Bridget & Danny’s “Tighe the Knot” Wedding at the Harley Davidson Museum

Bridget and Danny met through mutual friends at a Christmas party on Pine Lake — “it was absolutely love at first sight.” The two were visiting Danny’s parents’ Pine Lake house one hot summer day when Danny proposed. “He took me for a boat ride and we ended up stopping at the island in the middle of the lake. Once on the island, Danny got down on one knee.” When they go back to the house, both Bridget and Danny’s families came out onto the balcony, blasting Bruno Mars’ “Marry You.” “I was so surprised they were waiting for us,” Bridget says. “Danny then organized the Partridge Family Bus to take our families to Irish Fest, where all of our friends were waiting.”

Danny and Bridget planned a wedding that centered on the details and taking every opportunity to celebrate. The rehearsal dinner was held at Bacchus: “They have the most amazing private room that overlooks Lake Michigan, with beautiful string lights to create a romantic feel.” Because most of the wedding party hailed from Milwaukee, Bridget and Danny had their rehearsal dinner on Thursday. “This left Friday open for us to have a welcome party at Mo’s Irish Pub for all of our out-of-town guests. It was so nice to visit with friends who had traveled from all over to be with us.” The couple also hosted a brunch on Sunday morning after the wedding.

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The ceremony took place at Christ King. Bridget and Danny have a house just three blocks from the church, so they had a bagpiper lead the entire bridal party to the ceremony. “People were looking out their windows, wondering what was going on!” A bridal party parade was the first of many personal touches that Bridget and Danny incorporated in the ceremony. They also really personalized their church program, including pictures of each bridesmaid and groomsman with a bit about why they were in the wedding party. “I think it’s nice for people to know who the people are standing up there,” Bridget says.

Danny says his favorite moment of the day was after Bridget walked down the aisle in her gorgeous gown from Amelishan Bridal. “We took our seats and finally got to just look at each other and take it all in — like, we’re here! We’re doing this! Finally!” The priest, Danny’s former teacher at MUHS, gave a very personal homily. “He let us walk up and down the aisle at one point because he wanted us to take in all of the people who were there for us.”

For the reception, the party moved to the Harley Davidson Museum, where guests had free access to tour the museum between the ceremony and cocktail hour. Cocktail hour was held at the Rumble Room, then guests moved to the three-seasons tent, Chrome, for dinner. Bridget and Danny had their first dance before dinner, surrounded by friends and family. It was Bridget’s favorite moment of the day: “I cannot explain how amazing it was to have a circle of loved ones around us! The love in the room was overflowing.”

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The personalized theme carried over to the rest of the reception, starting with Bridget’s brother “Pat the Party Starter,” who wrote a rap/dance jingle to introduce the wedding party. Wearing a glow-in-the-dark jacket, he taught everyone the latest dance craze: the Tighe the Knot. “Our last name is pronounced ‘tie,’ so it provided a lot of play on words.” Bridget and Danny also had a 13-piece band and foam stick glow wands to light up the dance floor. “We wanted to switch it up from normal glow sticks. People went crazy over them! We also had heart-shaped glow-in-the-dark sunglasses.”

Another fun touch: a cheese cake. “It was multiple wheels of cheese stacked on top of each other to look like a wedding cake. We also dished out banana cake with cream cheese frosting as the real cake.” Other goodies include a table filled with chocolate-dipped treats, sliders and brats as a late-night snack, and an ice luge serving Danny and Bridget’s signature drink: The My Tighe.

For DIY projects, Bridget bought a large foam world map to mark the Tighe Family Travels. “We had people sign the map, and this served as our guest book.” For favors, the couple gave out chocolate-dipped Oreos with a carved Celtic knot. “We put these in baggies with ribbons and a sticker that explained the meaning of the Celtic knot — to go with our Tighe the Knot theme.”

Ideal Impressions Photography captured the Tighes’ unique day. “We met with a lot of photographers, but Ideal Impressions gave us everything we were looking for: unlimited hours, multiple photographers, wedding albums to keep. They had our pictures online the very next day. They even made a video to show at the reception of us getting ready and the ceremony, which was really cool for people to see. Our guests couldn’t believe they could whip up a video of the day so quickly!”

One thing Bridget wishes she’d done: “A friend of mine put ‘no photography’ in her church program, which I think is a really good idea! It means there won’t be hundreds of people with iphones covering their face in your photos. You want to capture your guests, not their phones!” In the end, she says it’s important to remember: “You can’t please everyone — so don’t try!”

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[table]
Dance lessons~Brookfield Ballroom (Danny & his Mom took lessons)
Invitations~The Fox Company
Rehearsal Dinner~Bacchus
Ceremony Location~Christ King Wauwatosa
Reception Location~Harley Davidson Museum
Cake Designer/Dessert~Sweet Tooth
Flowers~Petal Pushers
Music/Entertainment~Steve Edwards Orchestra
Transportation~Stenys Bus
Photographer~Ideal Impressions
Videographer~David Schulta
Wedding Dress Designer~Allure
Bridal Salon~Amelishan
Formalwear~Mens Wearhouse
Rings~Haase Jewelers
Rentals~The Finishing Touch
[/table]