After dating for seven years, Katherine and Keriann got married on the rooftop of Deity with a view of the sunset over the city skyline. Their theme was Brooklyn, New York, and they complemented the theme with flowers and accents in black, gray and purple.
Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?
We wanted our wedding to feel like a New York City wedding and give off a modern feel. We also didn’t want it to be a typical ballroom wedding and we were looking for wow factors. Once we saw the rooftop space at Deity, our decision was made. We didn’t have a specific theme, but once we sent our Save the Dates with a picture of us on the Brooklyn Bridge and said “Meet Us in Brooklyn,” Brooklyn became a subtle theme. Beyond that, we tried to just pick things that we liked and hoped they all worked together well. Black, gray and purple are the colors we like most in our everyday life so that was a natural decision.
Let’s talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?
We were lucky enough to pick a venue that required little to no extra decor. The brick walls, string lights and candles were enough to give off a very Brooklyn, romantic and ambient feel. Although I love to DIY and spend hours each day browsing Pinterest, we struggled with the logistics of storing, transporting and assembling decor, so we decided it wasn’t worth the added stress. We did DIY a few of the small details such as making menus, programs and rose petal packets to throw at the end of the ceremony.
What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?
We weren’t adding a lot of decor to our venue so flowers were the primary source of color and design in our wedding. Once we decided on bridesmaids dresses in a light gray/purple color, we found pictures of flowers on Pinterest to match. We showed our florist the picture of a bouquet made up of very dark purple, light purple and blush flowers with sage eucalyptus accents. We asked for centerpieces that were made up of the same flowers and for branches to go on each side of the altar. We purchased the vases ourselves for both the centerpieces and altar branches because it was difficult to find modern and sleek silver vases that we liked. We originally wanted white branches to go on each side of the altar, but due to the seasonal constraints, we had to settle for green leaf branches. This turned out to be a lovely decision because the entire space felt very garden-like and beautiful.
Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?
We decided after much deliberation to write our own vows and this turned out to be one of the most personal and special moments of our day. Kate and I are both shy and terrible at public speaking, but this was so meaningful that it was worth it. My mom made homemade jam for our favors and we designed a sticker with a Notorious BIG quote, “Spread love, it’s the Brooklyn way,” that went along with our subtle Brooklyn theme and love for Biggy. We also chose our favorite cocktails, a Key Lime Pie martini and a Bourbon Gold Rush, for signature cocktails that turned out amazing! Lastly, we tried to choreograph our first dance by watching YouTube videos a week before our wedding. This seemed crazy at first, but the dance turned out absolutely perfect and we looked great.
Let’s talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.
For me, the dress was one of the most important and exciting parts of wedding planning and it was the very first thing we did. I wanted to find the dress of my dreams first and then plan the wedding around that. I tend to lean more towards modern and clean line styles, but I wanted to try everything before deciding the kind of bride I wanted to be.
I found a picture of a dress on Pinterest that I couldn’t get out of my head and went to a small dress shop in NYC to try on that specific dress knowing it might be way out of my budget and I’d never heard of the designer. I tried the dress on in my second store, the fourth wedding dress I ever tried, and I knew in that moment with 100 percent certainty that it was my dress. It is definitely true what they say about getting a feeling and just knowing when it’s the right dress. My dress was a deep V-neck A-line dress with a lace-up back and large slit up the left leg. The dress felt bridal with a bit of a train but also very modern and sexy.
Kate knew she wanted to wear a suit of some sort and she knew it had to be black (her favorite color and very New York). We were both nervous and stuck on where exactly to shop for her outfit since typical suits aren’t made for a woman’s body. Luckily, we discovered Bindle & Keep where we had the most amazing experiencing designing Kate’s suit from scratch. They sat down with us in a very cool Brooklyn loft, patiently going over every detail from the type of buttons to the lining and material. We had a few pictures of modern, black tuxedos that Kanye West has worn in the past as inspiration and I knew we wanted black satin incorporated somewhere to complement my black satin wedding shoes.
Kate’s outfit ended up being a mix between suit and a tuxedo, with skinny and slightly short black pants, a plain white shirt, black jacket with a satin lapel and a black and white bandanna print silk lining in the jacket.
How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.
We met our freshmen year of college at SUNY Albany where we lived down the hall from each other. We became best friends which eventually led to more. We moved from Albany to New York City after college where we live in a UES apartment next to Carl Shulz Park. Kate proposed (after seven years of dating) in my favorite spot of the park overlooking the East River, where she also had a picnic set up for us. After our picnic, we headed out to lunch where she planned a surprise engagement party with our friends and family, even flying in my family from out of town.
What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?
The most anticipated part of our wedding day was the first look. Kate had not seen my dress before and I had never seen her with hair and makeup done. We also spent the night before the wedding apart so it made the moment even more exciting. There were so many special moments including our ceremony and written vows, taking rooftop sunset pictures, seeing family we hadn’t seen in years. But the most special for me was hearing the speeches our family had put together. Kate’s brother, my sister, and my dad all gave the most amazing speeches that had the entire room crying. People always say that guests get bored if you do too many speeches so I was nervous about keeping them limited, but now I wish we had more!
Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you’d like to share with other couples planning their day?
Don’t worry about the small details and keep it small (bridal party, guest list, desserts). I spent hours picking out the perfect cake topper, bought several and returned them, and it never made it onto the cake at our reception—but I never even noticed! The centerpieces, food, decorations and dessert table were also different than I expected.
You don’t have time on your wedding day to set everything up the way you have it imagined in your head, and you won’t even notice if things are different, so don’t spend too much time stressing about the small stuff.
Second, keep the focus on you and your fiance throughout the wedding planning process and on your wedding day. The more people you have involved, the more you worry about their needs and wants when the day is a celebration of you two. Bridal parties are inevitably a lot of work and drama whether it’s people not being where you want them at the right time or disagreeing on their style. Keep it small and simple! —from Keriann, one half of the couple
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Photographer: Cheyanna De Nicola Photography
Event Venue: Deity
Cake Designer: Molly’s Cupcakes
Apparel: Bindle and Keep
Dress Designer: Karen Willis Holmes
Officiant: Harris Bloom Weddings
Floral Designer: Opalia Flowers
