Elise and Peter’s wedding wasn’t just a destination. It was a return. For six generations, Lake Geneva has lived inside Elise’s family story: great-grandparents escaping Chicago heat, grandparents falling in love, parents meeting, children growing up dockside. As Elise put it, “if you choose a place, let it lead the story.”
Elise’s family home, built in 1874, still stands. Preserved rather than perfected, it is filled with stained glass, worn banisters, chipped paint, and memory. It became the getting-ready house not because it was styled, but because it was real. Guests didn’t just attend a wedding; they stepped into a lineage.
Elise’s vision for the day was clear and cinematic. She wanted it to feel like stepping inside the 90s romantic film Father of the Bride. Americana, warm, timeless, faith-forward, and deeply Midwestern. Every decision followed that compass.
Elise’s gown, designed by Mark Ingram, carried its own legacy. Decades earlier, Mark had worked alongside Elise’s mother, a connection that turned a fitting into a collaboration. Together they refined details: custom streamers and a shortened veil suggested by Mark himself, created a look that felt both couture and personal. It became a theme of the weekend: the past paying dividends in the present.
The floral brief was simple, it should feel like the sun was setting. Warm tones, abundance, softness, and glow filled the room, creating what guests described as a living indoor garden. Peter’s friend created a custom DJ interlude. His aunt designed hats for guests and ceremony programs. Friends poured into the planning process, not as helpers of obligation but as contributors of love.
The heart of the weekend was anchored in words and faith. Elise toasted Peter at the welcome party, offering a moment rarely given to the bride. Peter toasted Elise at the reception. Their Catholic ceremony grounded the celebration in meaning and tradition. Afterward, guests boarded boats for a private cruise across the lake, just as a rainbow broke through the clouds behind them. Elise, affectionately nicknamed “Sunshine” by friends and family, felt perfectly reflected in the moment, as the weather held off and the sky delivered a quiet, unexpected gift. It was a rare pause in a day that often moves too quickly, a moment that allowed the memory to settle.
Elise and Peter’s wedding was an abundant, joy-filled, faith-anchored Americana love story; written on water, held by history, surrounded by people, and centered on forever.
