Real Wedding: A Downtown Cleveland Wedding Inspired by Lake Erie

The story of Dani and Gordy's love affair with Cleveland, Lake Erie, and each other, literally gave us chills. Their rustic approach to a nautical theme is perfectly suited to Lake Erie, and everything came together beautifully, from Dani's gorgeous Watters gown to the subtle color palette and decor pieces.

From the bride, Danielle:

When it came to start planning our wedding, Gordy and I knew we wanted two things incorporated: the city of Cleveland and Lake Erie. We grew in our relationship together in Downtown Cleveland and both have a love for all things nautical; nothing too themed or obvious. Choosing our venue in Downtown Cleveland was difficult, but we knew we picked the right one. We were the very first wedding held at the Global Center. The cafe lights across the room were inspired by the East 4th alley. Also, there’s something truly amazing about Lake Erie. Although we’re certainly biased because we grew up here, there’s something really organic and raw about Lake Erie. It’s not crystal clear. It doesn’t have miles of white sand. But it’s our lake. We took our love for the city and our beautiful lake and used it as inspiration for our wedding. Truth be told, we truly didn’t know what our reception would look like until we walked in the day before during rehearsal. We left all artistic design up to our planners. They knew we wanted nautical touches, but nothing that screamed "in the Navy!" Our planners searched high and low for driftwood, anchors, ropes, sea glass decor and more. Nothing matched, nothing was uniform, yet all of it came together into one seamless vision. We owe a lot of our vibe to our planners. Gordy and I wanted navy to shine on our day, mixed with creamy vanilla, barely blush and any wooden element that made sense. Candle light helped soften up the room with gold pieces throughout as well. Overall, our day felt just like our unique city on the lake; a lot of hard working people came together to create the most warm and welcoming special day for us.

All photos by Mann & Wife: Visual Storytellers.