It was just another nondescript Tuesday until Milo saw an unexpected notification on his phone.
Lowe’s sent him a direct message on Instagram, and it honestly seemed too good to be true.
“My first reaction was, ‘I’m getting spammed. This can’t be real,’” Milo recalled with a laugh. “I showed Lance and was like, ‘Should I respond to this?’”
Milo and Lance are among the many couples whose summer wedding plans were altered by COVID-19. The celebration in Spain they’d spent nearly two years planning had to be postponed.
Lowe’s set out to create DIY backyard weddings for five couples impacted by the pandemic, and yes, Milo and Lance took part in the special project after responding to that surprise DM.
“This just dropped out of the sky into our laps,” Milo said.
Torrey and Zach also agreed to participate. They knew Lowe’s was going to transform their outdoor space into a beautiful wedding venue, but they didn’t know a special guest was going to help them and the other couples every step of the way.
When they sat down for a video chat and Bobby Berk appeared on screen, Torrey burst out with excitement.
“It’s Bobby Berk!” Torrey screamed. “I’m sorry, I’m really fangirling right now. I was literally watching Queer Eye this morning!”
The interior designer and star of the hit Netflix show Queer Eye humbly smiled as Torrey collected herself.
“I was pinching myself,” she said. “Zach had to calm me down. I was screaming inside a lot more than I was on the outside.”
She had watched Berk renovate homes on television. Now she and her fiancé were getting a chance to experience a transformation themselves.
This all meant a lot to Berk, who told the couples he was set to officiate a friend’s wedding before the pandemic changed everything.
“It’s very personal for me,” he told Sonja and James, another one of the lucky couples. “I’ve been dealing with a lot of tears from friends whose wedding plans have been changed. I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of this with you guys.”
MAKING THE TRANSFORMATION HAPPEN
Milo and Lance in South Carolina. Torrey and Zach in Texas. Sonja and James in Ohio. Nyanka and Brent in New York. Alexis and Mark in Nevada.
Five couples with a new “big day” circled on the June calendar. The Lowe’s team and Berk quickly got to work, curating three collections for the couples to choose from so their wedding vision could come to life in their own backyards.
“Every day we were getting mountains of boxes,” Zach said. “That’s when it started feeling real. We saw all the hard work that everyone was putting in, and it was humbling at that point.”
Lowe’s stores from all five parts of the country eagerly stepped up to help out. Lowe’s Heroes arrived on site to provide support with cleanup and landscaping when necessary.
“When our team heard about the opportunity to bring someone’s wedding day to life in our own community, we were really passionate about doing everything we could to make it perfect,” said Erick Marrero, store manager at Lowe’s in Brooklyn, New York. “At Lowe’s, we pride ourselves on showing up for people when they need it most, and it was an honor to be able to do that for Nyanka and Brent.”
Nyanka and Brent’s space underwent the most significant renovation. Even though their yard presented some serious challenges, Lowe’s and Berk saw the potential underneath and developed a jaw-dropping coastal chic makeover in Brooklyn.
“We never could have imagined this when Lowe’s first reached out,” Nyanka said.
“Throughout the pandemic, we’ve seen just how important of a role our homes play in every season of life,” Berk said. “What I loved about this project with Lowe’s was the opportunity to not only help design someone’s dream wedding, but to create a beautiful backyard that they can enjoy for years to come.”
THE BIG DAY & A BRIGHT FUTURE
After all the disappointment and frustration that came with altered wedding plans, these couples eventually got to enjoy the celebration they deserved.
“It was so much more beautiful than I ever thought it would be,” Torrey said of their stylish Bohemian wedding. “Having our first dance outside underneath the stars – it literally felt like a dream. We were so heartbroken when he had to cancel. This whole experience, and getting to marry Zach, it was just magical.”
“It was a fairytale,” Zach added. “I was doing all I could to keep from crying that entire evening.”
If you’re familiar with Lowe’s, you know the company is about making people’s homes everything they want them to be. And if you’re familiar with Berk’s work on Queer Eye, you know he loves adding personal touches.
Alexis and Mark told Berk about a string light display they envisioned for their farmhouse wedding and Berk took it one step further. He added a dramatic chandelier to turn the cozy wooded venue into a rustic wonderland, and in the process, created an unforgettable piece for their home.
“Our favorite item was the chandelier that hung over the aisle,” Alexis said. “We shared our first dance under it and now it is hanging in our house, which is really special.”
In the days after their bohemian wedding, Milo said he and Lance would often go outside and just stare in amazement at their transformed space.
“We finally have this escape in our yard that we’ve always dreamed of,” he said.
And they all have new memories that will last a lifetime.
“We are forever grateful,” Torrey said. “Our running joke now is every time we pass by a Lowe’s we say thank you.”
