Today’s New York wedding is a fantastic blend of unique, quirky, and very pretty. Sarah and Michael escaped to New York’s Buttermilk Falls Inn with their guests for their wedding day. The beautiful grounds provided a lush setting for their ceremony overlooking the Hudson River, where the groom’s brother acted as officant! Post ceremony, everyone mingled with farm animals (yes, please!) and explored the grounds before retreating to the barn for a farm-to-table dinner. As wonderful as all of those moments sound, the very best is Sarah and Michael’s choice of entertainment: dueling pianos! You will find so many moments captured by Sarah Tew Photography as well as Sarah’s wedding planning inspiration – keep reading below!
What (or who) helped you most in your planning process and/or on your wedding day?
I am someone who has a lot of ideas, and can change her mind more times than is reasonable, so it was no trouble for me to generate a concept (or 3 or 4) for the wedding. I had a lot of help from pictures and ideas from Easy, BHLDN and Pinterest (which offered so many more ideas that it nearly became my downfall). As for actually making my ideas possible, I had a tremendous amount of help from our families and close friends and owe all of the logistical success to our amazing team of vendors, including our fantastic, always-available wedding planner, Danielle DeFreest of Every Little Detail Wedding and Event Planning.
What was the most important thing to you when deciding who to work with for your wedding?
Michael and I really wanted vendors who were fantastic at their jobs, but also personable and flexible, people who could blend into what we saw for our wedding day. I think a wedding day should be about the bride and groom and the families and friends they are uniting. We wanted vendors who could create and capture these moments for us, help us fulfill our quirky requests and be able to disappear into the background a bit so we could enjoy time with our guests.
What was your inspiration for your wedding details and/or design?
My inspiration was mostly BHLDN – a little vintage, a little rustic, a little pretty with just enough added quirkiness to make it feel individual. I work in medicine and Michael in epidemiology so it was important to us to include something a little scientific in our day. We created escort cards and table markers relating to famous historical figures in medicine or public health. Each escort card contained a symbol that was used as the table marker. At each place setting, we made a card containing the biography of a famous scientist and the bio explained how that person was connected to the specific symbol. For example, Alexander Fleming who is famous for his work in discovering penicillin was connected to a symbol of vintage medicine bottles.
What was your favorite thing about your wedding?
I don’t know if I could pick one favorite thing about our wedding. We really wanted a relaxed weekend where our families and friends could all stay in one place and have a good time. If I had to pick one moment, it would be when my dad walked me down the aisle. The band played “Ashokan Farewell,” a song written about my home town that I had always dreamed would be played at my wedding. Not only was this a special moment for my dad and me, but I was walking towards my best friend and to-be groom, the rain held out for 30 more minutes for our gorgeous outdoor ceremony and everything thereafter felt perfectly inevitable; we didn’t need to worry or think. Shortly thereafter, we would be married, the party would start and my glass would remain full of champagne.
What is your best piece of advice for other brides?
As for advice, I’ll stick with something someone told me. Don’t sweat all of the small stuff, just sweat a little. In ten years, it is likely no one will remember your specific table linens, the hours you spent obsessing over a color or the exact flower in your bouquet. Focus on feeling beautiful and amazing, do just enough DIY or decision making so that you feel like the wedding represents you as a couple, hire people to help with the logistics, involve your family and friends and then enjoy yourself. And, wear comfortable shoes.
Vendors who made it all happen…
Photographer: Sarah Tew Photography//Musicians:176 Keys Dueling Pianos //Bridesmaid Dresses: BHLDN//Reception Venue: Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa//Tuxedo and Mens Attire: Christopher Schafer Clothier//Dress Designer: Claire Pettibone//Event Planner: Every Little Detail Wedding and Event Planning//Floral Designer:Floral Fantasies By Sara//Caterer:Henry’s at the Farm//Shoes:Jimmy Choo//Invitation Designer:JK Design //Hair Stylist:La Tua Bella Beauty Bar//Tuxedo and Mens Attire: Men’s Warehouse//Band: Metropolitan Hot Club//Jewelry:Roundabout Design//Jewelry:Treasures570//Cake Designer:Twisted Soul//Veils and headpieces: Veiled Beauty
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Love the groomsmen just chilling with a sword attached to him, as if it was his normal attire.