Emily & Tyler’s Wedding at The Henry Hotel

Our Love Story

“We met in the fall of 2011 in Chicago, Illinois as recent college grads who were new to the city. Tyler was a coworker of one of my long-time friends. We started dating in January 2012. In early March 2012, Tyler accepted a job offer back home in Cleveland, and we found ourselves making a long distance relationship work. It was difficult, but we found making plans to see other and taking trips meeting up in foreign destinations solidified our love and commitment to each other. In job searching for a way to return to Chicago, Tyler ended up being recruited for a job in Seattle, Washington. I jumped at the chance to be able to live in the same place as Tyler once again, so we packed our bags and moved cross country together. We have never been apart for more than a week since. After a short stint in Seattle, my career brought us back to Chicago where we currently live with our 3 year old Westie, Bob. Through all our travels, over a year of long distance, and two cross country moves – we’ve learned that together is our favorite place to be.

Over Memorial Day Weekend 2017, Tyler planned a trip to Charleston, South Carolina, a place that I had wanted to visit for a while. We had dinner reservations at the Wentworth Mansion, a historic hotel in downtown Charleston. Knowing that I would want to explore the hotel, Tyler suggested that they head to dinner a little early and have a drink at the hotel’s “rooftop bar”. Arriving at the hotel, we went up to the rooftop. Upon discovering that there wasn’t actually a bar on the private rooftop look-out, I was slightly disappointed – until I noticed Tyler getting down on one knee.”

Our Wedding Vision

“Travel is very important to us as a couple, and an exotic destination wedding wasn’t in the cards for us since we wanted to make sure as many of our family members and friends could make it, so we went with a travel themed wedding instead. All the tables were countries we have traveled to together or U.S. cities that played an important part in our love story (like Chicago, Seattle, Charleston). I wanted our wedding to be really personal/unique to our story which I think we definitely accomplished with our theme and all the little details we incorporated. For the overall look, I wanted it to be classic and elegant so I selected a lot of candles, white roses and orchids, and pearls to be used in the decor. Overall, we wanted to have an amazing party to kick off the start of our marriage – and we definitely succeeded! The dance floor was overflowing all night.”

Our Wedding Video

“Prior to our actual wedding, I wanted to get a wedding video because I thought it would be an incredible memento through the years to watch every anniversary and would only get more special with time. As a newlywed, I have a new found appreciation for the fact that we got a video – and that’s due to the fact that the day honestly goes by in a fast, happy blur and it’s not humanly possible to retain all the wonderful things happening.  I’m so glad we now have over 2 hours of footage so we don’t forget any of the little details of the day.”

Our Wedding Photography

“Craig, our Mike Staff Productions Photographer,  was amazing! I can’t believe that one photographer was able to capture all those moments – but he definitely worked his butt off for us! Prior to our wedding, I had sent Craig some examples of photos I really liked, and he made sure that he got all of those shots for us.”

Emily and Tyler’s Wedding Vendors

Don’t trust your wedding to anyone else. Mike Staff Productions would be honored to bring your vision to life. Let’s get started!