SVM_Sauk Valley Weddings_2024

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IDEAL VENUE FOR FRIENDS & FAMILY GATHERINGS

HISTORIC BARN RENOVATED WITH YOU IN MIND • WEDDINGS • BIRTHDAY PARTIES

• RECEPTIONS • FAMILY REUNIONS

• GRADUATIONS • HOLIDAY PARTIES

Caterer of your choice or bring your own food. Handicapped accessible.

Climate-controlled & Bounce House Friendly

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SHAWLOCAL.COM/SAUK-VALLEY/ • A

PUBLICATION

~ Coming Fall 2024 ~

An Unforgettable Setting for an Unforgettable Day Weddings Bridal Showers All Occasion Parties Historic 1877 Ballroom & Cocktail Lounge

SM-ST2134404

117 W. 3rd St. • Sterling, IL • (815) 535-3214 www.themercantileballroom.com

Ryan & Ashley Nares, Owners

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inside

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Love is in the Nares

The eyes have it for a Sterling couple in the business of capturing poetry in motion and preserving magical moments in time.

Rock of love

Have makeup, will travel

Destination weddings don’t have to be far from home — there’s a place right here in the Sauk Valley that can provide a perfect backdrop for the big day.

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Here comes the bride, and here comes a mobile makeup artist who prides herself on complexion perfection.

MORE ... Table of contents and advertiser index appear on page 6

ABOUT THIS PUBLICATION Sauk Valley Weddings is a publication of Sauk Valley Media 113 S. Peoria Ave. | Dixon, IL 61021 815-284-2222

on the cover ...

PUBLISHER: Jennifer Heintzelman SALES: Jill Reyna MAGAZINE EDITOR & PAGE DESIGN: Rusty Schrader Articles and advertising are the property of Sauk Valley Media. No portion of Sauk Valley Weddings may be reproduced without written consent of the publisher.

Ad contents is not the responsibility of Sauk Valley Media. Sauk Valley Media cannot, and will not, be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services advertised in this publication.

Chelsey and Zachary Muntean of Rock Falls are shown in a photo taken by You in Photos by Nanc, of Rock Falls, at Livengood’s Barn in Chadwick.

“You don’t take a photograph, you make it. ... Memories shared where it is truly all about you from start to the finish as I pay careful attention to detail and your personal desires of what you may look for in your photo session.” — Source: youinphotosbynanc.zenfolio.com/ For more information about You in Photos by Nanc...

Online: https://youinphotosbynanc.zenfolio.com/ Social media: Find You In Photos by Nanc Inc. on Facebook, or follow her on Instagram Phone: 815-718-5136 E-mail: nancduff2@gmail.com

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FULL - SERVICE PARTY RENTALS

For exceptional elegance

Wedding Canopies • Tables & Chairs • Linens & Chair Coverings • China & Tableware • Dance Floors & Risers • Chandeliers & Lighting • Food Service & Serviceware • Wedding Arches • Luxury Restroom Trailers & More

Delivering prompt and professional service through every phase of your special event, from planning to setup and cleanup.

2239 Sycamore Rd. Dekalb, IL (877) 388-8368 www.rentmidwesttents.com A Shaw Media Publication | Sauk Valley Weddings | 2024-25| 5

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28 34 40 46

Pressed for timelessness From bouquets to boutonnieres, a Sterling woman can turn your wedding flowers into a special keepsake, to have and to hold onto for years to come.

An eventful day in the country Looking for a big place for your big day, but city life has you a bit jaded?

Get Jaded instead, at a relaxing, rustic venue.

Your time to shine When it comes time for a dress rehearsal, brides are the star of the show at a Dixon boutique.

BRIDAL GOWNS Savy Chic Bridal Boutique...............13

LODGING Holiday Inn Express.........................14

BRIDAL SHOWERS Amboy Community Center.............42 Byron Forest Preserve....................43 Dixon VFW.........................................36 Livengood’s Barn.............................50 Majestic Pines.................................49 Parties on Pope...............................20 Shady Oaks....................................... 25 The Barn at Hornbaker Gardens.... 24 The Barn on the Hill.........................45 The Loft at K’s Korners...................... 2 The Mercantile................................... 3

PHOTOGRAPHY Laura Renee Photgraphy................51 You in Photos by Nanc....................44

CATERING SERVICES Creative Cuisine Catering..............42 Mo’s BBQ & Catering Company.......31 CEREMONY SITES Byron Forest Preserve....................43 Deer Valley Banquets.....................64 Dixon VFW.........................................36 Henrekin Pines ...............................52 Livengood’s Barn.............................50 Majestic Pines.................................49 Mexicali Rose Banquet Hall...........48 Parties on Pope...............................20 Shady Oaks....................................... 25 The Barn at Hornbaker Gardens.... 24 The Barn on the Hill.........................45 The Loft at K’s Korners...................... 2 The Mercantile................................... 3 CLERGY Abiding Word Church...................... 27

Where the rubber meats the road

Three heads are better than one for a business owner who created a Monster when he rolled out one of the area’s first food trucks.

WEDDING MARKETPLACE

A list of businesses that can help make your wedding day a success CAKES & SWEETS.......53-54 CATERING...................54-55 DRESSES......................... 55 FLOWERS........................ 56

ad

JEWELRY..........................57 MAKE-UP..........................57 MUSIC............................. 58

PHOTOGRAPHERS.......58-59 TRAVEL............................ 59 TUXEDOS......................... 60 VENUES......................60-63

DECORATING Exquisite Floral & Party Decor......49 Selmi’s Flower Shop...........................7

PORTABLE RESTROOMS Big John..............................................15 RECEPTION SITES Amboy Community Center.............42 Byron Forest Preserve....................43 Deer Valley Banquets.....................64 Dixon VFW.........................................36 Henrekin Pines ...............................52 Livengood’s Barn.............................50 Majestic Pines.................................49 Mexicali Rose Banquet Hall...........48 Parties on Pope...............................20 Shady Oaks....................................... 25 The Barn at Hornbaker Gardens.... 24 The Barn on the Hill.........................45 The Loft at K’s Korners...................... 2 The Mercantile................................... 3 REHEARSAL DINNERS Byron Forest Preserve....................43 Deer Valley Banquets.....................64 Dixon VFW.........................................36 Livengood’s Barn.............................50 Majestic Pines.................................49 Mexicali Rose Banquet Hall...........48 Parties on Pope...............................20 Shady Oaks....................................... 25 The Barn at Hornbaker Gardens.... 24 The Barn on the Hill.........................45 The Mercantile................................... 3

