Kerrie and Zach brought a small group of their close family with them to New York from their home in Newcastle in England this October. They got married in Cop Cot. Zach was 29 and Kerrie 28, and had been together for nine years when they got married.
Kerrie and Zach first met in high school when they were 14 and 15 years old. “We dated a little while but nothing serious and things just fizzled out,” Kerrie told me. They happened to bump into each other five years later when we were 19 and 20 years old when they were on holiday separately with their friends. “We actually met outside of a Burger King!” Kerrie said.
They also got engaged while on holiday, this time in Mexico in 2022. Kerrie said that they don’t feel very traditional in general, “we are traditional in the sense that we preferred to get married before having a family.” The couple had begun planning a big wedding in England close to home when Kerrie visited New York with her mom. And this trip changed her mind! They decided they would like to have an intimate wedding in New York before traveling around the US and Mexico for their honeymoon.
So, they found me at Wed in Central Park, and they contacted me around 18 months before their wedding. “We chose to get married in Central Park because we thought where more beautiful and iconic to get married in New York!” Kerrie said. “We love the busy-ness of New York, but something about Central Park is so peaceful and lovely,” she added, and I completely agree. “We then had our wedding reception in a restaurant in the heart of Times Square so we got the best of both worlds!” she said.
Kerrie does think that this non-traditional option of a smaller wedding abroad or even an elopement is becoming more popular. “I think couples are doing more for themselves rather than pleasing hundreds of guests,” she said. She pointed out that was a big part of their decision to do what they did, and “we’re so pleased we did!” she said.
Of course with every choice we make we close the door on the other possible options. When it comes to a wedding, you plan to do it only once. “When the date of what was planned to be our UK wedding came around, I was slightly upset that I didn’t get the traditional walking down the aisle and things like that,” Kerrie said. “But once that day was over, I was so pleased that we chose to do things a little differently,” she added.
Kerrie told me that Zach always felt that the low-stress option of getting married in New York was going to be much better for them. Now that they are married, Kerrie feels that she completely agrees. “I am so pleased we have done this for us as it’s memories that we will treasure forever,” she said.
This visit was Kerrie’s second time in New York, and Zach’s first time. They stayed in the Sanctuary Hotel close to Times Square. We had our photographer start the day with the party at the hotel, firstly taking photos of Zach getting ready with his family. Then when he left the hotel to greet his guests at Cop Cot, the photographer went to Kerrie to take getting ready photos of her and her family and a first look photo with her dad.
We held the ceremony in Cop Cot. We had made a bad weather backup plan and they would have held the ceremony in the Ladies’ Pavilion in case of rain, since it has a roof. But the weather was warm, dry and sunny for their wedding day. “Our favorite pictures were taken just outside of Cop Cot as you got to see the New York skyline in the background,” Kerrie told me.
We wrote the ceremony together, we had an introduction talking about their loved ones, and a brief story of their relationship to date, and then a poem, which I’ll put at the end of this post. They exchanged traditional vows before sealing their promises with the exchange of rings. “The ceremony was perfect. Claire had helped us write our vows and they were made to be so personal to us,” Kerrie said.
Kerrie and Zach’s party had seven guests in total. They had both sets of parents, Zach’s brother, Zach’s grandma and also a close family friend. “They all absolutely loved it, they all said the day was perfect and they were very glad we chose to do it this way,” Kerrie told me.
Kerrie had purchased faux flowers, corsages and boutonnières at home and Zach’s grandma helped her to make the bouquet. She chose to do it this way so she could take her bouquet home and keep it in a vase. “We wore the traditional wedding attire; floor length dress and veil and tuxedo,” Kerrie said. They brought them over in their hand luggage. Check out my blog with some tips on bringing wedding attire on a plane. Kerrie did her own makeup and used Glamsquad for her hair.
We arranged for a vintage yellow cab to pick the newlywed couple up from 59th Street and drive them up to 72nd Street, so they didn’t have to walk up to Bethesda Terrace and Bow Bridge for photos there, and then the cab took them on to their reception afterwards. They held the reception at Peter Dillon’s on 36th Street. “We went there because the owners are Newcastle United supporters – our football team back home,” said Kerrie. So, that’s a nice touch to bring a little bit of home to their destination wedding.
After celebrations at the bar, the party went on to have a meal at Carmines in Time Square, “it had an amazing atmosphere and was the perfect place to finish our evening celebrations,” Kerrie told me. “We would definitely recommend Carmines for an evening reception if you are looking for somewhere with a warm, friendly atmosphere,” she said. “It is a very large restaurant but we chose it because we wanted something laid back. The portions are huge so definitely recommend sharing a meal!” she added.
I asked Kerrie if she had any advice for anyone else from the UK considering getting married in Central Park. “Do it!! You won’t regret it,” she said. “We are so, so glad we chose to do it this way rather than a traditional UK wedding,” she added. “The story we can tell about our kids, grandkids and friends about getting married in New York is something we look forward to. We don’t know any other couple who have done it so it’ll be a good story to tell,” she said.
I asked how we did. “If you are thinking of getting married in Central Park, go with Claire! She has honestly made the whole process of getting married so stress free and we can’t thank her enough” Kerrie said. “Her blogs are so helpful and all your questions are bound to be answered on her page, but if you are unsure of anything she is always happy to help,” she added. I do try to put lots of information out there online, but am happy to go into further detail with anyone if they have questions. “Thank you so much Claire from the both of us for making our dreams come true with our wedding. Best day of our lives,” Kerrie said.
Thank you for your kind words and for sharing your story with us, Kerrie and Zach, it was a pleasure to plan your wedding with you! I wish you both the very best of luck for your future together! If you would like me to help you with planning your own Central Park wedding, whether you or are planning on traveling to New York to get married with a group as this couple did, or eloping, visit our website. Keep updated with our news and see lots of beautiful photos, follow us on Instagram, follow us on Facebook, follow us on TikTok, and follow us on Pinterest.
Kerrie and Zach’s Poem
The day I marry my best friend.
The one I laugh with as we share life’s wonderous zest,
as we find new enjoyments and experience all that’s best.
The one I live for because the world seems brighter
as our happy times are better and our burdens feel much lighter.
The one I love with every fiber of my soul.
We used to feel vaguely incomplete, now together we are whole.