It all started on December 1st when Kiana was aboard on Instagram and stumbled upon a post from a friend’s page. It was a fake dating profile for an eligible bachelor named Jeremy Brown. It was meant to be a joke/prank by one of his cousins that just so happened to be following Kiana. Kiana liked what she saw and on a whim liked the post and followed Jeremy. Jeremy immediately followed her back and didn’t lose any time sliding in her DMs. They immediately hit it off and after daily texting and video chatting, Jeremy bought a plane ticket to meet her in person. When he stepped off the airplane and walked down to meet her in the airport, it was very literally love at first sight, and without saying a word, they shared their first kiss. After 2 years of dating, Jeremy knew it was time to take their love to the next level. He surprised Kiana by visiting her on her family vacation. He had planned a romantic beach picnic and asked Kiana to be ready to be picked up for her date. Before she could even step onto the beach, she was surprised by Jeremy handing her a bandana to cover her eyes for a big surprise. Taking the blindfold off, she found herself led to a heart-shaped bed of rose petals on the smooth sand. Finally, standing in the middle of the heart, Jeremy knelt down and asked Kiana to be his wife.

Driving up the mountains around Lake Arrowhead was nothing short of magical. Not only could one see a beautiful panoramic of the city below, but also the parachutes of skydivers who bravely descended over the mountain. Kiana took Jeremy to the famous Belgium Waffle Works on the lake, after which, they sat in their car on a nearby look-out stop to watch the mountain view, panoramic sunset.

My amazing father took me to Saks Fifth Avenue and bought me a pair of sparkly Christian Louis Vuitton shoes!

 

I would describe my wedding style as a mixture of elegance and an ethereal aesthetic. My dress is both flowy.

Jeremy was blessed to be surrounded by an amazing group of groomsmen. Some of his groomsmen had been with him through the grueling years of medical school, others he grew up with since a kid, and some were close friends that he had gained throughout the years of dating Kiana. Jeremy’s best man, Nelson, had grown up with him since a kid, and their families were very close.

Kiana’s bride-tribe was composed of her forever friends that she has had since childhood and college years. Her sister, Kayla, was her Matron of Honor.

My flowers were specially made by the very Marylove from Rosemary & Finch. They were made to create an ethereal ambiance in both design and color.

The style of the wedding can be described in following: -Ethereal -Elegant -Dreamlike

My favorite part of the wedding was actually two parts. One was walking down the aisle at the consecration ceremony and seeing Jeremy. The second was hearing Jeremy recite his handwritten vows. These were such tender moments for me. it was such a vulnerable moment and we were both giving ourselves to each other fully and completely. It was beautiful.

The cake was so much fun to co-design and the flavors were absolutely to die for. Our wedding specialty flavor was made to mirror both of our last names: (Berry & Brown). The flavor was chocolate chip cake with a raspberry Italian creme filling. It was amazing!

Donnell is like family! He captured my sister’s wedding and we just couldn’t let him go! Shooting with him was effortless! He has such an eye for beauty in motion, color, and lighting. The pictures he took made me feel like I was really inside of a fairytale. Donnell is very detailed oriented as well. He never misses small details. When I mentioned that I had kept up a journal since I was 8, and wrote about my future husband, he made sure to capture that moment. He captured things that no one else caught in the moment, and that is why he is so special. Not only did I receive amazing photos, but I also got to experience new things that I hadn’t noticed before.

This is a hard question because I have so many favorite images. There was a moment when I reached out to Jeremy as he read his vows aloud. They were so beautiful and I knew that they were coming from a vulnerable place. As he began to shed some tears, I reached out to him to wipe them away and comfort him. Donnell captured that very moment and I could not be more thankful!

The Gaylord Opryland Resort & Spa is such a spectacular place to say the least. It is gorgeous with its open ceiling and full lush gardens and waterfalls. My family and I stayed there when I was younger, and I always felt like it would be the perfect place to have a beautiful wedding. I never really thought that it would become a reality. The Gaylord Opryland can draw out a sense of adventure and curiosity, and with its maze-like gardens, I felt like this would be the perfect place for the beginning of a true love story. It was ‘story book’ perfect!

My advice for future brides is to have a realistic set of goals, good communication, and a great team. Oftentimes, brides can get swept up in the “idea” of a perfect wedding and how things “should” be during the planning process. As a bride that began planning during a pandemic, some things are unpredictable. I had to learn to go with the flow, set realistic goals even when the “tide turned”, and embrace those beautiful moments along the way. If you get swept up and lost in the shuffle, you’ll miss out on those moments that only happen during this process. I remember every single day of planning this wedding, and it was because I decided that I would be present at every moment of this process. I did this because I understood that time is precious, and some moments cannot be regained.

My advice for future couples is to set clear expectations for one another. It’s as much the groom’s day as it is the bride’s. Society tells us that the wedding only matters for the bride, but that is certainly not true. The bride may typically be more involved in the planning from my experience, so it’s very important to sit down and have a conversation about clear expectations and roles for one another. Divvying up tasks for each other will definitely take the stress off of the bride, (or groom), and make the whole process less stressful. It takes a village to plan a wedding, so it’s good not to take everything on your own.

We love to do most of everything together, but as of recently, we love watching our favorite series together. We have a handful of TV series that we love to watch. Right now ‘The Bachelorette’ is our number one show, and before you think anything, Jeremy is more of a fan than I am right now LOL. We also love scuba diving together and doing other water sports. One thing we love is to DANCE! We love dancing, whether it’s in our apartment or on a dance floor!

Well on our honeymoon, we both decided to get PADI open water scuba certified. On one of our underwater adventures, an octopus actually attacked Jeremy, climbed up his neck, and pulled his rebreather out of his mouth. Jeremy was VERY calm about it, while I was Freaking OUT!!

We do not agree on which side the toilet paper goes!

I love her smile, her laugh, the way she can brighten any room she walks into.

I love his laughter and that he always tears up when he belly laughs. I love how dedicated and determined he is with the things he cares about. I love how big and strong he is!