EXERCISE & FITNESS 7:24 Fitness on the Rock.................45

RENTALS Midwest Tents & Events................... 5 Selmi’s Wedding & Events................7

FLOWERS Flowers Etc........................................21 Exquisite Floral & Party Decor......49 Selmi’s Flower Shop...........................7

TENTS Midwest Tents & Events................... 5 TRAVEL Destinations Travel Services.........33

FLOWERS — PRESERVATION Fresh Pressed Memories............... 27 FOOD — SNACKS & TREATS Woody’s Popcorn..............................51

TUXEDO RENTALS Ducky’s Formalwear........................31 Kaleel’s Clothing..............................44 Selmi’s Formal Wear..........................7

INSURANCE AGENTS Country Financial...............................7

WEDDING PLANNING Wise Event Planning & Mgmt. ......43

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Weddings

photo&video

ION AT

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Ryan and Ashley Nares, owners of ’Til Death Photo and Film.

hey say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but for Ashley and Ryan Nares, two words are all they need …

“I do.”

The Nares are the partners in life and partners in business behind ’Til Death Photo and Film, a Sterling business that specialize in turning your perfect moments into picture-perfect moments with their wedding photos and videos.

The couple said their own “I do’s” seven years ago, so they know what it’s like to be on both sides of the lens, something that’s helped them as they’ve grown their business.

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SUBMITTED PHOTOS

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The Nares began their wedding media adventure not long after the coronavirus pandemic, simply as a side business to help compliment their full-time jobs at the time: Ashley as a medical assistant at CGH Medical Center in Sterling, and Ryan as a corrections sergeant at the Dixon State Prison. Eventually their side business took front and center and they were able to focus their time solely on the photography business, and they’re enjoying being their own bosses. Ashley shoots the photos, and Ryan the videos.

with the results, an opinion echoed by her friends and family, and that inspired her to explore more faces and places from behind the lens.

Her advice for budding photographers? Practice makes perfect moments.

The more you shoot the better you’ll get, and for Ashley, getting better means trying to be her best. “I feel like, if I do something, I want to be the very best at it,” she said.

“I feel like I just got lucky, and was just decent at it when I first started. I just always loved taking photos. I try to focus on continuing education — doing two to three things a year, such as workshops, mentoring with another photographer, online education, or shoot with other photographers. I’m lucky to have a real good group of friends who are also into photography, and we kind of bounce stuff off of each other.”

Ashley enjoyed taking pictures long before she turned it into a business, mostly of friends and family pets, but when an Easter photo session for their children was cancelled due to the pandemic, she took matters — and a camera — into her own hands and took the photos herself. She was pleased

Ryan’s time behind the lens came a little later, at Ashley’s urging.

He took his video camera to the first wedding Ashley shot, and since then has worked on honing his videography skills with every job.

“It started with her telling me, ‘You should just come try it,’” Ryan said. “I wasn’t sure what I was doing until I did. I got to feel real competitive with it and, to her credit, she would always try to calm me down. I really liked it, and for a while it wound up being one of my best weddings. It worked and it all fell into place.”

Each job is like another class and in their continuing education, and today, the couple takes what they’ve learned to each wedding, capturing the smiles and the tears, intimate

moments between the couple and joyous moments with friends and family, blending in with the wedding party wherever there’s a memory to be made.

And even once the lens caps go back on the cameras, their work is far from done. A big part of turning hundreds of pictures and hours of video into something that will last a lifetime comes after the wedding: perfect pictures are picked, photos are toned, video edits are made. The couple uses tech tools to help them during the process, but it takes a good eye — and a feel for each wedding — to turn their work into a wedding package their customers will fall in love with.

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NARES cont’d from page 10 “Early on, I wanted to fit everything into a cookie-cutter thing,” Ryan said. “I didn’t know any better, and it would be easier. It was like having a template, and I would get stressed out about having this, this or this. But it’s everybody’s story, and they’re always different.

So we want to try to deliver something that they know is them. I’ll make sure the moments I get are significant, shot and captured well.

It’s their job to tell their story, and It’s my job to capture it.”

Wedding photography has been around since the days when the very first cameras flashed in a puff of smoke 175 years ago. Wedding videography has been around for nearly 75 years, and began to take off with the introduction of readily available Kodak’s Super 8 film in the mid-1960s. Digital editing software, which had largely been contained to film studios, became more widely available as computer software’s use grew in the late 1990s.

Cameras continue to evolve, and so does editing software, which in recent years has allowed photographers and videographers to do things that at one time would have been labor-intensive, or simply not possible. Film and video tape have made way for digital photos and video — though the Nares have plans to make wedding videos available in retro formats, Super 8 and VHS, in the near future.

Next-day sneak peeks of pictures and videos are available before the editing process.

While photos and weddings have long gone hand in hand, video has become a part of a growing number of weddings.

There’s something about watching a wedding unfold as it happens that takes things to a different level, Ashley said.

...

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Sessions for engagements also are available, and they’ll go just about anywhere across the nation for weddings As for when to book them: the Nares recommend doing it around the same time a wedding venue is booked. Have a budget in mind, Ashley said, as they offer different bundles that encompass the whole wedding or just portions of the day; go to tildeathphotoandfilm.com to learn more about their packages.

For outdoor weddings, Ryan can also capture video with drones, weather permitting and subject to FAA regulations.

During the planning process, the Nares like to get to know the bride and groom well enough to know what moments of the wedding are special to them, as some situations may have a greater meaning in one ceremony than another.

“We really try to get to know them,” Ashley said. “One of my best friends now is someone I met from shooting their wedding two years ago. We’ve become friends with so many people who we’ve done their weddings for. We really try to get to know them as a couple and get their vibe, and that just kind of helps us capture their day more authentically.”

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NARES cont’d from page 12 The Nares have sometimes been booked separately for their services, but prefer being booked as a couple.

“When I’ve had weddings without Ryan, and they might have another videographer, it becomes so glaringly obvious why, if you can, find a photo-video team,” Ashley said.

“Most of the time, they are on opposite ends of the planet; they have two different views, two different goals, they have different ideas on capturing things. We know what each other’s going to capture, we know what we want to see in our films, sometimes without even saying it to each other.”

“You can only have stuff as streamlined as possible when you have five different people,” Ryan added. “To get that from two people who work together regularly is a definite benefit.”

