Monday, August 31, 2009

At Blue Hill at Stone Barns...


Damon and Carolina wanted their wedding to take place in nature...and they wanted the food to be good. So they selected Blue Hill at Stone Barns as the site for their ceremony and reception. You've seen the place on the Food Network...and the food was indeed exceptional.

The weather threatened, so the ceremony was inside...but all present could see into the fields through a huge window. The abundance, sustainability, and nurturing aspects of the farm were just the right backdrop for this couple who shared personal vows they had written themselves.



I learned about a type of guitar music from their musician, Alex Simon,...django, named for the 1920s guitarist Django Reinhardt...makes you tap your toes and smile. Check out Alex' music!

Ceremony Tip: A small ceremony doesn't require amplified sound. Non-amplified voices make the ceremony seem intimate and warm - which I think was the case for this ceremony. I really like to do a ceremony without a mike. However, with a larger group of guests, you do need to plan on a sound system. Put that into your planning so the system allows flexibilty for the speakers in the ceremony and makes it possible for all your guests to hear what is being said. Your musicians or the venue will be your best resource for sound.

Julie Laudicina,Celebrant!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Our Journey to Cherish True Love


Yiting and Wei-Chun made a journey from their home in California to get married near family and friends at The Ritz Carlton at Battery Park. Some of their family members journeyed from China to join their family for this wedding.

Wei-Chun and Yiting had a phrase on their wedding invitations and their wedding program that their journey to find love had ended...and their journey to cherish love was just beginning with their wedding.

It was a journey for me too to prepare for this ceremony. I'd never met the couple...we talked over the phone and exchanged email messages, but I didn't have a "feel" for their personalities. I was struggling with the pronunciation of the Chinese names and words in the ceremony script...wanting to pronounce names accurately out of respect for them...and also to not seem like I was an idiot!

But when I met them at the rehearsal and watched them interact with each other that day and also at the wedding, I came to appreciate how they compliment each other and truly love each other. I have never seen such an emotional response to saying wedding vows as I saw with Yiting and Wei-Chun. I'm so happy for them.

Ceremony Idea: Wei-Chun and Yiting made gifts to be presented to their parents during the ceremony...their first act as a married couple. The gifts were identical books of picture of them as children, growing up, and as an engage couple. This idea could be adapted for any type of wedding...a thoughtful way to acknowledge all your parents have done for you and how much you love them.




Julie Laudicina, Celebrant!

Delight in the Details



All of Yiting and Wei-Chun's careful planning came together for their wedding last Sunday. Because they are both engineers, I expected they would have a penchant for detail and perfection, and I was not disappointed.

The various vendors who contributed to this beautiful wedding were all outstanding:

- Beautiful, complimentary, high design flowers - Flowers of the World

- Creative, nuanced, skilled photographer - Gulnara Studio (Take a look at her blog...stunning photos!)

- Calm, thorough, professional support staff (also great food at the cocktail hour...love those lamb chops!) - The Ritz Carlton - Battery Park

- Lovely harp/piano combo for the ceremony and cocktail hour music




Yiting and Wei-Chun made their ceremony programs and the gifts they presented to honor their parents during the ceremony. Beautiful, coordinated, creative!




They had their pictures taken in their wedding outfits ahead of the wedding day. The images of them as bride and groom were on the poster for guests to sign...and on the cover of the album for the polaroid pictures that guests took of themselves at the reception.
















Yiting and Wei-Chun have many reasons to look back with satisfaction on all the arrangements they made for their memorable wedding day. Everyone they hired did their best! That includes me, their wedding officiant.

Julie Laudicina,Celebrant!

Monday, August 17, 2009

A World Filled With Love


With the warm golden sun of the late afternoon shing on their faces, Estelle and Anthony declared their vows last Saturday. The setting at the Water's Edge in Long Island City had magnificent views of the Manhattan skyline...appropriately, because theirs is a New York love story....with a delightful Radio City Music Hall connection...and a 26 year romance. (Their wedding invitation had the phrase: A world filled with love, ever old, ever new!)

As the procession came in...the audience cheered the groom, and then each member of the wedding party. I was slightly worried that this "crowd" might be unruly...but they were just so delighted that Estelle and Anthony finally were getting married.

Not many couples opt to have their ceremony videoed these days...and when they do, most of the time the videographer is just in the way for the ceremony. (Sorry...but it's true!) Not so for Alan Bloom...who was very professional - even adjusting and readjusting to get around the lighting problems caused by the setting sun shining directly into the ceremony space. I hope I get to see his work on this ceremony some day.

Ceremony Idea: Estelle and Anthony placed pictures of family and themselves around the reception area. It was interesting to see them as children, as a younger version of themselves, and to see their parents' wedding pictures.

Julie Laudicina, Celebrant!

Monday, August 10, 2009

Thank You To Life...


The bride was beautiful, the groom so handsome...not unusual. But Gloria and George have such a genuinely beautiful spirit about them that they are an unusual couple.

They selected the lyrics of a Spanish song (which they later had played at their reception) to set the tone for their ceremony..."Thank You To Life..." The words of this song fit this couple who are indeed thankful for all they have been given in life, especially their love for one another.

To cap off their ceremony, they went outside to release doves. As the shimmering white birds took flight, they announced to all around that George and Gloria's marriage had begun. Thank you to life...the life they will now share.

As always, the staff at Nicotra's Ballroom at the Hilton Garden Inn, Staten Island, NY, was warm, efficient, and very professional. It's a joy to work with them.





Ceremony Tip: If you decide to release doves as part of your wedding ceremony, be certain that you check out the supplier of the birds. Make sure the birds are white homing pigeons (who will safely take wing and fly home)...not helpless doves who just are left to fend for themeselves. The folks at Love Doves are reliable, good to their birds, and they provide beautiful cages that are a lovely enhancement to your ceremony decorations.

Julie Laudicina,Celebrant!

Monday, August 3, 2009

Field of Dreams Come True













Because they are avid NY Yankee fans, Debbie and John planned a Yankee-themed wedding celebration - with the wedding ceremony to take place on the baseball field at Nansen Park in Staten Island.

But as luck would have it, the unrelenting rain last Friday meant the ceremony was in the shelter at the park. Even though the outfield ceremony was rained out, the indoor ceremony was just what John and Debbie wanted...warm, lighthearted, and an acknowledgment of their blended families.

And yes, I did use the famous Lou Gehrig quote about being "the luckiest man on the face of the earth"...truly the way this couple felt as they declared their vows.

With the help of the wonderful folks at A Taste Of Honey, the catering group at the park, the tables were numbered by famous Yankee players' numbers, there were pinstripes all about, and you can see that even one of the food stations had the Yankee logo in the ice.

Ceremony Tip: Don't hesitate to suggest a theme to your wedding officiant. Whether your ceremony is religious or civil, you may have a wedding officiant who will find a way to incorporate your theme into the ceremony. I used many baseball references in the love story I told about this couple...and it was a homerun!

Julie Laudicina, Celebrant!