Long, long ago we hosted the most amazing contest from Dior. And the prize was fabulous. It gifted wedding day makeup to one lucky bride, and guess what? This is THE gorgeous bride, Ashleigh. I’m pretty certain she needs not a stitch of makeup to look beautiful but all jazzed up by Dior is a whole other ballgame of gorgeous. And I haven’t even touched on the actual wedding; a city dweller’s dream full of easy, dinner party-esque details by PUBLIC and photography by Tonhya Kae that will literally stop you in your tracks. See a giveaway come full circle with the rest of this beautiful day right here.
From the Bride and Groom… Ian and I decided on a long engagement so that we could take our time to plan our wedding amidst our busy lives, in an even busier city, and enjoy the whole process. We agreed that the three most important aspects of our wedding planning were the photography, the food, and our loved ones. We wanted a no frills wedding that was intimate, reflected us as a couple, and focused on our love for each other and our family and friends. Ian and I had a hard time determining a city, much less a venue. We went back and forth half a dozen times on the location: Seattle, Napa, NYC. The list went on. He was from the Seattle area, me from Michigan, but we met in NYC and currently call it home. Then, Ian took me out for my birthday dinner to a restaurant in the Nolita/SoHo area that I had been dying to try. We walked into PUBLIC and immediately fell in love with the warm industrial feel, exposed brick, and downtown vibe. It captured our chic yet laid back and inviting personalities. Not to mention, the food was phenomenal! We knew at that moment this place was where we wanted to get married. Why not get married in the city where we first met? And PUBLIC just so happened to be located on Ian’s favorite street in all of Manhattan.
The only requirement I had with my dress was that I wanted to be comfortable. The moment I slipped on Claire Pettibone’s “Faye,” I didn’t take it off for 2 hours. I absolutely had one of those “when you know, you know” moments that you read or hear about. Other details included wearing my great grandmother’s diamond earrings that she wore on her wedding day in the Philippines. My mother-in-law made my birdcage veil using the material from her wedding veil.
The decorations were simple and uncluttered, as to not take away from the aesthetics of the venue. I picked a palette of peach, grey and antique gold to accent the end of Summer/start of Fall, as our wedding was Labor Day weekend. We had several DIY details in our wedding accomplished by many helpers. The night before the wedding was absolutely crazy and stressful but one of my fondest memories with my bridesmaids, even if we only got a few hours of sleep. Our lovely friend, Liz Harrison, made the most delicious and simply elegant cake. It was exactly how we imagined our wedding cake with a single Peach Garden Rose and two Succulents.
My sister and sister-in-law made cupcakes and cake pops for our dessert table for guests to enjoy. Ian’s family took some wine bottles and painted them with chalkboard paint, which we used for our table numbers. We had a chalkboard seating chart in an old frame (great for last second changes if needed). Our favors included mini first aid kits in muslin bags that we hand stamped as a nod to our profession as doctors. Lastly, my father-in-law, Jon, performed the ceremony that included a personal message to us and also asked our guests for their commitment to us to uphold our marriage. We are forever humbled and grateful for our incredibly talented friends and family who helped create such a beautiful day for Ian and me. It truly takes a village, and we absolutely love our village!
As we sat in our seats during dinner and looked around at our family and friends, we felt so blessed to see everyone engaging and enjoying the moment. The room was so full of love. And you would think that after spending their entire morning and afternoon with us, our guests would be ready to call it a night. Nope. They continued the party at the Biergarten at The Standard with us over beer and more love and laughter. We also truly lucked out with our photographer, Tonhya Wysong, of Tonhya Kae Photography. Not only do we have incredible photos from our engagement session and wedding day, we gained a beautiful friend.
Wedding Photography: Tonhya Kae Photography / Wedding Venue + Catering: PUBLIC in New York City, New York / Wedding Coordination: Kimberly Johnson of PUBLIC / Wedding Design: Bride and Groom / Floral Design: Keiko Hendrick (Maid of Honor) / Officiant: Jon Horner (Father of Groom) / Wedding Cinematography: Micael Preysler / Wedding Cake: Liz Harrison (Friend of Bride and Groom) / Mini Cupcakes: Vanessa Horner (Groom’s Sister-in-Law) / Pops: Keiko Hendrick (Sister of Bride/Maid of Honor) / Wedding Invitations: Hello!Lucky / DJ: Rolando Calip, Jr. of DEFTMIX / DIY Details: Flowers and Centerpieces (Maid of Honor + Bridesmaids), Wedding Programs/Wedding Favors (Bride + Groom), Place Cards (Bride + Mother of Bride), Table Numbers:(Best Man), Seating Chart: Bride / Wedding Dress: Claire Pettibone / Bride’s Shoes: Vera Wang Lavender / Bride’s Veil + Hair Accessory: Mother of Groom / Bridesmaid’s Attire: J.Crew / Hair: Anne Zeygerman (Friend of Bride) / Makeup Artist: Maricela Garcia, Dior / Groom’s Attire: Bar III (Suit) + Heutchy (Shoes) / Groomsmen’s Attire: Kenneth Cole
