This was only my second Blumen Gardens Wedding, but let me tell ya, if they are all like this I can’t wait to go back.

“You’re intimidating.”
“I am? I don’t want to be scary!”
“Oh No! You’re intimidating, but in a sexy way!”
– Rob’s Best Woman

This wedding was just so much fun. Which was truly just such a pleasure for me, because I wasn’t expecting it to be so much fun.

Don’t get me wrong, the first time I met Kat at the Blumen Gardens Bridal Bash I liked her. I liked her family. I can distinctly remember them coming into my booth and telling me about Kat’s wedding plans and how they had been having trouble finding a photographer who would travel for their ceremony in Tinley Park and then to their reception in Sycamore. I didn’t see the problem. It isn’t unusual to travel between weddings and receptions. And I liked Kat and her boisterous crew. But Kat struck me as being kinda quiet, so I wasn’t expecting a loud and crazy party. Boy was I wrong.

I had so much fun hanging out with Kat and Rob’s friends. They were warm and welcoming, and I almost was worried that I wasn’t getting enough shots during the reception because I was having so much fun just chatting with all their friends. Turned out not to be a problem, because Kat and Rob got one of my biggest wedding galleries of 2024.

Wedding Day Details:

Reception Venue: Blumen Gardens in Sycamore, IL.
HMUA: Blushing Reflections
Florals: Classy Flowers
Bridesmaids Dresses: Azazie
Groom and Groomsmen Suits: Men’s Warehouse
DJ: 3rd Shift DJ’s
Cake: Creative Cakes

Kat and Rob opted for 10 hours of photography coverage.

What I loved about their Blumen Gardens Wedding Day

It was really important to both Kat and Rob to include their pets in their wedding day. You’ll notice during their reception that there were 3 dogs at their wedding reception, and props to their DJ, Michael, for playing who let the dogs out while the dogs were on the dance floor. Classic. Also, Blumen Gardens is just freaking magical. I was able to take a few really quick portraits of Kat literally in their store, and she looks like some sort of fairy snow queen. I wish I had had more time in there, but I literally had about 2 minutes. (Also, shout out to Kat’s MOH, who held up some decorative white sticks for me so I could have some foreground for those shots.)

Something that Kat and I talked about when creating her timeline was when the sun was going to set. Having a winter wedding is romantic and cozy, but you run out of daylight so quickly. And as I was driving back towards Blumen Gardens from Tinley Park I was watching the sun slowly set, and I was feeling stressed. The light was quickly fading when we got to Blumen Gardens, and it honestly turned out even more magical than I imagined. All of the twinkly lights in the background of Kat and Rob’s portraits were just beautiful, and wouldn’t have looked that magical if we hadn’t had that long drive back. So if you’re a bride or groom who is reading this and hoping to learn something, just take away from this that there are pros and cons to every situation, and sometimes the cons aren’t even really that bad.