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Real Weddings:

Michelle and Nick’s Old New York wedding

featuring Khaki Bedford Photography

Michelle and Nick are creative types who wanted an Old New York vibe for their wedding day—think classic, timeless, refined, traditional yet modern with 1950’s flair. The ceremony and reception were help at Bryant Park Grill with florals by Greenpoint Floral. We’re loving the authentic retro styling of the bride and groom—those red lips! Sarina and Quyn of Khaki Bedford Photography were the perfect vendor choice for the couple capturing all the moments of the day their signature photojournalism style.

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From Sarina + Quyn, Khaki Bedford Photo: Michelle + Nick were such a fun couple to work with! We always love working with creative types (Nick is into painting, music and fashion design; Michelle video installation, fashion and projection) and these two were no exception. For their wedding though, they decided to go for a more traditional/old school NY vibe and they just nailed it! Think Old New York (classic, timeless, refined); traditional yet modern. Michelle’s style was that of a 1950’s movie star with her Bettie Page bangs, vintage inspired long-sleeved lace dress and red lips; ready and eager to flash a smile. And then Nick with his white tux! It was all very old school and just perfect! And also just so fitting that the wedding took place at the plaza, an homage to Old New York and classic style. The guests were also dressed to the nines in timeless black tie attire. The bridesmaids wore full length vintage-inspired gowns and one in a pantsuit – again, perfectly classic and modern!

During portraits, there was such a palpable energy walking the streets of New York with Michelle and Nick. The city moving past and the two of them just so, so happy and everyone cheering and offering congratulatory words. We used the steps of the NY Public Library for the first look and the columns were such a perfect backdrop!

The ceremony took place on the rooftop of the Bryant Park Grill long after sunset so it was very dark and moody, basically lit by the surrounding City lights! Dark venues can sometimes be challenging to photograph, but we love the feel of intimate and moody light.

Lastly, the reception really was just like one huge party. You could just feel the energy from all of the guests! A lot of weddings have a lull when dinner is served and this wedding seemed to dance right over that into the evening. Everyone was truly there to have a good time!

Photography: Khaki Bedford Photography (Sarina + Quyn) // Florist: Greenpoint Floral // Getting Ready Venue: Bryant Park Hotel // Ceremony + Reception Venue: Bryant Park Grill // Hair + make up: Adrian Alvarado // Dress: Custom Design by Shareen // Bride’s Shoes: Rochas // Groom’s Suit: Jacket – John Varvatos / Everything Else –  Baldwins Formals // Rings: Custom design (engagement ring using diamonds from groom’s grandmother’s ring)

 

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Real Weddings:

Anna and Zack’s wedding in Southern Maine

Photos by Emily Delamater

There was never a questions about where Anna and Zack would marry. Kennebunkport, in Southern Maine, had become the couple’s happy place, an escape from NYC and somewhere they shared a lot of special memories with family and friends. They enlisted Emily Elizabeth Events to design and plan their ceremony at St. Ann’s Episcopal Church and reception at Breakwater Inn and the details are absolutely stunning. Rainy day vibes and a striking, rich palette make this one stand out with florals by Watershed Floral and invitations and paper by Parrott Design Studio. See all the beautiful inspiration in these images by Emily Delamater.

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From the bride: For Zack and I there was never a question we would get married anywhere else other than Maine. Over the 8 years of our relationship, Southern Maine had become our happy place, an escape from NYC and somewhere we shared a lot of special memories with family and friends over the years. It’s also where we got engaged!

We selected our reception and ceremony venues for their breathtaking beauty, views and for the intimacy they both provided. After visiting only two other venues, it was not a difficult decision.

We both have small families and a close knit group of friends, each of whom we value dearly, and wanted the day to feel very personal and filled with love. We just could not wait to share our special place with all of them!

Between the amazing band, flowers, and all of the personal details (especially the pie); there is not a single thing we would change. Even a little rain while walking down the aisle provided us with some of the most moving moments we will surely never forget.

Photography: Emily Delamater // Event Planning and Design: Emily Elizabeth Events // Florals: Watershed Floral // Invitation and Paper Goods: Parrott Design Studio // Wedding Reception Venue, Catering, and Pie: Breakwater Inn // Ceremony: St. Ann’s Episcopal Church // Hair and Makeup: Ariel Johnson // Bride’s Gown: Rosa Clara // Bride’s Shoes: L.K. Bennett // Groom’s Tux: Alton Lane // Groomsmen Suits: Owned by Groomsmen // Groomsmen Ties: J. Crew // Bridesmaids’ Gowns: Adrianna Papell // Rehearsal Dinner: Hattie’s // Caterer for Rehearsal Dinner: Blue Elephant // Tent and Lighting Design: Sperry Tents Seacoast // Rentals: Exeter Events, One Stop Event Rentals, Emily Elizabeth Events, and Parrott Design Studio // Band: Bob Charest Band // Transportation for Rehearsal Dinner: Bo-Mar Transportation // Transportation for Wedding: Intown Trolley

 

Real Weddings:

Alma and Luis’ wedding Quail Ranch

photography by Jenny Smith & Co.

