Engagement Feature: Luwam + Yonas

Bride-to-be: Luwam George

Groom-to-be: Yonas Fessehaye
Location: Atlanta, GA.

Luwam & Yonas just tied the knot over the Labor day weekend so we thought we'd share their sweet engagement photos and "how we met" story during the same week! There is so much L-O-V-E in each photo, we loved it!

Tell us how you met one another: Yonas and I actually met through mutual friends a few years ago. Everyone always mentioned how we should be more than friends, but it really never crossed our minds until after a few years of friendship. Our friendship eventually blossomed into something more after Yonas made a couple of attempts to have a first date. I would always invite people along not really knowing if it was a date or not lol. The really awkward first date led to me marrying my best friend. J

How did he pop the question: I had my family come in town for my cousin’s wedding, so I was running all over the place preparing for their visit. After grocery shopping, I pulled up ready to park and I noticed that Yonas had stolen my favorite parking spot. So I left my car in the middle of the street (yes, I know, very dangerous) and I stormed into the townhouse ready to give him a piece of my mind. However, I walked into a pathway of rose petals leading to a big heart made out of rose petals with a box in the middle of it. I was in complete shock and totally caught off guard, just the way that he had planned. As soon as I told him yes, I would marry him, I told him that he needed to move his car out of my parking spot. Afterwards, we celebrated with chick-fil-a and wine. J It really meant a lot to my family and I that he proposed right before they came into town so I could tell my parents and brother in person that I was engaged rather than over the phone.

When's the big day: September 5^th, 2015

What are you looking forward to the most about your wedding: We are both looking forward to having family and friends from all over the world come and join us in celebrating our union.

What would you say has been the hardest thing about planning an Eritrean-American wedding: Hmm… the most difficult thing would be the guest list. Throughout the process of wedding planning, we had to keep a large guest list in mind. In some ways, it kind of limited the options available for our wedding.

Any tips or pointers for the couple planning a wedding right now:

The wedding is only one day (well, two in our case)! Do not stress out over it and remember: the most important thing is the days AFTER the wedding- the actual marriage. Also, choose your bridal party carefully- they will make the wedding planning much smoother and more fun!

Engagement photos by: Ayu Hailu (we highly recommend him!)

Thank you for sharing your story with us, Luwam + Yonas! Many blessings to you both in your new union, xx.

A Posh Habesha Engagement Party

Goodmorning, Bellas!

We are  so excited to share today's engagement party with you! Sara and her fiance Endirias recently threw a seriously posh engagement party (that can easily be mistaken for a wedding at first glance) in one of midtown Atlanta's  finest wedding venues - The Artmore Hotel. The Artmore, a historic Spanish Mediterranean building, draws brides and event planners for its stunning courtyard that's complete with lush plants and landscaping by day and beautifully lit candles and string lights by night. The courtyard also features comfy outdoor furniture and fire pit for a sexy, laid-back vibe that you would find at an outdoor event in the Hollywood hills. Super swanky!

We absolutely love the fact that Sara and her fiance decided to Do It Big for their engagement party! Here's what Sara had to say about that:

"I have been with my fiancé for 8 years and I always said that whenever the time came, we would really experience the process of getting married and enjoy every moment. Most people in our culture don't have engagement parties so it was new for a lot of people, but I wanted one because after 8 years we deserve to celebrate!" 

Absolutely! And from looking at these pictures, it looks like Sara and her fiance were successful at making sure they, and their guests, had a great time!

On planning and decorating for the engagement party, future bride Sara says she planned the entire event herself with help from her future bridesmaids and Pinterest (where would we all be without Pinterest, seriously!). She found her amazing venue, created the invites and was the master mind behind the decor and dessert bar- Go Sara! (You definitely were an event planner in your past life!)

About planning her beautiful engagement, Sara says:

"It all came together so easily!"

Congrats again to Sara and her beau Endirias on their beautiful engagement and we wish you all the best in your wedding plannings! We can't wait for you to share your wedding with us; you will make an absolutely stunning bride!

Future Bride: Sara Araya

Future groom: Endirias Endirias

Venue: Artmore Hotel

City: Atlanta, GA.

Photographer: Dosh