Speaking from experience, I can 100% relate to this Bride in her admission of having a tough time finding the perfect venue. We too struggled in finding our beautiful spot. But once you do, all the hard work and time spent searching, pays off—and this Tappan Hill Mansion soiree is proof. With a handful of fab vendors including Stacie Ford, Diana Gould Ltd. and Village Invites, we’ve got a whole lotta pretty to feast our eyes on from Tory Williams.
From the beautiful Bride…Mike and I met our very first week at Colgate University, when we moved into the same freshman dorm, and were almost instantly an item. After years of mixers, tailgates, a semester abroad, and one brief break, we both found ourselves living in New York City. Three years later, Mike proposed one Saturday in April while watching the sun set on a pier overlooking the Hudson River. After a romantic dinner, Mike led me to a nearby bar to find our friends waiting to surprise me and celebrate our engagement!
I admittedly had a very difficult time with finding the perfect wedding venue. We searched near and far, from beach locales to rustic upstate sites. We ended up choosing one of the very first venues we visited: Tappan Hill Mansion in Tarrytown, New York. The former summer home of Mark Twain, the stone mansion is stately and elegant within a natural, picturesque setting overlooking the Hudson River. With a fabric-draped ceiling, the stone-walled ballroom felt intimate within the grand estate, and the large terrace provided the perfect spot for the ceremony and cocktail hour. It was also fitting that the venue was located exactly in between each of our hometowns, mine in Connecticut and Mike’s in New Jersey – a perfect site for the joining of our families.
And so the planning began for our August wedding the following summer. As luck would have it, the day was sunny and unseasonably cool, allowing for the perfect outdoor ceremony. An indoor-outdoor cocktail hour followed, with guests spilling out onto the terrace to watch the sunset with our signature cocktail in hand, while an acoustic guitar player provided background music. The reception was in the mansion’s indoor ballroom with Hank Lane’s Marcus Reid Band playing until the end of the night. A sparkler send-off gave us the picture-perfect ending to the most beautiful day!
I chose a color scheme of soft blush pink, grey and gold, which our florist Diana Gould carried through the bouquets, ceremony décor, and centerpieces. The flowers included peach Juliet garden roses, white roses, dahlias and hydrangeas, and seeded eucalyptus. The ceremony aisle was lined with polished nickel lanterns in various sizes, with two matching floral arrangements in large urns flanking us at the end. We wanted to keep the ceremony décor simple so that the view was the focal point! In the ballroom, we alternated high and low centerpieces on each table, accented with mercury glass vases and votives. The bridesmaids’ light peach chiffon dresses perfectly matched the Juliet garden roses and added to the soft garden vibe. Touches of grey were carried throughout all of the paper products, provided by Village Invites. Our invitations, menus, programs and welcome cards were all printed on white paper with charcoal grey text, some with a subtle floral motif in the corners to add a bit of whimsy.
We are forever indebted to our incredible team of vendors, including Tory Williams who beautifully captured the day with her photographs. Her images are both timeless and candid, and she captured a joyous timeline of the day that will allow us to relive our wedding for years to come! To all of those future brides-to-be, make sure not to sweat the minor details. In the end, the day is about your marriage and that is where the focus should be. As my now-husband had told me during my most hectic days of planning, the day will be perfect no matter what – and he was right!
Photography: Tory Williams Photography | Floral Design: Diana Gould | Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier | Invitations: Village Invites | Reception Venue: Abigail Kirsch | Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Bridesmaids' Dresses: J.Crew | Catering: Abigail Kirsch | Makeup: Stacie Ford Weddings | Hair: Styles On B | Band: Hank Lane Music | Decor: Better Off Wed | Photo Booth: Hank Lane Music | Robes: Plum Pretty Sugar