Today just so happens to be my birthday and I am thinking that Jenn & Dave Stark sent this Toronto wedding SMP’s way specifically for me. How they knew I love wildly romantic weddings full of candles and twinkle lights, I will never know but this is indeed the perfect gift for a wedding lover. Planned by Melissa Andre Events along with gorgeous white florals by Jackie O that pop against the backdrop of The Fermenting Cellar, the gallery for this shindig is a total must see. It’s all out romance with a side of delicious sparkle. See so much more right here.
Click here for the FULL wedding!
From the Bride… Jay and I met in university, where we were in many of the same classes. We have grown together over the past seven and a half years — graduating from university, traveling and starting our careers. We knew that we wanted to incorporate our lives together in Toronto into our wedding — we absolutely love our city and enjoy going for walks in our neighborhood, going out for dinner and just the bustle of city living. We visited a number of venues before seeing the Fermenting Cellar in one of our favorite areas of Toronto, The Distillery District. Once we saw the space, we knew that that was it. Our vision for the wedding was a warm, personal, friendly and fun affair. We spent many hours thinking of little ways that we could make our wedding truly “us,” and in the end, we were thrilled with the results. I am an avid reader of Style Me Pretty, and I found myself being drawn to similar wedding looks — tons of candles, lights and overall warmth. I love a clean palette, which we also reflect in our home, and wanted the same for the wedding. We stuck to a color scheme of white with gold accents and relied heavily on lighting to create the mood that we were looking for.
Luckily for me, my best friend and maid of honor is an extremely talented graphic designer, and we spent a number of evenings together designing many elements for the wedding, including our invitations, programs, menus, seating chart, place cards, chair signs, straw flags, coasters, tissue packets, and favors. Jay also indulged my love of details, and happily helped with everything from gluing in envelope liners and hand-stamping RSVP envelopes, to tying twine around the mason jars of our homemade spiced-nuts favours. We also “glittered” about 100 clothespins in gold, including a number that were originally my grandmother’s, for our table numbers and the mason jars that held our straws.
On the day of our wedding, we chose to have a “first look,” which allowed us to spend some time together alone, as well as relax and enjoy our ceremony and day even more. When I saw our ceremony set-up for the first time as I walked down the aisle, it truly took my breath away. Our ceremony was everything that we had hoped for — full of love and laughter. As we moved on to our reception, we couldn’t have been happier with the final look. Our design/event and florist teams of Melissa Andre and Jackie O, truly worked to create the vision that we were looking for. The tables were filled with deconstructed arrangements of white flowers, candles, and mercury glass votives which reflected the candle light around the space. Our MC (who is also one of our close friends and groomsmen), created a thoughtful “kissing game,” where guests came up to the podium to give a “Top 5” of Jay and I. This gave the opportunity for our friends and family to tell some funny anecdotes and give their well wishes, and it brought a sense of togetherness to the evening. The dance party was kicked off by our amazing friends, who organized a flash mob. It was so much fun to see friends that we have met in various stages of our lives all dancing in sync together. We then danced the night away with our fabulous band, the St. Royals, who really read the crowd with their selections. Their rendition of “Hey Jude” at the end of the evening is a memory that will forever top our list of favorites. Our guests gathered around us in a circle, with Jay and me dancing in the middle. We felt so loved, and we can honestly say that our wedding day was our favourite day together.
Wedding Photography: Jenn & Dave Stark / Wedding Venue + Catering: The Fermenting Cellar in Toronto, Ontario / Wedding Planning + Event Coordination: Melissa Andre Events / Floral Design: Jackie O / Wedding Cake + Dessert Table: Bobbette & Belle / Cupcakes: Prairie Girl Bakery / Wedding Paper Goods: Kate LaRue / Band + DJ: The St. Royals / Chairs + Draping: FOS Decor Centre / Furniture Rentals: Chair-man Mills / Lounge Furniture: Contemporary Furniture Rentals / Linens: Around the Table / Photo Booth: Snapz Photo Booth / Wedding Dress: Vera Wang / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Groom’s Suit: Ermenegildo Zegna / Make up: Vanessa Jarman, Page One Management / Hair Stylist: Anna Nenoiu, Page One Management