Real Wedding: Kara & Austin
The landscape of upstate New York will always trigger romantic memories for Kara Graham and Austin Sparks—it’s where they shared their first date, where Austin proposed, and where they later tied the knot. The couple met while working summer restaurant jobs after college, not far from sparkling Canandaigua Lake, where Austin’s parents have a lake house. After just one date, they were inseparable. Five months later, Austin moved to Chicago to pursue his career and be closer to his family. The couple knew they wanted to stay together, and debated about how to make it work. Eventually, Kara decided to make the big move to the Midwest, away from her family. “I had a very strong feeling that he was ‘the one,’” she says.
About three years after they first met, the couple was back at Austin’s family’s lake house for a Labor Day weekend trip. When they headed out in the boat one morning, with Kara in her pajamas and their dog alongside, the last thing Kara expected was a proposal. But when they stopped in the middle of the lake, Austin got down on one knee, pulled a velvet box out of his pocket, and proposed with a beautiful ring. It was an emotional moment for Kara, who was completely surprised. “I was shaking as we called loved ones,” she recalls. After toasting their engagement with champagne and glasses hidden in the boat, there was more good news—Austin had invited Kara’s parents to the house to visit and share in the celebration that weekend. It seemed only fitting that this couple, who spent so much time on the water, decided to get married at Esperanza Mansion, which has a spectacular lake view. The wedding color palette of shimmering champagne, pink, and vibrant green with chocolate accents was inspired by flowers the bride selected with Charles Arena of Arena’s Florist. “Charles is an artist and came up with some wonderful ideas,” she says. Kara felt particularly happy with how the palette echoed the champagne Bill Levkoff bridesmaid dresses and the wedding site’s lush greenery. Flowers not only added color to the day, but played a symbolic role during the ceremony, too. To remember Kara’s grandmother and Austin’s grandfather, both of whom had recently passed, the couple placed white roses on the altar.
On the day of the wedding, Kara had fun with all the traditional bridal details. For her “something blue,” she bought sparkly aqua gems and glued them to the bottom of her shoes to make a “K” and an “A.” She also carried Austin’s grandmother’s handkerchief and wore a gold bracelet that had been in his family since the 1800’s. There was only one style mishap—when Kara had an attack of indecision about her hairstyle. “I decided two hours before the ceremony that I didn’t like it,” she says. “Luckily, my bridesmaid Charlotte took it out and re-did it!”
Kara’s advice to other brides-to-be is to get organized early—especially if you’re planning a long-distance wedding like she did. “I kept an accordion file with tabs for ideas, swatches, invoices, receipts, contracts, phone numbers, and more,” she says. Kara credits the wedding professionals she worked with for contributing great ideas and making the day itself much easier. Since she knew all the details were in good hands, she could focus on what really mattered—like enjoying all the day’s special moments with Austin. “We had a choreographed first dance prepared, but I think we forgot everything and just twirled,” she says. “It was really fun.”