Here is a riddle for you. What is better than a wedding filled with so many gorgeous flowers, from Hana Floral Design no less, you’ll be sneaking sniffs of your computer screen, a bride and groom who met on parallel mats in nursery school, and a tent lit up like the starry night sky to dance the night away under? Answer: All of the above plus Sarah Bastille Photography behind the lens. You’re in for a real treat á la Connecticut in this full image gallery!
And of course, we couldn’t say no to the video from The Light Mill Film Studios!
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Click here to see the full image gallery!
It’s hard to believe that Ryan and I met 25 years ago in nursery school! We became great friends and remained that way all through high school. Since our last names both began with “G” we frequently chatted at our lockers between classes. Ryan always made me laugh and apparently I made him smile. But, we didn’t start dating until we went our separate ways off to college – Ryan was at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, PA and I was at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. Our first week home on break, we spent many nights hanging out with our friends, just like we did in high school… with one difference. After that week home, Ryan and I realized that we couldn’t be without each other. We dated long distance for several years after, and ultimately moved to Boston together.
Ryan’s proposal was long-awaited to say the least. We had been dating for about ten years and everyone was wondering when it would happen. I hadn’t lost faith. The night before my graduation from business school, Ryan planned a big night, starting with flowers, champagne, and a proposal! We spent the night celebrating out in Boston, in between excited phone calls with family and friends.
When we started planning our wedding, we had three things in mind: 1) We wanted our wedding to be unique, something nobody else had seen before; 2) We wanted the location to have a view, more than just four enclosed walls; 3) We wanted our guests, some of whom we had been friends with for more than two decades, to have a blast! We found all of that and more at Jonathan Edwards Winery. The second I stepped foot at the winery, I knew I was in love! The winery is breathtaking, with stretching rows of vines that go off into the horizon, rose bushes and stone walls scattered throughout the property, and a rustic wine-tasting building, white with a red roof. We felt like we were a world away from the craziness of our everyday life.
We had the best vendors to work with! All of our stationary was custom-design watercolors made by Griffin-vites. The save-the-dates were fun and whimsical, with corks aimlessly dropping onto the card. The details were exquisite! Our names and wedding date were etched into the falling corks. Our invitations were more formal, portraying rows of vines at the winery and capturing the beauty of the landscape and beautiful rose bushes that mark the end of each row. We wanted our guests to have a glimpse of what the wedding day would look like and the invitations succeeded in doing this. Griffin-vites also created our escort cards, menus and table numbers, tying in the same look. To make our table numbers more personal, we had a sentence on each card, describing a story related to that number. For example, Table 1 was, “The first time Beth & Ryan professed their love for each other was New Year’s Day 2001 (1-1-01).”
We were incredibly lucky to have blue skies on our wedding day – especially since weather reports showed thunderstorms all week. Perfect weather meant we could have our ceremony outside in between the two sections of vines. One of the most special parts of planning was putting together the ceremony. Ryan and I are from different religions, so we selected readings and blessings from each of our faiths to make the ceremony more personal. One of the readings was an excerpt from, “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten.” The reading was meaningful to us, since our relationship goes so far back. One of the DIY projects we took on was making the ceremony programs. We collected hundreds of Jonathan Edwards Winery corks, drilled holes through the middle, and thread them through wine-colored ribbon around the programs. Many of our other details we found on Etsy, including some rustic wooden signs, cork place card holders, and old-fashioned straws.
The reception was held in a tent and we really wanted the décor to be elegant and alluring. We had a checkered black and white dance floor and string lights all over the ceiling of the tent, which gave a shimmering fun atmosphere. We worked with Yumiko from Hana Floral Designs to put together the most beautiful and unique arrangements. Instead of just one type of arrangement, we chose three different low arrangements that were interspersed throughout the tables –a silver mercury glass compote arrangement, a glass compote arrangement, and a trio of glass cylinder vases with single-flower compositions. Our colors were various shades of purple – lavender, magenta, plum – and an unpredictable touch of peach. We were truly overwhelmed by the magnificence of the tent – the abundance of flowers, the glittering lights, and the liveliness of the band.
Food was one the best parts of wedding planning, as anyone who knows us knows that we like to eat! We chose foods that were a twist on some of our favorite things – coconut shrimp with pineapple aioli, peach, prosciutto & brie quesadillas, and caramelized onion and mushroom tartlets. Anticipating a hot day, we served a welcome drink of peach mango fizz that was delicious! For dessert, in addition to wedding cake, we had a gelato station that enabled our guests to take a break from dancing and cool off. We got ice cream cone wrappers on Etsy that read “I love you” in script all over. Lastly, cookies are one of my favorite foods, so at the end of the night, A Thyme to Cook put together chocolate chip cookie favors for our guests to take home.
The whole day was spectacular! We are grateful to our vendors who made our wedding everything we had hoped it would be. It made us so happy to know our guests had the best time too, dancing non-stop the whole night. And we even got a photo with several of our nursery school classmates! We only wish we could re-live the day over and over again.
Location: Jonathan Edwards Winery / Caterer: A Thyme to Cook / Event Design: The Bride / Photography: Sarah Bastille Photography / Floral Design: Hana Floral Design / Wedding Invitations and Stationery: Griffin-vites Watercolor Stationery / Wedding Coordinator: AmazingCelebrations / Videography: The Light Mill Film Studios / Band: Radiance via Wilson Stevens Productions / Hair & Makeup: Sara Faella / Officiants: Rabbi Lev Ba’esh and Dr. Reverend Robert Henderson / Bride’s Dress & Accessories: Marisa at Mariella’s Creations / Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew and David’s Bridal / Groomsman Suits: JoS. A. Bank