Angie and Michael brought a group of close immediate family with them to New York from their home in Michigan to get married in Central Park in September. The couple met when Angie was working as a bank teller and Michael was a customer, but they were just friends at that time. “Fast forward a few years and we started dating,” Angie said. They had been together for five years prior to getting married. Michael was 41 and Angie was 35 when they got married.
Angie and Michael had been talking about getting married for some time before they got engaged. They officially got engaged over Spring Break in March, just six months before they got married. Michael had planned a small getaway with their close family and proposed in front of them all during brunch.
They never considered anywhere else for their wedding, they knew they wanted to get married in Central Park, and they knew they wanted to get married at Bethesda Terrace. “We discussed a Central Park wedding at least a year before we were even engaged. No other venues were really an option,” Angie told me. Initially, they thought they might get married in November, and then they decided it would be possible to do slightly sooner in September so that’s what they did. I asked why getting married was important to them. “As a Christian, marriage symbolizes Christ’s love and the way He loves people,” Angie said. “My faith is very important to me and when I think of the intensity of the love between Michael and I, it reminds me of how much we are loved by God,” she explained.
This marriage was a second marriage for them both. Angie said that until Michael brought up the idea of a destination wedding she really had never considered it for herself. “I have known friends that have done it and I love the concept, especially if you want something small and intimate,” she told me. “We both knew we didn’t want a big wedding extravaganza so the destination wedding was perfect for us and our close family,” she said. She told me that after having a destination wedding herself, she could definitely see why they might would be becoming more popular in recent years. “The memories are priceless!” she said.
I think it can be extra special when a couple bring their immediate family with them on the trip, because it can make the whole trip of several days feel like one big celebration. One benefit of spending a few days together is that each side of the family really gets to know each other and makes precious memories in this incredible city, but also the couple can actually spend quality time with all of their guests, instead of the rushed few minutes that many tell me that couples are able to spare on a busy traditional wedding day.
I asked if they had any regrets about not having a traditional wedding closer to home. “Not at all,” Angie said. Since this was a second wedding for both of them, they had already had the experience of the large celebration and they knew they didn’t want that this time. They planned to have a party at home to celebrate with family and friends that were not there in New York, and they said that felt like enough for them. “I wouldn’t trade a thing for my perfect NYC dream wedding!” Angie said.
Angie and Michael got married underneath Bethesda Terrace. Angie said the idea for them to get married in Central Park began as a suggestion because she is a Gossip Girl fan. She said that it turned into a dream the more they talked about it. In Gossip Girl, Blair Waldorf and Chuck Bass got married underneath Bethesda Terrace in a series finale. But this space also very much suited Angie and Michael own personal style too, “and I absolutely loved it!” she said. This was Angie and Michael’s first time visiting New York. Their family stayed in a six bedroom apartment in the Upper West Side near Central Park. They all stayed together for the first couple days. Then for a couple nights after the wedding the newlyweds stayed on their own at the Empire Hotel, also on the Upper West Side. They were in New York for a total of five days.
We had arranged for Metro Look to come to their apartment and to do Angie and Thea’s hair and makeup. “They were on time, professional, and friendly,” Angie said. “I had photos of what we wanted it to look like and they did a great job! I am very pleased with how it all turned out. They finished on time so we were not late leaving for the wedding,” she added.
Their officiant introduced the ceremony with a brief reading from Ecclesiastes 4, which is as follows: “two are better than one…if either of them falls down, one can help the other up….Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Angie had walked into the ceremony with her daughter, and the officiant asked the three of them if they would vow to love each other, care for each other and support each other to the very end and they all agreed. This is a lovely way to include a child in a wedding ceremony. Then Angie and Michael exchanged traditional vows, and some vows they had written for each other before exchanging rings. “Our ceremony wasn’t very long but just long enough for us to enjoy the moment together declaring our commitment and love to each other in front of those who mean the most to us in such a beautiful setting,” Angie said.
Angie and Michael got married in the middle of September, when we do still see some quite warm and sunny weather. “There was full sun that day, so rather than have our guests stand out in the direct sun we felt it better to be in the shade,” Angie said. “The photos turned out gorgeous. I love all of our shots he did,” she told me. She said that their favorites were probably in the area around Bethesda Terrace; on the staircase and by the fountain. “But our photos from Bow Bridge and Wagner Cove were also beautiful,” she added. “Having the ceremony in the morning on a weekday I think helped with crowding. There weren’t a ton of people in the park and the ones that were there were all so friendly and happy to see us getting married,” she told me. Their guests were close immediate family; Angie’s mom, her sister and her fiancé and her brother, and Michael’s parents and his sister with her family. “They all seemed to be thrilled with our choice to be married in Central Park and they enjoyed the scenery as well,” Angie said. “It was also a great opportunity to get some updated family photos taken,” she added.
Angie wore a slate blue dress from Baltic Born. “With it being my second marriage I did not want to go with the traditional white,” she explained. “Blue is a color that makes me think of Michael and I loved the dress as soon as I saw it,” she said. She allowed her daughter to choose her dress and color. She chose a white junior bridesmaid dress from JJ’s House and paired it with blue shoes to tie into the color of her mom’s dress. Michael wore a tailored light heather gray suit with a tie in slate blue to match Angie’s dress. Angie had brought dried flower bouquets and boutonnière from Etsy. “They were a sort of boho stye with white and dusty rose-colored roses, blue eucalyptus and some other greenery and feathery things,” she said. “Very appropriate for the transition from summer to fall in early September. The dusty rose-colored roses made for a nice accent color with the blues and white,” she added.
Their guests went off to Magnolia Bakery on 58th after the ceremony, and Angie and Michael stayed in Central Park for a little while longer with their photographer Jakub Redziniak, who took some portrait photos of just the two of them. “After we finished with the photographer, we met the rest of our group and had four pedicabs take us on a tour to see some other areas of the park. “They were absolutely phenomenal. The drivers all seemed to be friends and were laughing and joking with us and each other,” Angie said. “They took us to some beautiful sites in the park and took additional pictures for us and even a video that the driver airdropped to me from his phone so I could have it as a keepsake,” she told me. They had booked them through Central Park Attractions. “The pricing was beyond reasonable and I couldn’t be happier that we did that,” Angie said. After that tour, the group headed back to their apartment and Angie and Michael went to check-in at the Empire Hotel. “I highly recommend the hotel – especially if you are a Gossip Girl fan,” Angie said, she tells me that the hotel is featured in the show multiple times. I haven’t watched the show but I used to see lots of signage saying the streets were closed for filming the show whilst walking my dog around the Upper East Side and Upper West Side.
The group all met back up at 5:30 for dinner on the rooftop at Catch NYC in the meatpacking district. “The food was wonderful and they were so accommodating for our larger group,” Angie said. “The weather was beautiful and we were seated upon the rooftop with a lovely setting. They even gave us all complimentary desserts to celebrate,” she added.
I asked how we did. “Our Central Park wedding was truly a dream. I wish I could relive that day over and over which is how every bride should feel about her wedding day,” Angie said. “God has certainly blessed me with that wonderful memory and I am so grateful to all who contributed to make it so perfect,” she added. Angie said that she knows that they could have tried to plan this on their own without us all at Wed in Central Park, “but there is no way it would’ve gone as smoothly and perfectly as it did,” she said. “From the step-by-step directions to obtain the license to the choice of officiant and photographer as well as many suggestions and tips along the way, Claire’s service was outstanding! I am so glad I found her and would highly recommend her service to anyone wanting their own dream wedding in Central Park” she said.
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