HOW HE PROPOSED
“Hank took me to dinner (well, appetizers) at Il Primo in Cambridge Square … He told me I shouldn’t get a meal, which I thought was weird. Then we walked over toward an area with a fountain, string lights, candles, and rose petals, and he proposed. He had all our family at my house for dinner and a party afterward – that’s why we couldn’t order dinner!”
The Warrens describe the theme for their wedding day as “gold and green Christmas.” Isabel adds, “Being a December wedding, I wanted to incorporate Christmas tastefully, especially the colors and music.” Subtle nods to the holiday, like the Christmas tree greeting guests at the ceremony entrance, could be found in the décor, while quicksand roses and baby’s breath popped among the eucalyptus that made up the bridesmaids’ bouquets.
For their first look, which took place prior to the ceremony, Isabel and Hank met in a picturesque field on the Ramble Creek property. The bride was positively radiant in a fitted mermaid-style gown with intricate beading and a coordinating fingertip veil. Her “something borrowed” was a delicate gold necklace with a single pearl that belonged to her great-great-grandmother. Hank remembers, “I waited in that field for what felt like a very long time. Then I finally heard Isabel’s voice before she tapped on my shoulder, and I turned around. She looked absolutely breathtaking.”
The 4:30 p.m. ceremony was held inside Ramble Creek’s Grand Hall, where cathedral ceilings and chic wooden interiors provided the perfect backdrop for Isabel’s elegant vision. Instrumental Christmas classics filled the room as the wedding party – including the couple’s Australian Shepherd, Adele, who served as ring bearer – walked down the aisle. “Neither one of us got emotional until I walked down the aisle,” Isabel recalls. “And then the tears started flowing!” Isabel and Hank asked their former youth minister, Sean White, to officiate the ceremony, which was peppered with both traditional and personal touches.
During cocktail hour, guests mingled on the side patio and snacked on a charcuterie spread while the Grand Hall was flipped for the reception. Rows of chairs were quickly replaced with banquet seating – the wooden tables adorned with greenery and votive centerpieces, gold accents, and green linen napkins.
The couple teamed up with Ramble Creek to create a seasonal dinner menu featuring grilled chicken, twice-baked potatoes, roasted Brussels sprouts, and a strawberry salad. For dessert, guests had their choice of strawberry, chocolate, or vanilla cake. The venue also managed bar services, which offered up beer, wine, and two specialty drinks: a maple old fashioned for the groom, and a cranberry mojito for the bride.
Dancing followed the meal, including Isabel and Hank’s first dance as husband and wife set to the tune of Ellie Goulding’s “How Long Will I Love You.” But the real party began when the headphones were passed around for the silent disco – the duo’s favorite part of the whole day.
To end the evening in a truly magical way, the happy couple exited the Grand Hall under a sea of sparklers, with family and friends wishing them well as they embarked on their new journey as husband and wife.
