Wedding | Erin & Adam

Tell us a little about yourselves!

We met on the platform of a subway station on our first day of college over 10 years ago, and the rest is history. I’m originally from LA and Adam is from the Washington, DC area, but Fort Greene, Brooklyn has been our home for the past few years. There’s always been a level of spontaneity in our relationship (we’re both Geminis…) - we even moved into our latest apartment site unseen, so eloping in NYC after being engaged for nearly 4 years felt entirely right.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

It took us nearly 4 years after getting engaged to finally plan a wedding -  we were responsible for the bill, so we wanted to invest in only a few things that truly mattered to us. More than that, we wanted it to be as convenient as possible. We’re at such a special time in our life where essentially all of our friends and chosen family are in or around NYC, so the city felt like a natural choice for our celebration.

Since our vows were done privately at home over coffee, a City Hall ceremony and a post-game at our favorite bar was a perfect and unfussy choice for us to celebrate with our closest friends.

How many guests did you have?

20.

What was your budget? 

$8,000.

Tell us about your outfits.

Wedding dress shopping is not something that I (Erin) ever dreamed about doing. I had one bridal appointment for the “experience”, but ultimately ordered a Rabanne dress off Mytheresa, sourced mules and a Dior handbag second hand from my favorite vintage stores and called it a day.

Adam wore a simple but beautifully tailored suit from Suit Supply with an Aime Leon Dore knit tank top I gifted him a few years back.

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

The most important thing for us was to not over plan or over-engineer the day. In our opinion, the more time, money, or energy spent on the planning and execution would have added unnecessary pressure on the day to be “perfect”. We got our bouquet/boutonniere the morning of from a local florist who picked out the palette themselves, and our friend snagged tables for us at Time Again after City Hall without a reservation. Leaving a lot up to chance allowed us to be pleasantly surprised and delighted with how the day unfolded organically.

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

It was important for us to capture the day at locations that mean a lot to us - more than a wedding, this day was really a celebration of the life we have built together over the past 10 years. Our photos began in the lobby of our apartment building, which is an old, art deco-style bank that was built in the 1920s and has since been preserved. We then roamed around our neighborhood and hit our favorite streets, bodegas, and park before getting on the subway to City Hall.

In keeping with our wanting to be surprised and delighted, we opted for a photographer who specializes in film, Travis L Collins. There’s a distinct authenticity with the medium that seems to capture more emotion and warmth than digital - the delayed gratification made getting those photos back even more special.

Any tips for couples getting married?

Don’t lose sight of why you are doing this - love is such a beautiful thing absolutely worth celebrating, and your day should be exactly how you envision it. But really, true love and joy and amusement and delight transcends a singular day - don’t put too much pressure on it, you have a lifetime together to revel in it!

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

Our photographer Travis L Collins! He not only understood but re-wrote the assignment and delivered photos that went beyond our wildest dreams. He shot us the way that we see one another - full of love, admiration, ease, humor, and lightness. The photos are so “real” and authentic, he truly takes documentary photography to the next level while being so down to earth and easy to work with. He is the best decision we made on our wedding day, aside from saying yes!

Photographer: Travis L Collins @travislcollinsphoto | Planning & Styling: Erin & Adam | Flora: Saffron @saffronbk | Ceremony Location: NYC City Hall, Manhattan @nycgov | Reception Location: Time Again @timeagainbar | HMUA: Bridal Bloom NYC @charkova_irina @bridalbloom.nyc | Dress: Rabanne @rabanne | Suit: Suitsupply @suitsuppy , Aime Leon Dore @aimeleondore | Engagement Ring: Custom | Wedding Rings: Frank Darling @frankdarling | Shoes: Vintage Stuart Weitzman | Bag: Vintage Dior sourced at Pilgrim NYC @pilgrimnyc