Featured Eiteljorg Museum Wedding: Tess + Ryan

The Proposal
When Ryan was ready to propose, he pulled out all the stops. “I planned out the proposal for months. I enlisted the help of many people to help make it a surprise and to make it as perfect as I could. First, I got Tess’ sister Alyssa to get her parents to Indy for dinner the Friday of Memorial Day weekend. All Tess and her parents knew is that we are meeting Alyssa for a nice dinner downtown. Tess isn’t a fan of much attention, so I delayed telling her an important detail of the evening for as long as possible. So a few hours before dinner I told her that my friend Kenny was in town and he needed help with a commercial he was working on in downtown Indianapolis. All he needed was a nice couple walking around the city, that was it. She wasn’t very thrilled about it, but I told her it would be brief and it wasn’t a big deal and we would go to dinner right after. What she didn’t know is I not only got Kenny there, but I hired a photographer and we told Tess, that the photographer was with Kenny shooting for the commercial as well. 

We walk around the State House, down the street near monument circle. They stopped traffic to help get some awesome “commercial” shots of a happy couple in Indianapolis, but what Tess would later realize is we were shooting our first set of engagement pictures. Storms are getting close to rolling in, I am very nervous and freaking out that it is about to poor down rain on us. Kenny tells us, he wants to get “one more shot with the skyline in the background”. We take the elevator up on top of a parking garage off of Meridian Street. This view is the view I staked out months ago, this is the view of our city that we met in. It is the perfect back drop to ask the love of my life to marry me… BUT first we have to make sense of putting a mic on me, so Kenny asks that I talk about the importance of “green energy” to younger people living in the city. Tess was confused and it got awkward as I made up who knows what about green energy. What was really happening is that the video camera and the photographers were getting the right spot to get the shot we had practiced hours before. Kenny asks “Is there anything else you want to add?”, with my hand in my pocket clenching onto the ring box, I explain to Tess that we are both not from Indy and there are many places we like to travel, but Indy is now our city, because it brought us together. There were many other things I had lined up to say, but I was so nervous I forgot half of it and got down on one knee with the city of Indianapolis skyline behind us. She was completely shocked and obviously said yes!

We were running very late for dinner at this point and it started to poor down rain just as we entered the restaurant. Her parents, nephew, sister and brother in-law were there to greet us and we surprised them with the news. After dinner we step into the bar next door, where another surprise awaits. I invited many of our closest friends, some of them not knowing why they were gathered and we informed all of them we were engaged and we celebrated with champagne with 15 or so of our best friends. We ended the night at a nice downtown hotel that I had booked many months prior, we were greeted with more champagne and chocolate covered strawberries.

The next day we were off to my hometown of Evansville, where my sister had planned an entire family cookout full of aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and parents, where we surprised them with the news of our engagement as well. And Finally on Memorial Day we headed to St. Louis for a Cardinals game, so we could enjoy my two favorite things in one place; my future bride and Cardinals baseball.

I planned every detail of that three weekend for many, many months and I stressed about it for a long time and had to “lie” to keep things in order. That weekend went about as perfectly as I planned and will be one of the best memories of our lives, right up there with our amazing wedding!”

Style
“We would describe our wedding style as elegant and classic. We wanted to incorporate fall colors into our October wedding, which is one of our favorite seasons in Downtown Indy. We chose slate blue, navy blue, cranberry, and gold accents as our color pallet. The groom and groomsman wore navy tuxes to match the elegant atmosphere of the Eiteljorg ballroom. The gold tablecloth on the wedding cake table really stood out when we look back out our pictures! We decided on a “King’s Table” in the middle of the ballroom with our wedding party. In doing this, we were able to enjoy the company of our wedding party instead of just sitting in a row at a long table. It also allowed us to be surrounded by all of our guests, making the reception atmosphere fun and relaxed.”

The Space
“We loved that the Eiteljorg ballroom did not look like any other reception venue we visited. It was unique, beautiful, and unlike all other venues in Downtown Indianapolis. Our guests were also able to enjoy the outdoor terrace on the canal during the cocktail hour as the wedding party took more pictures. We also loved that it was conveniently located to the hotels our guests were staying at, and just a short walk from our ceremony venue at the Indiana Statehouse.”

Food & Beverage
“My favorite menu item was the wedding cake! I am counting down the days until I can eat the top layer on our anniversary :) We got several compliments on the passed hors d’oeuvres during the cocktail hour and how delicious they were. The staff made sure to leave some of the hors d’oeuvres on our table inside the ballroom since the wedding party did not attend the cocktail hour, which was a nice surprise!”

Most Memorable Moment
“The most memorable moment of the reception was the moment the DJ announced us and the double doors opened. We were able to see all of our guests, our families, our wedding party, and the beautiful ballroom and vision of our wedding day come to life. It was so fun to see all of the planning turn into a reality!”

What Guests Have Said
“Our guests have all talked about how beautiful the venue was, and how nice the cocktail hour was on the outdoor terrance with views of the downtown skyline and canal. We were lucky to have beautiful weather in October, to help make the day perfect! We received many compliments on the wonderful service they received by the staff. Our guests loved the passed hors d’oeuvres, the dinner, the champagne toast, and the wedding cake. The bartenders were professional and efficient, and there was never a long line at the bar!”