Rustic Glam Wedding. Never were there three words that went so perfectly together. This midwestern wedding of white and gold elegance was deep-seated in the bride and groom’s Wisconsin roots and family heirlooms. The bride’s mom made all of the signage, banners, and small details, and even picked the wildflowers for the centerpieces that day. The men wore no ties but suspenders adorned with antlers (boutonnieres). The bridesmaids wore gold-y hued dresses with sparkly belts and mismatched shoes, carrying the clutches (instead of bouquets) gifted to them by the bride. And my three favorite details? The bride’s white and gold brooch bouquet made entirely of family heirlooms, the bride’s two in one wedding dress that was ripped off/revealed at the end of the ceremony surprising everyone (even the groom)!! Last but not least, the venue. It’s name? The Enchanted Barn. Seriously? It’s enchanting. Enough said. And before I forget, though I don’t know how I could, this beauty was photographed by the ever-amazing Britt Croft Photography!! Go on, give her a round of applause – you’ll see she so deserves it!!

Michael and Nicole grew up in the same small town of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, and have been going to school together since the sixth grade. Ironically enough, for some reason, Nicole didn’t like Michael very much in high school. But after she and her high school boyfriend broke up, they were brought together by hanging out in the same circle of friends, and suddenly he didn’t seem so bad, plus he was super good looking. Michael however, always thought she was cute but thought it was a moot point because she was taken.

Their first date is debatable and depends on who you ask. Nicole recalls their first “official” date as really romantic…just kidding. They started out playing tennis, where she whopped his butt, although that’s a touchy subject, and then went to the county fair demolition derby. (That’s right, a demolition derby.) But in its own silly way, it was perfect for them, and every year on their anniversary they make a point to go to the Rice Lake demolition derby :) That first summer they spent countless nights under the stars in the middle of grassy areas waiting for shooting stars and making wishes. Michael saw his first shooting star ever with Nicole and, as it turns out, wishes do come true.

I really loved what Nicole had to say about the sweet somethings in her relationship with Michael, so I’m going to do something I don’t usually do and share her exact words here for you to read too.

“We started dating the summer after high school graduation and we spent a lot of time together that summer under the stars. Michael has told me that he knew that he loved me after a month of being together and tells me that prior to meeting me he used to pray for someone just like me to be in his life.

I think that I realized that I loved him when I realized how much balance he brought to my life. I am more of an extrovert, impulsive, tell-you-like-it-is kind of person and Michael is much more conservative and analytical. He completely grounds me when I need to be grounded and I bring out the fun, inner kid side of him, and it totally works. Furthermore, Michael has proven to always be there when I needed him to be, even when he didn’t know how to be there for me. Point blank, he is my rock.

My senior year of college my parents got divorced and a year after that my father unexpectedly took his own life. Somehow through those awful times and even today, our love just continues to grow and develop in ways I never thought possible and I think it is because of the support and love we have for each other, and especially the unconditional love and support he gives me.

I may not have had one single, magic epiphany about knowing that he was “the one”, rather it was more of a process that created this realization that he didn’t have to stay with me during those awful times (because let’s be honest, nobody stays perfectly sane during tragic times) but he did, and he continues to, and I just knew/know that no matter what happens in our lives, he will be there for me, and I will be there for him. I want to share everything with him, good or bad, and that is what makes him “the one” and mine.”

And that’s what it’s all about. True love is a process. It’s not always rainbows and butterflies. Hard work is involved. But it’s always, always worth it because love never lets you down.

At the time of the proposal, Nicole had been pressing the issue quite hard because they’d been together for almost six years. She was convinced that a proposal was coming, and that she was ten steps ahead of him. But he got her (and she hates to admit that). Michael and Nicole love to hunt, Michael especially. (He just recently bought Nicole her first pink bow and matching pink arrows.) So at the end of April in 2011 they went to the Iowa Whitetail Deer Classic in Des Moines, IA, and all day Michael begged Nicole to go shed hunting the following weekend. (Shed hunting is walking around the woods looking for antlers that have fallen off of bucks – they lose them yearly.) Nicole finally agreed.

Sometime during the week before their shed hunting weekend, Michael told Nicole that the plan would be to go Saturday after he helped somebody with their dentures. (Michael’s in his third year of dental school and sometimes Nicole zones out when he goes on and on.) He left early the morning of, leaving Nicole at home to pay bills.

Later, just twenty minutes into shedding, Nicole grew bored. She asked if they were done yet but Michael requested that they keep going, and going, and going. Finally, after a long while, Nicole spotted an antler next to a tree. But she was bummed because it was already nailed to a tree, obviously claimed by someone else. That was when she noticed the engagement ring on a tine of the antler. Michael got down on one knee then and told her that, like the antler that her ring was on that he’d found a year prior, she was the most favorite thing he had ever found, and couldn’t believe that his prayers had been answered to find someone like her. It was a perfect moment and so unique Michael, of course she said yes. (P.S. He didn’t actually help anyone with dentures that morning. He and a friend had gone into the woods to plant the antler and engagement ring for her to be led to later.) It was totally perfect, especially since he did in fact fool her :)

{From the Bride} The wedding day was an emotional blur. I actually started out the day with a run at 6 am by myself to relax and get centered. The day did start out a little stressful because we ended up a little bit behind schedule and all I wanted to do all morning was see Michael because he grounds me so much. After everyone was ready, we did get to see each other and do first look photos. My most favorite moment of the whole day was the ceremony, especially the exchanging of our vows. My brothers walked me down the aisle and gave me away to Michael, and of course made a joke when the officiant said, “who gives this woman away?” My brothers looked at each other and said, “I don’t know what do you think? I guess we do.” Anyways, Michael and I wrote our own vows in the form of a letter and then we rolled them and sealed them in a bottle so that when times get tough we can remember the love we shared on our wedding day. Writing our own vows just made the day that much more special and his vows were so perfect. At the end of the ceremony, my maid of honor and I surprised everyone, including the groom, when right before walking off the altar she pulled the bottom part of my dress off. I had a two in one dress that had a longer skirt over the top of a shorter knee length dress. We all then proceeded to dance our way out to The Black Eyed Peas’ I Gotta Feeling. The rest of the evening was a total blur of picture taking, dinner, and then dancing. We danced to Amazed by Lonestar, it had been “our song” since we first started dating. The dance was A BLAST! It got pretty crazy when groomsmen and our brothers started taking their shirts off after the auctioning off of my garter by Michael’s dad. You always hear everyone say, “enjoy your day, it goes by so fast!” They were not kidding. I had no idea just how fast it was going to be done and over with, but it was a perfect summer day with all of our loved ones, and truly a celebration of our love.

{Advice for Couples} Dating advice: be yourself, it is not worth trying to be someone you are not to be with someone that you think you should. Wedding advice: make your day your own, make it a reflection of who you are as a couple. Celebrate the love you have for each other in its most simple and pure form, spending a lot of money to have an outrageous wedding does not make it more special, your love is what makes the day special.

Congratulations, Michael and Nicole, and thank you so much for sharing your wedding and love story with us!! We wish you both so much love and laughter in the many years you’ll share together! Many, many thanks to the amazing Britt Croft Photography for sharing their very special day with us today!! We’re so thankful to have you be a part of our rustic month :) xoxo

Britt Croft Photography is a fabulous member of our Vendor Boutique. For more information on how members are chosen, click here.