A Summer Wedding with Tropical Greenery in Lake Mary

Leilani and Dan’s Tropical Lake Mary Wedding

Congratulations, Dan and Leilani! To celebrate, the couple hosted a summer wedding with tropical greenery in Lake Mary, Florida.

Dan and Leilani have the sweetest love story and first date story! From friendship to lovers, you can truly feel their love in their wedding photos! To celebrate their big day, Dan and Leilani had a tropical summer wedding in Lake Mary, Florida. There were endless details of tropical flowers and greenery throughout their wedding. Congratulations, Dan & Leilani!

Wedding Date : June 27, 2019

Wedding Vendors & Their Instagram Handles:
 Ceremony Venue: Lake Mary Events Center - @lakemaryeventscenter
Reception Venue: Noah's Event Venue (Lake Mary, FL) - @noahseventvenue
Photographer: Emily Mathewson- @emilymathewsonphoto
Videographer: Larry Teng - @shimmytengteng
Florist: The Wild Thistle - @thewildthistle.co
Caterer: Spoleto Italian - @spoletoitalian
Hair & Makeup: Laura Reynolds Artistry - @laurareynoldsartist
Bridal gown: The Bridal Finery - @thebridalfinery
Bridesmaid dresses: (various places):
- Bella Bridesmaids
- Show Me Your Mumu - @showmeyourmumu
- Lulus @lulus @luluswedding
- BHLDN Weddings @bhldn
- Azazie @iheartazazie
DJ: Jade Rivera - @yojadeyo
Dessert/Food truck: Jeremiah's Italian Ice - @jeremiahsice
Linen Napkins & water goblets: Magic Occasions Catering @magic.occasions
Wedding coordinator Brigitte Desko - @brigitte.desko

Where was your first date? : Dan and I's first date included a reverse chronological order of events compared to your "typical first date." Since Dan and I had been friends for a couple of years before going on this first date, there was a lot of sentimental and, intentional things throughout the date. Throughout our friendship, Dan and I would always (in a very dramatic way) rave about how good Olive Garden breadsticks were. So it was no surprise where the first stop of the night was. We pulled up to the Olive Garden restaurant and Dan told me to wait in the car. A few minutes later he came out with roses and (by no surprise) a to-go order of Olive Garden's famous breadsticks and Alfredo sauce. I remember laughing and thinking to myself, how intentional! We then drove to Park Avenue where we shared “Superman” ice cream from Kilwins, an ice cream shop in Winter Park! Again, another intentional stop because he knew how, if it were up to me, dessert would be before dinner every single time. The third stop of our date was to Boca (a scratch kitchen) on Park Avenue! We closed down the restaurant! A super sweet moment was when our waiter gave Dan the bill and said to us, “Me and my co-workers have been talking about you two the whole time you’ve been here! The chemistry between you two is unreal. It has all of our attention. What you two have together is real and genuine and contagious. I wish the love you two have for everyone on this Earth.”. Dan and I were speechless. Keep in mind it was only our first date, we weren’t even “official.” But hey, turns out our waiter at Boca Kitchen was right. And I love that we have that memory and moment to look back on forever!

How did your partner propose? : Dan and I, along with 4 of our best friends, were on a friend ski trip in West Virginia. It was our second annual ski trip with this group of friends. The year prior we were at Beech Mountain in North Carolina. During our North Carolina trip, we spent one-day exploring local cities and had impromptu photoshoots taken by one of our friends, Adrienne, who is a wedding/professional photographer. Adrienne mentioned she needed 2 of us to “act like we were in a relationship” so “I can build my couples portfolio.” And somehow Dan and I randomly ended up being the two people used for her. It’s funny looking back at those photos and seeing that was the first time we had ever been that close to each other. Holding hands. “Posing” as if we were in love. At the time there were no feelings attached, but I believe it was the spark to the rest of our love story. Fast forward one year, we are on our second annual ski trip with the same group of friends. Of course, we all talked about how we should do another day exploring West Virginia and taking photos as we did the year prior. When the day came, we were exploring, laughing, being silly, and goofy with each other. We were walking down this creek at the bottom of a mountain when Adrienne said, “Lei and Dan you guys go ahead of us and let me get pictures of ya’ll again like last year!” This time around however we had been dating for almost 1 year!! We walked for a couple of minutes when Dan stopped me, looked at me, and created the most memorable, special moment. I remember thinking, “This is the sweetest man I’ve ever known. In the most dreamy place I’ve ever been. This is a dream.”, and then also thinking, “Are all our friends listening right now?”. In that moment I look to my left, wondering if my friends had disappeared or something, to notice them all with tears in their eyes, cameras out, and smiles bigger than I had ever seen. That’s when it hit me. What this moment was. It was there in the smoky mountains of West Virginia that Dan got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife and spend forever with him.

