Bride of the Week - Kelsey

4. Why did you choose the dress you picked? I truly had the classic moment of “oh my gosh this is my dress” right when I put it on. I instantly felt like a princess, with a sexy flare. I think my confidence shot up in 2 seconds after I put it on! It hid parts of my body I’m self conscious about, but highlighted the ones I love. The detail was absolutely beautiful, and the layers on the body were stunning. I also chose it because I wanted to be comfortable! I knew I would be up dancing and moving the whole night and wanted to feel comfortable moving and getting low. I was a huge fan of Essence of Australia prior to finding my perfect dress- but this dress seriously blew me away!

5. A few sentences about your wedding? 

So many things I can say- but - “perfect for us” is how my husband and I both feel about our wedding. We managed to plan and execute it during the pandemic, while keeping everyone safe which was our top priority, along with sharing our love in front of all of our family and friends.

7. How did you and your groom meet? We met through mutual friends while I was out celebrating my best friend and my birthday. Chris was out at this club with a whole different birthday party for another mutual friend. I saw Chris (mind you, I had brought another guy with me that night!!), looked at my best friend and said "I need to meet him". She knew Chris, so she introduced us right away. That night was a blur for sure, but we started to talk more weeks after that night... We made it official a month and a half later!

8. How did your groom propose? My husband is very thoughtful and romantic- he thought of every detail possible. On April 6, 2019 he surprised me with a trip to our favorite weekend getaway spot- Williamsburg VA. We went straight to Busch Gardens to walk around and ride rides. After a couple hours, we headed to our favorite winery, Williamsburg winery. We shared a bottle of wine, before he took me back to the nicest hotel we have ever stayed in, and told me to get ready for a nice dinner that night. I was so excited we had never done this before in Williamsburg! We had an amazing dinner at Williamsburg Inn, and at the end of the night, our waitress escorted us out to two lone chairs on the golf course, where there was a blanket for us to snuggle up in. (No- I still did not put it together that he was proposing yet- like I said my husband can be super romantic so I thought he was just doing something sweet). Once we sat down, he pulled out his phone and played a recording for me. It was a 3 minute recording telling me why he loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. At the end he got down on his knee and popped the ring out! I of course said YEESSS while crying and squealing like a little girl. Come to find out the whole staff was in on it- they helped him execute the perfect proposal!! We had chocolate dipped strawberries and champagne the rest of the night- which he made sure we had in our hotel room as an added surprise!!

Special Side note- Chris proposes to me through a recording because that’s how my dad proposed to my Mom!! My parents mean the world to me, and he knew that was an added very special touch! Fast forward to our wedding day- we wanted that recording to be incorporated in our wedding because of how special it was to us. Our DJ was AWESOME and he was able to add bits and pieces of the recording to the song as I walked down the aisle!

9. Advice to bride planning her wedding. I am by no means a good planner- so I struggled with many aspects of planning a wedding. It’s so much hard work, with an added stress of making sure the day showcases who you and your husband are as a couple. The best advice I could give would be to enjoy your day the day of the wedding! Put other people in charge of things in case something comes up on the day of- like I asked my brother in law to handle any transportation issues so I wouldn’t have to, my mom got the food for the bridesmaids as we got ready etc... Your day will absolutely FLY by- take every moment in, and enjoy the day wherever it takes you.

10. What favorite part/thing/experience about shopping with Serendipity? Oh man, where do I begin?!! Serendipity was my second Bridal Shop I had gone to. My first experience was a disaster. I found a place that was about an hour and half away, but I figured they had great reviews, it's worth the drive.... I was very wrong. After that experience, I was convinced I wouldn't find a dress that complimented my figure AND made me feel beautiful. I figured that's just how it was going to be for me, a size 12 bride with curves. I found Serendipity while looking up places near my house, and I emailed Janice asking about dresses for my size. She answered right away and assured me there were plenty and plenty of dresses I could try on and feel beautiful in... And she was so right!!! The moment I walked into the store, I felt cared for and special. We were able to look around ourselves, and pick different dresses, Jessica also listened to what I liked and grabbed dresses she thought would work for me as well. I truly loved trying on every dress- Jessica was attentive, and so kind. I loved my experience so much, we used serendipity for all outfitting needs! They did all of My alterations, We got all of our bridesmaids dresses, my moms Mother of the Bride dress, Christopher’s Tux and all of the groomsmen’s tuxes through Serendipity. We had no snags, no set backs- it was seamless and EASY!!! I can’t recommend serendipity enough- We were there several times and worked with many different staff, and they all were so delightful, helpful and caring. I’ve sent a friend there who recently got engaged and she found her dress too! Thank you so much Serendipity family for all you do, and have done!!!