A Luxury Lakefront Wedding at The Minikahda Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota

Katie Hancock (30 and a buyer for Target) and Nick Koesters (32 and a financial analyst) had three priorities for their wedding: First, the couple wanted their wedding day to feel intimate and personal. They exchanged their own vows at Lake of the Isles Lutheran Church; “It was such a personal moment, emotional pauses were definitely necessary along the way,” says Katie. The bride also handmade the signage and monograms throughout the wedding, and the couple’s mothers homemade jam for wedding favors. The second priority was for the wedding to be family-focused. “Our families mean so much to us and we really wanted that to come through wherever possible,” says Katie. The couple honored their parents at the ceremony, Katie wore her great-grandmother’s veil and her flower girl wore a dress that Katie wore to a family wedding 25 years prior. The third vision was for the wedding to feel traditional with a twist. The cocktail hour and reception took place outside on the dock at The Minikahda Club in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A classic color palette of navy, blush and champagne with accents of gold and ivory, inspired by her fashion-forward champagne wedding dress and blush wedding cake, blended with subtle hues of blue and green to showcase the beauty of the couple’s home state. “We wanted an al fresco feel to our reception decor,” says the bride, who was set on having string lights above dining tables covered in garlands and overflowing blush flowers. “It looked like what you’d see at a winery wedding except it was on a deck overlooking a lake.” says Katie. “My jaw dropped when I first peeked through the window at the whole set-up.”