Egyptian Theatre, DeKalb, IL Wedding Photographer | Cameron & Amy

1920’s Inspired Wedding, Egyptian Theatre, DeKalb, IL Wedding Photographer

I am SO excited to share this wedding with you all!! I’ve been to the Egyptian Theatre countless times over my life but this was the first time I’ve ever photographed a wedding there! It was such a unique experience, and I love how Amy & Cameron embraced the 1920’s art deco vibe. Be sure to read Amy’s words interspersed with some of my favorite photos from their day!

Hair & Makeup: Amy did it herself
Florist: Willrett Flower Co
Wedding Dress: Lelasilk
Shoes: Kaileep
Getting Ready, Ceremony, & Reception: Egyptian Theatre
Caterer: Nat’s on Maple
Second Photographer: Megan Saul

How they met:
Hoo boy, 14 years is a long time! Half of our lives at this point, to be exact. We first met in freshmen humanities at DeKalb High School in 2008. On the third day of classes, we got assigned seating in alphabetical order. Cameron sat in front of me. He would often get in trouble for turning around to talk to me and tell me jokes during class. He later told me he liked talking to me because I was the only girl who thought he was funny. He continued to be funny and talkative throughout school, as we usually had at least one class together. We were always happy to see each other, but pursued other romantic interests.

Once college crept up, we didn't know if we would see each other again. Fortunately, we bumped into each other with some newly mutual friends in the halls of the art building at NIU. Our friends commented on how cute we were together. Come second semester of our first year, we were going through our own set of hard times and confided in each other. Cameron had lost a friend to suicide, and I was trying to get out of an abusive relationship. We spilt our long-repressed feelings for one another, and became a couple in 2013. We continued to pursue our own interests while taking as many classes together as we could.

After graduating, finding related work was a daunting task. We both took entry level service jobs, and saved up money to move in together in 2017. To celebrate finding an apartment on our 4th anniversary, we went out for a fancy dinner to Nat's on Maple. It was one of the best meals we've ever had. When we got back to my car, we exchanged gifts. I gave him a watercolor painting of four yellow roses, and he pulled out a box. In the box was a ring he bought from Cracker Jax, sterling silver with two gold-plated fidget rings, which fit my ring finger surprisingly perfectly. He held my hand and said, "I don't know what the future brings, but I know that I want you to be in it." Since then, a guinea pig, a friend in need, a little deaf dog, and a bigger silly dog have all been a part of the home we created.

Four years later, we went on a walk together at the NIU lagoon on June 5th, 2021. He asked me to take a picture of one of the illuminated fountains as a distraction. I knew something was up, he was not good at hiding it, but I still gasped when I turned around and saw him on one knee. He asked, "Will you marry me?" and I grabbed his cheeks and said, "Of course! I thought we talked about this!" Now I have an incredibly thoughtful ring and a beautiful photo of the moment before he proposed. That's a lot to skip over in 14 years, yet somehow it still feels like I wrote a novel. It all went by in the blink of an eye...

The Dress:
Once we booked the Theatre, I searched on Etsy for 1920s silk gowns. I found a great maker in Vietnam with a variety of styles, all I had to do was send her my measurements. Even though it was a summer wedding, I fell in love with the billowy bishop sleeves and the deep center cut. The excess fabric from the circle skirt made the dress pretty heavy, but when the wind came through and swept it up I felt incredible. I did my own makeup, hair and nails, and had fun with the accessories. I didn't want to wear a standard veil, so I looked for a sunburst crown on Etsy that would match my dress. I wore one made out of bamboo with Swarovski crystals to embrace the glamorous Art deco theme. My engagement ring fits on my index finger, and has 9 baguette diamonds for the 9 years we've been together prior to marriage. I wore the sterling silver ring he gave me 5 years ago on my right hand. It may not be the most pretty looking anymore, but it is probably my most prized possession.

The Suit:
I went to Ducky's with little knowledge about what to ask for in a suit, but knew we both wanted to wear something 1920s inspired. The tan coat seemed like a unique choice, and matched the pale gold vest I was really invested in. They originally had picked a dark brown tie to contrast the gold and tan, so I asked for some dark pants to add more interest to the suit. They gave me a kind of puzzled look, and dug up what they called the chocolate basement pants. After I changed the tie to purple to try to coordinate with our color theme, everything ended up being its own unique piece of the outfit. It's definitely not how a suit is typically supposed to look, but I really liked each individual item for what it provided. It's hard not to feel confident in a good fitting suit.

