Your wedding day? FILLED with unexpected twists and turns. And for this darling duo those unplanned moments happened to include the threat of a hurricane AND broken down transportation. Yep, they missed their cocktail hour stranded on the side of the highway, but one call to Uber later and they were celebrating in a beautiful ballroom with their loving friends and family. See it all captured by Amy Rizzuto in THE VAULT, then press play on the sweet film from ESU Events.
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From Amy Rizzuto Photography… Francesca and Alex were married in October in one of the most romantic cities in the world. Francesca got ready at her parents’ house in Connecticut while Alex prepared for the day in their NYC apartment. Francesca popped the champagne with her bridesmaids while Alex and his groomsmen sipped on Johnny Walker Blue. At 3pm the couple said “I do” at St. Francis Xavier church before heading to the New York Public Library for some pretty portraits. The iconic steps made the perfect backdrop for some classic and romantic images and our time there was one of my favorites of the day. Francesca and Alex ended the evening by dancing the night away at the Greentree Country Club. Soft candlelight filled the room and confetti fell all around them as they celebrated their first night as husband and wife. Thank you Francesca and Alex for giving me the opportunity to capture your beautiful day.
From the Bride… Our wedding was nothing I expected the day to be like, but wound up being more than I could have ever dreamed! What we imagined as a beautiful end of summer type day, turned out to be a mercury retrograde of events which included the threat of a hurricane blowing through NYC and our wedding party’s bus breaking down on the side of the highway. The bride and groom had never been more excited about an UBER coming to the rescue than the one that picked them up on the side shoulder of I-495!
Our love story begins in New York City – meeting through the bride’s cousin who is married to the groom’s best friend. We knew each other for years before connecting one-on-one. They say, you never know you who are going to fall in love with, he or she could be right under your nose, and there he was! It only took 3 dates for us to know that we would become each other’s forever.
After three years of dating, Alex proposed to me while on a beach in Block Island, surrounded by the island’s beautiful cliffs. It was romantic and perfect.
The wedding process was relatively easy for a person that knew what they wanted from the start. The main goal of our wedding was to enjoy the day as husband and wife, and to make sure our guests walked away from the night with amazing memories that lived on – not just an ordinary wedding. A real party!!
Being both from Italian families, there were a lot of expectations to meet, food (and an abundant amount of food) being at the top of the list! Alex and I had to find a venue that accommodated at least 300 guests and matched a laundry list of credentials. We wanted a modern ballroom wedding and initially wanted the reception to be in the city since we were getting married in Union Square at St. Francis Xavier Church. Alex went to Xavier High School and the church meant a lot to him. We soon realized that a venue with amazing food, enough space (and no wall-to-wall carpeting!) was going to be very difficult to find. We were completely blown away when we walked into this updated villa manor, Greentree Country Club, in New Rochelle, NY, that overlooks the Long Island Sound. It was breathtaking and had everything we were looking for.
We wanted our wedding to be a reflection of our personalities: traditional, but modern, with a twist of that ‘je ne sais quoi’.
We chose Amy Rizzuto to capture our day because she has a great eye and her use of natural soft lighting captivated me. She brings across an ethereal look to all her photos, almost as if there is a halo surrounding the subjects. She was amazing to work with and captured every detail of the day for us to remember… and for me to remember how much I lamented over them!
Days before the wedding, a hurricane popped up on the weather map from out of nowhere. What I had been worrying about as mercury retrograde believer, was happening! A nor’easter of a day it was, but it all turned out to be as magical as one could dream! The day began early in Greenwich, Ct while Alex and his groomsmen got ready at our NYC apartment. We met at 3pm at St. Francis Xavier Church and tied the knot.
We took pictures at Bryant Park and then headed up to Westchester for our reception. Not far into the ride to Greentree, we found ourselves on the side of the highway with smoke billowing out of our party bus. Stranded, we soon realized we were going to miss our cocktail hour. The transportation company said that a new party bus was on the way, but could not be sure when it would be there to get us. A groomsman opened his UBER app and ordered an UBER. Ten minutes later, an Uber pulled up to the side of the highway taking the bride, groom, maid of honor, and best man to the reception. Our Uber driver found it so amazing, that he asked to take a picture with us! It was definitely the comic relief we needed at that point.
As our guests were relishing at cocktail hour, they had no idea that what was happening to the wedding party. Our day-of-coordinator was amazing and got us ready as soon as we arrived to the venue. Twenty minutes later, our wedding party arrived. They ate a few bites (and had a few drinks!) in the wedding party suite and then we proceeded with our grand entrance. After that, we enjoyed every endless second of the night.
Looking out from our sweetheart table during dinner, Alex and I were overwhelmed with gratitude to be surrounded by the people in our lives that meant the most to us. As the night went on, everyone danced the night away as two wild families celebrated love on a confetti covered dance floor.
We saw our DJ two days later and he exclaimed, “That was an epic wedding! Top 3 weddings that I have been a part of in 20 years in the industry”. We wanted a party to remember and we got it!
Photography: Amy Rizzuto Photography | Cinematography: ESU Events | Floral Design: Westchester Floral Decorators | Wedding Dress: Pronovias | Invitations: DIY by the Bride | Ceremony Venue: St. Francis Xavier | Reception Venue: Green Tree Country Club | Bride's Shoes: Carolinna Espinosa | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Amsale | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Monique Lhuillier | DJ: ESU Events | Favors: Let Love Brew Coffee Tins, custom created by the bride's parent's coffee roasting company, Bonjo Coffee Roasters | Groom's Attire: My Suit | Bridesmaid's Jewelry: J.Crew | Groom's Ring: David Yurman | Groom's Shirt + Bow Tie: Thomas Pink | Groom's Shoes: Prada | Hair Accessories: Rent The Runway | Invitation Envelope Calligraphy: Etsy Shop, Exquisite Squid | Lounge Decor: ESU Events
