The Wedding

Julie and Doug got married in the fall of 2020.  The most memorable moment for Doug was when the sun came out. “It was forecast to rain all day and I was a nervous wreck. I was also the DJ for the wedding [he is DJ and artist]. As I set up, I kept looking at this one dark cloud heading toward us. During our ceremony, the clouds opened up and it was beautiful. It was the best. The sun came out on a rainy day and then after the ceremony, it rained. We were right on the water and we got a splash of waves as we were doing our vows.”

For Julie, it was having a smaller wedding than originally planned. “That was really memorable because we were able to see everyone. We didn’t feel rushed. It was a backyard and living room wedding and it was calm and perfect.” Another memorable moment for Julie was during their vows. “Doug was more prepared than me – he pulled out a huge speech and I only had a small paragraph.”

Doug pointed out that he wasn’t prepared at all. “I was planning on speaking during dinner. I didn’t know I would have to say something during the wedding. I didn’t quite think I was going to have to talk so I free-styled from my dinner speech and I revealed something I had never revealed before to anyone about the night before I met Julie.”

“The sun came out on a rainy day and then after the ceremony, it rained.”

The Ring

Julie’s ring was created into this regal style using heirloom stones. The oval center diamond is surrounded by a scalloped diamond halo. This impressive ring has a double row of round brilliant diamonds. Awe-inspiring!

When asked what Julie still loves most about her ring, she said, “Everything! The heirloom part of it and that it has the most unique personal design. I see thirty patients a day [she is a nurse] and I am going to say ten compliment me on my ring every single day. I’m not joking. I don’t really tell people the history of the diamonds in my ring but just looking down at it, I see part of my grandmother there and it makes me feel good. The middle stone is my mom’s.”

Doug said about the design process, “I was fascinated and intrigued by Jenny’s [Diamonds Forever] process – how she literally drew it out freestyle right in front of us. I had never seen anything like that and was very impressed by it. She took our existing stones and created a ring.  She did it very quickly – she designed it right then and there.”

“I also want to commend Jenny on getting the ring made so quickly during the busy season [December]. I got it started December 1 and it was finished by Christmas Eve. I don’t know how she did it.”

Julie said she enjoyed the process too. “At first, we weren’t going to use as many of my heirloom diamonds. Then Jenny said there was full potential in using all of them. What was cool was her passion. I just knew in my heart it was going to be great with how she thought it was going to look. I just trusted her ~ she knew my style and she didn’t try to force me to design something I wasn’t into.”

“I see thirty patients a day and I am going to say
ten compliment me on my ring every single day. I’m not joking.”

Finding Forever

Doug proposed to Julie on Christmas Day in 2019. “I was surprised because he did it front of his whole family,” said Julie. “I was shocked that he did it in a room full of people.”

“The ring bearer was our dog Chase who died in May 2020. He was wearing the ring all day on his collar. It went unnoticed by Julie as she pet him and sat right next to him. After everyone opened up their presents, I said that Chase had something on his collar, so my two nieces raced over to see what it was and that was when Julie finally saw the ring.”

When asked what one of his favorite things about Julie is, Doug said, “I just love her smile. She has a built-in smile.” Julie replied, “Goodness where do I start? I like that he is respectful and he loves his family and I love that we have a relationship together with God.”

About knowing that Doug was the one, Julie said, “The thing I knew was that he was trustworthy and loyal. Early on I saw it.” Doug said, “Same thing she said. I have been faithful to her since the day we met. I just thought my life was complete when I met her.”

“I just love her smile. She has a built-in smile.”

Julie and Doug’s Tips

Julie’s tips for anyone planning a wedding is to do what you want. “Don’t do what everyone else thinks you should do. We planned a big wedding and then Covid happened and then it had to be small and I wouldn’t change it for the world. It was more meaningful being small. Just do what makes you happy.  Take advice from others but evaluate every option before making up your mind.

“Also having a wedding coordinator was important to me – no matter how big or small. We had 30 people at our wedding and I didn’t have to lift a finger. The wedding coordinator did everything. Also, if your husband is a DJ, it takes away from having to hire a DJ.”

Doug’s advice is to not go overboard. “Keep it simple. The only thing I stressed about was the weather – I was a nervous wreck. My advice is to not get overwhelmed over some issue, especially one you can’t control.”

As far as proposing, Doug said, “I would just encourage everyone to be unique. Don’t be textbook or traditional, do something different. Make it unique.”

Julie’s advice is to be patient.  “But also vocal about what you do and don’t want. It’s best for guys to get a simple solitaire and design the ring together.”

❤️ Thank you so much to Julie and Doug for sharing your story. We are inspired by your love story!