Cassandra & Clay Sparkling Summer Southern Minnesota Wedding | Worthington, MN

This past July I had the honor of being present for one of the most heartfelt weddings I have ever witnessed. You see, sometimes a couple is just so absolutely perfect for each other, that the connection is palpable. It sounds so cliché but honestly, if you know Cassandra and you know Clay, you know that there is just no other way to describe their relationship. Clay is absolutely the balance to Cassandra, the strong and stable to her wild and crazy, the one who lifts her up and makes her laugh when she needs it most, and man do I just love them both.

The morning of the wedding Cassandra was calm and grinning ear to ear while primping with her ladies as the sun glistened off the lake across from the salon in Worthington. The girls then traveled to the beautiful ceremony location to finish getting ready and spend some time with one another before putting on their gowns, and Annie Otzen Photography was there to capture it all.

Cassandra was an absolute stunner in her gown from Inspire Bridal Boutique. At this point in the morning, I think it started to hit her that soon she would be seeing her man, the man she was about to pledge to love and stand by forever.

But first, we had to hand off the love note she had written to that man, because that’s Cassandra, thoughtful. She is expressive and cares deeply about those around her. She shares her feelings openly, and it’s no surprise that she had some things to share with Clay before he would get to see her that day.

First looks are one of my favorite parts of the wedding day, I cry every time. There is just something so special about making sure things are perfect for this moment. There’s so much anticipation electrifying the air, because you KNOW that bride ordered that dress 6-9 months ago and has been DYING to see her man’s reaction to her in it, and you also know that that guy doesn’t have even half a clue about how beautiful that bride is going to look when he finally gets to turn around, but as the wedding coordinator, I get to know all of these things all at once…and I get to watch the magic unfold, and it’s the BEST part of the job.

After a teary hello, they were really ready to get the fun started and so we got the bridal party ready and away we went! The girls all wore gorgeous rose gold gowns also from Inspire and the men all looked sharp in their tuxes from Inspire.

I knew I wanted the perfect shade of cafe au lait dahlias for the bouquets, which can sometimes be tricky to work with because there are many environmental factors that effect their color and sometimes they can be a bit to purple or a bit to bright pink, but my OCD and crazy anxiety comes in handy sometimes and so I sourced from a few locations and ordered extra and I was so proud of how beautifully these florals pulled all the colors of the wedding together.

The grounds of Round Lake Vineyards and Winery provided the perfect spot for a summer wedding, the setting was truly peaceful and gorgeous and the staff there was amazing. We adorned the arch on the site with loads of hydrangea, roses, and eucalyptus, and created some pieces for the wine barrels at the entrance to the aisle.

After tying the knot the newlyweds boarded a party bus with their bridal party and guests were able to treat themselves to wine and a stroll around the vineyard (hello, dream wedding).

A sparkling and warmly lit reception space awaited the guests and bridal party at the reception which was held at the beautiful Worthington Event Center. We draped the ceiling and hung crystal chandeliers from the ceiling, used all the rose gold sequins we have to make the tabletops glisten in Cassandra’s wedding inspiration color- ROSE GOLD (insert all the heart eyes ever), placed fresh florals and candles everywhere, and made sure the space would shine for the celebration.

Tony’s Catering served up a delicious meal, and Playful Cupcaketions delivered some beautiful and tasty cakes for everyone to enjoy, and Cassandra will tell all you gluten free brides that you’ll never find a better gluten free red velvet cake than the ones that they make- in fact she came back around 1 am on their way back to the hotel room for just a couple more bites (a girl after my own heart).

The bride and groom shared their first dance, and Cassandra shared a special dance with her Grandpa (yes, I cried- you all know how Grandpa’s have a special place in my heart), and Clay danced with his Mother and then the The Blue Ringers Band took over and kept the guests dancing all night long, safe to say everyone was having the time of their lives. And friends…leave it to a couple of farm kids to have an actual auctioneer at their wedding for the garter auction…I was enthralled…and now believe that if you plan to auction anything, you need a real live auctioneer to do so.

A perfect day.

Honored and humbled again to be part of such a beautiful beginning to a forever. Thank you Cassandra and Clay for letting me be a part of your very special day!

And now, the usual overshare of beautiful images from Annie Otzen Photography: