Woohoo! George and I have been married almost three months now, and we finally got the pictures back. But before I get to the wedding, I thought I’d share the getting ready.
We got married at a lovely bed & breakfast called Audrey’s Farmhouse, in Wallkill, NY. And while they do serve fabulous breakfast, I am a woman wedded to my routine – and I also happen to have an exceedingly nervous stomach. Normally, I have the same thing for breakfast every morning: yogurt and granola. And needless to say, I brought my own. George was hell bent on us not seeing each other on our wedding day until we were all dressed and ready to go. So my first thought upon waking up alone in my bed was: How am I going to tell these lovely ladies at the b&b that I don’t want the breakfast they cooked for me? And when two of my dear bridesmaids came in to my room to wake me up, I spilled my guts: I hadn’t come to breakfast yet because I didn’t want to offend. When bridesmaid Emily offered to tell the cooks for me, I said yes, even though I was embarrassed and normally I would have told them myself. To get to the point of this story: I’m not usually comfortable letting folks help me out, but allowing Emily to help me with my breakfast the morning of my wedding day was the first little bit of letting go I did that morning. I’m a little anxious, a little neurotic, and a little bit of a control freak. But on my wedding day, I let as much of that go as I could – and I had a blast.
Here are some photos of the pre-wedding preparations. All the pictures are by the fabulous Cappy Hotchkiss.
Sarah Victor of Skinnydip in Brooklyn has been cutting George’s and my hair for almost five years now, and I knew that she would make us look great – but keep us looking like ourselves. She oh-so-generously made the two hour schlep up to Wallkill the morning of the wedding and did our hair as a wedding gift to us.
Here’s the finished product. Sarah described it as a “nest” of hair. I just wanted it to look loose and natural. I decided not to go with a veil, but I wanted something cool for my hair. Luckily my friend Allyson Ross, who’s a jewelery designer and fellow photographer and really good friend, volunteered to help me make one. She found vintage millinary decorations and constructed it all with a hot glue gun.
So fun to have my friends surrounding me while I got ready.
Did I mention that we couldn’t have done it without our friends? As it turns out, George’s sister’s best friend is a super talented makeup artist who offered to do our makeup for free – as long as she and her sweet boyfriend could come to the wedding. Um, yes!
My dress! I don’t think it looks like too much on the hanger, but I loved having it on. Christina Kara of Blue in Nolita (she used to be in the East Village) made it for me. I fell in love with it the minute I tried on the sample. The best part: Even though it was made to order, it was 1/10th the price of anything else I could find. Thank you, Christina!
It seems like no wedding blog post is complete without a photograph of the bride’s shoes. So here they are, in all their canary splendor.
My mom died a little more than a year before the wedding, and I knew I wanted to wear something to keep her with me on the day-of. I did find her veil in a trunk in my parents’ attic, but it was crumbling. In the end, I decided to wear a gold charm bracelet she had when she was young. All the charms are different little hearts. The moment I put it on was the only time that day that I think I really felt sad wishing she was there.
I couldn’t love my in-laws more. When I was ready and George’s mom came in and saw me for the first time, we both started to cry. That was the moment I got an inkling of what it might have been like if my own mom had been there to see me.
We did hair in one room and makeup in another. Once George arrived to get dressed, she kept having to be led around the house to avoid seeing me. I kept glimpsing her through the window, but she swears she didn’t see me.
George wouldn’t let Cappy photograph her until she was all set, but here she is looking super handsome in her suit.
Next up: We see each other for the first time and get formal pictures taken.
Roxy, your dress is STUNNING! I’m wildly in love. I immediately searched Christina Kara online, but came up pretty empty handed. Would you mind sharing what you paid?
I’m also totally, madly in love with your dress! The pattern in the lace is amazing!
Thanks ladies! Christina Kara has almost zero web presence – just a little store in downtown Manhattan. My dress was $1300. I couldn’t believe I could get a made-to-order gown for what you would pay for a factory-made one at a big chain store. I loved working with her. She is very down to earth and no-nonsense. Other people liken her to Edna in the Incredibles and I don’t think that comparison is far off. You can reach her at 347-279-4415. Just tell her that I (Debbie in real life) sent you and if she can’t place me remind her that I’m a lesbian. (She’s done lots of two-lady weddings, and has even designed for both brides.)
Thanks Roxy! I’ll be in nyc in November – I think I’m going to need to look her up :)