[section title=”The Planning”]
[field title=”Wedding Colors”]
I always knew that I wanted my wedding colors to be blush and gold, and that’s exactly what we went with. Blush is my most favorite color and Gold is royal and majestic to me. I wanted to feel like a princess on my wedding day and these colors definitely made me feel that way.
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[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]
The original design was princess fairytale castle wedding. As life would have it, with Covid at its peak the 2020 pandemic shutdown, that quickly fell apart. We had originally booked our wedding at Park Chateau but had to cancel because everything was shutting down and we didn’t know when they would be open again. That ended in us losing our deposit (still breaks my heart) . Then we brainstormed and thought we could still find something that gave castle vibes but outdoors due to covid. That’s when we stumbled on a beautiful rooftop venue in NYC called 620 Loft and Garden. The venue has a gorgeous garden open space with French Trees and a little pond overlooking St. Patrick’s Cathedral on 5th Ave. We were so excited and booked. Our dream Spring-May wedding shortly became a summer wedding in July. That ended up crumbling down as well because NY was the epicenter of Covid, and they had to shut down as well. We did end up getting our deposit back, at least. Finally, in a moment of desperation, we were determined to get married, at least in the year we wanted, by any means necessary. In the midst of this chaos, we were also searching for a home, and that’s when my light bulb clicked. Our friends that are also contractors had a lovely home and a beautiful huge backyard in our hometown where we grew up in. We proposed having our wedding in their yard, and they gracefully said yes. We were elated that we finally had a wedding venue we could work with freely with no rules or shutdown- just somewhere we could celebrate our love with our close friends and immediate family members. We transformed their backyard, with the help of our wedding decorator, into a beautiful, romantic wedding space. It was perfect! As the summer quickly approached, we went from May 26, 2020 as our wedding date to July 24, 2020. July matched up perfectly with our lives as Barry’s birthday is in July, he asked me to be his girlfriend in July, and he proposed to me in July. Even though we ended up not having our caste wedding, our photographer Karina Mekel, took gorgeous photos of us at Ringwood Castle after our wedding reception that will forever be in our memories. The castle grounds are beautiful, and we have so many gorgeous shots around the grounds and with the castle in the background.
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[field title=”Proposal Story”]
Barry proposed to me on July 28, 2018, by the Brooklyn Bridge Carousel. He knew I loved that place as I’m a kid at heart. The funny story was I swore when he took me there for the first time on my 30th Birthday he would be proposing that day just because it felt so romantic and special to be there alone with him. I revealed during dinner that night I thought he was popping the question when we had gone there earlier and laughed sweetly and said one day soon, and I wouldn’t see it coming. Time went by, two years to be exact, but he never forgot that I thought he would propose there out of all places. He made sure when he was ready that he asked me to marry him there. The next time we were there, he told me were going to a rooftop pool party in the city, but first having lunch with friends. When we arrived, he parked within the area, but I couldn’t see the Brooklyn Bridge and had no idea we were there. As we kept walking, we met up with our friends and talked. Then our friends told us they would be right back because they were going to take photos. I felt like something was funny about that but I went along with it. I kept asking “But where are we eating? What restaurant are we going to I’m soo confused” (lol) we walked for a little, and Barry asked me if I knew where we were and then I saw the carousel and I said yes. Walked closer to the water and front and he asked me “Do you remember that you thought I was going to propose to you here on your birthday?’ and I responded yeah… then he went on to say “It’s happening right now.” I immediately bursted out in tears crying hysterically. He got down on one knee, and I was just shaking; my hand was shaking. Then he asked me to marry him, and I said yes. (it’s all a blur) because I was just shaking, and he laughed and said I’m trying to put the ring on, but your shaking and we both laughed. Come to think of it.. imagine if the ring would’ve fallen into the water, thank God it didn’t lol. Our friends came and joined us after to celebrate. We took photos, really went to the rooftop party, and celebrated into the night. It was a magical day. When Barry proposed to me and I saw the ring he had chosen for me, I was at a loss for words. He knew the ring I always dreamed of was a radiant cut with a halo and diamonds all around the band and that’s what he got me. I kept asking is this ring real? Is it really for me? I just couldn’t believe it. He really went above and beyond for the proposal.
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[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]
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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]
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[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]
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[board_carousel title=”First Look”]
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[section title=”The Fashion”]
[field title=”Wedding Gown”]
I purchased my dress from Bridal Reflections on 5th Ave in NY. I didn’t do much wedding shopping as I knew in my mind my dress had to be from there because this was the “IT” place. I went in there knowing exactly which three styles I wanted to try on and of course my dream dress that I couldn’t afford. After trying on the styles I thought I would love, I just wasn’t happy. My consultant Leandra was an angel she just understood me from the very beginning. She said I know exactly what you want and it will be in your budget. She invited me to the Eve Of Milady trunk show, and when I saw my dress on the runway, my cousin/best friend and I just looked at each other because we already knew that’s exactly what I wanted. We decided to move forward after the show. The designer was so sweet as well. I went on to try my dream dress in person to triple make sure, and the rest is history. There was nothing to think about- that was my dress. My dress had gorgeous beading with Swarovski crystals throughout. The pattern and color on it were simply stunning.
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[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”]
The bridesmaids’ dresses were blush and from Camille USA in Secaucus, NJ. I didn’t want my girls to spend a lot of money on a dress but I still wanted them to wear my dream color, blush. The dresses were simple but elegant and flattering to any body style.
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[field title=”Groomsman Attire”][/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Party”]
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[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]
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[section title=”The Details”]
[field title=”Food & Drink”]We provided all drinks in personal bottle sizes due to Covid. [/field]
[field title=”Florals & Decor”]
Our decorator was Wedding Kiss Decor. Ebia also provided the florals for the ceremony/reception aside from décor. The wedding bouquets and bouteniers were done by Eves Garden Floral Design. The bouquets had browns, pinks, whites, and lots of greenery- perfect for a romantic summer wedding.
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[field title=”Wedding Cake”]
The wedding cake was simple but elegant, and my close friend gifted it to me because she does custom cakes. She also did the cupcakes and boxed them individually so that everyone could take one home as a souvenir. The cake was simple vanilla with buttercream frosting and real strawberries inside.
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[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”]We had my aunt officiate the wedding as her and her husband are pastors at their church.
For ceremony music I walked down the aisle out to the instrumental of “A Thousand Years”.
The wedding party walked down the aisle to “The Reason” by Calum Scott”
When the ceremony exit music was “Electricity” by Dua Lipa
Our first dance song was “Unchained Melody” by the Righteous Brothers
Daughter/Father dance song was “I loved her first” by Heartland
Son/mother dance song was “A song for Mama” by Boyz II Men
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[field title=”Special Detail #1″]Having a first look with my dad, such a special and intimate moment with my dad. I went traditional and my husband didn’t see me until I walked down the aisle for the first time.
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[field title=”Special Detail #2″]We had butterflies released during our ceremony, I always wanted to do this. Magical is all I can say and some of them were on my dress.[/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #3″]We decided not to have our dogs in the ceremony but I got to take pictures getting ready with them before the ceremony.
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[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]
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[board_carousel title=”Reception”]
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Photography: Karina Mekel Photography | Floral Design: Eves Garden Floral Design | Wedding Dress: Eve Of Milady | Cake: Elena’s Sweet Cove | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Camille La Vie | Beauty: Kristen Okaly | Beauty: Jenielle Jensen | Rentals: Wedding Kiss Decor