The photo-video work the Nares do compliments another business they run, Nares Event Co., which supplies prop-up photo backdrops and electronic photo booths to parties and other special occasions.

They’ve done more with photos and videos than with the other stuff in recent years, but they’ve had some couples who book them for visuals also utilize their backdrops and booths for the weddings. “It’s a real nice compliment when someone books us for photo and video,” Ryan said.

They are leasing it from Sterling Today, a nonprofit organization dedicated to redeveloping and improving the downtown, and they’ll be the first occupant to settle in the building since it was extensively renovated a few years ago.

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A Wedding Dress to Remember We are by appointment only, giving you a one on one experience. You and your group will have the whole boutique to yourself to relax and enjoy your special day. You deserve it!

• Brides • Bridesmaids • Accessories

Book Your Appointment today!

111 S Hennepin • Dixon, IL • (815) 677-9579 www.savychic.com A Shaw Media Publication | Sauk Valley Weddings | 2024-25| 13

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NARES cont’d from page 13 Making the building a home for a business has been something that’s been on Ashley’s mind for a while.

“I just fell in love with the building,” Ashley said. “It sat vacant for a few years, and I was just persistent in wanting it. With everything else, it’s just going to grow. Having a venue was kind of the next logical step, and Sterling doesn’t really have a kind of venue like this one. I’m excited we’ve finally found a way to get in there.”

“It’s exciting for us,” Ryan added. “There’s not enough places where you can go and have a nice drink and a nice vibe where it’s not too loud. It was something we were looking for, and we’re excited that we can provide that.”

Currently, the Nares are leasing the first of the building’s three floors for the lounge and event space. They hope to one day use the second floor for their photo studios and work space, and they’ve even thought about offering Air BnBs suites in the building.

The Nares’ took on about 30 weddings last year, but with the new focus on their project at The Mercantile, they’ll start cutting back on their availability a little.

“It’s been such a benefit for me to have her as such a resource, as a partner in her being my wife, and as a partner in business,” Ryan said.

“She’s such a phenomenal photographer, and that’s like such a cheat code to have, because it’s such an amazing resource in both regards. For me — not to say it’s been easy — but it’s been so much easier because of that.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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3 Styles of Formal Restroom Units for Your Next Gathering

BIG JOHN 815-946-2813

Since 1975

WWW.BIGJOHNUSA.COM

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Weddings

ST O RY

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destinations

The Rock River is one of the Sauk Valley’s most defining and picturesque natural beauties.

Beginning near Brandon, Wisc., the nearly 300-mile river winds through northwest Illinois before running its course and feeding into the Mississippi River at the Quad Cities. Along the way,

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lush layers of trees, rolling hills, shimmering water, majestic bluffs, quaint villages, and more rise from the river’s bank; and when the calendar flips to fall, there’s nothing quite like the beauty of an autumn day along the river as trees shed their summer greens for the colors of fall.

Meandering through towns and country, the river has inspired the formation and parks and provided a backdrop for businesses, including event venues and restaurants.

There are no shortages of places along the way that couples can host their events — pre-wedding parties, the ceremony itself, receptions, honeymoons, even engagement or wedding photos.

Want to include the Rock River in your wedding plans? We’ve compiled a list of some places where the river flows through the Sauk Valley that can be part of your special day, so turn the page and check out some of the current attractions ...

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Simply Elegant Events

~ Let us ensure your event is everything you dreamed it would be ~

Weddings and Receptions • Bridal Showers Rehearsal Dinners • Engagement Parties • Anniversaries Birthdays • Seating 225

207 Pope St. in Nelson (815) 441-1446 www.partiesonpope.com 20 | A Shaw Media Publication | Sauk Valley Weddings | 2024-25

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Like Dixon, Rock Falls also has focused on beautifying its riverfront in recent years with the RB&W District. The park’s hallmark is a lighted amphitheater with sunken concrete seating. The district has just about everything you need for a wedding. A recently built Holiday Inn overlooks the river; and a large event venue, McCormick Event Center, and The Industrial restaurant are located less than a block away at 205 E. Third St., providing a prime location for wedding events. Go to hmccormickevents.com or theindustrialgrill.com for more information.

What’s RB&W stand for? Today it means “run, bike and walk,” for what you can do at the park. The abbreviation in a past life was for the former Russell, Birdsall and Ward Bolt and Nut Company which stood on the ground for just more than 100 years.

Saying I Do? • Fresh or Silk flowers to create custom Bouquets, Boutonnieres, & Ceremony/Reception Arrangements

1103 Palmyra St. Dixon 815.288.3335 | www.eflowersetc.com

Monday-Friday 8-5 Saturday 9-1

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By Cody Cutter Sauk Valley Media

CO

Beauty isn’t just in the eye of the beholder.

Sometimes it’s on wheels too.

And when those wheels belong to Kendra Pagoria, they come with makeup and mirrors, blushes and brushes, lights and lashes, and more Weddings than a decade of experience helping people look makeup their best on one of the biggest days of their lives.

Pagoria is the person in the driver’s seat of her mobile makeup business, Makeup by Kendra, where she specializes in taking her talents on the road to weddings and other special occasions.

With nearly 15 years of experience in esthetics, Pagoria has seen a lot of smiling faces, and those smiles come after they look in the mirror and see what her training and experience have done for them.

When it comes to using makeup to help give people’s complexion, and confidence, a boost, Pagoria thinks it’s a process that should come naturally.

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Kendra Pagoria of Spring Valley takes her talent for makeup on the road, making brides and bridesmaids look their best for their big day through her mobile makeup business, Makeup by Kendra.

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MAKEUP cont’d from page 23 “My style is more natural, sophisticated and elegant,” she said. “I don’t want to make people not look like themselves.”

It’s an approach that’s become more popular in recent years, she said.

“A lot of times people just want to be more natural for a wedding. They want to look like themselves. That’s always my goal, I want to make the bride look like herself, but just a more enhanced version of herself.”

Pagoria will travel to weddings within about an hour-and-a-half of her home in Spring Valley in eastern Bureau County. That includes Carroll, Lee, Ogle and Whiteside counties, as well as Rockford, the Quad Cities and Peoria – where she studied radio and television broadcasting at Bradley University.

Her media career took her to Los Angeles, where she worked behind the scenes on several television shows and saw how actors and actresses dealt with the importance of looking their best while on camera. She came to enjoy the trade of transforming people’s appearance and decided to make esthetics her new career when she returned home. In doing so, she caught a wave in advancements of the profession, and to this day she continues to take continuing education classes and participates in workshops to fine-tune and adapt to what’s new in esthetics.

MAKEUP cont’d to page 25 Kendra Pagoria of Makeup by Kendra became interested in the world of esthiology — skin care — while working in television in Los Angeles. She has been an esthetician for nearly 15 years, and has averaged about 40 weddings a year with her mobile makeup business.

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• 4-Season Building • Seats up to 350 • Covered Patio • Bride’s & Groom’s Room • Outdoor Wedding Ceremony Site events@hornbakergardens.com

Princeton, Illinois • 815-659-3282 • hornbakergardens.com 24 | A Shaw Media Publication | Sauk Valley Weddings | 2024-25

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Pagoria (at left) became interested in the world of esthiology (skin care) while working in television in Los Angeles.

She has been an esthetician for nearly 15 years, and has averaged about 40 weddings a year with her mobile makeup business.

MAKEUP cont’d from page 24 “Esthetics was not booming like it is now,” Pagoria said. “When I was in California and working with more people in makeup and hair, I started to think, ‘Maybe I could do this.’

So I went back home and studied esthetics.”

Pagoria worked at a med spa close to home until dedicating herself to being a stay-at-home mom after her second child was born — but she still wanted to do more.

That desire developed into the idea of the mobile makeup business in 2016.

She started doing makeup for friends and family, and a few weddings here and there. Today, those few weddings have grown into nearly 40 a year, in addition to other events, such as proms, homecomings, senior pictures, and other celebrations where

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people want to look their best.

“I wanted to be a full-time stay-at-home mom, but I wanted to do something,” Pagoria said. “It worked, I got busy pretty quickly. I kind of thought it would just be a wedding here-and-there, starting off with just friends, and then word just spread.”

When she shows up for a job, Pagoria’s makeup case is stocked with all the tools of her trade that she’ll need, from blush brushes to airbrushes — the latter of which helps give her clients that more natural look.

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Unforgettable Receptions

Celebrate your love with a spectacular event your guests will be talking about for years to come. To learn more about our wedding packages, please contact our Club Manager today.

We look forward to making your wedding day exceptional!

Weddings • Banquets Rehearsal Dinners Engagement Parties Showers 18 Hole Public Golf Course

Located on Rt. 52 between Amboy & Sublette

815-849-5424 • www.shadyoakscc. www.shadyoakscc.com

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like us on

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Wedding cake is fine, but wedding cakey? No thanks. Though versed in various different makeup techniques, Pagoria is a big fan of airbrush applications. “Airbrush doesn’t look cakey,” she said. “It covers well, but you don’t get really heavy and thick looking. It gives you good coverage and a real nice finish.” It also retains its look longer and is more moisture resistant.

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an airbrush makeup application

MAKEUP cont’d from page 25 Airbrushes allow for more flexibility, a more subtle look that enhances clients’ features, but doesn’t lose them under layers of makeup. The airbrushes’ ultra-fine mist doesn’t just sit on top of the skin like more traditional, brushed-on products. The ultra-fine mist can be blended and built up in layers to provide a smooth finish.

Oftentimes Pagoria can looks at wedding pictures and tell which women have had their makeup done with an airbrush.

“Airbrush doesn’t look cakey,” she said. “It covers well, but you don’t get really heavy and thick looking. It gives you good coverage and a real nice finish.”

Another advantage of airbrushed makeup is that it lasts

longer, retaining its look from pre-ceremony prep to well after the reception.

“A lot of people will text me pictures at 11 o’clock at night and let me know that ‘Oh my God, the makeup still looks so good,’” Pagoria said. “Others, I’ll text them the next day and ask them, ‘How’d it last?’ They’ll say they can’t believe how well it lasted.”

But what about those tears of joy on the big day? It used to be that they would turn to tears of sadness when a bride’s makeup would run and time was running out for a retouch.

“A lot of people will ask, ‘What if I cry?” Pagoria said. “ It’s water resistant, so when you cry it’s not going to come pouring off of you.”

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MAKEUP cont’d from page 26 And when you’re on the dance floor during the reception working up a sweat, airbrushed makeup holds up better.

And those pesky makeup smudges brides would have to worry about?

“It doesn’t transfer, so when they’re hugging people it’s not going to rub off on other people’s clothes,” Pagoria said. She utilizes the Temptu line of products, a leading brand of airbrush home makeup systems. (Go to temptu.com to learn more about the product.)

When planning a wedding, Pagoria advises brides to make sure makeup is among one of the first things to schedule, to ensure that their date is locked in and that there’s plenty of time for her to work with the bridal party before the big day — “the earlier the better,” she said.

She offers trial runs to give people a feel for what they’ll come to expect on the wedding day; sometimes these sessions become the first time women have been introduced to an airbrush system.

“I’ll make sure there are no allergies to the makeup to make sure they don’t have any kind of reaction, and make sure they like it,” Pagoria said. “Airbrushing is not like an everyday makeup, so a lot of people have never tried it before. It’s good to make sure you try it out and like it, and like how you feel.”

As the wedding day approaches, Pagoria gets ready to roll.

Timing is key and one snag can cause the best laid plans to unravel.

“The day of the wedding, timing is usually a big thing,” Pagoria said.

“They have to have their time frame. I can do it in 30 minutes or less. That’s a big thing.”

For Pagoria, her career has come full circle — she recently returned to practicing in a med spa, working for Nicole Morris Med Spa in Peru, on top of her Makeup

by Kendra commitments — and she’s enjoyed the journey she’s been on, and the one that still lies ahead.

In both jobs, she likes helping people look their best and educating them about the process, and getting to know her clients, delighting in hearing their stories and seeing how their weddings turned out.

“Some of the things that I have really enjoyed are seeing the bonds between the bridesmaids and the brides,” Pagoria said.

“I had a group of girls once where I did most of their weddings, and their friendships were just unbelievable. They just loved each other so much, it was so sweet. I love seeing that. It’s also fun being around the moms with the brides. It’s such an emotional day for them.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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Flowers, hot off the press ... Jenny Adamson of Sterling shows off one of the pieces she created in her part-time business, Fresh Pressed Memories, where flowers that may otherwise fade from memory find a new life as pieces of art, jewelry, and other items.

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Weddings

keepsakes

arriages are meant to last forever.

The wedding bouquet, though? Not so much — but they can.

Just leave them in the hands of a Sterling woman, whose business squeezes more life out of flowers than most people would have thought possible, and preserves those petals for a long-lasting memory of a magical day.

