Emily + Jorge: Passionate, Intimate, Candlelit Chicago Wedding

Where do I even begin with these two? Emily + Jorge are two college friends of mine, but have grown into some of my most favorite adult and couple friends. Jorge is hilarious and genuine, and Emily is determined and absolutely brilliant. They are college sweethearts with a flame for life and for each other. They planned a beautiful November wedding at Chicago’s Bridgeport Art Center, surrounded by their best people. The wedding was situated around Día de Muertos, a holiday important to Jorge’s Mexican heritage, and the couple wove his Latin culture in with her Jewish roots, culminating in a colorful, joyful, and seriously fun wedding. They even had a (all-female!) mariachi band play the Hora… it was spectacular. A huge, huge congratulations to The Silvas.

All photos courtesy of Juancho SC Photography.

The couple got ready, one floor apart, at the Renaissance Hotel right on Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago. Neither had a wedding party, but instead, filled the rooms with close friends and family. My husband and I were lucky enough to be invited.

Emily’s mom and sister helped her into her gown, and my goodness — she was a breathtaking bride.

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Meanwhile, Jorge hammed it up with his friends to dispel some of the pre-wedding jitters. His custom suit by Wedding GPS was pure perfection.

Their November wedding day was unseasonably warm, so they were able to have an epic first look on the balcony of the Renaissance Hotel. Scroll on….!

The couple headed over to the Bridgeport Art Center early for a few photos.

Watching people get married will never get old, but watching your best friends get married carries a certain kind of magic.

As I mentioned, Jorge’s family is Mexican and Bolivian, and Emily’s is Jewish so they chose to include many cultural elements to unite their families including a beautiful chuppah created by Steve’s Flower Market, a color scheme to match the traditional Día de Muertos marigold, and a breaking of the glass ceremony after they were married.

Dinner was served by Beyond Events, tunes and photobooth were provided bilingual DJ Buena Beats, and the highlight of the reception was the Jewish Hora played by the all-female mariachi, Mariachi Sirenas.