Nicole and Yvan's Wedding at the Delaney House

Nicole and Yvan were married on August 19th, with a ceremony and reception at the Delaney House in Holyoke, MA.

These two amazing people met at a bar during Nicole’s last week of undergrad, and that was it—they were in love. They became closer and closer not only to each other but to each other’s family, and so Yvan wanted to propose while the whole family was together. If he didn’t want to wait until Thanksgiving, the soonest time the family was getting together was at the family fantasy football draft. Nicole’s family had started getting together for the draft after her grandfather passed as a way to make sure that they got together on a regular basis. So, Yvan popped the question at the draft, and Nicole thinks he charmed the season, because she went on to win the league!

Before the ceremony, Yvan and Nicole had a touching first look. Nicole had already seen him in his suit before the wedding day, but the moment he turned around and saw her for the first time in her dress was simply stunning.

From there, it was off to the ceremony itself, which was officiated by Nicole’s brother. So many of their friends and loved ones had come to celebrate their union, and it was especially touching to see Yvan dancing with his aunt, who represented his mother, since his mom couldn’t make the trip from Togo. 

During the reception, the DJ worked with Nicole and Yvan to incorporate some of the African music that he and his friends always play at parties, and it was a blast to see everyone getting into it!

At the end of the night, Yvan and Nicole danced to one last slow song, “All of Me” by John Legend. By that time, there was a smaller group left, and they all formed a circle around the two of them to sing along and show their love for these two!

Yvon & Nicole, thank you for letting us be part of your wedding day! Congratulations to both of you, and we hope you will continue to live happily ever after!

Vendors

Hair & Makeup: Glow Bridal

Cake Maker: The Delaney House

DJ: Absolute Entertainment (Greg Belisle)

First Dance Song: “Stay With You” by John Legend

Dress Boutique: David's Bridal

Caterer: The Delaney House

Stephanie and Joe's Wedding at the Riverview

Stephanie and Joe were married on October 15th, with a ceremony at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Westfield, MA, and a reception at the Riverview in Simsbury, CT. 

These two met when their mutual friends decided to play matchmaker and set them up. After a few attempts to get together, they went to a concert, and the sparks started to fly. Fast forward to the beach in Michigan at sunset—where Joe proposed on top of the highest dune!

Stephanie and Joe were both nervous before the wedding that they would cry too much early on and look like a mess before they even got through the ceremony. Thankfully, they got most of it out during the first look. They were raw and emotional together, but it also gave them time to stabilize and ground themselves to put a lid on their emotions before they had to go out in front of their guests. 

The whole day was filled with so much fun and love! In the limo ride over to pictures, the wedding party burst into karaoke, and the DJ, James Hall, was fantastic all night. At the very end of the reception, the last song played was Billy Joel’s “Piano Man.” The entire room full of guests gathered on the dance floor to encircle the new couple, holding hands as they sang and then wished them well on their way out. 

Joe & Stephanie, thank you for allowing us to be part of this amazing day for both of you! You have so much love in your lives, and we wish you nothing but the best together!

Vendors:

Caterer: The Riverview

DJ/Band: James Hall Events

Hair: Tangles Hair Salon Westfield

Makeup: Tangles Hair Salon Westfield

Cake: The Riverview

Dress: Bridal Barn

Jewelry: dimend SCAASI Chicago

Flowers: Valerie Vassos 

Menswear: Men's Wearhouse

Invitations: Paper and Pearl Invitations

Hannah and Austin's Log Cabin Wedding

Hannah and Austin were married on October 22nd, with a ceremony and reception at the Log Cabin in Holyoke, MA.

Austin had gone to Navy boot camp with Hannah’s brother Brannon in Chicago in January of 2013. While they were there, Brannon had many of the recruits write letters to Hannah, just for fun—though she didn’t actually receive any of their letters until after she went to Chicago for their graduation from boot camp!

After the graduation, all the new sailors were allowed to spend the evening out with their families. Austin messaged Hannah on Facebook saying that he and Brannon had talked about going out to dinner with both of their families, but Brannon asked her to message him back and say that the plans had changed. Hannah messaged him back to let him know that Brannon just wanted to spend the night with his family, and the next day, Austin messaged her again, asking what their plans were for that day. Somewhere along the conversation, they exchanged phone numbers, and they spent the next few months or so randomly texting each other just to catch up. 

A few months later, Austin mentioned via text that he was finishing up at his Navy A-School in Pensacola, FL, so that he could become an air traffic controller. He would be taking a few weeks off before transferring to his next duty station, so he was headed home to North Carolina at the end of July. He asked if she wanted to come down and actually meet him, and the next thing she knew, she was being picked up at the airport by a guy she’d never met in person! They spent a few days together on the beach and fell in love—all because of her spontaneous decision to seize an adventure in North Carolina!

When Austin decided to propose to Hannah, he knew that he wanted to do something completely unexpected, because he always had to work hard to surprise her. So, he got together with his mother, Shannon, and explained his plan: when they took their annual family pictures on the beach, he was going to propose. That way, the proposal would be captured forever on film!

The day of family pictures came, and they started out with individual families and all the small grandchildren together before they all congregated for the big family picture. Hannah had to be in the front because she was shorter, and everyone in the family was in on the plan as Austin slipped around behind Hannah, and they all parted in the middle. When Hannah turned around to see what was going on, there he was, down on one knee!