Jenny Adamson, an outpatient physical therapist for CGH Medical Center in town, has made a business out of a favorite childhood activity that she enjoyed with her grandmother: Fresh Pressed Memories, where she helps keep Father Time from taking too much of a toll on Mother Nature’s creations by transforming flowers into keepsakes.

Though people have long kept flowers from their wedding, they’ve usually been pressed in a scrapbook or packed away in a box somewhere, a fragile and faded memory hidden away and left to dry and crumble. Adamson’s handiwork can stem the tide of time and turn those flowers into a matrimonial memento couples can cherish and display. Flowers can be framed, incorporated into ring dishes, jewelry and other items, or encased in epoxy.

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PRESSED cont’d from page 29 “You can have something that means so much to you,” Adamson said. “When it’s your wedding day and you have the bouquet when you said ‘I do’ to someone you care so much about, it gives you that tangible product that you can always hold on to, look back at, and say: ‘These are from that day and I have so many fond memories attached to that day.’ It’s something they can physically have, hold or put on a wall to look at every day and remember that.”

For nearly two years now, her home workshop has been filled with wood presses, tools of her part-time trade, and piles of pedals waiting to be preserved for posterity.

Adamson can work with just about any kind of bouquet, though some take longer to work with than others.

First she has to make sure there’s no moisture left, a process than can take as long as 8 to 12 weeks with larger flowers, such as mums and sunflowers. Though the flowers fade during that time, the blooms’ beauty is never really truly lost; and once under glass or covered in epoxy, they can be enjoyed for years.

“Some people are sort of shocked to see what the flowers turn out to look like when they have been pressed,” Adamson said. “The color of the flower when it’s fresh is more muted once they are pressed, and they may not be as bright as they were. Sometimes they’re surprised with the color change that goes on.”

Adamson grew up in Peoria, and would visit her grandmother, Fran Childs, in Davenport during the summer, where the two enjoyed being creative together, and pressedflower art was one fun project Adamson was particularly fond of, and remained so as she grew up.

A few years ago, she noticed pressed wedding flowers trending on social media, and that helped rekindle her interest in the hobby.

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“My grandma taught me when I was young about how to press flowers, with the wood presses and cardboard and paper and all of that,” Adamson said. “Then I saw it become a trend on social media and on videos with people going, ‘This is what my bouquet turned into.’ I thought, ‘I could do that.’”

Framed pieces come in four different sizes: 5X7, 8X10, 11X14 and 16X20. The frames themselves come in black, white or natural wood. Glass is used to cover the front of the work, and clear plexiglass is used for the rear. That’s in case the picture were to fall or get dropped; the flowers are affixed to the plexiglass so they’ll stay in place. If they were pressed between two glass pieces and the frame was damaged, the flowers would be lost in shards of glass.

The plexiglass also allows for a little bit of flexing, Adamson said. “Some flowers are really thick, like sunflowers and roses, and when you have those layered, that plexiglass gives a little bit of bend so that it fits well, as opposed to a sheet of glass.”

Add-ons can be included in the larger frames upon request, such as a wedding picture or invitation. Adamson prefers to have creative control over her works, but offers preliminary mock-up drawings to customers upon request.

PRESSED cont’d to page 33

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Once plucked and tucked into bouquets and boutonnieres, a flower’s life becomes fragile and fleeting, but it doesn’t have to be.

Blooms can be turned into keepsakes that will last a lifetime — framed displays, ring dishes, epoxy letters, jewelry, keychains, and bookmarks. Couples can enjoy the keepsakes, or have pieces made as gifts for members of the bridal party. A photo can also be incorporated into framed pieces.

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PRESSED cont’d from page 31 “Everyone’s bouquet is going to be a little unique,” Adamson said. “They may have the same flowers, but a lot of times they are in different colors, or are organized differently. There are some flowers that are really cool and I haven’t seen before.”

Epoxy is another medium Adamson uses in her work. Anything with a recessed surface to it — such as a bowl or jewelry box – can provide room for blooms. Flowers are pressed and laid into the recessed area and covered in clear epoxy. Smaller items, such as keychains or jewelry, can also be made, or flowers can be placed in letter-shaped molds and covered in epoxy — the first letter of the couple’s last name, for example.

She advises customers to reach out to her before the wedding and schedule their job. The more flowers age the harder it is to press them.

Adamson got back into pressing flowers just a little too late for her own wedding — she married her husband Anthony in 2019 — but she’s glad that she’s able to help others transform their flowers into keepsakes. Customers can find some of her creations on her Facebook and Instagram pages.

“I love that I get to make something that means so much to people,” Adamson said. “It just means a ton. They get to keep a part of their wedding day, and it’s not just a picture that you can hang on a wall, it’s something that you carried with you down the aisle, threw it to somebody and they caught the bouquet.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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he rush of traffic, horns honking, radios blaring — sometimes we need to go someplace and turn down the noise. Someplace where the gentle rustle of leaves in the wind, chirping birds, and the quiet rumble of a drive down a gravel road creates a peaceful easy feeling.

Weddings

venue

Riley Kenny and Alyssa Aquilino found that place, west of Freeport: a special place for special events, in a rustic setting where life is laid back, and they’re inviting you to come play in their back yard.

Kenny and Aquilino rehabbed their century-old barn and surrounding landscape to create Ensign Jade Acres, an events venue where celebrations, weddings, business meetings and more can find a home in the heart of the country.

The name comes from the couple’s middle names — boyfriend and girlfriend, respectively — who came to the area in 2019 to live and establish a business of their own after spending several fasterpaced years in Florida. Now that they’ve traded The Sunshine State for The Prairie State, they’re happy to be able to slow things down a bit and enjoy the laid-back landscape in rural Stephenson County

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ENSIGN JADE cont’d from page 35 “When the sun sets, you have amazing rolling hills that make beautiful sunsets,” Kenny said. “The entire property had lots of potential even before we did any work. The barn was already in really good shape, and it really fit our vision extremely well.”

The peaked prairie-style barn has two floors: a bottom floor where people can hang out and get a drink at the bar, and a top floor for receptions and ceremonies under a wide-open wood panel ceiling, rafters, and a large chandelier. The bottom floor also has a side room, converted from former storage, where you can chat in a smaller and quieter setting.

The couple spent the better part of four years converting the barn to an events venue, finally opening June 17. Along the way, they decided to stay true to the barn’s roots as much as possible. They didn’t just run to a big box store to grab a quick fix — they went to a big barn instead, searching out other old barns for parts and pieces to retain a fully rustic look.

