Lauren and Zach
March 2, 2019

How They Met
Lauren and Zach met one night at Lauren’s old apartment in The Fan. Zach showed up with a mutual friend and immediately stood out, like love at first sight. They talked all night, eventually having their first date over pasta and wine.

The Proposal
About four months into their relationship, Zach moved to Tampa, Florida, and the two called it quits because of the distance. But it wasn’t before long that they decided to give things another try. Lauren explains, “Over the year and a half of long-distance, we made so many memories in Florida!” So, it was a special surprise when Zach decided to propose to Lauren in Florida, making it feel even more like home. Zach propose on the beach at sunset at a place called Honeymoon Island and, “it was the most surreal moment ever!”

The Details
For their early spring Richmond wedding, the two desired simplistic elegance. “Our main focus was that we wanted ourselves, and everyone around us, to have a truly spectacular day. They added touches of Southern charm throughout for that timeless classy feel.

Growing up in a Catholic Church, Lauren knew she needed a traditional ceremony. “One show-stopping, old-school element that we added was the bagpiper.”

Originally, they were only going to have white and black as their colors, but Zach decided they needed a “pop” of color, so they added touches of lavender. Their wedding party looked slick in all black, adding those hints of color with their bouquets and boutonnières. Their reception continued their classic theme, and they even included Adirondack chairs as their cake topper, an ode to their Florida life.

When it was all said and done, Lauren and Zach wanted to host a fantastic party. And with the help of their entertainment, they kept the party going all night long.

Favorite Part of the Day
Lauren’s absolute favorite moment was about halfway down the aisle when everything started to really hit her. “I was with my dad, who is one of my favorites and he was walking me towards my forever and it was all so beautiful and overwhelming. Other favorites that I have to mention include: seeing the reception space for the first time and dancing with my husband!”

Zach’s favorite part was seeing Lauren for the first time in her dress, watching her walk down the aisle, but he made sure to mention the bagpipes in the background as well.

Biggest Challenge
“One of the biggest challenges that we faced was the fact that we planned 80% of the wedding remotely. When we got engaged in December I was still living in Richmond, so I tried to check as many things off as I could, but with the move and finishing up the school year, I wasn’t as productive as planned. I moved to Florida in June of 2018 and luckily, we were able to fly back and forth a few times for the cake tasting, etc. but there were what felt like a million emails, dozens of conference calls and a handful of times when Zach’s mom/sister or one of my bridesmaids had to take point from Richmond. Definitely not something we would recommend!”

Best Piece of Advice
Lauren’s advice to future couples? “Enjoy every minute of it! Even when it seems stressful and overwhelming, know that you are planning one of the most memorable nights of your life!”

*All information in our Featured Weddings is provided by the couple. Richmond Weddings™ is not responsible for discovering and adding vendors who were not on the submission form completed by the couple.* All photos courtesy of Kir Tuben Photography