Catch Minimalist, Rustic Elegance in this Niles, Michigan Celebration: The Real Wedding of Callie and Dan Manick

When Dan made a trip back to Ball State after his graduation, he stopped to pick up some friends from Purdue University. One of those friends happened to be Callie's best friend, who invited her to come along. Dan and Callie immediately hit it off! Seven years later, Dan proposed to Callie on the banks of the Chicago River, where they were going to do some nighttime kayaking.
 

Look at how stunning Callie is in that A-line wedding gown. "I knew I wanted a little color, A-line, some type of sleeve, and a low back," Callie shares. "My family is not local, so we were excited to be able to find something during one of two scheduled appointments when my
mom could be in town." She had the gown altered to make the long sleeves into illusion, elbow-length sleeves. Dan and the groomsmen all wore navy while the bridesmaids had mauve dresses–two colors of the couple's color scheme.
 

Since Callie and Dan had been together for seven years, Callie had already basically researched and planned their wedding. "Instagram and Facebook pages were also a huge help in checking reviews and photos of each vendor’s work," Callie explains. It was good that Callie had vendors already lined up since COVID had delayed weddings and made vendors difficult to book for this year!
 

In all of her wedding research, Callie had actually found their venue a year or so prior to their engagement. They wanted an indoor-outdoor space with plenty of nature around, and their venue included on-site lodging for guests, which sealed the deal for Dan and Callie. "We wanted a variety of options for our guests to do throughout the reception, so we set up lawn games to take advantage of the indoor-outdoor space. This ended up being a great way to encourage our friends and family to bond and was a hit with our guests from age four to seventy," Callie raves. They also used the cornhole boards to serve as a guest book!
 

 

What We Love

There were a few cute décor items that Callie and Dan made sure to include around their celebration. "A few little details that were special to me included having clay figures of our beloved pets (Sherman and Ella) made and placed into our desert display. Tied into my bouquet were my grandmother’s wedding rings. She was so special to me, and the love my grandma and grandpa had together is something I hope to measure up to in our marriage as well," Callie gushes. When she called in Chick-Fil-A for lunch for everyone in the bride and groom suites, they delivered little bride and groom cows as well!
 

 

Advice from the Couple

Callie and Dan advise, "Our parents were incredibly generous in helping us finance our wedding. It was especially hard in the beginning navigating conversations and expectations either side had for our wedding. It really took a lot of forethought to navigate those disagreements respectfully while appreciating our parent’s help at the same time as honoring our own vision. My biggest piece of advice for others who are blessed to have help financially is to make sure you are still sticking up for what you want. We definitely grew a lot in learning how to communicate our needs respectfully and how to place boundaries with family when they are needed."
 

 

 

are you a bride or groom-to-be?

We'd love to plan with you on weddingday-online.com. Let's get started!

 

are you a wedding extraordinaire?

Join WeddingDay Magazine in inspiring brides by partnering with us! See how here.