This is one of those crazy cool weddings where tradition meets romance meets all kinds of awesome. A wedding which happens to be set against one of the prettiest backdrops I have ever laid my eyes upon (The Mount) and mixes lush blooms from Crocus Hale with a classically stunning Pronovias gown and all kinds of amazing moments between two sweeties who are so in love, it’s palpable. And don’t even get me started on the beautiful images captured by Christopher Duggan. Because this gallery? It’s beyond mesmerizing. Join me there for all of the pretty.
From the Bride… We knew we wanted to have the ceremony and reception someplace completely unique and special to us. We thought of every place you could imagine. Finally it came down to either a Chinese restaurant in NYC, a mountain top in Jackson Hole, or if we were very lucky, The Mount in the Berkshires. We had no idea if they even did weddings, but Zach remembers being young and spending his summers in Otis, Massachusetts hanging out in the trees after dark and watching Shakespeare in the Park when it used to be at The Mount. After a few emails with the exceptionally cool Ross Jolly (The Mount’s Manager and Director of Special Events) we made a trip from NYC to Lenox to check out the vibe on the grounds. It was late January and Ross had to meet us at the top of the driveway as the road to the house was completely iced over. Everything was covered in three feet of snow and yet we could feel that this was our place. Ross led us all over the gardens, snow in everyone’s boots, noses frozen. It was magnificent.
We left The Mount that day knowing we had to have it there. Having been living in Prague the year prior, and having only gotten engaged on the last day of October, we didn’t have much time to plan our May 18th wedding. The thought of planning for more than six months didn’t appeal to either of us, so we dove right in and got extremely lucky with the availability of all of our vendors. Between Ross at The Mount, Dawn at Mezze Catering and Crocus Hale for the flowers, we knew we could pull off a beautiful and unique wedding weekend for our friends and family who would all be traveling many miles from California, London and various parts of the East Coast. What we didn’t expect, was how completely amazing and moving the entire evening would be. There was something special in the air that night, something bigger than weddings, and even bigger than romance itself. It left us feeling tremendous love for everyone who came before and would come after us.
Some other highlights of the weekend were:
–The speeches, obviously always a highlight, were especially right on that evening. My younger sister, the maid of honor who is so tiny (barely 5 feet) stood on a chair next to me for her speech. It was so endearing.
–The best man’s speech was long anticipated (he’s a former speechwriter for Madeline Albright) and Luke did not disappoint. He secretly gathered five of our friends to stand up and recite part of Shakespeare’s sonnets to close out his loving words.
–My father, who was telling me all weekend how nervous he was to speak in front of the crowd, changed his speech up the morning of the wedding when an email from my mother’s first grade class came in with all kinds of advice for Zach and I. It was a tearjerker and no one will ever forget it.
–Crocus Hale, the florist made me the most perfect flower crown of white roses. I wore it until 4 o’clock in the morning and didn’t want to take it off. She is perfection and everything she touched was sensationally beautiful.
–Christopher and his second shooter Cherylynn were absolutely wonderful. From the beginning of the process to the very end Christopher was the most professional and easy-going person to work with (tough combo to come across)! He was extremely organized and got all the shots we requested (including hundreds more we didn’t even know we wanted until we saw them). Never obtrusive, and always a gentle presence.
–Having everyone stay at the inn next to the grounds was the perfect way to introduce everyone to the beautiful gardens of The Mount, and we encouraged everyone to take hikes and nature walks in the days leading up to the ceremony.
–The Mount is also the perfect location because you can keep leading the guests further and further into the house so that everything is revealed in due time. The ceremony was in the flower garden, the cocktail hour was in the stone garden, the dinner was on the terrace and got to be a real dinner. Not eat/dance/eat/talk. It was a candlelit dinner party before the dance party – exactly what we do when we entertain at home!
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Photography: Christopher Duggan | Invitation Design: William Arthur | Musicians: Rosamund Trio | Invitation Design: Kate’s Paperie | Catering: Mezze Catering | Flowers: Crocus Hale | Veil: Bridal Veil Falls | DJ: JTD Productions | Dress: Pronovias