Alma and Luis’ wedding at Quail Ranch is filled with colorful details that compliment the venue’s Spanish style and add personality to the day designed by In Focus Events. The full, bold florals by Unique Floral Designs are filled with giant dahlias, hydrangeas, peach roses, and accented by deep plum and magenta blooms. We’re loving the groom’s retro flair—all the way down to his personal vintage cadillac get-away ride. And, the hand-painted Mexican piggy bank gifts are adorable. See all the details and the pure joy of the lovely couple in these images by Jenny Smith & Co.

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What made the wedding special and unique?

There are many things that made our wedding special. For both of us, seeing all our family and friends come together was the most special thing. I had family fly in from Mexico which was very meaningful for me. My uncle was also our officiant and did a wonderful job. For Luis, having the Cadillac on site was special for him. Since he purchased the car he has dedicated a lot of time to fixing it up and envisioned getting married in it. We loaded up the car the day before the wedding and came back in it as a married couple.

Tell us about the gown and where/how you found it!

I wanted something I could dance in and envisioned something fitted at the top and flowy at the bottom. When we went shopping my sister actually picked out the dress. I was a bit hesitant at first because it was part of Martina Liana’s separate collection, so a bit unconventional, but once I tried it on I loved it. The corset was very romantic and fit the Spanish style of the venue. I first found the dress in Pasadena, CA but had one more appointment at The Dress in Santa Barbara, CA so I waited. When I arrived at my appointment in Santa Barbara the owner pulled out the same dress for me. I tried it on one more time and just knew it was the one. I kept swaying side to side in it; I could see myself at the wedding.

What were some touches added to make the wedding personal?

My mom bought these beautiful hand painted piggy banks from our hometown in Mexico. She found an artist to paint them for us and write our names and wedding date on them. They became not only our wedding favors but also the name cards for our guests. The display table had a sign that read, “Be rich in love,” to fit the piggy bank theme. Our guests loved them! In addition to the piggy banks my mom also picked up some blue tiles with numbers from Mexico to serve as our table numbers. They were a nice touch to the Spanish style of the venue.

What was the most memorable part of the day?

I would have to say reading our vows and the poems we selected. We each wrote our own vows and selected a poem to read during our ceremony. I read Ana Castillo’s poem, I Ask The Impossible, which I have always loved. Luis surprised me when he decided to write his own poem! It was a very emotional moment for both of us.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

The short version: We met through a mutual friend, Ambar, who was also one of my bridesmaids. At the time, Ambar worked for the UFW (United Farm Workers) and Luis was at a fundraising event she had organized. They connected over some Santana shoes that Luis had bid on. Fast forward to my birthday celebration at the Conga Room where Luis was there celebrating one of his friends. He asked me to dance and Ambar encouraged me to give him a chance since she knew him. We had a great time dancing and the rest is history.

 

Alma + Luis : Quail Ranch Simi Valley CA from David Chaidez Cinema on Vimeo.

Photography: Jenny Smith & Co. // Planner: In Focus Events // Paper Goods: Hadley Designs // Florals: Unique Floral Designs // Venue: Quail Ranch // Entertainment: DJ Lunatic // Ceremony Music: Mariachi Imperial de Mexico // Videography: David Chaidez Cinema // Hair & Make Up: Girl Meets Bongga // Photo Booth: PixaBooth // Dessert: Porto’s Bakery & Cafe // Rentals & Lighting: Party Pleasers // Catering: Command Performance Catering

 

Real Weddings:

Lindsay and Amos’ wedding at Parker Palm Springs

featuring Mi Belle Photographers

Lindsay and Amos took a cue from their venue, the Parker Palm Springs, as well as Lindsay’s antique emerald engagement stunner when designing the elements of their wedding celebration. With help from Artisan Events the couple incorporated vintage vibes into their adorable stationery by Anticipate Invitations (sandpaper mountains everyone!), vintage cocktail glasses hand-chosen for each guest and macrame owls made by the grooms mother on each table. Punchy, pink, graphic florals and elegant family-style tables added balance to the look while the bride’s relaxed glamour in Monique Lhuillier sets the tone of the event. Lucky for us, Mi Belle Photographers were on had to capture all the details and we’re thrilled to share the photographs with you today!

