It never fails, Judy Pak wows. WOWS I tell you. Her weddings are always stop-in-your-tracks gorgeous, and she has that classic elegance that never goes out of style down pat. She also seems to attract some of the most stylish clients, and this couple fits quite nicely into that category. Quite nicely indeed. And their Christmas in the City wedding? It’s perfection. See it all here!
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From the Bride… Doug Coon, my boyfriend of three years, proposed to me when we were in Paris in May 2011, and I ecstatically accepted. We are consummate New Yorkers — I am a director/producer and he works in finance as an attorney, and we love our city! I had always dreamed of a glamorous New York City evening wedding, and my favorite time in New York is the holiday season. Food, aesthetics and music were all very important to us. We did the planning on our own, without much help from our parents and no planner. Finding a venue in New York proved complicated for us. Years ago, I had torn out a photo in a magazine that featured a glamorous black tie wedding at the Pratt Mansions. We saw the space in person over Labor Day weekend and our decision, after having seen about 20 venues, was made for us. The Pratt Mansions really go wild with their décor at Christmas – wreaths are put on every window, there is a massive tree in the parlor, and there are poinsettias all over the venue.
My husband-to-be did not want to rush the process, but being a director and producer, I felt confident that I could pull off the planning in just three months, which is exactly what I did with a little help from our incredible vendors: Judy Pak, who took the dreamiest photos; Fernanda Coutinho of Petali, who made gorgeous bouquets and centerpieces; and Christopher Vincoli, who put together a spectacular, delicious menu. Our gorgeous city-specific invitations came from Cheree Berry. We got beautiful hand-drawn cards from Etsy that featured the twelve days of Christmas, our inspiration for the twelve tables our guests were seated at, for dinner. I collected sets of ornaments from eBay, which we hung on the Christmas tree. Each guest picked their ornament from the tree, which led them to their dinner tables. Friends of ours designed the menu cards, our itineraries and our thank-you notes, which were incredibly beautiful.
I wore a gold and ivory lace Monique Lhuillier gown I purchased at a trunk show in San Francisco where my sisters live. Our bridesmaids were our sisters, who wore fabulous full-length gowns by Two Birds Bridesmaid. Eva Fehren Fine Jewelry designed our wedding bands and my engagement ring. We were married by our best friend, who was ordained for the event. We had live music for the entire evening. The music included Orchestrations, who accompanied my friend Brooke during the ceremony, the awesome band New York City Swing led by Joe Shane, the cabaret darling Kathy Kaefer singing standards during dinner, Jack Spann playing Christmas tunes during the cocktail hour, and finally, I sang “The Rainbow Connection” to my new husband. It was the stuff of a perfect New York City night.
Wedding Photography: Judy Pak Photography / Photography Assistant: Falcon Griffith / Wedding Venue: The Pratt Mansions in New York, New York / Floral Design: Fernanda Coutinho of Petali NYC / Catering: Christopher Vincoli of Tastings / Wedding Invitations: Cheree Berry Paper / Menus, Itineraries + Thank-You Notes: Friends of the Couple / Music: Orchestrations, NYC Swing, Kathy Kaefer + Jack Spann / Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier / Bride’s Shoes: Manolo Blahnik / Hair: Peter from Extravaganza Hair Designs / Makeup: Katy Sullivan / Rings: Eva Fehren Fine Jewelry / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: twobirds