Jenny & Kyle Verdeyen
May 22, 2022

Baltimore-based software engineers Jenny and Kyle Verdeyen were sure they’d say “I do” even before they got engaged—so much so that they’d already booked a venue by the time Kyle, a Fort Worth native, popped the question. “I knew The Olana had to be ours, and I didn’t want to risk it being unavailable,” laughs Jenny, who also works as a wedding photographer. On May 22, 2022, they celebrated with an “absolutely awesome party” filled with pastels and butterfly details. The bride and groom, both of whom are half-Korean, donned traditional hanboks for their cocktail hour and participated in a customary Paebaek ceremony. “We connect so much in having similar mixed backgrounds and our culture is important to us both,” notes Jenny. Following a honeymoon in Italy and Greece, the couple has settled into married life but still look back fondly on their special day. “It was truly everything we hoped it would be,” Jenny says. They open up about the highs and lows of planning, their must-haves, and the pressures of (gulp!) public speaking.

What was the smartest thing you did while planning your wedding?

Jenny: Hiring a planner! We had a huge wedding party and lots of things going on the day of. Our planner was absolutely necessary in keeping everyone on track. And she kept me sane during the planning process.

Kyle: Hiring the best DJ we could afford. Music is one of the cornerstones of a reception—if your DJ is bad, your party is probably bad. Your DJ does a lot of MC duties as well; you don’t want Shy Ronnie on the mic introducing you as a married couple for the first time.

What was the hardest part about wedding planning?

Jenny: Making decisions! There were so many choices to be made and I wanted everything to be perfect. It’s easy to get analysis paralysis.

Kyle: Making table arrangements and assignments took half a dozen drafts and extensive reshuffling. There are software tools for seat assignments, and I recommend utilizing them.

What stressed you out the most?

Jenny: Anything logistics related! I found RSVPs, booking shuttles, and communicating hotel details, etc., to be the most tedious parts. I was always worried I’d miss important details.

Kyle: Public speaking! I wasn’t warned until a month or two before that I would have to do public speaking multiple times that day! Needless to say, anytime I had a microphone in my hand, the words coming from my mouth were heavily pre-scripted with notecards.

What was the most fun part of wedding planning?

Jenny: I loved designing our custom invitation suites! It was such a creative process and our stationer, Calligraphette & Co., made it really fun.

Kyle: Planning with our DJ, Dan Quinn, was a blast. We took him through some of the songs we like over cocktails so he got a good idea of our personalities in music.

What was your most worthwhile wedding splurge?

Jenny: Our photographer! I’m so glad we invested in someone with as much experience and expertise as Kristin La Voie Photography. She made us so comfortable and confident in front of the camera, and our photos came out amazing!

Kyle: Our photographer was the most expensive vendor we hired. Worth the cost! I have priceless moments captured in both digital and analog/film, and she made me look way more attractive than I do in real life.

Was there anything your spouse wanted that you weren’t sure about? How did it turn out?

Jenny: Kyle thought he might prefer a private personal vow exchange to reading conventional vows at the altar. I pushed him a little (well, maybe a lot) to boldly do the vows in front of everyone. It turned out great—many of our guests noted it was a new side of Kyle they were excited to see.

Kyle: I was very unsure about writing and reciting my vows to Jenny because I am not a fan of speaking in front of people. I knew it would make Jenny happy, so I conceded. I decided to swing for the fences and write the most heartfelt letter I could muster. Not a dry eye in the crowd!

What, if anything, would you do differently if you had to do it all over again?

Jenny: I would have started worrying about wedding dress alterations sooner! My boutique ended up having a really long turnaround time, and it caused a lot of stress.

Kyle: I wish we had started writing thank you cards as soon as gifts came in, before the wedding. I didn’t get through my mountain of cards until just before our honeymoon.

What was your biggest takeaway?

Jenny: When they say that things will go wrong and you have to embrace it, it’s true. It would be fruitless to try and manage every little aspect of the day—I realized that any parts that played out differently than I expected were not things I could have done anything to change.

Kyle: This is hard. Only do this once.

If you had one piece of advice for engaged or newly married couples, what would it be?

Jenny: Make time for each other and try to keep the planning process fun! Remember what matters at the end of the day.

Kyle: Hire a planner, or at the very minimum, a day-of coordinator. Planning a wedding is a stressful process; you need all the help you can get.