“We try to keep it as original as possible,” Aquilino said. “We didn’t want to put anything showy or fancy in here because we want it to stay rustic. It’s laid back and doesn’t feel so uptight.”

The barn’s hayloft ramp was a big project during the rehab: It went from being incomplete to a full restoration, allowing people access to the second floor from the outside. The wide-open grassy area, with large oak trees off to the side, provides a perfect backdrop for a wedding, with seating provided by former church pews and wood planks across hay bales.

Come nightfall, there’s a fire pit area where guests can enjoy the warmth of friends and family with a crackling fire under the stars.

Outdoor barn-style weddings and their receptions have become popular in recent years, Kenny said, and he and Aquilino have brought their own touch to the trend.

“When you’re talking about weddings, this is the way that people want to go,” Kenny said.

“People want that eclectic feeling, being inside a place that used to operate a hundred years ago and is still standing the way it is.”

ENSIGN JADE cont’d to page 38

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Riley Kenny and Alyssa Aquilino have turned a century-old barn and surrounding property into Ensign Jade Acres, where they host weddings, parties and corporate events in a purely rustic setting – and miles away from highways C /C and towns.

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ENSIGN JADE cont’d from page 36 PHOTOS: CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM, AND SUBMITTED

In staying true to the barn’s character, Ensign Jade Acres owners Riley Kenny and Alyssa Aquilino have added touches of rural decor throughout — barrels as buffers around poles (facing page), a mixture of different dining room chairs, and other touches of country charm. Accomodations can be made for outdoor events, too, with seating available for set-up, and a firepit where guests can enjoy the warmth of a fire, and each others’ company.

The couple’s idea for the place came after they attended a wedding of a friend of Kenny’s in Florida. Kenny grew up on a horse farm near Marengo and later moved to Florida, where he met Aquilino. Both had experience in the hospitality business, and they wanted to use that to create an event venue of their own. They entertained several types of settings, but Kenny was sold on a rural and rustic Midwest farm atmosphere, something Aquilino didn’t have experience with.

When Kenny found a place for sale — and only about an hour’s drive away from his hometown — he was sold. He got everything lined up, bought it, and then phoned Aquilino to tell her they had their place.

She found herself part-owner of a place sight-unseen, but it didn’t take long for her to see why Kenny fell in love with it.

What’s made their relationship successful is the trust they have in one another, they said.

“It’s out here in the middle of nowhere, so there’s not a lot of traffic that comes down the road,” she said.

Added Kenny: “We were looking at different avenues to start something together. We had attended a wedding of my family’s at another venue, and it kind of sparked the interest. We kind of got our feet wet, looked at some places in Florida, but I kind of fell in love with the country theme.”

Customers fell in love, too.

The couple held a grand opening celebration with a small craft and food vendor show and live music from country musician Gabe Schillman, but when they were getting the word out about it on social media, they weren’t sure how many people to expect.

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They needn’t have worried. People showed up, and kept showing up, and the crowd exceeded their expectations.

“It was an amazing turnout,” Aquilino said. “There were more people than what we had imagined. We started the day a little nervous about how many people were going to show up, and all of those cars started coming down the driveway — it was an overwhelming feeling because we’ve worked so hard for this, and people appreciated everything that we had done.”

When Aquilino isn’t tending to the venue business, she enjoys crafting and repurposing old wine bottles into art, using paint, glitter or epoxy. Some of her handiwork can be seen on reception tables in the barn. Her love for crafting inspired the idea for a craft show that will take place both inside and outside the barn on Oct. 28, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a $3 parking charge.

In addition to exhibiting several local crafts and goods, trick-or-treating activities also are planned for the kids, and they’re encouraged to come in costume.

“We really want to dive into a lot of community-driven activities,” Aquilino said. “We picked a day close to Halloween so kids A can come out and do some trick-or-treating around the booths, and .C O M parents can do some shopping for the holidays. All of the vendors are local, and we’re promoting their businesses as well.”

While weddings — some already booked into 2025 — bring most of the business to the venue, the couple welcomes other special events, too: birthdays, graduations, corporate retreats, business meetings, fundraisers … if you need some space, they’ve got the place.

“We want to treat this place as an all-event venue that people can come and treat as their own personal back yard,” Kenny said.

“That’s an atmosphere that we would like to create. When you get into those more industrial places, it’s not so welcoming, so we want to have a place where people can be comfortable coming and having their corporate picnic, birthday party, graduation party, any type of event. For corporate parties, they can come and see this place like a big back yard, without that feel of being at work.”

The couple lives on the property, making it easier for them to be offer tours for prospective clients, book events, and get things set up.

“We like to take each event, no matter what it is, into consideration and see exactly what the host wants their party to look like,” Kenny said.

“They can come in and see our space, and there may be something specific that they go, ‘Can we do this or that?’ And we’ll do our best to accommodate that. We are extremely involved in each event, and we will be in the future.”

While Ensign Jade is open for business, it’s still a work in progress.

The couple is working to expand the barn’s private bridal party areas, and they’d eventually like to utilize the concrete silo next to the barn. While finding a new use for a silo may seem like a tall order, if they can turn a barn into a successful event venue, then they shouldn’t have any problem reaching for the sky. Hard work and creativity have proven to be a successful formula so far.

“It’s taken a lot of blood, sweat and tears to make it work this way,” Kenny said. “Once you put it on paper how much we’ve done, it was a lot of work.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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Ensign Jade Acres is located at 7111 W. Dublin Road in rural Freeport, 4 miles east of state Route 73. Find it on Facebook or Instagram (@ensign.jade.acres), go to ensignjadeacres.com, email ensignjade@ gmail.com or call 847-417-9496 for booking inquiries or for more information.

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hen the bride-to-be stands in front of friends and family on her big day, she has the undivided attention of the person standing beside her.

When she stands in front of the mirror at Savy’s Chic Bridal Boutique in Dixon, she gets the same sort of attention.

It’s that personalized service that owner Savana Porter prides herself on at her downtown shop — no distractions, no other customers, just time for you and your dress.

Unlike some dress stores where walk-ins are welcomed, Savy’s Chic Bridal Boutique takes clients by appointment only — brides in twohour blocks and bridesmaids an hour.

