Matthew and Rebecca in the Rosie Gown
A secluded wedding weekend at Stouts Island Lodge, Wisconsin, with a private island setting and Rebecca in Rosie.
A Chicago Love Story
Matthew and Rebecca were together for seven years before getting engaged, first meeting in college. “I think we both knew we were it shortly after we became serious,” she reflects, “but we lived quite a bit of life together… full of fun and also tribulations before we took the next step.” When the couple decided to get engaged, it felt less like a question and more like a continuation of the life they had already been building together.
Matthew planned a trip to Chicago, the city where they had met and lived for years, to reconnect with friends. “He proposed on a walk by the lakefront, with the city skyline as our backdrop,” Rebecca says. That morning had already been special after a spontaneous shopping trip where Matthew had chosen a white dress for her to wear. “He had all our friends and family fly in for a surprise engagement party right after. It was so special!”
A Secluded Wedding Weekend at Stouts Island Lodge
For Rebecca and her groom, the idea of getting married anywhere other than Stouts Island Lodge never quite fit. Tucked away on a private island in the middle of a lake in Wisconsin, the small hotel and resort offered exactly what they were looking for: intimacy, escape, and a sense of occasion that stretched beyond a single day. “The island was rented for the entire weekend, so the only people staying were there for our wedding,” she explains. “It made the weekend so magical.”
Arriving by boat and settling in alongside their closest friends and family, the celebration unfolded like a shared retreat rather than a traditional wedding. “There were so many highlights, but the biggest surprise was when Matt and I did a full outfit change, and I cut my hair during the reception.”
A Romantic Bridal Look in Rosie
Rebecca had returned to a Grace Loves Lace boutique to purchase a different gown altogether, only to discover that a new collection had launched the night before. “I saw Rosie and knew I wanted to try it on,” she says. “As soon as I put it on, I knew I had to get it.” The decision was immediate, instinctive. “I was told I was the first person to buy it!”
What followed was a rush of certainty. “I was overjoyed,” she recalls. “The dress felt so me. Different but classic in the ways that count. It had everything I was looking for.” Standing in the mirror, she could already see the weekend taking shape around her. “I could instantly see myself on the day when I put it on.”
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