Elegant St. Charles Preparatory School Wedding In Columbus Oh

Maria + Kyle

Maria and Kyle’s wedding day was an absolute blast from beginning to end! These two know how to have a good time and truly enjoy the moment! Their day was full of so much laughter, fun, and celebration!

We started the day at Maria’s parents home where she and her bridesmaids got ready while sipping mimosas and jamming to Taylor Swift music. Maria said her mom had always wanted to make the upstairs loft into a ladies lounge area and the wedding was the perfect excuse to do just that. It was the sweetest little nook for all of them to have their hair and makeup done and get in the wedding day spirit! Maria’s mom was her unofficial wedding planner and she did such an amazing job bringing her daughter’s vision to life!

With her mom’s help, Maria slipped into her gorgeous gown while her bridesmaids helped with the accessories. Before she headed off to the church, Maria shared a special moment with her father toasting with a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle’s Family Reserve bourbon. This was finally proof (in Maria’s opinion anyway) that she’s clearly the favorite child since her brother didn’t get any of the bourbon on his wedding day. I especially loved the moment where Maria helped straighten out her father’s bow tie and military metals. Her father is a retired Captain from the Navy and surprised her during the wedding planning process by wanting to come dress shopping with her. They share such a special bond and it was a joy to capture them together.

The ceremony was held at St. Leo, a Catholic church in Columbus. Maria’s grandfather and father both attended St. Leo’s school before it closed down, so it was special to see them get married in a place with such a long family history and connection.

Nothing beat Kyle’s reaction as he watched his bride walk down the aisle other than perhaps Maria’s face as she walked toward him. They both were overcome with such emotion—evident by the happy tears shed.

Following their ceremony we took the Xtreme Limo’s Buckeye Bus around town for wedding party photos. Maria and Kyle met in dental school at The Ohio State University and although they now live in Cincinnati they will forever be Buckeye fans, so the bus was a perfect addition to the day!

Our first stop was German Village— an always charming and picturesque spot for wedding day photos! The cobblestone streets and adorable brick homes never disappoint. We then headed over to the Scioto Mile for photos on the Main Street Bridge with the Columbus skyline. It was a very sunny, hot day, so photographing on the bridge in direct sunlight can sometimes be a challenge. However, we got lucky with a few moments of cloud coverage where we could make some magic happen!

Kyle will be the first to admit that he is not the biggest fan of having his photo taken. He was such a good sport in making all of Maria’s dreams come true of capturing gorgeous engagement and wedding day portraits, so when he made one request of a photo location he was excited about I knew I had to do my best to make it fit into our wedding day timeline! He really wanted to go to their old stomping grounds near OSU and grab drinks at The Village Idiot— a neighborhood bar that Maria and Kyle spent lots of time at during school playing darts and hanging with friends.

Once they finished their lemon drop shots we headed over to the reception at St. Charles. The space looked beautiful with a nice mix of tall and short centerpieces overflowing with white hydrangeas and roses. Guests enjoyed a 5 course meal served family style, which I loved! It is such a wonderful opportunity to get your guests talking and interacting and makes the entire event feel a little more intimate, especially in such a large venue.

Possibly, my favorite part of the reception was their cake... or lack there of. They chose to have a donut tower as the focal point of their huge dessert table and it was amazing! They sprinkled little signs that read “LOVE at first [Bite}” and “Donut Mind If {I DO} to make it even sweeter. In keeping with Maria’s Italian heritage they had an incredible assortment of treats on their dessert table baked by relatives and friends.

Once dinner was complete, Kyle shared a dance with both his mom and step-mom and Maria danced with her dad. After that, the guests wasted no time in getting out on the dance floor! Maria’s family surprised her with a few traditional Italian wedding dances and the dance floor was packed all night thanks to Loren at Josh Staley Productions!

Thank you so much Maria and Kyle for allowing me to be a part of your gorgeous wedding day!

Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this post to see the dream team that made this day so perfect.