Premier Bride: Fox Club Summer Wedding

Bailie and Justen tied the knot at The Fox Club on a lovely June day in Wisconsin.

How They Met

Bailie and Justen met in college at UW-La Crosse. During her sophomore year and his senior year, they were shown pictures of one another and agreed to meet. Justen texted Bailie to make arrangements for their first date on April 12, 2017. While waiting for Justen to pick her up, Bailie admits she may have had a few glasses of wine to help calm her nerves. Justen wasn’t necessarily eager to go on a date nor get into a relationship, but this changed by the end of the night.

As they were driving downtown, Justen let Bailie know that their night was in the hands of a fifty cent coin. If they approached a restaurant they were interested in eating at, they would flip the coin. Heads meant they would eat there; tails meant they would keep walking. As the fate of the coin would have it, they ended up eating dinner at a pizzeria, although they both ordered salads. After dinner, they made their way to Riverside Park, where they walked hand in hand along the river. It wasn’t until recently that Justen told Bailie his heels were bleeding the whole time they were walking because he was breaking in a new pair of shoes. Little did they know, their first date that ended with a kiss was also the start of the couple spending the rest of their lives together!

The Engagement

Bailie and Justen decided to go to Devil’s Lake State Park over Labor Day weekend in 2021 for one last adventure before the summer was officially over. On the way there, Justen made the comment that they should have gone to Devil’s Lake before they went on an Alaskan cruise that summer because the views wouldn’t be able to compare. They had been hiking for a couple of hours when they took a little break to drink some water and eat a snack. While they were stopped, Justen asked Bailie if she wanted to ask someone to take their picture. He must have known that she would have asked him to take a picture sooner or later. However, Bailie didn’t ask quickly enough, and the other hikers had moved on, so Justen and Bailie did too, without their picture.

As they continued up their hike, the heat was getting to Bailie, and she was ready to head back to some air conditioning. She asked Justen if they could take a different path off of the trail that would cut down the distance they had left to hike, but he stubbornly insisted they stay on the same trail. While Bailie was complaining as they continued, Justen kept reiterating to her that it would be worth it once they got to the top. Bailie recalled his comment in the car that the views won’t compare to the views they saw in Alaska, which threw her off a bit. When they finally made it to the top, Bailie was glad that she had waited to ask someone to take their picture, because the views were, indeed, absolutely stunning. Thankfully, the woman she asked to take their picture understood the assignment and snapped many pictures because Justen had more than just a picture in mind. When Bailie turned around after giving the woman her phone, Justen was down on one knee holding a ring! Bailie threw her hands on her face in total shock and started crying tears of pure joy. No views in Alaska could ever compare to this!

The Dress

Bailie found her dream wedding dress, a Martina Liana, at Tie the Knot Bridal Boutique in Green Bay. She tried on approximately 20 gowns before finding “the one.” She could truly envision herself wearing it on her big day and didn’t want to take it off. So many guests told Bailie that the dress was truly made for her.

The Ceremony

Bailie and Justen got married in the Atrium of The Fox Club. Bailie’s father passed away when she was younger, so there were a few things that were dedicated to him during the ceremony. They had a chair reserved for him with a sign that read, “Reserved for the Father of the Bride Who is Celebrating With Us in Heaven” with one of his Snap-On Tools leather jackets on the seat. The officiant asked for a moment of silence for the loved ones who are not physically with us today, especially Bailie’s dad.

Bailie’s brother is almost five years older than her and she looks up to him in many ways. While nobody could replace Bailie’s father, her brother was the only person deserving of that special job. Her brother and her mom both gave her away, but just her brother walked her down the aisle. For their unity ceremony, Bailie and Justen wanted to do something different, so they ended up doing a wine unity ceremony. Justen had a red wine and Bailie had a white wine; they each poured their wine together into a glass that they then took a drink of.

The Venue

The overall style of The Fox Club was the first thing that drew the couple into the venue. They wanted a venue that was newer or recently renovated, worked with their theme and colors, and had a slick, clean look and feel. They absolutely loved the huge windows in the reception area as well as the array of options as far as where to host the ceremony and cocktail hour. It was important to them to have everything in one place. Mackenzie Liedtky, the Banquet Sales & Events Manager at The Fox Club, served as the coordinator for Bailie and Justen’s wedding. She was extremely detail-oriented and attentive and made sure their day was everything they dreamed of.

