Minnesota Wedding Planning | Lasting Impressions Weddings

Minneapolis Depot Winter Wedding | Ellie and Matt

There are not a lot of people that initially call me to ask about wedding planning assistance and start with saying “We want to come to Minnesota in January to get married.. because we love winter!!” This statement not only stunned me on my first phone call with Ellie and Matt… but it also gave me an indication of the amount of fun we were going to have while planning this unique wedding. Matt and Ellie lived in Washington DC and planned this beautiful winter wedding over the course of a year with a few trips back to Minnesota to attend the tasting, pick out floral and fine-tune the wedding details. Every time they came, we had a great time and I always admired their overall sense of calm they had!!

Fast forward to the second week in January.. .WEDDING DAY!! We got very lucky with the weather considering most of their guests were flying into the cold Minnesota Winter to celebrate. Emerald Green Bridesmaids dresses and wedding stationery gave a warm feeling to the cold weather outside! Snowflake decals were falling in the background while they said their vows, a custom Minnesota Shaped Ice Sculpture also incorporated the winter theme. The guys all got scarves from the local Fairbault Woolen Mill Company as gifts to wear on the wedding day and everyone ended the night with the couple’s favorite Sebastian Joe’s Ice Cream!

Vendors:

Wedding Coordinator: Lasting Impressions Weddings

Photography – Vick Photography

Invitations: Paper Rock Scissors

Rental Items: Apres Party Rental

Band – Blue Water Kings

Videography – Play Your Story

Floral- Sadie’s Couture Flowers and Events

Reception Site – The Depot

Hair and Makeup-Primped

Cake – Wuollet Bakery

Ice Sculpture – Minnesota Ice

Ice Cream – Sebastian Joes

To View More of our Winter Weddings Check Out:

Hutton House Winter Wedding | Lindsay and Jimmy

The Machine Shop | Katie and Joe | Minneapolis, MN Wedding Planner|

Minnesota Bride magazine’s Best Planner in 2020

Thank you to Minnesota Bride Magazine for naming Lasting Impressions Weddings Best Planner in 2020! It is a huge honor to win this award and I am so grateful to receive it for the 8th time!!!
Thank you to our friends, family, couples, and vendors that voted for us. And a HUGE thank you to our team of planners that work for Lasting Impressions Weddings for al of their hard work!!

Minikahda Club Wedding | Leigh and Matt

I am sure its no surprise when you look at Leigh’s infectious smile that I loved working with her and Matt to plan their Summer Wedding at Minikahda Club in Minneapolis. The couple was sweet, bubbly and so thoughtful throughout the whole planning process.

While I have worked many weddings at Minikahda Club in the past, this was the first time I had a ceremony on the lawn and we could not have asked for a better day!! With the beautiful backdrop of Lake Calhoun in the background Leigh and Matt said their vows and then guests proceeded to the rooftop deck for Cocktail Hour. The amazing dinner was topped off by Cake From Farina Bakery and the guests then danced the night away!

Vendors

Photography – Janelle Elise Photography

Ceremony and Reception Venue – Minikahda Club

Cake – Farina

DJ – Instant Request DJ

Floral- JMH Designs

Officiant – Drake Michelson

Photobooth-Selfie and Co

Rental Items: Apres Party Rental

Videography – Josh Flom

Wedding Coordinator: Lasting Impressions Weddings

Hair and Makeup- M Art of Hair

Stationery- Letter Perfect

Ceremony Musicians – 4 Voices String Quartet

For More Minikahda Club Weddings and information on Our wedding planning Packages

Lasting Impressions Press | Interview with WCCO about COVID and Weddings

Thank you to WCCO for sharing this story about couples planning during a Pandemic. Here is the news article.

‘This Isn’t Going To Happen’: Reality Sets In For Minnesota Couples Hoping To Get Married Amid COVID-19

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — It’s the time of year when summer wedding season should be in full swing, but the COVID-19 pandemic has sent Minnesota couples scrambling to make new plans. WCCO takes a look at what changing restrictions for celebrations will mean in the months ahead.

