Jenny and Fraser eloped from their home in Scotland to get married in Central Park in May. They had been together for fourteen years when they got married.
They stayed at the Lexington Autograph Hotel, which is close to Grand Central. Jenny’s hair and makeup were done by Metro Look, a team that I always recommend for this. She had considered going to a salon, but there are so many advantages to having someone come straight to your room to do this. It saves a lot of time and stress.
Their photographer Jakub Redziniak arrived at their hotel in the early afternoon to take first look photos. The hotel has a pretty lobby so he took some photos inside and just outside of the hotel. Then they left the hotel to take photos at Grand Central. We scheduled their photos there for the middle of the day because it’s much quieter than in the morning or later in the afternoon, when commuters fill the space. They left the station in a cab and went straight up to Central Park from there.
We had gone back and forth a few times beforehand considering which photo location options would suit them best. They weren’t sure about Grand Central, but I’m glad that they did decide to go there, since it was so close to the hotel, and it’s a stunning building. They had also considering Brooklyn Bridge Park for photos, but in the end had decided against going to Brooklyn due to the time it would take to get there.
Jenny and Fraser had also considered taking a river cruise on the evening of their wedding, but Fraser was keen to eat a high quality steak to celebrate, so they were weighing up the food options. When a couple elopes, I suggest that they think of the whole trip as their celebration – the big stuff doesn’t all have to happen on the wedding day. So, if you want to enjoy a wonderful, world-class meal and a cruise while in New York, just do both but on different days! In the end, they took the Bateaux dinner cruise on a different night. “We said we were on honeymoon and they gave us a complementary bottle on arrival and we had a great night,” she told me.
We held Jenny and Fraser’s wedding ceremony in Wagner Cove in the mid afternoon. I usually advise against a ceremony and photos in Central Park until after around 3pm if getting married in the afternoon, to avoid the sun being to bright and hot.
Regular readers of this blog will know that I appreciate a man in a kilt. Fraser went for tartan dress trousers and traditional Scottish black jacket and vest (or waistcoat for the Brits), with a boutonniere with a thistle, which I think we can all agree looks very smart too. And Jenny wore a stunning gown with large skirt and black sash and a small net veil.
We kept the ceremony quite short. We often write an introduction for the ceremony to tell the story of the couple’s relationship to date. But sometimes with eloping couples, they don’t feel that they need that, because they already know and it’s just the two of them! So, the officiant just welcomed them to New York and to Central Park and then read the poem I’ll Be There For You, by Louise Cuddon, which I’ll put at the end of this post. Then Jenny and Fraser exchanged traditional vows before exchanging rings. After the ceremony, they took photos by Wagner Cove and then they went over to Bethesda Terrace to take photos there before leaving Central Park.
They took a cab from Central Park to the Rockefeller Center. Jenny and Fraser had purchased timed tickets in advance as per the plan of timings that we had made. “There was no queue to speak of so the timings were spot on,” Jenny told me. Their photographer accompanied them to the Top of the Rock to take some stunning photos at the rooftop, with a view over Central Park itself. After that, he left them and they had a drink at the Rockefeller Center to relax after a long afternoon of smiling for the camera!
Jenny’s dress was quite big, so they popped back to the hotel to get changed, and then went to dinner at the French and Italian restaurant Ai Fiori at the Langham on 5th Avenue. “It was spectacular and they went above and beyond for us, knowing that we were a bride and groom. I would certainly recommend this place,” Jenny said.
I asked Jenny how we did. “Feedback is all great!,” she said. “The team were all brilliant, and Jakub captured some pretty great shots! All in all a fabulous day!” she said. If you would like me to help you with planning your own Central Park wedding or elopement, whether you live locally or are planning on traveling to New York to get married, visit our website. Keep updated with our news and see lots of beautiful photos, follow us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and follow us on Pinterest.
I’ll Be There For You, by Louise Cuddon
I’ll be there, my darling, through thick and through thin
When your mind’s in a mess and your head’s in a spin
When your plane’s been delayed, and you’ve missed the last train.
When life is just threatening to drive you insane
When your thrilling whodunit has lost its last page
When somebody tells you, you’re looking your age
When your coffee’s too cool, and your wine is too warm
When the forecast said, “Fine,” but you’re out in a storm
When your quick break hotel, turns into a slum
And your holiday photos show only your thumb
When you park for five minutes in a resident’s bay
And return to discover you’ve been towed away
When the jeans that you bought in hope or in haste
Just stick on your hips and don’t reach round your waist
When the food you most like brings you out in red rashes
When as soon as you boot up the bloody thing crashes
So my darling, my sweetheart, my dear…
When you break a rule, when you act the fool
When you’ve got the flu, when you’re in a stew
When you’re last in the queue, don’t feel blue
’cause I’m telling you, I’ll be there.
