John Alexander Troxel-Czmyr is embarrassed to admit it, but he met his future husband Cody Allen Czmyr online in 2012. “Like most love stories, ours wasn’t simple,” John says. “We dated about seven years before getting engaged with a few bumps along the way. Looking back, all of those experiences prepared us for the realities of marriage and strengthened our relationship.”
The couple live along the Chicago lakefront and spends their summers strolling, picnicking, and swimming by the shore. It’s a place of treasured memories for them, but no memory is quite as precious as the summer evening when Cody proposed during one of their wine and cheese picnics.
Cody and John immediately reserved Exchange 312 for their wedding venue and 150 guests. “But COVID-19 threw us a curveball,” John admits. Six months before their wedding, they had to pivot from their plans completely.
“We had already bought out the Wicker Park Inn for accommodations during the wedding weekend and approached the owner, Laura, about the possibility of us having our wedding and reception at the inn,” Cody explains. “She loved it and had actually been thinking about leaning into micro-weddings as a new offering.”
Now that Cody and John were planning a smaller gathering, they embraced the new opportunities that a micro-wedding brings. Instead of hosting a ceremony and reception, they envisioned the wedding as a weekend filled with activities and events for all of their 25 guests. Plus, they could handle all of the planning on their own. “Cody has a background in hospitality management, and we throw a lot of parties and events together,” John shares, “so we felt comfortable handling the logistics ourselves.”
The wedding weekend kicked off with thoughtfully curated gift baskets in each guest’s room. Every morning began with group breakfast at the inn. Later into the festivities, everyone joined together in the garden for the rehearsal dinner, which featured an empanada food truck!
For the grooms’ looks, Cody says they wanted something that was “simple and no-fuss.” The grooms wore casually elegant suits from Bonobos. John donned an ivory linen one, while Cody sported navy.
Despite the non-traditional nature of the micro-wedding, John wanted to incorporate a few traditions into the special day. He slipped on his maid of honor’s engraved vintage watch, which they found at an antique store while they were in high school, as his “something borrowed.” His blue and white Hermès twilly scarf served as his startling “something blue.” The grooms’ boutonnières, their bridesmaids’ bouquets, and programs were wrapped in vintage ribbon from a previous French flea market excursion—a sentimental “something old.” Cody wore a floral print Ted Baker tie, completing the tradition as the couple’s “something new.”
The wedding party was decked out in sumptuous ensembles. John’s maid of honor, Victoria, wore Marchesa Notte, and Cody’s maid of honor, Britton, wore BHLDN. The officiant’s suit was a custom design from a Chicago tailor, Blvdier. The couple’s nephews looked angelic in their nautical Rachel Riley outfits.
On August 1, 2020, the ring bearers took their role seriously and dutifully carried the wedding rings—Cody’s Miansai and John’s Monique Péan band— in a Sophie Bille Brahe velvet jewelry box down the aisle. Cody and John walked down the aisle to an acoustic cover of Dolly Parton’s “Here to the Moon and Back,” performed live by John’s cousin, Bea Troxel. Guests were seated in a half-moon formation around the altar and cooled off from the summertime heat with handmade straw fans. They listened to the readings from the grooms’ friends, a prayer from Cody’s mother, and a plethora of songs. When Cody reflects on the ceremony, he only has one word to describe it. “Perfect,” he says definitively. “It was perfect.”
The reception followed with a fresh summer menu catered by J&L Catering. The evening began with appetizers in the garden then transitioned inside the inn for a seated dinner of salmon with roasted summer vegetables and a fresh harvest salad. “J&L was an amazing partner and is committed to sourcing local and organic produce and products which is important to us,” John notes. The maids of honor led special toasts and then the newlyweds cut their cake. The rest of the night was spent savoring the conversation and company of Cody and John’s closest family and friends. John adds, “It was bittersweet, given so many could not attend, but it was a breath of fresh air after a year of quarantine and unknowns.”
After dinner, guests went to their rooms at the inn and changed into their coziest outfits for late-night singing and dancing.