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What made the wedding special and unique?

Fitting with our venue and my engagement ring (an antique), we took inspiration from vintage Palm Springs and wove that into all elements of the wedding. Some examples:

Our invitation featured a vintage Palm Springs postcard replica as the reply card, as well as sandpaper mountains! We also used unique vintage Palm Springs postcard replicas as the place cards. Everything came complete with vintage desert stamps. We asked our guests to send us marital advice or well wishes with their place card postcards, and we love receiving them regularly as a fun memory.

My parents finally gave in to my begging them for years for a set of vintage Cera cocktail glasses with poison names on them. Inspired by these glasses, we collected enough (over a year on eBay, Etsy, and at thrift stores) that we gave one to each guest. We tried to make them fit each person as best as possible. We used them, and local Old Potrero whiskey (distilled down the street from us and named after our neighborhood), for a “whiskey toast” to kick off the dancing! And we also used vintage matchbooks on the escort cards, again trying to match to the individual.

We encouraged all guests to wear Palm Springs festive attire, particularly to the welcome drinks, and we had many come prepared in caftans, short suits, and palm-printed pants in return. Amos even wore a blue palm-printed suit to the rehearsal dinner and welcome!

Tell us about the gown and where/how you found it!

I spent a whole fun-filled day in New York shopping with my mom and some of my best friends / bridesmaids. I couldn’t decide on a gown at the time and decided I’d try two of Monique Lhuillier’s gowns again in SF. Of course, as it turned out, I ended up seeing and falling in love with a third I had never seen before, and that’s the one I went with. I switched into a very Palm Springs-y beaded party dress by Alice & Olivia to maximize the dancing!

There was another gown I fell in love with by Bo & Luca, at a small boutique in SF (Loho Bride). While it wasn’t “the one” for the wedding, I couldn’t help but wear it for the Rehearsal & Welcome as it fit perfectly with the Parker in its art deco look.

What were some touches added to make the wedding personal?

We wanted to make sure our personalities and things we love really shined through, as well as those of our loved ones. Some examples:

The Parker features a wall of macrame owls (and one two-story one). We shared a photo of the wall on one of our wedding planning visits, and Amos’ mother got a “hoot” out of it. She mentioned how she used to make similar ones a while back. Little did she know she was signing herself up to make one for each table. We now have them as our own owl wall at home!

We are huge board game players. We play a game together at least every other day. Thus, after spending a lot of time trying to find a book reading, we realized the most “us” thing to do would be a reading from the rule-book of a board game. Amos’ sister, also a board gamer herself, read it flawlessly, which was not easy!

We have two cats that sadly could not make the trip (as they don’t leave SF) — Agatha Kittie & Angela Lanspurry. That said, they were sure to sign the guestbook first. However, our love of cats showed up in our vows (and cat-themed books in which we wrote them) and pretty much every toast.

Amos’ best friend from high school and groomsman is a really talented musician, so we asked him to play acoustic guitar for the ceremony. He was the best sport, since we picked just about the most difficult songs, e.g., Lana Del Rey’s This is What Makes Us Girls (not out of cruelty but because we listened to that non-stop when first dating) — and he still killed it.

Lindsay’s friends have amazing personal senses of style, so bridesmaid attire was a no-brainer. She gave them the wedding colors and asked them all to pick long dresses or outfits. One bridesmaid even wore a Palm Springs-inspired caftan two days in a row!

What was the most memorable part of the day?

Definitely our vows. We wrote them ourselves, and even though we didn’t compare notes, they were so closely aligned that everyone assumed we wrote them together. We keep them in our bedside drawers, and it’s so fun to look back on them. We were able to capture a lot of the shared things we love and many inside jokes while still being fun for others to hear (I hope!).

Also up there was our “first swim” at the end of the night — we got a lot of guests into the pool with us.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

The story differs a bit on whether you ask Amos or Lindsay. We met through friends of friends but also at a trailer park-themed dive bar in San Francisco; the latter is a bit more fun to share. We quickly discovered a shared love of hiking, travel and adventures, board games, and takeout food. All of these occurred on our first date that lasted all day!

