#ADOREREALBRIDE | ALEXZANDRIA & DUANE
Our #AdoreRealBride Alexzandria and husband, Duane, were married in a beautiful ceremony on March 3rd, 2024. Alexzandria shared all the details from her Swiftie style inspo to their fun proposal! Keep scrolling to read more and see all their STUNNING wedding photos!
If you had a wedding day hashtag, what was it? Any fun reason behind it?
#Forever&AlwaysGibson - I am a HARDCORE Swiftie! I tried to incorporate little details from different songs.
What was your styling inspiration or wedding day vibe you were going for? What inspired you to choose this?
Again, I am a HARDCORE Swiftie so the majority of my inspiration for my bridal shower and wedding came from different albums/songs, specifically the Speak Now and Lover albums. I’ve been a Swiftie for as long as I can remember and Taylor Swift has been my role model for a really long time.
Tell us about a special memory from your wedding day, something that will always stand out in your mind ❤️
Ahh yes! There are too many to count, but one of my favorites was doing a first look with my “little sisters” or what I like to call them “my honorary junior bridesmaids”. Some of my really close friends have daughters between the ages of 12 and 15 and I’ve become like their big sister - someone they can talk to, to laugh with, to cry with, to make memories with - and I wanted to incorporate them somehow in my special day.
Most people will do a first look with their bridesmaids, but I wanted to do a first look with my little sisters to make them feel part of something special, to show them that happily ever afters can happen and you can find true love. I remember walking up as they’re all facing the opposite direction and my photographer counted down - 3, 2, 1- and to see the looks on their faces was absolutely priceless. They would ask me what my dress would look like FOR MONTHS and I didn’t tell them about the first look until it got closer to the wedding and I knew it was worth the wait!
What do you admire most about your new spouse?
My husband is everything and more than what I could’ve prayed for. I never thought in my wildest dreams I would be with a man who is so caring, kind, and loving. There’s a Taylor Swift song off of her Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) album called Timeless and that’s the love that he gives me - the kind of love that you only find once in a lifetime :))
Is there anything else you want people to know about your love story? A fun proposal, something crazy that happened on your wedding day, a sentimental memory or even wedding planning tips for future brides!
Fun fact, I didn’t make it to my proposal when I was supposed to because of different delays from my friends and family. Long story short, I was supposed to meet my now husband at Tempe Town Lake around sunset and the friend I was with was supposed to be taking pictures, but we had to wait 30 minutes to get her camera. Then my other friends knew I was getting proposed to and they wanted to come but they were across town and so I was stalled for another hour and by that time the sun already went down. So when I got there, the lighting was horrible and they had to move the proposal spot twice to try to fix that. It was funny because I had no idea what was going on, but I remember seeing my parent’s cars and the moment they saw me, they turned off their cars and all the lights went on and they tried so hard to hide but I already saw them.
After that, I knew what was happening and I went to where my husband was proposing and I could hear my mom just crying in the bushes. They got out of their cars when they saw me walking down the path to my proposal. It was a WILD day and I will never forget it!
What was your experience like with Adore Bridal?
You all are absolutely AMAZING! I made a dress appointment with a different bridal shop the night before and I went the next morning and they were pressuring me to get a dress from them that I wasn’t too sure about. So my mom and I were trying to find another place and hopefully get in the same day and that’s when I found Adore Bridal. I went on the website, looked at the availability and there was actually one appointment left for that same day. I book the appointment, I think I had 30 minutes to get there, and from the moment I arrived I knew I was in the right place. Maybe it’s because I used to watch “Say Yes To The Dress”, but that was my expectation for a bridal dress appointment and Adore Bridal was EVERYTHING I dreamed in a dress appointment.
Marcela made me feel SOO welcome and I told her about my experience at the previous dress appointment, my fears, and different questions I had with how this appointment was going to go. Marcela was super sweet and addressed my concerns and questions and made me feel very comfortable. I loved that she was able to share her knowledge and experience and I told her what I was looking for in a dress and she did not disappoint! The dress I ended up with was actually the last dress she came out with and when I first saw it I automatically knew it was “no” or so I thought. I tried on four dresses before my dress and I think the second one was my favorite and I was set on it and Marcela said, “Okay, here’s this one.” And she helps me get into the dress and the moment I turn around, I was flabbergasted.
The dress I thought was a “no” turned out to be THE dress. I can’t explain it into words, but I felt like Snow White, it was EVERYTHING I asked for - the mesh, the floral details, the simplicity, the neckline, THE CAP SLEEVES! When she opened the curtain, my mom balled her eyes out and she knew it was the one too. Marcela picked out a matching veil and some jewelry and I just knew. I never understood brides when they say “you’ll just know”, but it’s true, you do just know. Marcela told me she’d seen many women try on that dress, but it didn’t fit their body like it did mine and I couldn’t agree more! I felt like a true princess and the dress was everything I was looking for!
Congratulations to the Gibsons! Thanks for sharing your special day with us!
Here are the vendors who helped make this day so perfect!
Venue: Mesa Potter’s House/Pearl’s Banquet Hall
Photographer: Marissa Martinez
Dress Designer: Lillian West
