The Wedding Story of Carly and Josh Shanas

Carly and Josh met online and, after chatting for a bit, Carly asked Josh out on a date (although Josh likes to claim that he was the one who asked her out!). The first thing that attracted Carly to Josh was his wit and how down-to-earth he was. Both traits that come through in the proposal and wedding. The proposal was low-key, but perfect. Carly says, “It was a random Thursday night after work. I walked in the door to my favorite Josh specialty—homemade vegan chili mac. We were chit-chatting as we always do, but the whole time I kept thinking he was acting weird. Next thing I know, he’s on his knee asking me if I would marry him!”
 

When Carly and Josh started planning, they had a few things in mind. Carly says, “Right from the beginning we knew that we wanted animals involved, a delicious family style dinner (there is nothing worse than gross wedding food), a huge dance floor, and our own style.”

 

The couple’s first step was contacting wedding planner, David Reilich, of David Reilich Occasions. David helped the couple (who was living in New Jersey at the time) plan their dream Midwest wedding. Because of Carly and Josh’s funky style and desire to have animals at the wedding, David came up with an Anthropomorphic Art theme. And what better place to pull off such a unique theme other than the Indianapolis Zoo?

 

Carly says, “The deciding factor for having the wedding at the Indianapolis Zoo included their wedding coordinator, Jackie. From the second we met her, we knew we wanted to work with her! Also, the Indianapolis Zoo was central, and we could use downtown all weekend to entertain our guests and allow everyone to have the best experience possible. Plus, the zoo was willing to have a “family style” meal for us and their chef was AMAZING.” From phenomenal staff, great catering and unique ceremony/reception spots—the Indianapolis Zoo had everything to make this a dream wedding! 

 

Carly and David worked on creating a color palette that would capture the fun mood of the day. Carly says, “Aubergine is my favorite color and I wanted it to be the main color, however, it’s a dark color for a May wedding. To lighten things up, David and I worked on a palette of purple and pink hues with the 'pop' of fuchsia.” These colors were the perfect complement to the Anthropomorphic Art theme. They can also be seen in the gorgeous florals by Isibeal Studio. Some florals delicately adorned the chuppah, giving the ceremony an extra layer of interest.

 

              

What we love

Carly and Josh focused in on celebrating with their family instead of worrying about all the little things. Carly says, “I think the best part of our wedding is how it was a whole weekend Josh and I got to spend so much time with our family and friends. We wanted a relaxed and fun environment, and I truly believed we achieved that. During our ceremony, our guests laughed, cried, laughed more, and hopefully got to experience our love for each other."

 

Advice from the bride

After planning one of the most fun weddings we’ve ever seen—Carly actually recommends to keep it simple and focus on what matters to you most. She says, “Don’t sweat the small stuff. In the end, it’s more important to enjoy the time with your friends and family. No one will remember your nails, hair, makeup, etc. They remember the experience.”

 

 

 

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