Last week I shared our Chicago engagement photos, and this week I’m sharing the other half of our session: our photos at my hometown beach in Wilmette, the place where Dan proposed.
The day we became engaged, Dan had arranged for a photographer to snap photos of the proposal — but the day turned rainy and cold, and the photographer backed out. Because we didn’t get photos on the beach that day, we always hoped to have engagement photos taken at this special spot. Fortunately for us, our St. Louis-based wedding photographer, Laura of Laura Ann Miller Photography, was willing to travel to Wilmette for our engagement photo session at Gillson Beach.
We hope to make Wilmette our forever home one day, the home where we raise our family, which makes these photos all the more special for us. I know we’ll cherish them for many years to come. Our puppy, Henry, was also able to join us in these photos! I love envisioning the family photos we’ll take here someday, and how fun it will be to compare them to these shots with our first [fur] baby.
Looking at these photos again instantly takes me back to this day, to the day Dan proposed, and to the nights spent here while we were just two college kids in love. I cannot describe how lucky I feel to have met my soulmate so young; in our eight years together, we’ve already shared so many milestones. We’ve continued to grow up together instead of growing apart. He still gives me butterflies and makes me weak in the knees, just as he did when we were 18 years old. I know this is rare, and I never want to take this love for granted.
Style Notes
I wanted our engagement photo outfits to reflect the feel of each photo location, so for our beach shots, I looked for something airy and summery with a nod to bridal. I love the off-the-shoulder dress trend and thought a lightweight maxi dress would feel beach-appropriate while also providing coverage in the mid-April weather. I have always loved turquoise, especially how it pops with white, so I wore turquoise drop earrings for a touch of color. Dan kept it casual in jeans and a plaid button-up in spring colors that coordinated with Henry’s blue gingham bow-tie collar (yes, even little Henry was styled!).
Surprisingly, it was tough to find an off-the-shoulder maxi dress in white or ivory, so I considered a bunch of other color and pattern options before finding the dress I wore on Swell.com. For spring or summertime beach photos, I think any light, soft hue would be beautiful, like blush pink, light blue or lavender. I also love muted floral prints. Below are similar styles and other options I considered for this shoot:
P.S. Our Missouri bluff engagement photos were featured on Midwest Bride this week! It’s fun to see which photos they selected from our session. The rest of the photos from our Columbia engagement session with Madexposure Photography are on my blog if you’re interested!
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