True love in the time of COVID-19
The Proposal
Kasey and Andrew met at a bar, Bodega, through a mutual friend. From that night on, their story has been nothing short of a fairytale. Their love carried them through eighteen happy months until one day, Andrew decided to propose.Â
With the help of close friends Shawnee & Palmer, a surprise beach proposal was planned in Wilmington, NC.Â
“The main idea was to tell Kasey we were all getting dinner disguised as celebrating Andrew’s first time meeting them. Before dinner, Shawnee, the wife of Palmer, told Kasey she needed to take some aerial beach shots for a client of hers. Â From there we would head to dinner. Â We arrived at the beach, and I walked Kasey away from Shawnee’s photo area. While leading Kasey away, she jokes, ‘What if you proposed to me right now?’ I replied, ‘What if I am?’ and got down on my knee and asked her to be my wife.”
Plans Meet With COVID19
They began planning their dream wedding, but little did they know, a big change was to hit the world in the coming months. As COVID-19 forced us all to social distance, their plans of a wedding with all of their family and friends soon had to be surrendered. They didn’t let that stop them from having a beautiful ceremony, though, as they gathered in their yard to exchange vows and toast to happiness!
“Our wedding was intimate, sunny, and full of love, laughter (& awkward moments). The morning of, we spent gardening in our front yard, to accentuate the beautiful greenery. We were able to follow strict social distancing rules by placing a few chairs, six feet apart in every direction. We allowed only parents, maid of honor, best man, and officiant (an original bridesmaid). We used an outside speaker to play and provide a way for Kasey to walk down the aisle. The ceremony lasted 15 minutes. It included us exchanging written vows, and a literal ‘tying the knot’ with cord in traditional Celtic handfasting practice. Once the ceremony ended, we shared a quick first dance. Then we dove straight into popping a bottle of champagne and cutting the cake. From start to finish, the entire ‘wedding’ was under a half hour. It was perfect. “
Although so many loved ones were unable to attend in person, Kasey & Andrew still found a way to include them by streaming their wedding live.
“We used Twitch, a popular live streaming service. It was easy to use. A link was sent out, and it went “live” five minutes before the ceremony began. That was it! There was a “chat” option during the stream too. It was fun to read later. Additionally, we recorded our ceremony and uploaded it to Youtube for those who were unable to watch it. We’re fortunate that everything went so smoothly.”
What They Learned
Through the experience, they found that there is always a silver lining. They embraced the intimacy of the ceremony and found that there was much to love about a small wedding.
“Planning a wedding showed us that although love is essential, it’s more about throwing a party to have everyone you love in one room at the same time. The best thing about our wedding was the intimacy. Because we had to cancel all the glamour of an actual wedding, we were able to focus on all the reasons we wanted to get married in the first place. It’s upsetting our original plan didn’t work out, but this was ten times better than we ever could have imagined. The whole focus was on us, and how we felt about one another and the life, we wanted to build starting with that moment. A bonus to a quarantine wedding is the chance to re-plan a second celebration where all the glamour can take precedence without us feeling like we’re compromising the feelings behind the decision to get married. Many people were unable to attend our ceremony, and we can’t wait when the world is safer to share it all again with them.”
Kasey & Andrew’s rings, posed against an illustration of a fox and a bear: their affectionate pet names for one another.
Argo & Lehne’s Part
Rings: Argo & Lehne Jewelers
-
- Andrew: “Kasey is a kindred spirit. She insisted she didn’t need or want a ring. I desired to get her one anyway. Kasey made it clear that she didn’t want a diamond, but the ring should be local. Research quickly showed me that Argo & Lehne was a must. The next day, Kasey and I went ring shopping together. Michelle greeted us. We explained why we were there, and she immediately went to work. She asked a series of well-crafted questions to narrow down the style of ring Kasey would love. You could almost feel how Kasey’s answers were guiding Michelle to an exact ring in mind. Michelle brought out a beautiful London Blue Topaz stone in a rose gold setting. It was perfect, untraditional, and beautiful. The moment Kasey put the ring on, I knew it was the one. I went back that next week to purchase.”
-
- Kasey: “Picking out a ring for Andrew was seamless because Argo & Lehne provide exceptional service. Even this is an understatement. We went together, similar to my engagement ring adventure, and were able to pick out a carbon fiber ring with rose gold interior. When I went to purchase it, I had it engraved, and gifted it to Andrew for Christmas. He loved it so much, and he’s been wearing it since that day. For Andrew, and I, jewelry stores are enthralling but overwhelming. But none of these fears presented themselves when being helped at Argo & Lehne. Everyone is so knowledgeable, kind, and engaging. It makes the whole experience personalized and nonstressful. We’re so grateful to be able to share stories about our rings.”
Dairy-free carrot cake made by Kate Djupe, the baker for Service Bar restaurant.
Other vendor shoutouts: “If there were a theme for our wedding, it would be local. We wanted to use strictly local vendors because we love the Columbus community. Unfortunately, with how our wedding panned out, we were unable to use any of them. All our vendors but one, which we respectfully will not name, have been helpful and understanding during this strange time. We’d love to give a shoutout to the vendors we “used”: Sunshine Wine Bar, Granville Flower Company, Condado’s, Pattycake bakery, and Middle West Spirits.”Â
Honeymoon Plans
Although the honeymoon will have to wait, they have big plans for the future.
“Initially, we were to travel around Italy for two weeks following our wedding. Unfortunately, this wasn’t a viable option. Instead, we spent the day after our nuptials doing some of our favorite things: Making breakfast together, taking a walk through our favorite park, and visiting Stauf’s for a coffee to go. Once we can travel freely again, hopefully, this year, we plan to head west to visit the Mojave Desert, Joshua Tree National Park, and the surrounding areas. We are both big fans of the desert, hiking, and camping. We plan to travel to Italy to celebrate our first wedding anniversary.”
Advice to Others
In this time of uncertainty, Kasey and Andrew offer some advice for couples like them who will have to change up their wedding plans this year.
“Nobody wants to have their big day changed on them. You spend hours and hours planning all for it to go awry. It’s taxing on numerous accounts. So, the advice we can give is to allow yourself to feel any emotion that presents itself regarding a canceled or postponed wedding. It’s okay. After those feelings have had their moments, to take a second to breathe and remember a wedding is made up of fun decorations, a good time, and the people you love. But marriage is about forging a foundation with the person you love, and that is what is most important. Realizing that no matter what, you found a teammate in life, and not even a pandemic can sway the love you have.”
We are so happy for this inspiring couple and we wish them all the best in their lives together!
Are you ready to find the perfect wedding rings for your special day? Browse our large selection online or set up a virtual consultation today!