The Décor

Bailie and Justen hired Wedding Perfect, an Appleton-based wedding decorating service, to help plan the decorations for their big day, and they were blown away by her creativity and professionalism. From the initial consultation to the end of the reception, Jenny made the couple’s vision come to life in front of their eyes. “She went above and beyond for our decorations, including having her team make something specifically for our wedding,” they shared.

The Food and Drinks

The Fox Club chef made all of the elegant hors d’oeuvres and food in-house. During cocktail hour, guests nibbled on bacon-wrapped water chestnuts, seafood-stuffed mushroom caps, pineapple and teriyaki chicken satay, Italian bruschetta crostini, fresh fruit, and a charcuterie board with an assortment of cheeses, sausage, hard salami, nuts, marinated vegetables, and gourmet crackers.

For the buffet-style dinner, guests started with a salad with French and ranch dressings as well as rolls and butter. Wine drinkers were given an option between red and white wine to enjoy. The buffet entrées included teriyaki salmon, chicken marsala, and sliced sirloin. Sides included mashed potatoes with sour cream, cheddar, and chives, garlic parmesan rice pilaf, and cooked vegetables. There were also gluten-free meals for gluten intolerant guests as well as kid’s meals for the three children. The late-night snack featured an assortment of pizzas.

Guests were treated to a full bar with two signature drinks: “Hers” was Tito’s vodka and lemonade, and “his” was a brandy old fashioned. The signature drinks were prepared in batches so they were readily available upon order. For dessert, guests indulged in peanut butter Oreo brownie, birthday cake, chocolate hazelnut truffle, and chocolate chip cookie dough cake pops; a tiered cake with layers of lemon raspberry, almond, and red velvet; and a variety of cheesecake bites.

The Reception

The party continued at The Fox Club for Bailie and Justen’s wedding reception. “Honestly, everything about the day, including the reception, was magical and better than we could have imagined,” Bailie shared. It’s hard for the newlyweds to choose a favorite part of their special day, but the little moments with their friends and family on the dance floor are among the most memorable moments.

During the first dances, Bailie danced with her brother Levi in place of the traditional father-daughter dance. Halfway through the song, they had the DJ ask for their mom to join them on the dance floor. When the dance floor opened to all of the guests, everyone had such a blast! Their nieces and nephews stole the show! Everyone let loose and was singing at the top of their lungs. Bailie and Justen fondly remember looking around and taking everything in as they were surrounded by the people they love.

The Photos

Emily Kettner Photography captured all of the amazing moments of the couple’s day, both big and small. Bailie and Justen wanted to make sure they had at least one picture with every single guest at their wedding. So, at the end of dinner, the bride and groom sat in chairs while the DJ ( Nite Lights Entertainment) called table numbers over the mic. Everyone at that table went over to the newlyweds and posed for a picture. This was a unique and brilliant way to ensure we ended up with pictures with everyone.

Bailie and Justen also did a “first touch,” where they exchanged gifts and letters they had written to each other. Bailie also did a “first look” with her bridesmaids. Another meaningful photo op involved the mother of the bride helping the bride in her wedding dress.

Advice from the Bride…

My main advice is to not let yourself think there aren’t things that can be done (or at least started) even if you don’t have a date chosen or if it is far out from your wedding date. I had told myself that there was so much I couldn’t really do until we had a date or until it was closer to the wedding, however, that made the week leading up to the wedding very busy. Even if you don’t have your date or venue, you can start working on your invitations. You’ll just fill in those details once they are finalized and then they can be printed right away. I didn’t start designing until we had all of our wedding details for the invites which made it stressful to complete (and make a decision!) on time. Also, Etsy will be your best friend! It is also very convenient as they have lots of things that can be downloaded immediately upon purchase and then you can make all of the edits that you wish. For any brides who are teachers, if you didn’t know, you get a FREE Canva PRO account for being a teacher-take advantage of this!