What was your dress experience like? : My dress experience was a literal dream. I was recommended to try out the Bridal Finery by an old co-worker of mine who had recently bought her dress with them. It was really important for me to have my mother and sister-in-law there along with 3 of my best friends. Since my engagement was short, by the time I had started looking for wedding dresses I only had 4 months. I felt the pressure of needing to find a dress fast, but also did not want to shorten the process or settle. I was drawn to the Bridal Finery due to their off-the-rack speciality and 5 star rating from my friend! I had looked at two other bridal boutiques before the Bridal Finery and had zero luck. I was feeling defeated and confused. I reached out to Tali & Roberta via their website and got into contact with them. I was surprised that they texted me so fast after booking my appointment online with them! No other bridal store did that- so I loved that intentionality and how personable they made the experience. The day I wanted to come in (a.k.a. the last day I had to find a dress) they had no available times for my sister-in-law to make it. Which, as I said, was a huge deal to me to have her there. After I explained this to Tali, she offered to come in way early for me at a 8:00am! I was blown away by her generosity of her time because she knew how important it was for me to have my sister-in-law there. My first appointment with Tali was such a fun, relaxing experience. I loved being the only bride that was there trying on dresses. I didn’t have to compare with another bride standing next to me. Tali continued to learn about me and my fiancee during conversation as I tried on dresses. At one point, I remember her vaguely asking me what song I would be walking down the aisle to and I told her. The appointment continued and I found myself stuck between two dresses I really loved. However, I was drawn to one a little more than the other and Tali, with her experience with brides, could see that in me. She had me close my eyes. Put the dress back on. Did my hair in a simple, beautiful up-do. I felt like a princess getting pampered. With everyone’s eyes closed in the room, she stepped away and instructed me to keep my eyes closed. A few seconds passed when I heard the song I would walk down the aisle to begin to play. “Holy Spirit” by Francesca Battistelli. Tears immediately began streaming down my face and my heart in that moment knew this was the dress. When we were all allowed to open our eyes, I remember seeing the same tears run down the faces of the women I had brought with me. This is a moment I will remember forever and ever. I am so grateful for Tali and the rest of them team. Without them I don’t think I would have ever gotten this sweet moment to remember forever.

Where was your wedding? Why did you decide on that space?: Ceremony- Lake Mary Events Center. We chose this venue specifically for the floor to ceiling glass windows that lined a rotunda space. As an Orlando native, I knew that planning a June wedding in Florida it had to be inside. There was no way I was chancing rain and humidity!! haha. So I found a space that satisfied my dream for natural lighting and simplistic. Cocktail hour/Reception- Noah's Event Venue in Lake Mary, FL. We chose to have our reception here due to their all inclusive packages that they include. They also allowed us to use outside vendors for caterers.

What wedding planning advice do you have for other brides? : My planning advice is specifically tailored to how to choose your vendors and other people you end up working with. Choose people that will make your engagement season and wedding planning process a joy. Choose people with hearts that are genuine and reflect selflessness. Hearts that truly want the best for you, the bride. Even if that means that their product/brand isn’t for you. Your wedding day will ultimately be a product of all your vendors, which include the people and hearts of those vendors. I was very picky on the vendors and people that played a role in my wedding day. If I ever felt even the slightest sense of pressure or manipulation for my money, I would run the opposite way haha. And I am so glad I was “picky” because throughout the whole wedding process and wedding day everyone, including myself, was so stress-free and calm. There was so much laughter and joy throughout the whole process with Tali & Roberta. It was because of them and their hard work that on my wedding day, I was excited to get into my wedding dress!

Where was your honeymoon? : Our honeymoon was a 7 night/8 day Eastern-Caribbean cruise with Royal Carribean on their ship, Harmony of the Seas. Dan and I's only criteria for our honeymoon was we wanted it to be all-inclusive. We didn't want to worry or stress about anything, especially money being spent, during our first week of marriage! So we took advantage of being so close to Port Canaveral and booked a cruise. Best decision ever!!