ERIN CLIFFORD & JOHN KALANTZIS

September 21, 2019 Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

They met on a blind date and quickly discovered they had grown up near each other in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago and even attended Northwestern University at the same time. “We believe that our paths must have crossed, but the universe knew the perfect time for us to connect,” says Erin Clifford.

“As we grew closer and I learned that her physical beauty was dwarfed by her kindness, intellect, and compassion, it was only a matter of when not if I would propose,” confides her beloved, John Kalantzis. He secured her father’s blessing before a big trip he and Erin had planned to Europe. Trekking through Italy together, the pair visited Rome, Florence, and Siena, but it wasn’t until their last stop in Erin’s favorite region that he finally got on bended knee. “John proposed to me in Tuscany in a lavender garden under the star-filled sky. I love lavender!” she exclaims.

The celebration was set to take place in Lake Geneva, where Erin’s family has had a home since she was a little girl. It was her dream to get married at the private club that overlooked the lake. With her love of Tuscan gardens as her guide, the bride elected to host the sunset ceremony in a massive clear tent, heavily decorated with floral masterpieces. Towering 15-foot-tall olive trees were situated around a vintage gazebo where guests would enter. The entire space was bedecked in jaw-dropping arrangements of fresh blooms. “As the sun started to set, the candles began to twinkle, and the ambience took on an even more romantic tone,” illustrates Erin.