As they prepared for the wedding, Hannah’s brother Tyler booked an appointment for her at the famous Kleinfeld Bridal in New York City. Of course, she wasn’t expecting to find anything there, since she wasn’t planning to be on Say Yes to the Dress, and she didn’t have an extravagant budget. But she did take the opportunity to go out with all her girlfriends for a ladies’ trip to NYC—with her mom, her aunts, Austin’s mom, her nanny, her maid of honor, her bridesmaid, and a couple friends!

After a night out on the town, they were all excited to go to the famous dress shop, though they were a little disappointed to find out that only four people could fit in a dressing room. But when Judith, the consultant, asked if they would mind squeezing, all of the ladies were quick to agree to sacrifice personal space to be there! With that, Judith and her assistant, Candice, brought in three dresses for Hannah to try on. When Hannah zipped up the third dress, she started to cry, and so did some of the other girls—sure that this was the one.

But . . . Hannah’s mother wasn’t so sure. She wanted a longer veil, but Candice insisted that a long veil wouldn’t work with the dress. The consultants, seeing that there was a slight disconnect, left the ladies alone for a moment and returned with one more dress, though they did note that it was a little over budget. But the moment Hannah put it on, they all forgot about the other dress when they saw her in the strapless Sareh Nouri dress!

Hannah then found out that the dress was part of a trunk show they had that day, when designers come to the stores with dresses they have out for the season and upcoming seasons. That meant Sareh Nouri was there—and she told Hannah that not only did she look stunning but she was the first bride to try on the dress after it walked the runway during Fashion Week! She was wearing the dress a whole year in advance, and the excitement was palpable!

Her mother called Tyler via FaceTime, since he was the one who made the appointment but couldn’t be there because he was deployed in Iraq, and they wanted him to be able to see the dress too. With everyone surrounding Hannah as they FaceTimed Tyler, the owner of Kleinfeld came over to introduce himself and see what all the excitement was about. When he saw that Tyler was on the phone, he made it a point to thank Tyler for his service. 

Finally, the day of the wedding arrived. They were married late in the evening with a gorgeous fall sunset, so they wanted to make sure they had a first look and pictures of everyone before they lost the light. They both looked amazing—Hannah in her dress and Austin in his dress uniform—as they stood in the rain overlooking the mountainside at the log cabin. You could see the moment all the misery of the cold rain melted away when Hannah tapped on his shoulder and they saw each other for the first time that day!

The wedding was amazing, filled with family and friends who were all so excited to celebrate with these two, but at the end of the night, they were still able to find a moment to themselves. The rain had stopped by then, and the two of them curled up together next to the outdoor fireplace to take in the whole night—and get a few last-minute pictures in!

Hannah & Austin, thank you so much for allowing us to be part of your amazing love story! We hope that you will continue to have such amazing adventures in your new lives together!

Vendors:

Hair: The Hamptons Salon

Makeup: Alina Shut (friend)

Cake Maker: The Log Cabin

Wedding Planner: Rachel Voci/Nicole Lucas - The Log Cabin

DJ or Band: Viren Entertainment - Shawn Santanello

Dress Boutique: Kleinfeld Bridal

Caterer: The Log Cabin

Florist: Vizok Design

Keira and Danny's Great Horse Country Club Wedding

Keira and Danny were married on October 8th, with a ceremony and reception at the Great Horse Country Club in Hampden, MA.

Keira had a feeling that Danny was going to propose, so he proposed where she least expected it—at their usual breakfast spot, Russ’. He wanted to make sure that she was surprised, and she was!

I was personally so excited for this wedding because Keira and Danny are good friends of mine. They are just so positive and always come in with a great attitude, and the whole wedding was so fun. I’ve known Keira long before she met Danny, and have watched as they have grown both individually and together as a couple. It’s been a joy for me to witness. Also, I always enjoy seeing my network of friends come to weddings as guests. I feel so much more a part of the celebration!

Keira and Danny decided not to see each other before the ceremony because they wanted to have that special moment of seeing each other during the walk down the aisle. It ended up being the perfect choice—Keira loved seeing her best friend standing there at the altar. They were both so excited to marry each other!

I’d be remiss if I didn’t absolutely gush about this venue, too. This is my first wedding here, and after seeing how beautiful Great Horse is, I know I definitely want to return often! It’s a top-notch venue, and I couldn’t have asked for a better setting for two of my friends to celebrate their wedding! 

Danny & Keira, I was so excited to get to see the two of you tie the knot, and I’m so grateful that you asked me to be part of your day! Thank you again for your love and friendship—I wish you nothing but happiness.

Vendors:

Caterer: The Great Horse 

DJ/Band: Viren Entertainment

Brides Hair: Darcy Auclair

Bridesmaids Hair: 511 Salon East Longmeadow 

Makeup: Allison Colllazo

Cake: Koffee Kup Bakery

Dress: Alexandra’s Boutique

Jewelry: Funari Jewelers 

Flowers: Durocher Florist

Event Coordinator: Chris Sullivan

JP: Zita Christian

Menswear: Williamsons Clothier

Linens: Marias Elegant Events Chicopee