After a successful Indian wedding, Bhavna and Alok were ready to kick it up a notch and get ready for their lavish celebration party at the Ann Arbor Marriott Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest. The theme for this event was royal purple but Bhavna wanted to stand out from the crowd and slipped into a glamorous and romantic blush pink wedding gown. A sheer back decorated with intricate motif print and stone work was absolutely perfect! The venue itself gleamed with royalty with the works of Colonial Events. Ceiling art that was comprised of clever draping and chandeliers was absolutely brilliant! The spacious quarters was bathed in a romantic hue with lighting from DJ Ice Productions. A romantic slow dance was captured so elegantly by Colin Lyons Photography and this is one bride that was the belle of her ball. Ashoka provided all the yummy eats for this event with Cakes by Stephanie whipping up a delectable mehndi print wedding cake. We can’t wait to view the cinematic highlight of Bhavna’s big day, but until then we have all the still action in our gallery. The bride dishes out the deets down below!
Share the scoop on your Proposal Story!
Alok planned such an elaborate proposal that I'm still shocked he pulled it off. He knew long before he proposed that it was very important to me to have my parents nearby when he proposed. I didn't want to call them up and tell them I was engaged, but I wanted to be able to share that special and emotional moment with them in person. This is the main reason I had no idea it was coming. He asked me to go on a 10-day vacation with him and his family to Hawaii at the end of 2014/beginning of 2015. Knowing that my parents were not coming on this trip, I knew a proposal couldn't be happening. About 4 days into our trip, Alok and I escaped for a romantic evening by ourselves where we watched the sunset on the beach and went to dinner. Watching the sunrise and brunch afterwards were also planned for the next morning. At that dinner, I told him how a small part of me was hoping that he would somehow surprise me by bringing my parents to Hawaii and proposing, but how I knew that couldn't happen since I had just talked to my mom and she was at home getting ready for bed. He laughed it off so convincingly. The next morning, as we were watching the sunrise on the beach after a 3.5 hour drive, I was in disbelief as he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. A few minutes later, he asked me to turn around, and I saw my entire family getting out of a van. They had flown in the night before and Alok took me on that date to get me out of the hotel while they arrived. The planning and dedication that was put into the proposal by Alok and both of our families was amazing. They all hid it from me for over 6 months!
Tell us how you went about planning your wedding, and your overall experience with the Venues, Hair & Makeup, Outfits, Decor Theme, and all of the other important details.
I always had a vision in my head of how I pictured my wedding. Once I found my wedding planner Rupali Bedi, I knew she would make it come to life. There was a lot of pinning on Pinterest and texting Rupali my ideas. I think she figured out how to make my vision come to life for just about everything and even took some to the next level. I fell in love with the Eagle Crest Resort in Ypsilanti, Michigan as soon as I saw it. It was gorgeous. They, however, had several staffing and logistical issues throughout the planning process, which made things somewhat stressful, even up until after the ceremony, which was very unfortunate. All of our vendors were amazing and very professional. My mom and I have been going to the Hair Forum in Riverview, MI for our hair needs for years and they did an impeccable job with my hair. For makeup, we went to Todd's Room, Jamie in particular. He had done makeup for two of my cousins and I knew then that I wanted him as well. We didn't have much of a theme to our wedding weekend, but I always had colors in mind. For the Sangeet, I knew I wanted everything to be colorful and bright, including my outfit. For the ceremony, I wanted it to look traditional with some modern elements. The color scheme was burgundy and gold. And for the reception, I had my heart set on purple and silver.
How did you select your bridal lengha or wedding dress? Did you have a favorite color in mind?
I did all of my wedding shopping in India with my mom. I knew I wanted a traditional and classy burgundy and gold lengha. We had a few options, and in the end I chose a velvet red and gold lengha with a white dupatta. It wasn't quite as dark as I wanted it to be though, so I chose the color of a different lengha and they remade the one I wanted with that darker material.
What was the most enjoyable part of the planning process, and why?
I loved everything about it! I don't know if I can pick just one part. I'm a planner when it comes to anything in my life and I just loved planning such a big event. I loved seeing the excitement and energy it was bringing to everyone in our family the closer we got to the wedding.
Do you have any words of wisdom for Brides-To-Be?
ENJOY EVERYTHING. Before our wedding, someone told Alok and me that at every event, we should take a second to step away, just the two of us, and look at everyone enjoying themselves and take in the decorations, venue, etc. It was definitely one of the best pieces of advice we got and I like to share it with any engaged couple I know. It's so easy to get caught up in the excitement and not really take the time to take in all of the time and effort that was spent putting everything together. It's crazy how quickly the wedding comes and goes. Our wedding was over 8 months ago now and I still miss it everyday!
Enjoy your day lovies! See you back tomorrow!
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