Wedding | Emily & Patrick

9 hours ago
3 min read

Tell us a little about yourselves!

Patrick and I spend an unusual amount of time talking about films, architecture, design, books, and the ideas we're both quietly obsessing over. With me as an actress and filmmaker, Patrick's work with creative technology, those conversations have a tendency to spiral across hours and days. We're just as happy wandering New York as we are spending a quiet evening at home in Brooklyn with our two cat children, Pippin and Slim Charles.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

New York has always been our forever home, first as individuals and now as a couple. We love that it's a city where people are encouraged to be exactly who they are, rather than fit into someone else's idea of who they should be. We knew from the beginning that New York couldn't just be the backdrop to our wedding. It had to feel like a main character in the story.

How many guests did you have?

We had 70 guests. We wanted to keep it small enough that we could actually spend time with everyone, while still celebrating with the people who matter most to us.

What was your budget?

Our full wedding weekend budget was approximately $75,000. The wedding day itself, including the ceremony and reception, was approximately $60,000.

Tell us about your outfits.

Our outfits were an important detail because neither of us felt drawn to traditional wedding attire. One of the first things I fell in love with about Patrick was the way he fearlessly expresses himself through clothing. He has an aesthetic that is unmistakably his own, and he ultimately chose an Issey Miyake set that felt completely authentic to him.

Finding my dress took longer because most wedding dresses felt too traditionally feminine for me. Then I came across Prea James, and for the first time I felt like I was looking at clothes I would actually wear. The dress felt simple, modern, and like an elevated version of myself. Instead of changing into a second dress for the reception, I changed the accessories instead. It let the same dress take on a completely different personality without ever feeling like I was wearing a costume.

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?

We approached planning our wedding as a creative expression of who we are as a couple. Rather than asking what a wedding was supposed to look like, we asked what felt authentic to us. Every decision came back to whether it reflected our story, our sense of humor, and our shared aesthetic. If a tradition felt meaningful, we embraced it. If it felt obligatory, we let it go.

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

We wanted to include little pieces of our story throughout the day. New York was woven into the entire wedding weekend. We printed the poem from our proposal on the bookmarks we gave as favors, a nod to both our engagement and our shared love of reading. We also named our signature cocktails after our two cats, Pippin and Slim Charles. It was important to us that the day felt unmistakably like us.

Any tips for couples getting married?

Planning a wedding should be enjoyable. It's easy to get caught up in what a wedding is supposed to look like, but we found the process became much more fun once we let that go. If it feels like you as a couple, it can't be wrong.