The Venue:
We were originally looking at the local park district, but received poor communication from the coordinator. After a Google search for local venues, the Egyptian Theatre came up, much to our surprise. We studied art together through high school and college, so we attended many art shows there over the years. He also volunteered at the Amenti Haunted House they hosted for several years and was familiar with the executive director. A couple years prior, they underwent a major renovation and added AC, new carpet, and much larger bathrooms. The choice was now obvious, the Theatre was perfect!

The Ceremony:
The ceremony was beautiful and heartfelt, but it was also the most stressful part. Everyone's eyes were on us and emotions were high. We trusted our officiant to pick what he wanted to say, and we wrote our own vows. We originally didn't plan on having our best man and maid of honor stand up with us, but we're really glad that they did. Poor Cameron was so emotional reading his vows, there wasn't a dry eye in the room. I couldn't help but feel like mine were a bit underwhelming, but there isn't much we haven't already told each other. Our officiant also happens to be his step-dad, so at the end of the ceremony he dropped some Gundam SEED wisdom on us that we weren't expecting. It definitely lightened the mood. As we turned to face the crowd as husband and wife and our exit song came on, that's when I was close to tears. We chose to play 'The Sunlit Earth' from the end of our favorite video game. We're a couple of nerds, so having music from media we enjoy was an incredible benefit of having our wedding at the Theatre.

The Decor:
We were blown away by how wonderful the reception looked! Willrett Flower Co. did an amazing job with the tables, and the Egyptian Theatre took it to the top with the colored lighting in their gorgeous auditorium. We made our own signs and table numbers to match the Art Deco theme, and let the florist have their own fun with our two favorite colors: yellow and purple. We kept the decor concentrated to certain areas to allow the Theatre to speak for itself in all its 1920s Egyptian glory.

The Party:
It was an absolute BLAST! We're pretty dorky and don't do a lot of dancing, so we had been practicing our dancing in the weeks leading up to the wedding. We used the nerves and relief from the ceremony being done to unleash some killer moves to our favorite songs. Having friends that we haven't seen in over 2 years there to celebrate made it all the more magical. We only had one glass of celebratory Prosecco, but it helped curb my anxiety and we were able to remember the evening well.

The Honeymoon:
We are planning to go to Southern California in the fall, where his family is from. We've never travelled internationally together, so we'd like to start simple and visit family who couldn't make it to the wedding. Depending on whether we fly or drive and take our dogs with, we'll take in the sights and revisit some areas he went to as a kid on annual family trips. His grandparents have all passed, and his dad now owns the house his grandfather built. He's always wanted me to spend nights there by the fireplace, and see the stars without light pollution from the rooftop.

The Photographer:
Our photographer was the coolest! ;) She did an amazing job helping us feel comfortable and take advantage of the richness of our venue. As someone with severe anxiety, I (the bride) was most grateful that she knew what to do if someone interrupted a shoot or made us uncomfortable. Having her assistant Megan there also meant that someone was always around to capture the great moments we weren't present for. We're so lucky that we found her in our Google search and that she was available on our date. We cannot wait to see the rest of our album!

What they’d change:
I honestly don't know if I have an answer. We chose to support local small businesses for all our services, and they exceeded our expectations. Thankfully, we are at an age where we could afford to arrange everything ourselves and had total control over our vision. Some might say we took on too much work ourselves, but we each took pride in our projects and saved a good chunk of money. I did a fair amount of damage to my dress throughout the night, but I didn't once feel bad about it because of the sheer amount of fun we had.

Advice for couples currently wedding planning:
If we may offer a couple pieces of make-or-break advice...

We hope that each partner is willing to equally share the workload of planning a wedding. If not, that spells genuine trouble for the future of your relationship. Both of us were super excited for this to happen. Although I (the bride) handled the preliminary work of picking our service providers, both of us went to every meeting, approved every contract, split all the payments, and worked together so make sure the event was a mutual representation of both of us.

We also hope that couples do not let outside influences deter them from doing what they wish to do for their special day. We were fortunate enough to not have to rely on financial help, which can make the provider's influence difficult to navigate. We know that we speak from a place of privilege if we say money isn't everything, so we instead want engaged couples to keep in mind that the legal paperwork only cost us $50. Try to do everything else from a place of mutual love and appreciation for each other. Weddings don't have to be huge and extravagant, if you're not into that. We know couples who got married at the courthouse, in their parents' backyard, at the park district, etc. Do it your way in every way you can, it's your day!