Christine & Dan’s Lakeside Wedding at the Oconomowoc Community Center

A Sunny Ceremony Gives Way to a Moonlit Reception

From Match.com to “Marry Me”

Christine and Dan met on Match.com in 2015 and soon knew it was meant to be. Dan planned a romantic proposal in Lake Geneva, but his best-laid plans kept falling through. Christine recalls: “The ice castles had melted, then the sunset on the beach happened before we finished dinner, then the next location he chose was closed for construction. In the end, he proposed in our hotel room.”

Wedding Planning

To kickstart the planning, Christine and Dan attended a bridal show at the Brookfield Sheraton. While dress shopping, Christine tried on eight gowns before finding her Demetrios dress at Brides by Young in Schaumburg, Illinois. Dan found his formalwear at Dubois Formalwear in Brookfield.

To the Moon and Back

The happy couple planned a July 2021 wedding. The theme: “I love you to the moon and back.” To capture the theme, there was specialty lighting featuring a full moon on the ceiling and a giant prop moon to sit in for selfies. The wedding colors were gold and navy—a nod to Marquette University where both had attended school. Dan went there for undergrad and Christine for Law School.

A Weekend-Long Wedding

Christine and Dan decided to make an entire weekend of their wedding celebration. “On Friday the guys went golfing, and then we had our rehearsal dinner at Delafield Brewhaus. Saturday was the wedding ceremony and reception. Sunday we rented a pontoon boat and had a beach party for all of our guests.”

Oconomowoc Community Center

Dan and Christine decided on the Oconomowoc Community Center for both their ceremony and reception. “It’s a beautiful space with floor-to-ceiling windows that look out at the lake. It could easily hold our 150 guests. We also loved the stunning location, and the convenience for our guests to be able to stay at the same venue for the ceremony and reception. The Community Center also has free parking right across the street and an elevator for elderly guests.”

Lac LaBelle Ceremony

The wedding ceremony was held at the Community Center on the beautiful lakefront of Lac LaBelle in Oconomowoc. “Weather was sunny and perfect! We had a decorated pergola, and a dear friend of Dan’s from high school was our celebrant. We had three readings, including one from Winnie the Pooh, and an adorable flower girl and ring bearer.”

Photo Break

For photos, Dan and Christine stopped at the Inn at Pine Terrace, which is where they spent their wedding night. “The photos in the garden and inside the antique mansion were beautiful. Unfortunately, the mansion was sold right after we stayed there and is no longer a bed and breakfast hotel.”

An Enchanted Reception

Leaning into the whimsy of their “to the moon and back” theme, Christine and Dan threw a truly enchanting reception. “We had a Marie Antionette-style woman, dressed as a champagne table, serving champagne to our guests. We had separate areas set up for dinner, dancing, a lounge area for quiet conversation, and a balcony complete with outdoor fountain and street lamp.”

“Flowers and special lighting were everywhere. We purchased lovely tablecloths in navy with rosettes and matching chair covers. We decorated seven artificial trees with white paint, lighting, and flowers. We had three vases with candles for centerpieces on each table as well as gold chargers at each place setting with gold rosette satin napkins.”

Fantastic Food from Saz’s

Dinner was catered by Saz’s Lake Country Catering. “The food was fabulous. We had prime rib and two other meat selections, but the biggest hit was the fully-loaded mashed potatoes.” For dessert, there were three cakes from Simma’s Bakery in Wauwatosa.“One was their famous cheesecake, another was chocolate with raspberry filling, and the third was a yellow cake with vanilla custard filling.”

“It was decorated with a spiral of white flowers and white iridescent butterflies, which were attached to a large fairy statue who was blowing the butterflies to the cake from six feet away. Both the cake and the fairy were sitting on whiskey barrels from Vintique Rentals. We also got much of our lounge furniture from them.”

Handcrafted With Love

Not only did Christine and Dan paint artificial trees, Christine made all of the wedding flowers by hand, including her bouquet, several floral displays, the boutonnieres, the girls’ bouquets, and the flower girl’s basket. Together they assembled the larger-than-life prop moon to use for photos. Christine also built six-foot-tall feather lamps with multi-color lighting and designed the pergola with fabric, flowers, and bows. She made the invitations, hand-held fans for the ceremony, and the ceremony program. Needless to say, a tremendous amount of love went into this wedding. “It was a celebration of friends and family, and it was absolutely perfect!”