Makaela Egan remembers the optimism she felt just a few months ago. After two years of planning for 200 people to celebrate their big day at Aria in Minneapolis.

“At first I was like there’s no way this is going into June it’s going to be fine,” Egan said. “We are bummed we can’t have the day we’ve been dreaming about for two years — or, at least, I have. He just thinks we’re already married.”

As time went by, her fiancee and NFL player J.C. Hassenauer had to help his bride-to-be face reality.

“End of May we’re like, we have to tell everyone this isn’t going to happen,” Egan said.

Instead, they’ll have an intimate ceremony somewhere else this month and the big party next summer.

“I really think it’s important for people to save their date and have it be special for them and not put off getting married for a whole year,” Sarah Trotter, wedding planner with Lasting Impressions, said.

Sarah Trotter plans 50 weddings a year. COVID-19 has postponed 30 of them. “We’re just trying to stay on top of all the different ordinances,” she said.

Now, church ceremonies can be at 50% capacity in Minnesota. But receptions at indoor venues can only be at 25%.

“I think it’s definitely given people more of a positive outlook on what the summer is going to look like and what they can plan for,” Trotter said.

Trotter is still hopeful the rescheduled weddings for fall and winter will go on as planned. But as for Egan and Hassenauer, they’ll be ready to party a year from now.

“We want to be married. That’s the most important thing. Why wait another year when we can still have the day celebrate each other and move forward with it,” Egan said.

Trotter expects the pandemic will have a long-lasting effect on the wedding industry as a whole, as people plan for smaller weddings and re-evaluate their priorities.

For More information on planning during COVID Read these helpful blog posts

Calhoun Beach Club Wedding | Amelia and Brian

Calhoun Beach Club has always been one of my favorite wedding venues in Minneapolis and when Amelia and Brian called to see if I was available for their wedding date I was so excited to get back there. The year before their wedding the wedding venue had temporarily closed due to changes in the building owners, leasing, etc. But now the venue is back and better than ever with fresh coats of paint and still the classic wedding feeling!

Amelia and Brian would come into town for a long weekend and we would book all of our meetings around those return trips to make the wedding planning process stress free and easy even while living out of state! The first thing I noticed about Amelia and Brian was there genuine love and respect for each other. They would always consult the other one before a decision and mutually agreed on the majority of the wedding decisions. It made planning the wedding fun and so special to witness.

The wedding day did not turn out like how we envisioned… The Cold and rain weather took over the August wedding date and we had to pivot our plans numerous times throughout the day. Luckily Amelia and Brian always kept their optimism and were able to embrace the “backup” plans for the day!!!!

I instantly fell in love with Amelia’s color pallete for the day. Dusty blues, lots of greenery and a wedding cake design that I loved!!!

Vendors:

Ceremony and Reception Site – Calhoun Beach Club

Wedding Coordinator: Lasting Impressions Weddings

Rental Items: Apres Party Rental

Band – Blue Water Kings

Ceremony and Reception Site – Calhoun Beach Club

Cake: Cocoa and Fig

Makeup – Julie Phaxay

Ceremony Musicians – Lake String Quartet

Floral- Sadie’s Couture Flowers and Events

Transportation – Renees Royal Valet

Ceremony Site – Chapel at Breck School

Photography – Matt Lien

Minneapolis Wedding Coordinator | Allie and Erik

Allie and Erik were married last fall at Diamond Lake Luthern Church with the reception following at the Minneapolis Event Center. It was our first time working at the beautiful downtown venue and it was fun to get to plan the decor for the space with Allie and Erik. The wood beams and exposed ceilings allowed us to add some beautiful greenery to the chandelier’s and make the space feel more intimate. Kindred Blooms added beautiful blooms to brighten up the space.

And every great wedding has a dog right??? Well, Dakota was certainly the center of Allie and Erik’s wedding day and their lives!! I could not miss out on the chance to personalize this beautiful wedding with images and reminders of their precious pup!!! We had Paper Rock Scissors sketch Dakota to add his image to their wedding invitations, day of stationery and cocktail napkins!!