Q: Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?
A: Like many couples, Mark and I were faced with the upsetting decision to either cancel or postpone our originally-planned October 2020 wedding. Not wanting to part with my dream wedding, but still wanting to become husband and wife on our original date, we opted to postpone the "celebration" at our original venue to 2021 and start planning an intimate wedding for our original date (10/17/2020). We moved to Jersey City from Manhattan at the height of the pandemic. While we were both raised Catholic, getting married in the church was not our original plan, but we moved down the street from the most beautiful and bright little church that was available on our original date - and it all just started falling into place. When picking our venue, it was really important to me that my grandmother be able to attend, but unfortunately she passed away at the end of 2019. As a very religious woman, I could feel her presence with us all day - and feel her beaming down with pride that we decided to get married in the church. In terms of the day - I did not wear my dream wedding dress (Saving that beauty for 2021). Instead, I picked a velvet white bridesmaid dress from Revelry. We ordered a coordinated tie and mask set for mark, and got the most beautiful bouquet and corsage from Casa Mona. It was all very low key.
Q: Let's talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?
A: Everything was DIY. We entertained our immediate family (12 people total) in our one-bedroom apartment/apartment roof deck after the ceremony. Aside from the bouquet and corsage, my friend gave us a DIY "Mark's only Hope" sign, and I baked our own wedding cake from scratch (my first two-tiered cake!).
Q: What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?
A: I can not say enough about how amazing Antonio is at Casa Mona. I explained my vision to him and showed him my pinterest board for my full wedding (now next year), and he came up with the MOST beautiful, organic bouquet I have ever seen. I was not feeling much like a bride that morning, but when the florals arrived, I finally felt really special.
Q: How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.
A: Full story available here: https://themacdees2020.wixsite.com/marksonlyhope/our-story
Q: What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?
A: Mark and I decided to have our "first dance" in private once everyone went home - we will re-do this next year, but it was so romantic putting on the record of our first dance song ("What Would I Do Without You" by Ray Charles) and just dance together all alone after the most un-expected wedding day.
Q: Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you'd like to share with other couples planning their day?
A: Just trust the process. Honestly. IT was not the day of our dreams, but it was perfect - and now I get to celebrate my anniversary with the day we always dreamt of.
Ceremony Location: Our Lady of Czestochowa Catholic Church
Floral Designer: Casa Mona
Makeup Artist: J Valldi Styling