We grew to love day and weekend trips up to wine country from our home in SF, so Amos worked the engagement into one that we’d planned to ensure it was a surprise. After a wine tasting, we went for a hike in Calistoga, and Amos seemed anxious to find the best view possible and hurried up a rock. He had to propose quickly when I got up there as I kept saying how scared I was and threatening to go down, until he proposed of course. We finished the day with dinner and an overnight at my favorite spa.

lindsay + amos :: a parker palm springs wedding from Isabel Gonzalez on Vimeo.

Photographer: Mi Belle Photographers // Event Design, Day-of Coordination & Florals: Artisan Events // Stationery: Anticipate Invitations // Venue: Parker Palm Springs // Bride’s Gown Designer: Monique Lhuillier // Salon: Bridal Galleria // Hair & Makeup: Kacee Geoffroy Hair & MakeupVideography: Isabel Cinematheque

 

Real Weddings:

Luisa and Francesco’s Frida Kahlo wedding in Italy

photography by Studio AQ

YOU GUYS! We are so excited to share this fabulous Italian wedding designed by Grey Collective member Chic Weddings in Italy with you. From the Frida Kahlo-inspired reception under the cafe lights on the couple’s recently restored B&B in Ceglie Messapica, to the bride’s rad style accentuated with the larger-than-life-amazing floral crown, this wedding is oozing with style. We’re loving the romance of the family-style reception and the florals by Flower Addicted are the perfect amount of artsy. Studio AQ was on hand to work their fabulous photo magic and we’re so happy to be sharing the gorgeous photographs of Luisa and Francesco’s wedding with you.

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What made the wedding special and unique?

We were lucky enough to get to celebrate our wedding in a special venue: our home! We have recently renovated an old trullo property in Ceglie Messapica, in the heart of Itria Valley and transformed it into “Fikus” a small boutique B & B so it was the perfect occasion to gather our very big Italian families and friends from all over Italy and Europe to be with us on our special day. It was so emotional we got to celebrate our wedding in our very own nest we have created with so much passion and heart. Plus the work that the CW team and the florist have done was amazing – we were all in awe!

Tell us about the gown and where/how you found it!

I had something completely different in my mind and wanted something more ” Gatsby – like ” but eventually in the last atelier I went, the dress was just there awaiting for me! The atelier manager opened these huge wardrobes with amazing floating dresses and the only thing I was attracted to was this tiny impalpable lace long sleeve – so I asked “What about this one?” and so I was actually choosing my own dress. It’s the Villaroel dress from Yolancris, and honestly I never thought this kind of dress would do for my body type but I felt so comfortable in it and started giggling when I had it on. Of course I added my special styling and twist: I wore it with no under-gown, I added the golden belt and the D&G like vintage crown for the party , and I just felt it was so much my style.

What were some touches added to make the wedding personal?

I have always been passionate about Frida Kahlo and her art but in the recent years I got to see this amazing exhibition in Rome all by myself – so I spent three hours wandering around her pieces and her life and it really got into me. Also Francesco and I share this idea of love that goes beyond formality and cliches and we really wanted to express it . So it was inevitable somehow to get her style as major inspiration for our big day.

The floral crown was the killer – Francesco and all the guests went nuts about the bold flowers and everyone kept asking about it. Channeling Frida all day was our way to make the wedding so very deeply personal.

What was the most memorable part of the day?

I am a control freak and although everything was perfect and everyone had great time, I was stressed out the majority of the time!

It had been a crazy day and I had been spinning around a lot. But the most memorable moment of the day was driving back from the castle where the ceremony was held to our B & B. We were in the car with Marta from Studio A+Q and the driver and it was like any other day – it was perfection. Francesco and I chatting and giggling and really feeling the love. The light was perfect, the warm summer wind, the anticipation of what we were about to see, it was those perfect 15 minutes we will never forget.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

Francesco and I are both originally from Puglia but had never met until we were both living as expat in Brussels. Oh, yes life is funny! We got together in 2012 and by then Francesco had decided to move back to Puglia for its own start up, I basically quit my job and went back to live with him, leaving everyone in shock! But love wins it all! The idea of Fikus came a little bit later and it has been the center of our life for the past years, so the perfect ending to our project was to celebrate our love there.

Francesco proposed on the rooftop of our house on a sunny September Sunday morning with my favorite Juste un clou ring by Cartier – surrounded by ancient olive trees and a construction site work in progress for the renovation. One of those (im)perfect moments that are unforgettable!

Event Design and Production: Chicweddingsinitaly // Photography: Studio AQ // Florals: Flower Addicted // Invitations: Otto piu’ otto // Venue: FIKUS The Apulian B&B // Second Shooter: Paolo Manzi // Catering: Chez vous // Bridal Gown: Yolan Cris // Bridesmaids Dress: Vila