SAVY’S cont’d to page 42

At left, Bliss pulls out one of the more than 300 different dresses that brides and bridesmaids can choose from at Savy’s Chic.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@ SHAWMEDIA.COM

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SAVY’S cont’d from page 41

Savy’s Chic Bridal Boutique owner Savana Porter SUBMITTED PHOTO

Porter and store manager Kelle Bliss have visited several bridal stores where staff can be prone to distraction while helping brides find their “A-ha” moment. The phone may ring or another employee may need them for something — but not at Savy’s Chic, where nothing else matters to the staff other than the customer they’re working with.

“It helps the bride know that this isn’t like coming into another store,” Bliss said. “We’re not a chain bridal store, and we want this to look as intimate as possible. It’s kind of like when you get your hair cut: You have your set appointment, your guy’s paying attention to you as it’s your time in the seat. That’s how we set it up with appointments, with you being No. 1 to us right now. This is your time slot — no one else is coming through the door and we don’t answer phone calls; you have our undivided attention for two hours. That’s important to us to take care of our brides.”

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and drinks are provided so customers can take a break while they think things over.

Like the kinds of dresses they pick, there’s no one-size-fits-all kind of approach to taking care of customers. Some come in and know exactly what they want, some might have just a general idea but need some guidance with their gown, while others are like a blank slate, browsing the gowns to see what’s available and going from there. Some come in with a dress in mind, but then find something else they like instead. Whatever they’re looking for, Savy’s will help them find it.

The boutique opened in 2015 with just a small rack of about 15 stock dresses. These days, customers have a lot more to choose from — the shop boasts an inventory of more than 300 dresses, each one different.

“We like to only pick based on designers, and we’ll see their next year’s line,” Bliss said.

“When we pick ones, we’ll look at what we already have inventory-wise and not get repetitive. For a bride, we want them to come in and have each dress be uniquely different.”

SAVY’S cont’d to page 43

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SAVY’S cont’d from page 42 With so many one-of-a-kind dresses to pick from, what you see today may change tomorrow, so the boutique When Savy’s Chic opened encourages customers to in 2015, there was just a come prepared to make their single rack of 15 dresses to pick — wear the right clothes choose from. Now there for trying on dresses and are more than 300. bring the right people.

“You never know when the moment’s going to come when you find your dress,” Bliss said. “A lot of times a bride will come in and she won’t have her mom with her, or her friends with her. You want to make sure that you’re ready, because once you put on the dress, the dress finds you. So once you put it on, and that’s the dress, even when you’re not expecting it, you may have this overwhelming feeling of, ‘This is my dress,’ but then you realize that Mom’s not here and we have to put a halt on things. We have this special moment, and we want to make sure that we can kind of harness it as much as possible so Mom can see her face, or a friend or Grandma. The FaceTime app comes in handy.”

SAVY’S cont’d to page 44

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SAVY’S cont’d from page 43 They also advise customers to come wearing nude undergarments and a strapless bra or sticky cups to help ensure a proper fit. Come natural, too, with only light makeup and no perfume or lotion that will rub off on the dresses.

Another trousseau tip: Make sure and allow enough time for alterations. Brides-to-be should start thinking about what they want a year ahead of the wedding date, Bliss said. The process of customizing a dress can take anywhere from five to eight months, with another two months for any final alterations.

Bliss shows some of the Modifications can differ depending on the deveils available at Savy’s Chic signer, Bliss said. Dresses can come unlined or Bridal Boutique. The shop lined, with different sleeve styles (with sleeves, also carries jewelry to acsleeveless, off-the-shoulder sleeves), and with cessorize your dress. underlays in different colors.

“About 99 percent of the time, the dress is going to come in — even if it is in your size — it’s going to have to fit you perfectly, so it’s going to need some sort of alteration. I’d give it two months for that, and then another month of nothing to do with the dress; it’s just hanging in your closet waiting for you to wear it.”

Looking for a style you may have seen when you weren’t looking for a wedding dress, but would like to find it now?

The shop also keeps discontinued styles on hand.

SAVY’S cont’d to page 45

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SAVY’S cont’d from page 44 Dresses can also be bought off the rack, but the feeling of having a customized wedding dress is a much better experience, Bliss said. Stock inventory sizes range from 6 to 30, and sizes up to 38 can be ordered.

When shopping for a dress, brides will want to bring people they trust for feedback and help. About five people is the right amount, Bliss said.

“We always say that you want to come with the people that you want there, not too many and not too few,” she said. “With too many people, you could have too many opinions. With too few, you feel like you’re kind of alone.”

Savy’s Chic also offers 30-minute appointments for accessory appointments for brides to go through veils, back pieces, jewelry and other items. Veils come in various lengths, shorter ones all the way up to longer cathedral-style veils.

The staff has put together a frequently asked questions guide on its website — savyschic.com — that helps brides and their friends navigate through the steps of picking out a dress.

The process of finding the perfect wedding dress can be a big decision — even overwhelming to some, but Porter and Bliss can turn a nervous client into a savvy shopper.

All it takes is some one-on-one time.

“I really enjoy working with brides,” Bliss said. “The moment when they find their dress, sometimes I shed tears as well. I like reliving that over and over again. I love that we can be a part of their special day in that little way.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

Savy's Chic Bridal Boutique, 111 S. Hennepin Ave. in Dixon, is open by appointment only. Appointments for brides are two hours, bridesmaids for one hour and accessory additions for 30 minutes. Find it on Facebook or Instagram, go to savyschic.com, email hello@savyschic.com or call 815-677-9579 to schedule appointments or for more information.

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Rhett Roethe saw an opportunity to spread his culinary creativeness to more than just his familiar confines of Carroll County, he came up with a way to put his his plans in motion — and all he needed was a set of wheels and the open road.

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COD

Y CU

T T ER /C C

U TT ER @ S AUK V AL LE

Y.C O M

Rhett Roethe owns 3-Headed Monster BBQ, a Shannonbased food truck and catering business that make the rounds at events, parties and established stops in Freeport, Sterling (seen below) and Fulton. Roethe’s meals on wheels is one of the longest operating food trucks in the area.

About a decade ago, Roethe decided to jump on the bandwagon — and into a food truck — of a business model that had been becoming popular in larger markets, but was largely unseen around here at the time. Today, he’s still cooking, as the head chef of 3-Headed Monster BBQ, and has become a dean of sorts as trail(er)-blazer in the local food truck industry.

Roethe’s food truck, decked out in a log-cabin wrap, puts his menu in motion at regular stops and at events throughout the area as well as Weddings banquets, reunions, parties food and other special occasions, barbecuing beef, chicken and pork, and serving sandwiches, brisket, ribs and other dishes.

