When Over The Moon’s Maddie Hilbrant was living in New York City, she accidentally set her Hinge profile to her hometown of Chicago and matched with Mike Bush, who runs operations for GoodVets. It was only after they set up a date that they realized there were actually many miles between them. “Nonetheless, we stayed in touch, and I promised Mike I would move to Chicago eventually,” Maddie explains. She kept her word.
After five years together, Mike proposed to Maddie at golden hour in her favorite place—Ocean Club of Florida, where she’s spent countless summers. Once engaged, the couple quickly dismissed Chicago as a wedding location and set their sights on the Gulf Stream Golf Club in Delray Beach. “We wanted our wedding to feel like an intimate dinner mixed with a fun party, but also unique and timeless,” Maddie explains. To help bring their dream wedding to life, the two hired Anna Corbin of Anna Caroline Weddings. Fiore Press set the tone for the weekend with a beautiful invitation suite, and Shauna & Jordon and Miguel Garcia Studios were behind the lens to capture every moment.
“I’ve always wanted to be a classic bride with my own flare, and it was important to me to tie in purple however I could in honor of my sister, who passed away,” Maddie says of her wedding weekend wardrobe. “[I] ultimately decided that I wanted to skew more modern and sophisticated, rather than leaning into the beachy look.”
For Friday’s welcome party at the Ocean Club, the bride donned a Markarian midi-dress with Completedworks earrings (sourced by fellow OTM Bride Olivia Ivey Bannock), a Clio Peppiatt bag, and Staud mules. “The background of the dress pattern was white, so it leaned more bridal, but it had a floral ikat print with purple mixed in that made me feel I was able to honor my own aesthetic but also tie in my sister.” Mike looked handsome in a custom green linen-blend jacket with a tapered khaki chino.
After trying on around 75 wedding dresses, Maddie finally fell in love with her Alex Perry ceremony strapless look at Ultimate Bride. “The bodice on it made me think of the architecture inside the venue and gave a tasteful Bridgerton vibe,” Maddie notes. She paired the design with earrings from her stepdad, a family heirloom sapphire and diamond bracelet, and classic satin Manolos. GEM Makeup Artistry and hairstylist Bridal by Fio gave Maddie a soft yet striking beauty look.
Post-ceremony, Maddie knew she wanted to change into a minidress for dancing. “As a 5’11″ woman, most things were way too short on me, so I worked with Markarian again to create a look,” she says. “It was still sophisticated but beautiful and fun.”
Mike was ceremony ready in a custom navy tuxedo with a cream linen-blend jacket. “He wanted to do something to stand out in the black-tie crowd and thought a cream jacket was a great look for a groom,” Maddie explains.
On October 28, 2023, the bride’s family friend, who is a minister and who also officiated Maddie’s brother Johnny’s wedding, performed the service. Maddie walked down the aisle arm-in-arm with Johnny. However, it was a particularly windy day, and the bride’s veil had a mind of its own. “It didn’t even cross my mind to wrestle with it, so I ended up tossing it off as I got to the altar,” Maddie laughs. “The crowd thought it was funny, and it also made me feel more at ease not have to worry about it.”
During the ceremony, it was also important to Maddie that she honor her sister. “I decided that it felt right to light a purple candle in her honor,” she shares. “The only hiccup was that there were 30mph winds and the candle wasn’t really cooperating. We found an extra large hurricane for the candle and spoke to why we were lighting it.”
After Maddie and Mike recited their vows they’d written themselves, they walked back down the aisle and made sure to spend some time, just the two of them, to soak in the once-in-a-lifetime moment. The couple then rejoined their guests and had their first dance to “Into The Mystic.” “We intended to take just a couple dance classes through a local Chicago studio called Duet Dance Studio, so that we would have a few moves,” Maddie remembers. “But we actually ended up having so much fun that we worked with them to choreograph a full dance.”
Gold Coast All Stars kept the dance floor packed for the rest of the night. “Both of our families danced and sang along to Taylor Swift’s 10-minute version of ‘All Too Well,’ and the closing duo of ‘Always Forever’ by Donna Lewis and ‘Dancing On My Own’ by Robyn were amazing,” Maddie recalls. Late-night bites like mini deep dish pizzas, cheese curds—a nod to Mike’s Wisconsin roots—and ice cream fueled the party. “We thought about an after-party but ultimately decided against it. We’re getting old and a party that went until nearly midnight was plenty late for us!”
