Veronica Aviña, a freelance prop stylist, and Shiraz Bhatti, the drummer for post-punk band Deeper, first met while she waited for their mutual friend, Solene, to meet her for lunch. “I was greeted by a handsome man and had no choice but to strike up a conversion until Solene arrived,” Vero smiles.
After six years together, Shiraz proposed while the two were in Mexico. “The original plan was to hike up the Mexican mountain Iztaccíhuatl, which has a famous romantic legend with the volcano Popocatépetl, and propose at the top of the mountain,” Vero explains. “But a mixture of bad traffic and bad weather led us to a beautiful dinner at Elly’s in Mexico City.” After the delicious meal, they headed up to the second floor for a nightcap. “In a quiet corner upstairs that almost felt like we were the only two people there, Shiraz proposed.”
When looking for a wedding venue, the two knew they wanted to honor their love and appreciation for nature and the outdoors. Garfield Park Conservatory in their home city of Chicago had everything they wanted. To help bring their vision to life, Yessenia Mina of Gold Mine Events stepped in, and Frankie Isabel was behind the lens for every special moment.
For their wedding wardrobes, the couple both wanted to pay homage to their cultures. “I wanted a modern version of a dress that resembled Mexican icon Maria Felix’s style,” Vero explains. She found a beautiful off-the-shoulder Sarah Seven dress and paired it with custom earrings by Joanna Arellano Gonzalez, who added maíz to the tips to further represent the bride’s Mexican heritage, and a vintage veil with hummingbirds and flowers adorned on it. On the day-of, the bride got ready with makeup artist Dani Lou, who gave her a warm beauty look, and hairstylist Kailey of KS Beauty Co.
Shiraz, who is Anishinaabe-Punjabi, chose a brown herringbone double-breasted suit from Suitsupply. He paired the look with copper cufflinks by Woodland Thunder, copper earrings by Ryerson Whetung, a silk scarf from Alcala’s Western Wear, and woodland-style moccasins that he made himself. For his hair, he had Nely the Barber intricately braid his mane.
On April 27, 2024, Vero and Shiraz’s close friend, Martin Diaz, officiated the ceremony and beautifully tied in the couple’s love for their community and the blending of their cultures together. “After we exchanged our vows and rings, Shiraz’s good friend and tribal cultural keeper, Greg Biskakone Johnson, did a blanket ceremony for us to represent our unification and the unification of our two families by tying our hands together with braided sweetgrass and covering us with a woodland style blanket designed by Sarah Agaton Howes in collaboration with Eighth Generation’s Inspired Natives Project,” the bride explains.
At cocktail hour, a live trio played classic romantic Mexican tunes. The Beyond Catering dinner menu that followed consisted of herb chicken, acorn squash with Great Lakes wild rice, and pan-crusted white fish. Vero and Shiraz spent time together at the sweethearts’ table, decorated with sunset-colored florals by Studio Poppy. Then, the two cut their tiered cake by Bittersweet Pastry Shop.
The newlyweds had a first dance to “Tonada De Luna Llena” by Simon Diaz followed by a surprise cumbia that they practiced for months to “Todo Me Gusta De Ti” by Aaron Y Su Grupo Ilusion. Later with DJ MYQ MOON, there was a dollar dance, where guests got in line to dance with the couple and clipped money onto their clothes. “We also had a fun group dance to ‘Payaso de rodeo’ which translates to rodeo clown,” Vero laughs.
The after-party commenced at their local dive, where the officiant and half of Shiraz’s groomsmen memorably deejayed an all-vinyl set. And long after the last guests said their goodbyes, the couple took off on their honeymoon to the Yucatan, where they drove through the jungle, visited Mayan pyramids, and swam in cenotes.
