, and in the end, it made our wedding so intimate and filled with love. Our guests got to witness our relationship in such a real and raw setting.
Our wedding day was far from perfect, it was rushed, it was wet, but it was perfect for us. Despite the unforeseen rainy wedding day, we collected rainwater from our wedding and have it saved in mason jars so we can baptize our future children with it.
Advice to other brides?
Do your best to go with the flow on your wedding day. Things are going to go wrong, plans are going to change last minute, but I promise everything will work out just the way it should, and in the end, you won’t be able to imagine your day happening any other way.
I knew the NIA gown was my dress since day one [...] I just had a feeling.
- Rylee
I knew the NIA gown was my dress since day one. Of course, immediately following our engagement, I started looking for dresses, and I stumbled upon the NIA on Pinterest. I pinned it, took screenshots, and saved it into my wedding folder. There weren’t very many photos of the NIA gown or photos of any real brides wearing it, but I just had a feeling.
After months and months of pinning and searching Instagram, whenever I stumbled upon the NIA, I would pin it and screenshot it again! (I honestly probably have at least 7 pictures of the gown in my phone from the last year of searching). My mom and I scheduled a trip to NYC to go wedding dress shopping, and when she got into town (I live near Wilmington, North Carolina where options are slim), we decided to check one store out in my town that carried Enzoani.
We went in search of the NIA and they didn’t have it, and I just took it as a sign that it wasn’t meant to be…instead, I almost decided on another dress and made plans to alter it as close as I could to give me the shape that the NIA would give. After searching all of North Carolina and NYC, I just couldn’t settle on a dress knowing I didn’t get my chance to try the NIA on. I contacted The Wedding Dress Shoppe down in Wilmington (where I first went with my mom) and the shop owner was so kind enough to get the NIA sample in for me.
After weeks and weeks of waiting, it was finally time for my appointment, AND IT WAS PERFECT. The sample was a size 4 and fit me perfectly, the color, the design, the flowers, the train, the fit…everything was exactly how I envisioned. The NIA dress is me; I’m not flashy, and the NIA gives off such a subtle/elegant shine and sparkle, unlike any dress I’ve ever seen. I’m a hippie at heart, so the subtle sequin flowers placed throughout the dress were perfect for me…I also have a tiny waist and large hips, and the fit of the NIA accentuated all of my curves in a mature way while still being sexy.
It is such a special dress, and I truly have never come across one like it. I got so many compliments, and everyone would comment on how unique and beautiful it was. I knew this dress wasn’t very popular since I couldn’t find many photos of it after searching high and low for inspiration, and I’m so surprised it isn’t! However, knowing that there weren’t very many brides wearing my dress made me feel extra special.
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