Wedding | Samantha & Ethan

Tell us a little about yourselves!

We’re Sam and Ethan—creatives disguised as corporate people. After eight and a half years together, our lives had already taken shape around the things we love: music, objects with history, and making things by hand. Ethan plays in, and Sam collects vintage jewelry and clothing, occasionally taking it a step further and mining her own gemstones like she did for her bachelorette party.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

The Angel Orensanz Foundation wasn’t a random choice—it came with history. Ethan had his bar mitzvah there over a decade ago, and when we walked into the space together, it felt less like discovering something new and more like finding something lost in time in old New York. It’s dramatic in a way that’s hard to replicate—ornate, slightly undone, deeply New York. We didn’t want to transform it. We loved it the way it was.

How many guests did you have?

About 200 guests.

What was your budget?

We made peace early on with the scale of a New York wedding—it was never going to be small, especially with our guest count! Instead of trying to simplify it, we focused on intentionality. We prioritized a few moments that really mattered and offset the rest by doing as much as we could ourselves, opting out of a full-service planner. We built a detailed tracker, broke everything into small, manageable steps, and split ownership between us so nothing stalled. Sam did a lot of DIY design as well.

Tell us about your outfits.

What we wore felt like an extension of everything else—personal, referential, with a deeper meaning. Sam’s Oscar de la Renta gown came from a sample sale, but the connection was over 10 years old. Having worked in fashion and interned at Oscar, wearing the dress felt like a full-circle moment—made even more meaningful when the former Head of Quality Control stepped in to do the alterations as a personal favor.

Her veil, worn by fifteen women in her family, carried its own lineage. Later, she changed into a 1960s dress from Brimfield that she picked up with her mom on their annual flea market pilgrimage—something with a past life.

Ethan kept it restrained: a custom Suitsupply suit, finished with an antique boutonniere pin sourced by Sam’s mom.

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

The throughline was intention—not perfection. We wanted the experience to feel seamless for everyone, so we kept everything within walking distance and designed the weekend to feel easy and intuitive.

At the same time, we wanted it to feel unmistakably ours. Sam designed and made our wedding bands, built the chuppah, and created most of the stationery. During cocktail hour, we incorporated photos of family members on their wedding days—small reminders of our families on our special day.

Music was also central. A live band was a requirement — it made the night feel alive.

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

Personal history, in all its forms. The space itself carried it, but we layered in our own through the rings, the chuppah, the family photos, and many other details.

Music became one of the most personal elements of the night. For the afterparty, Ethan’s band Mouthy Baby took over. At one point, the band manager crowd surfed, Ethan brought Sam’s sisters on stage to sing, and the band later premiered a song he had written for her.

Any tips for couples getting married?

There’s a lot of work that goes into planning a wedding, so don’t forget to actually enjoy the process. What helped us stay on track was breaking everything down into smaller, manageable steps, keeping a detailed tracker, and dividing responsibilities between the two of us so things were always moving forward. That structure made it much easier to be present and have fun with it—some of our favorite memories came from unexpected moments like our catering tasting, and doing an engagement shoot helped us feel much more comfortable in front of the camera before the big day.

It is also just important to go with the flow once the weekend actually starts. A massive blizzard hit New York that Sunday, which complicated travel and shifted plans in real time. If anything, it made us more aware of how much it meant that people showed up anyway. We felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude for everyone who made the effort to be there despite the challenges.

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

Our photographer, Emma Melin, was incredible—she made us feel completely at ease and kept us calm throughout the day. Her photos turned out absolutely gorgeous: whimsical and Victorian-romantic, while still feeling real and candid at the same time.

We also loved our band, Silver Arrow, who brought amazing energy to the reception and kept the dance floor full all night.

More broadly, we’re incredibly grateful to every vendor who helped bring it all together and navigate the unexpected alongside us.

Photographer: Emma Melin Studios @emmamelinstudios | Planning: Beautiful Bride Events @beautiful

brideevents | Flora: WMF Events @wmf.events | Ceremony & Reception Location: Angel Orensanz Foundation @angelorensanzfoundation | Celebrant: Rabbi Rebecca Rosenthal | Hire: Elite PBS Events @pbsevents | Makeup Artist: Christine Herbeck @chbridalbeauty | Hair Stylist: PANYC Salon @panyc salon | Catering & Beverages: Bartleby and Sage @bartlebyandsage | Cake: By The Way Bakery @by thewaybakery | Stationery: Bride made | Entertainment: Silver Arrow Band @silverarrowband | After party Venue: Mercury Lounge @mercurylounge | Dresses: Oscar de la Renta & Vintage 1960s @oscar

delarenta | Suit: Suit Supply @suitsupply | Veil: Family heirloom | Engagement Ring: Jewels by Grace

@jewelsbygrace | Wedding Rings: Bride made | Other Jewellery: Antique & Family Heirlooms | Wedding Party Attire: Reformation @reformation