Liz Schrenk 11/14/24 Liz Schrenk 11/14/24

Callie & Mark’s Perfect Heritage Prairie Farm Wedding

Callie and Mark met in high school through their close mutual friend, Something Blue’s very own Conrad. Conrad had a feeling way back then that these two would be perfect for each other, and it turns out that he was right all along. As Callie and Mark’s high school friendship grew into flirtation in college they started a long-distance relationship in 2015.

After dating long-distance for five years Callie and Mark finally moved in together in February 2021 to an apartment in Uptown Chicago with their beloved dog Buzz. A few years later they decided to buy Mark’s parent’s house – in preparing to move Callie asked Conrad if he would come capture some photos of her and Mark at their first apartment together before their lease ended. Little did Callie know that Mark and Conrad had hatched a plan for the photoshoot to be extra special, and Mark proposed outside their first apartment with Conrad there to capture the moment.

Over the years I have loved spending time with Callie and Mark through Conrad, and I was beyond excited to hear that they got engaged and wanted Something Blue to capture their wedding. We planned to do their engagement session in Chicago, starting first at the lakefront and ending in Uptown to honor the time they spent living together there. I really loved getting to know Callie and Mark better at their engagement session, they are so in-sync and their love feels like it is the most natural thing in the world.

When the Friday arrived for Callie and Mark’s wedding I was so nervous and excited to head to Heritage Prairie Farm with Christy to capture the day. We truly believe that Heritage Prairie Farm is THE perfect venue – it’s so welcoming and beautiful there and the food is without question the best wedding food we have ever experienced. It was a beautiful September Friday and so much fun to see so many friends when we arrived – having Conrad there as a groomsman and guest was definitely a wild experience! And it was so special seeing his fiancé Ami and friends Eve, Doyle and Pat not to mention the many guests that were there to celebrate Callie and Mark. We love all of these people and were so thankful to spend this time with them at our favorite place!!

Callie looked absolutely gorgeous, which Mark sweetly told her the second he saw her at their First Look. He didn’t take his eyes off her for the rest of the day, and he later delivered perhaps the most touching and romantic vows we have ever heard from a groom. As we all wiped away tears Callie and Mark kissed and joyfully toasted their signature drinks outside in the sunshine. And of course everyone then had to toast an Underberg together (those reaction shots might be some of my favorites from the day!)

The tent at Heritage Prairie Farm looked extra beautiful thanks to the talented floral team at Purple Rose. After giving a beautiful and heartfelt speech Conrad took a few moments out of enjoying dinner to fly his drone for some stunning sunset photos of Callie and Mark. Once the sun set we gathered together and “sent off” the newlyweds with sparklers (well, we took some fun pictures and then headed back to the tent for dancing and rejoicing!) Our friend Karen came along to create a beautiful live painting of Callie and Mark’s first dance – they danced to Phoebe Bridgers’ beautiful version of “Friday I’m in Love” that may just be my new favorite because it reminds me of Callie and Mark’s perfect love. This was truly the best day, what an honor and joy to be there to celebrate Callie and Mark!!

Congratulations, Callie and Mark, we love you and wish you a lifetime of happiness together!

To see all of Callie and Mark’s beautiful wedding photos click here

VENDOR DETAILS
PHOTOGRAPHY
Something Blue

VENUE
Heritage Prairie Farm

FLORIST
Purple Rose

HAIR + MAKEUP
Hair’s 2 the Bride

DJ
DJ Marty B

LIVE PAINTER
Karen Sako

ENGAGEMENT RING
Brilliant Earth

BRIDAL GOWN BOUTIQUE
Altar Bridal

BRIDESMAIDS’ DRESSES
Birdy Grey

MENSWEAR
Men’s Wearhouse

Liz Schrenk 12/17/23 Liz Schrenk 12/17/23

Shea & Matt’s Sweet Heritage Prairie Farm Wedding

Shea and Matt met their sophomore year of college – they had mutual friends and both played volleyball. They started dating that December and have been together ever since. . .

Shea and Matt met their sophomore year of college – they had mutual friends and both played volleyball. They started dating that December and have been together ever since.

Conrad and I were so excited to photograph Shea and Matt’s wedding at our favorite venue, Heritage Prairie Farm. We would shoot there every weekend if we could, it’s truly the perfect venue!! Endless gorgeous spots for photos, plenty of sweet farm kitties roaming the grounds AND the most amazing wedding food ever, it’s our favorite place for SO many reasons! Our Something Blue team had gotten to know Shea a bit earlier this year when she came by the Studio for a special bridal boudoir session to gift to Matt on their wedding day. Christy photographed her and then I put together an album of her favorite photos – she looked absolutely stunning and when Matt opened the album after their “First Look” you could tell he knew he is a lucky man!!

Shea and Matt have two cats and were drawn to Heritage Prairie Farm in part because of their many friendly farm kitties. It was a somewhat cat-centric wedding – Matt wore “Cat Dad” socks, their two signature drinks were inspired by their cats and the Heritage Prairie farm cats photo-bombed plenty of moments with the wedding party before the ceremony.

Shea is close with her Dad and Grandpa and set aside time to do a “First Look” with each of them before her ceremony. Her and her Dad have an inside connection with hedgehogs and both gifted each other with sweet little hedgehog pins for the big day. Shea also did a first look with her Grandpa on the front porch of the pretty farmhouse, it was one of the most special moments of the day. Her Grandpa then officiated Shea and Matt’s romantic ceremony in the barn while her Grandma did a reading.

It was a chilly last weekend in October and we were thankful for the cozy greenhouse where we could take wedding party photos and get a break from the cold wind. The team at Garvin Gardens created gorgeous florals and the team at Heritage Prairie Farm was amazing as always taking care of every detail. After cocktail hour we snuck away with Shea and Matt to take pictures on the grounds before sundown. We were then all treated to an amazing family-style dinner before dancing the night away. It was the perfect wedding, we were so honored and grateful to be there to celebrate with Shea and Matt!