Location, Location, Location

I am ashamed to admit that I had a "secret" wedding orchestrating in my head for some time before I scored my new ring. It surprised me, as I didn't think that I cared about weddings (other than from a party planning perspective), so it required of a bit of adjustment to my self-image when I found that I did indeed care.

My secret wedding involved gathering my immediate family and my good friends in the city for a fun party that would not only celebrate my good fortune in scoring a nice dude, but also incorporate my love for the quaintness of Chicago neighborhoods. A couple of years ago, I stumbled upon some photos of a fundraising event at A New Leaf Studio and it was love at first site. Check out these photos from their web site...there are just so many things to adore!





I used to live down the street from A New Leaf back when it was a tiny lone storefront in Old Town. I would buy my mom flowers from there for holidays and birthdays. I remember telling my friend from college that I was going to buy my flowers from there if I ever got married...and ten years later (eww), I am getting married...there!

Unfortunately, between my pre-Andy discovery of A New Leaf Studio and my actual engagement, A New Leaf has become a HOT wedding spot. A girl's got to get up pretty early in the morning to nab a prime Saturday date there. In fact, the day that we went to check it out in October 2007, there was a girl signing a contract for July 2009!

I actually like the story behind our selecting A New Leaf (ANL). I had called ANL (I am getting tired of typing it out) on the Tuesday after we were engaged and they were booked solid through November 2008. I was bummed, but assumed it was out of our budget anyway. I had mentioned the location to Andy, but never got a response. A few days later, I made an appointment to look at The Signature Room on the 95th Floor of the Hancock Building. On the afternoon of our appointment at the 95th, a few coworkers had mentioned ANL to Andy and he sent me the link saying, "What about this place? Everyone here says it's cool and cheap." (Note: He hadn't paid attention to it when I sent it to him!) I called ANL right away and they had a cancellation on Friday, 10.17! I suggested that we hop into a cab after our appointment at the Hancock and check it out for kicks. I already knew that I would love it, but he had never seen it. I was so jazzed from the moment that we walked in the door. I immediately called my friend in Buffalo to see if she could make it in for a Friday wedding. When we were standing in the Mezzanine, I asked, "So, what do you think?" Andy replied, "What do you mean? We have to have this place. Call that caterer tomorrow and make it happen. We'll find the money somewhere!" He was smiling ear-to-ear. We took his family to see it on the way to his mom's retirment dinner that weekend and their reaction sealed the deal. We signed the contract that afternoon.

A New Leaf has been featured in several magazines over the last few months, so I have a few of photos of it decorated fabulously. I'll save those for a rainy day when I can't think of anything to talk about. (Shut up, Balz!)

P.S. Barack Obama had a fundraiser at A New Leaf in January! I hope that my friend trix will still come to the wedding despite the venue's liberal undertones.