Patrick and Aldair’s wedding was so beautiful and such a lovely time! They were really able to enjoy this slightly warm, 75-degree August day with their ceremony and reception at South Shore Cultural Center in Chicago. We provided day-of coordination to ensure everything ran as smoothly as possible and it was such a great time!

Aldair and Patrick really didn’t want to worry about when things were arriving, if everything was set up the way they envisioned, or if their groomsmen needed to do tasks to get everything in order. They really wanted to focus on the time they had with their family and friends so we took care of their details! Patrick and Aldair mentioned that their priorities were good food, the ceremony itself, and when everything settled and they got to have fun together.

Patrick and Aldair came to the South Shore Cultural Center together with their groomsmen to get ready - most of them spent the morning together until it was time to get dressed for the first look. Before anything really got started, we all had to take a break outside while the fire alarms went off due to a steamer - thankfully it was quick and didn’t really disrupt the day!

The wedding party was all together, including Patrick and Aldair, for most of the morning just hanging out. Once it was time to start getting ready though, they went into two separate rooms so they could get on their suits and have a first look with each other before the ceremony.

We really loved the two styles of boutonnieres, especially because the Bird of Paradise was so near and dear to Aldair’s heart and really showed off his love of plants and florals.

Aldair and Patrick shared their first look in the halls of the venue and got started with taking their couple’s portraits. They had plenty of time and didn’t really plan to do more than that for photos, so they had a lot of time to slowly take photos and not worry about the timeline while things were getting set and ready for the ceremony.

South Shore Cultural Center is the same building that Barrack and Michelle Obama got married in as they lived very close to the building, and they had an iconic photo on this bench that they had from their wedding that Patrick and Aldair recreated. We absolutely loved it!

The exterior of the building and the plants that they have in the area is really perfect for photos - it really transports you out of Illinois and into a more warm, tropical area, so we are glad that they got to get so many great photos with the beautiful architecture! As Aldair is also an architect by day, we know he appreciated the space too.

The ceremony was in the Solarium which was so stunning with all of the white tile and walls. On the ceiling, Patrick noted all of the Zodiac signs when we did our venue walkthrough and it truly was a beautiful space to have their wedding ceremony! We were blown away with Aldair’s vision with the florals and also his map he created himself of the ceremony seating and the whole venue for his guests!

The ceremony itself was bilingual with Aldair’s family member officiating. It was really nice to have a personal touch like that to include everyone in the ceremony, and it actually ran a few minutes quicker than we expected! The vows were really sweet and Patrick and Aldair had such a perfect start to the wedding day!

Cocktail hour was in a foyer right next to the grand dining hall, where they mingled and got started celebrating their love. Patrick and Aldair surely enjoyed their time and spent a good majority of their time at cocktail hour after formal photos and a moment alone in their suite with some drinks and appetizers. We recommend doing this for all of our couples that can because it really is a great way to soak it all in and be intentional before getting whisked into the quick evening.

The dining hall truly is something out of a fairytale, and Samuel our photographer for the day did an AMAZING job capturing the dreamy atmosphere that radiated in the whole space. We absolutely loved the architecture, extremely tall ceilings, and all of the color!! We don’t know if we have seen a more colorful venue but honestly it was such a beautiful space for a wedding. It really worked well with the florals that they had and it was so wonderful to get to see their vision all come together!

Aldair also had a great attention to detail and created the logos for the coffee favors of their dogs - of course we absolutely loved them and so did their guests! Even with the menus having the corgi clips that held their place cards - you can really tell all of the intentional details from start to finish! Once the cocktail hour was over, we got all of the guests seated for the grand entrance and then it was time for an amazing dinner from Food for Thought - the tacos were INCREDIBLE and everyone loved it!

Aldair and Patrick had many speeches in between dinner and dancing, but they were all so sweet and fun. We especially loved their personal thank you to so many of their guests specifically but also to everyone that was able to be a part of their wedding and celebrate with them.

After the speeches, Patrick and Aldair stepped outside for some photos. Again, you would have no idea that this was in Chicago, but the beach looked absolutely amazing!

They returned shortly after and did their cake cutting too. We loved seeing them enjoy their time together and doing all the things they hoped for their wedding day.

Thankfully, we were able to get the timeline on track after the speeches ran things a little behind for their first dances and opening up the dance floor. Patrick admits that he isn’t much of a dancer, but we did see him enjoy himself out there and they both got to mingle with a lot of their loved ones too!

Overall, Patrick and Aldair were SUCH a joy to get to work with for their wedding day. Everything turned out so beautifully and we could tell that both Aldair and Patrick had a lovely time soaking up their day with their family and friends - but more importantly, with each other. Our goal is always to make things as easy as possible for our couples, and Patrick and Aldair were able to really enjoy themselves! We are so thankful for all of our couples that trust us with their wedding day to make sure everything ran smoothly, and despite starting the day with a fire truck it ended up being smiles all day long!

Our sweet review from Aldair and Patrick:

“Rachel, Phoebe, and her team were amazing to work with! We needed a wedding day of coordinator to help take some responsibility from our plate and the Firmly Rooted Events team delivered! They helped with outlining our wedding timeline, guided us through each event and provided so much advice that most couples don't even think of when it comes to wedding planning. Day of the wedding, Rachel and Phoebe were so attentive and went above and beyond to help make our day special. We can't thank them enough for everything and we hope that anyone considering contracting Firmly Rooted Events, reads this post and is convinced this is the dream team to hire!”