Among the stops he makes are weddings, where he can either roll up to the reception and serve guests from his truck, or just bring the meats and cater to your wedding wishes with a buffet-style set-up.

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Roethe has appeared regularly in Freeport since 2010 and Sterling since 2015, and has seen a lot A mishandled menu can leave a bad taste in a reception-goers’ during his time in the food truck business — mouth, so that’s why Roethe “been there and done that,” he said. makes it his goal to make sure “When we started in 2010, in northwhen people are talking west Illinois there were no food trucks,” about his food, they only Roethe said. “You had festival trucks, have good things to say. you had carnival trucks, but you did “I always tell the wednot see daily runners.” ding couples that we shoot Roethe started 3-Headed Monster to be the second-most in 2009 as a catering business born talked about thing at their Derek from his passion for barbecue meat. wedding,” Roethe said. “We Schubert After about a year, he started to beonly want to lose out to the of 3-Headed Moncome interested in the idea of a food bride’s presence, dress and ster BBQ serves a cup truck, having learned about them beauty.” of pork Monster Bites to from a fellow barbecuer. There was Want to get a taste of what RoStephanie Dusing, owner of just one problem: There were no ethe has to offer? You can stop by one Behrz-Bloomz flower shop rules of the road. At the time, few the places where he makes the rounds in Sterling, one of the counties had codes on the books for during the spring, summer and fall. truck’s regular food trucks. stops.

In 2023, he made regular stops at Behrz-Bloomz “The Carroll County Health Departflower shop at the corner of Locust Street and Lynn Boulevard ment and us kind of learned together,” Roethe in Sterling, as well as CVS Pharmacy near the busy intersection said, and other counties would eventually follow suit. “It’s a lot of state Route 26 and South Street in Freeport. That may sound more regulated today than it was when we first started because like a few miles between stops, but the two locations are about they didn’t have food trucks around.” the same driving distance from Roethe’s pits and kitchen in Shannon.

BBQ cont’d to page 51

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PHOTOS: 3-HEADED MONSTER BBQ FACEBOOK PAGE

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SAUKVALLEY.COM

Left: Cup of pork, anyone? These pork Monster Bites are one of 3-Headed BBQ’s most popular menu items.

Top: Why choose between Italian beef and a beer brat when you can have both? The Smoky Combo is a rotating menu item.

Bottom: Brisket on a bun anyone? 3-Headed Monster BBQ piles on the meat for its brisket sandwich.

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BBQ cont’d from page 49 Pork, brisket and chicken are the main meats on the menu, with pulled pork sandwiches, brisket sandwiches, and Monster Bites (pork chunks) among 3-Headed Monster’s most popular items.

Roethe piles on nearly a pound of pulled pork and brisket on the buns, while the Monster Bites weigh in about the same.

The trio of heaping helpings are menu staples at each of the food truck stops, with the rest of the menu rounded out by about 25 other items on a rotating basis, some of which include a pork loin, BBQ chicken thigh sandwich, smoked Italian beef sandwiches, smoked beer brats, and even a “smokey” combination of Italian beef on top of a beer brat.

“Our food truck menu, in my eyes, the coolest food truck menu that you’re going to find,”

Roethe said. “We change it every day. We have about 25 to 28 different meats that we rotate, so when you come to our truck you’re always going to find something different.”

Roethe strives to make everything from scratch when possible, avoiding things that are boxed, canned or processed. On top of all of the meat, sides such as Brunswick stew (veggie soup with brisket, pulled pork and chicken), 3-beef, 3-pepper smokey chili (brisket, New York strip steak meat and ground beef; with bell, poblano, jalapeño peppers) are offered; as well as smokey jambalaya, cheesy potatoes, green bean casserole, nachos, beans and macaroni and cheese.

The meat is cooked in Shannon and kept hot and ready to serve on the truck, which is manned by either himself, a family member or friends.

Stops are posted each week on the 3-Headed Monster Facebook page.

“The quality of the food is our main goal,” Roethe said. “Everyone wants to come knowing that when they order, say, a brisket sandwich that it’s going to taste like the brisket sandwich they had the last time. That’s our No. 1 goal, to make people happy and let them know that they can come back for a third time or a fourth time.”

Payment is cash or Venmo (an online payment app for smartphones that uses a QR-code attached to the window).

BBQ cont’d to page 52

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BBQ cont’d from page 51

Find 3-Headed Monster BBQ on Facebook to check out where its food truck will be.

Carryout also is available at its kitchen at 118 N. Stanton St. in Shannon. Email 3hmbbq@gmail.com or send a message through Facebook Messenger to place a custom order, arrange for an event, or for more information.

On top of making the usual rounds in Freeport and Sterling, Roethe recently has established a semi-regular stop at The Dispensary in Fulton, on the corner of state Routes 84 and 136. His calendar is full of special events, birthday and corporate parties, weddings and the occasional fair, so booking as early as possible is advised.

He also offers carryout from his Shannon kitchen and pits, too, with orders taken in advance via email or Facebook Messenger and picking it up there. The carryout service is especially popular with part-time homeowners from the Chicago area who retreat to private communities such as Lake Carroll, just a few miles west of his home base in Shannon, as well as Apple River Canyon and the Galena Territory in Jo Daviess County. People also have come to truck stops from cities such as Rockford and Dubuque after hearing from outof-towners about his food.

“We grow by word of mouth and by referrals by the quality of our food,” Roethe said.

Words aren’t the only thing to come out of people’s mouth and give the business a plug — there are the smiles, too. That’s something Roethe has been used to with his past experience

as a youth counselor.

“Serving and cooking food has some of the same effects as counseling, because we’re making people feel good,” Roethe said. “When people enjoy our food, you see the smiles on their faces and the ‘thank you’s for what we do for them, whether it’s to me or the person in the truck serving them, it brings a smile to our face to see how they enjoy what we are offering.”

As with any business, there’s always competition, which doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Competition can be healthy for businesses, Roethe said, as long as vendors are respectful of properties and other businesses. With 13 years experience under his apron, he’s been able to become a mentor of sorts for others who look at a food truck and think, “That’s a neat way to make a buck.” Indeed, more food trucks have popped up in recent years, manned by aspiring entrepreneurs who want to bring their own blend of cuisine to more people.“The food truck is not going anywhere,” Roethe said — except to more destinations.

“It’s only going to grow, what with the overhead costs of brick-and-mortar and changing times. The food truck industry is a way for some to get into the business, and for others to be more mobile and accessible for others to get to places.” n

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