This exquisite Indian wedding was held at Brannon Center in New Smyrna Beach. It was a drizzly day, but the weather wasn’t going to stop an amazing wedding. The clouds even lifted just in time for the baraat!
HOW THEY MET
Kshama and Dane originally connected through the OkCupid dating app, but they met on a Chicago rooftop one summer evening. Dane showed up early; Kshama also showed up early… at the wrong rooftop. When she finally made it to the right place, it started raining over the bruschetta. But they stayed anyway. The plan was to walk over to Lake Michigan and watch the summertime fireworks, but they stayed on that rooftop chatting for so long, they missed the fireworks! Instead they walked over to Ohio Street Beach and sat in the sand chatting some more.
HOW HE PROPOSED
In 2018, Dane and Kshama took a road trip up the Pacific Coast Highway. They paddleboarded, seakayaked, and hiked along the way from San Diego to San Francisco. On September 6th, they stopped at McWay Falls to marvel at fresh water tumbling gracefully down the side of steep California cliffs onto the smooth sandy cove and into the Pacific Ocean below. Dane dropped to a knee and pulled out a snack. Just kidding. He pulled out a ring. And she said yes!
THE PLANNING
Kshama and Dane weren’t the kind of couple who thought about what their wedding would look like beforehand. All they knew for sure was that they wanted to plan in a way where they could have fun with their guests, dance a lot, and make it possible for Kshama’s 96 year old grandmother to be there. Also, they were unwilling to go into debt for the wedding.
WEDDING AT BRANNON CENTER – THE DETAILS
The flowers were costco but Dane’s godmother very kindly stayed up super late the night before the wedding to make bouquets! She had a little flower team working in the lobby of the hotel!
Their outfits came from a dress shop in India – the shop is called Kothari and the owner, Mayank, worked super hard to make things work for them.
When it came to party favors, they wanted something more useful than trinkets that would collect dust. Instead, they prepared jars with olive oil, italian herbs, and sea salt that said “made for you with olive our love.” They had a really hard time getting the jars to close, so they tried to make electrical tape presentable in the end. All I’ll say is ultimately, the favors didn’t matter.
The cake came from a little bakery in Edgewater Florida called Sugarbuzz. They really wanted something that all of their guests could eat, and Kshama is partial to cupcakes over cake so they got vegan mini cupcakes in an assortment of flavors. They were so good – Kshama couldn’t believe they were all vegan. Props to the awesome owner, Ron!
In the search for the perfect New Smyrna Beach wedding venue, they arrived at Brannon Civic Center in New Smyrna Beach, FL. The Civic Center’s staff were so kind, accomodating to their needs and a pleasure to work with. Also, the venue was beautiful and spacious.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
“We were blown away. There was a lot of stress leading up to the wedding, but in the few days prior, my cousins really worked hard to make the wedding (and pre-wedding) festivities better than we ever could have imagined. We felt so much love and joy spending that day with our family and friends. The smiles on everyone’s faces were everything.
To be honest, I don’t remember the aisle decorations, or the decorations on the mandap. Literally all I remember were the smiling faces as I walked down the aisle. It was the best.”
FAVORITE MOMENT
“I know I’m supposed to say when Dane and I had our first kiss as husband and wife or our first look or dance or something. And while I loved every one of those moments, my favorite was holding Dane’s hand while I listened to my mom’s reception speech. She has been my biggest champion in life and the biggest critic of my relationships but to hear the love in her words as she talked about us was really special for me.”
ADVICE FOR BRIDES
“Wedding planning is like hazing. We would say that if we could make it through the planning, we’re probably good for life. I think the hardest things are trusting each others judgment so that you don’t have to make EVERY decision, being super honest about your financial goals for the wedding (what are you willing to spend on? For us it was the food, music and video/photo stuff… everything else we were willing to compromise on our initial vision), and know that it will all be over soon. On the wedding day, just have fun – forget all the details – it won’t really matter once you’re with the people you love.”
“In the end, we feel like the luckiest people ever to have such loving family and friends. It blew us away to feel so much positive energy from everyone.”
This New Smyrna Beach Wedding at Brannon Center was so much fun and the Indian food was delicious!! Check out the venue!
WEDDING VENDOR TEAM
Filmmaker | Luxe Filmography
Photographer | Charismatiq Photography
Planner & Coordinator | Elite Dream Creations
~Patrick
Like this blog post? Check out some of my other favorites!
Country Club of Orlando and Knowles Memorial Chapel Wedding
Chic Rustic Wedding in Lake Helen | Milena + Casey
Gallery J Elopement in Casselberry | Gabby + Nate
The Howey Mansion | Historical Wedding Venue Q&A
