Romantic Prospect Park Boathouse Wedding
If there's one thing I've learned in my time at SMP, it's that Brooklyn weddings are awesome. More specifically, Prospect Park Boathouse weddings planned to perfection by Exquisite Affairs Productions and captured in amazing images by Di Bezi Photography. That's a combo, my friends, that's almost too perfect to believe. Feast your eyes on every beautiful moment right here.
And a sweet film from Rob Cleary? Yes, please.
From the Bride... Riley and I met in Guatemala when we were both volunteers at a not-for-profit education center in Quetzaltenango, or Xela as it is better known. After spending a summer there together, we bought a handmade hammock and moved back to my home state of Texas. It was a complete surprise when, three years later, he asked me to marry him.
Looking for a location for our wedding, we wanted something with a romantic and classical feeling. On a hot summer day, we rode our bicycles to Prospect Park to see the Boathouse. Right away, we knew we had found the place. We thought about how we could come back and sit on the lawn and reminisce.
We wanted a wedding that reflected our personal values and found that often meant departing from popular traditions. We did away with the aisle, which would have separated the families that we were joining. No Pachelbel or Wagner: I made my entrance to the accompaniment of a contemporary Latin guitar trio. "Groom's pie" was offered alongside the more familiar wedding cake. We took each other’s last names: I am Martinez-Lynch and so is he.
The ceremony itself was inspired by the Quaker traditions of self-uniting marriage and unprogrammed service. It began with a moment of quiet reflection. With no officiant presiding, we exchanged praise and promises that we had written for each other. Standing to either side was our modest wedding party: My best woman, Michele, and my best man, Phillip. Riley had his brother, Garth, as his best man and our toy poodle, Pocket.
The reception was decorated with our passions. A seating chart was set on an old map and our tables were named after cities we have visited together, including Gstaad, Guanajuato, Istanbul and of course, Xela. As wedding favors, we gave away copies of our favorite books, with stacks marked "Riley's" and "Jen's". A colorful family tree print testified to Riley's love of genealogy and provided our ancestors with a figurative seat at the table. The last song of the night was Willie Nelson singing “Twilight Time,” a nod to my Texan roots.
A month has passed and we are still soaring from all the love and joy of bringing our families and friends together for what truly felt like "our" day.
Looking for a location for our wedding, we wanted something with a romantic and classical feeling. On a hot summer day, we rode our bicycles to Prospect Park to see the Boathouse. Right away, we knew we had found the place. We thought about how we could come back and sit on the lawn and reminisce.
We wanted a wedding that reflected our personal values and found that often meant departing from popular traditions. We did away with the aisle, which would have separated the families that we were joining. No Pachelbel or Wagner: I made my entrance to the accompaniment of a contemporary Latin guitar trio. "Groom's pie" was offered alongside the more familiar wedding cake. We took each other’s last names: I am Martinez-Lynch and so is he.
The ceremony itself was inspired by the Quaker traditions of self-uniting marriage and unprogrammed service. It began with a moment of quiet reflection. With no officiant presiding, we exchanged praise and promises that we had written for each other. Standing to either side was our modest wedding party: My best woman, Michele, and my best man, Phillip. Riley had his brother, Garth, as his best man and our toy poodle, Pocket.
The reception was decorated with our passions. A seating chart was set on an old map and our tables were named after cities we have visited together, including Gstaad, Guanajuato, Istanbul and of course, Xela. As wedding favors, we gave away copies of our favorite books, with stacks marked "Riley's" and "Jen's". A colorful family tree print testified to Riley's love of genealogy and provided our ancestors with a figurative seat at the table. The last song of the night was Willie Nelson singing “Twilight Time,” a nod to my Texan roots.
A month has passed and we are still soaring from all the love and joy of bringing our families and friends together for what truly felt like "our" day.