The Mansion at Natirar Wedding from Images by Berit, Inc.
As soon as this beautiful bride said yes to her handsome soon-to-be hubby, they toyed with the idea of going away to the Caribbean to marry in the sand - a prospect that tempts us all at some point or another, I'd say. But ultimately deciding to stay home so ALL their nearest and dearest could be at their lovely day lead to one of the most amazing designs I've seen in a classical East Coast wedding. Tropical decor. The day, as seen by Images by Berit, Inc., was gorgeous and hinted to a destination wedding which we love, more than a little bit. Click here to see it all!
Now it's time for a little more from the lovely Tweed Weddings...
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Danny and I met on the trading floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange, where I was interning and he was working at his first job out of college. Four and a half years later, he proposed at the exact spot on the trading floor where he asked me on our first date. My whole family was in on his plan, and they were all there to celebrate with us with champagne after he popped the question.
From the beginning of the planning process, we were searching for a unique venue with lots of character. I was especially interested in finding a place with beautiful grounds that would provide a good backdrop for outdoor pictures. We first heard about Natirar by word of mouth from friends of my family. It was still under renovation when we booked our date -- and the tent for the reception was not yet under construction! -- but the mansion and grounds were so beautiful, I knew it was the ideal venue for us. And all of our photos turned out even better than I could have asked for.
I wanted aspects of our wedding to feel cohesive, but it was hard at first to come up with a theme. When we were first engaged, Danny and I briefly discussed having a destination wedding in St. Thomas, one of our favorite places. In the end, our love of tropical locations helped us choose a theme. I chose bright, exotic flowers, named our tables after Caribbean islands and even surprised Danny with a steel drum band at the cocktail hour, where we featured tropical specialty drinks, like watermelon mojitos.
Family is very important to us, and we wanted to include them as much as we could during our big day. Our godparents did the readings during our Mass, one of my cousins sang, while another was an altar server and two more passed out programs. One of the songs during the Mass was actually a song featured at my parents' wedding. And my "something blue" was my grandmother's garter, which I was so grateful to be able to wear.
I'll never forget pulling up to the church with my dad, bridesmaids and flower girl in our trolley to see my youngest cousins jumping up and down on the church steps and waving to us with excitement. It meant so much to me that they were part of our big day.
We were so lucky all day with the weather -- steady rain was forecast for the entire day, but it held out all afternoon, allowing us to get great pictures outdoors and letting guests enjoy the mansion’s beautiful patio during cocktail hour. The skies finally opened up later in the evening, but at that point, everyone was safe and dry inside the tent and on the dance floor! Our band, New Power Soul, could not have been better. I'll never forget how much time they put into learning songs and getting our playlist just right -- it truly made the night amazing, and people are still talking about them!
Photography: Images by Berit, Inc. / Cinematography: Tweed Weddings / Flowers: Joe Longo, Crest Florist / Event Design + Planning: Mother of the bride / Wedding Gown Designer: Monique Lhuillier / Bride's Jewelry: Diamonds, U.S.A. / Bridesmaid’s Dress Designer: Jenny Yoo / Ceremony Location: St. Patrick's / Reception Location: The Mansion at Natirar / Invitations: Smock, Cambridge Street Papers / Cake: Joanne Costa, Sweet Swirl Cakes / Band: New Power Soul / Ensemble at church: The Amaryllis Ensemble / Makeup: Danielle Arminio / Calligraphy: Belles Lettres Calligraphy