Michelle & Nick Bond

August 7, 2021

Wedding Venue

Lake Mary Event Center

Vendors & Their Instagram Handles

Photographer - @chelseaerwinweddings
Day of Coordination - @thehouseofgather
Florals - @ivyfarmflowers
Hair and Makeup - @bronzeglowbeauty
Venue - @lakemaryeventscenter
Catering - @arthurscatering
Band - @thejamband
Cake - @sweetbyholly
Invitations - @graceanncreative

Groom gets ready before wedding at Lake Mary Event Center

Groom waits for bride at the alter at Lake Mary Event Center

How did you & Nick meet?

Nick and I met in college at UF through mutual friends from our sorority and fraternity. We can’t remember the exact moment we met each other - that’s up for debate! I remember meeting him on the rooftop of a parking garage where our group of friends would organize swing dancing nights, but Nick remembers meeting me on the bus of his fraternity road trip to Birmingham during football season. I remember meeting Nick for the first time and being totally smitten, and Nick to this day says he felt the same. What we both agree is on we both were immediately interested, but the timing just wasn’t right. We both went on to date other people, graduate college and start our careers. Fast forward 5 years, I’m living in Chicago and Nick is living in Orlando. We reconnected when I was visiting Orlando for a friend’s wedding. We ended up dating long distance for a year and a half before I made the big move to Orlando to be closer to him! I’ve never looked back!

Wedding Party poses with bride and groom after wedding ceremony

Where was your first date?

This is such a hard question because of long distance, but I guess our “first date” was when he visited me in Chicago for the first time…a first date that lasted 3 days! For context, when we reconnected in Orlando there was about a month period after where I wasn’t sure if he was interested. He decided the best way to express his interest was to buy a flight to visit me in Chicago for a weekend (a weekend that happened to be his birthday but he “forgot”)! That weekend, we convinced our two best friends to also spend the weekend with us. We went to a few of my favorite restaurants and bars, and of course a Cubs game at Wrigley. It was such a special weekend!

How did Nick propose?

I didn’t really care how Nick proposed, all I wanted was to be surprised! Little did I know, Nick had been scheming with my two best friends to make the morning of my engagement a complete surprise! Nick and I had woken up that morning, went to our favorite coffee shop like we do every Sunday and were heading to an outdoor church service at Leu Garden (FYI there is no outdoor church at Leu Garden, but Nick and my two besties had me fooled)! We got to Leu Garden and walked to the back of the garden and then he popped down on one knee! I was SO surprised because he didn’t seem nervous at all that morning! The surprises kept coming because he coordinated with my parents and siblings to fly in to celebrate and he planned an epic surprise party that night. I think I cried at least 3 times throughout the day because I was so shocked - One of the best days ever!

Bridesmaids help bride into crepe Theia Wedding Dress

What was your dress shopping experience like?

I feel as though I came into wedding dress shopping fairly specific with what I wanted - I had a silhouette and general style in mind. However, I didn’t want to spend multiple days visiting different bridal shops to achieve that “look” and I was also very open to other style suggestions! I looked through all the dresses and told Roberta to pick some she thought would match my style preferences, and I picked a few as well. I had told Roberta that I wanted a very plain minimal silhouette, but she thought this one dress she had in mind matched the minimal aspect but had some delicate beading. I wasn’t so sure I’d love it, but I had told her I’d try it on. Roberta wanted me to first try on the dress she picked out for me - I ended up absolutely LOVING it and I knew that was THE dress. Imagine that, the first and only bridal store I visited and the first dress I tried on that I didn’t even end up picking myself…ended up becoming my wedding dress!

What was your favorite bridal accessory?

My favorite bridal accessories were definitely my earring and veil. The earrings and veil added a bit of drama to my look for the day which provided a nice contract with my modern minimal look I was trying to achieve. In terms of accessories I also am a firm believer in less is more!

Wedding Ceremony at the Lake Mary Event Center

What did you like the most about your wedding at the Lake Mary Event Center?

I loved that the Lake Mary Event Center has a beautiful indoor ceremony space. Nick and I were limited to only being able to pick a summer wedding date, so having an indoor ceremony in Florida in August was an absolute must. The rotunda ceremony space is stunning with the floor to ceiling windows and all the ceremony photos are some of my favorite with the cypress trees and lake in in the background.

Bride and Groom kiss at Lake Mary Event Center

What is one thing you wish you knew before planning?

Your wedding is YOUR day and it is what you make of it! There aren’t things that you absolutely need to do. Pick the non-negotiable’s and don’t look back! It’s important to make your wedding about what you and your partner want and not about other people’s expectations or what they think a wedding should look like!

How would you describe the overall feel of your wedding?

Modern minimalist! There were few style elements that I cared about, but I wanted to make sure that whatever decor we had was subtle, simple and classic but not necessarily traditional. I also wanted to make sure that everyone had a ton of fun…hence the live band.

What was your wedding color palette?

Black, white & sage

What wedding planning advice do you have for other brides?

If you’re debating about hiring a day of coordinator or wedding planner….HIRE THEM and make sure you actually like them!!! Having people on the day of the wedding who make it their priority that you don’t sweat the small things, and focus on making sure everything goes smoothly is such a blessing. You can totally sit back and enjoy your special day. I can’t tell you the amount of times that a guest from my wedding told me that something crazy happened, but I can tell you the day of the wedding I had absolutely no idea since my coordinator handled everything for me. Also, highly suggest hiring a photographer that you love, who makes photo taking fun! You’re in front of the camera a lot and having someone takes your photos who is fun and makes you feel comfortable made the day so much more enjoyable!

Bride and Groom pose at Lake Mary Event Center

Where will your honeymoon be?

Hawaii! Nick and I went for almost 3 weeks and island hopped between Big Island and Kauai. One of my biggest takeaways from wedding/honeymoon planning: if you and your partner can swing it, try to honeymoon for at least 2 weeks! We had so much quality time with another to decompress from the wedding and really enjoy each other’s presence. Nick and I made so many memories during our honeymoon that we’ll never forget - we always tell people that anything less than 2 weeks would have felt short! By the 2 week mark we were ready to come home and settle into married life!

What are you enjoying most about newlywed life?

Honestly, just having someone to do everyday life with has been the best part about being married! You have this one special person in your life who is your built in best friend, biggest supporter, travel buddy, closest confidante, future parent to your children, and so many other things! It’s also so crazy to imagine that going forward, this person will experience every big life event alongside of you! Marriage is such a gift!

Bride and Groom dance at reception at Lake Mary Event Center

Learn more about Michelle’s Winter Park Bridal Shop, here.

Michelle Wears a Crepe Mermaid Theia Dress to her Lake Mary Wedding