Lana and Ilia met on a night when they both would rather have stayed home! Instead, their best friends dragged each of them out for dancing at Guest House in NYC. Lana noticed Ilia at the bar almost right away as she was passing , and after a trip to the ladies room, Lana’s friend “literally took my hand and said to Ilia, ‘Hi, this is my friend Lana.’” They spent the rest of the night dancing together, and from that moment on were inseparable!
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
Lana knew Ilia was “the one because right from the start he was completely different from all the guys I ever dated. He was a true gentleman, very punctual, caring, honest and not once would make me wonder or think twice. I just felt it inside. “
On Christmas Eve in 2009, Ilia “proposed in front of the whole family. We were all opening presents and his was the last present. He got on his knee and asked me to marry him. It was so emotional, everyone was crying out of happiness!”
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal cage veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
During their year and a half engagement, Lana and Ilia did all the planning themselves. Lana “wanted to have our wedding to be completely different from all the weddings I have ever been to.” So, she had almost everything custom-made, from invitations, napkins, and place cards to table numbers, aisle runner, menus, programs, and, of course, her dress, headpiece and veils!
“Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed about my wedding… I always wanted to be a princess on my wedding day. My dress was designed by the most talented wedding dress designer, Galit Couture. Ever since I was a little girl walking or driving by her store, I told myself that whenever I get married I will only go to her to get my dress. It was completely custom made for me from sketch. A lot of ideas Galit and Andrey came up with and a lot of ideas I threw in, and it was absolutely stunning. I got soooo many compliments! People still talk about it. My bridesmaids even jokingly said it belongs in a Museum!”
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal headpiece comb by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
A one of a kind wedding dress had to have accessories to match. ” I wanted to have a completely different look and to compliment my dress. I chose to go to Bridal Styles and the result was so stunning and so different from everything and was put together so beautifully. They were so helpful and worked with me to create exactly what I wanted… a beautiful one of a kind headpiece and custom made veils.” Lana wore a stunning handcrafted Swarovski crystal band that wrapped around her hair and the layers of veils were sprinkled with hundreds of crystals that glimmered as she walked. She truly achieved her dream of looking like a princess.
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veils and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
Lana and Ilia’s wedding day was as unique as her wedding dress and accessories. They chose De Seversky Mansionfor their celebration, falling in love with its grounds, antique décor, privacy, and exclusive feel.
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal hair comb by Bridal Styles, image Matthew Sowa Photography
On August 21, Lana and Ilia’s wedding day, there was a “string quartet playing….and waiters greeting guests with a coral and teal martini called ‘Lana & Ilia.’ We used lit candles as place cards, had a custom made coral and teal and silver money box, an engravable signature frame. In every room we had huge posters on easels of our engagement photo-shoot. We had live music by Emperyal Stings for the cocktail hour and ceremony. The ceremony was at night and was just so beautiful and elegant with lots of candles and lighting. Our reception also had up lighting and beautiful centerpieces by Flower Michel! All of our guests were so amazed with everything….it was a once in a life experience and worth every penny. It was truly the most beautiful day of our lives.”
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles, image Matthew Sowa Photography
Though their wedding was all Lana had dreamed it would be, it was her ceremony that meant the most as they found themselves in front of Keith Guglizza, their officiant. “It hit us that we are getting married. I honestly have no words to describe how beautiful it was.”
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
Luckily, Lana and Ilia had an amazing photographer Matthew Sowa and videographer Orange Films there to capture it all!
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal french net veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles Boutique, image Matthew Sowa Photography
For all the other couples planning their wedding, Lana had some advice:
“Don’t stress, try to enjoy your day as much as you can, no matter how much you try for everything to be perfect, a few little things will still go wrong, but at the end you are marrying your best friend and the love of your life and all of your hard work will pay off!”
Lana and Ilia, custom bridal veil and crystal headpiece by Bridal Styles, image Matthew Sowa Photography
