UWS Winter Wedding Pics with Lions and Tigers and T-Rex, oh my!

Getting married in February in NYC has it's perks: reduced prices, less competition for venues, no chance of humidity and hot weather ruining the finished look...but one aspect that really cramps my planning is the lack of creative/attractive indoor space for photos and unless I down a flask of brandy...I'm not making it through ten minutes of requisite snowy Central Park shots...

  What about sipping egg creams inside Artie's....

Perusing the shelves at Westsider Books or Bank Street Book Store...

Wiping off your mutual frothed milk mustaches at Starbucks....or feeding each other some oh so gouda treats at Zabars (and don't forget to hit up the strudel for those of us whose honeymoon fantasys involve more "sweets" than "suites"........)

Times like this I wish the Metro Twin was still open, but there is always Loews Lincoln Center or Lincoln Plaza for you cinephiles who want to capture the credits rolling on your own happily ever after... 

 Cafe Lalo is a bit on the cheesier side, but offers some great lighting and brick wall background...

And my favorite idea...? The Museum of Natural History!

Belle Epoque to warm up the winter...

Antique Ring

vintage comb

Suneet Veema's Dresses

wedding dresses

gorgeous gold watch

And for the powder room...

And of couse Opera Cake is perfect in it's Viennese gloriousness....

Klimt inspired decorations, table settings, etc.....

End with some pernod inspired recipes...

And lastly a little Claire de Lune by Verlaine to make you feel as if you are Rue de Mouffetard...

Moonlight
Your soul is like a landscape fantasy,
Where masks and Bergamasks, in charming wise,
Strum lutes and dance, just a bit sad to be
Hidden beneath their fanciful disguise.
Singing in minor mode of life's largesse
And all-victorious love, they yet seem quite
Reluctant to believe their happiness,
And their song mingles with the pale moonlight,
The calm, pale moonlight, whose sad beauty, beaming,
Sets the birds softly dreaming in the trees,
And makes the marbled fountains, gushing, streaming--
Slender jet-fountains--sob their ecstasies.

Bride Wars part Deux! Prince William Getting Married this Summer in London...

Just found out from my fiance that we're going to have some competition this summer with our wedding in London. That's right after about 8 years of dating Prince Willy Billy is finally making an honest woman out of Waity Katy. The date is set for Spring/Summer of this year but I happen to know from my many days aimlessly touring London while waiting for my little crumpet to finish work this summer, that the Royals take their vacays the last week of July and throughout August which puts them in prime competition with the Whismervik Wedding Cricket Tour 2011!

What I really found to be some "scary biscuits" to use my favorite Brit phrase, was that she is sporting Diana's old engagement ring and an exact replica of the one I was going to get, I mean that I was going to strongly hint to my fiance to get mmmmeeeee, about a year ago.

So if you by any chance want to pass for Ms. Middleton herself and are looking for a similar style, Friar House rings is pretty much as authentic as you get for English period jewelry.

Bridal Bouquet Revisited...

Meeting with vendors reminds me of being single. Each one is like a date complete with nervousness, high expectations and hope that this one may, at last, be the one. As I rushed down to the flower district this morning for my "date" with Emily Thompson, I tried to rearticulate in my head the aesthetic I was looking for. It felt exactly like when I literally ran into Ryan Reynolds in Central Park.  I was hot, sweaty and wearing a hot pink shirt that said, "Long Island Cheeseburger," on it when I saw Mr. Reynolds dressed smartly in a suit strolling past the reservoir. I was siezed with lust and could barely think of what I was going to say when the moment came and the words, "Hey!....I'm a big fan," came stumbling out of my thirsty lips. This was 4 years ago and every day I regret sounding like a total and complete knob.

So flash foward and it's the same thing all over again, only this time I'm not meeting my fantasy man, instead it's the floral designer of my dreams. Working with truly gifted artists can be very intimidating. I knew there was no one else who could give me the look I was searching for. So my biggest fear when meeting such talented vendors is that I'm either going to sound like an artistic idiot with no ideas, or like some kind of abstract asshole at an art gallery.

Ultimately I had no need to worry. If only all first dates went this well, NYC would run out of singles. The entire morning was a cacophony of ideas and colors. Tropical ferns and palms lush and green, gloriosa lilies exploding with color, raucus ranuculous, crespidia and french tulips and the coup de gras...kumkwats bursting with bright citrus glamour. Just when I thought I couldn't take anymore, Emily held some blooms in my face and said, "Smell." I couldn't believe it, they smelled just like chocolate.

This was followed by coffee and conversation and then an impromtu trek to search out ribbons. What I loved most about Ms. Thompson's approach, other than the exquisite attention to detail and service, was her sense of the moment. Let me explain. I look at most bouquets and I see stagnant, beautiful blooms bound together almost claustraphobically. Other than the fact that they are pretty, the flowers do not reflect the bride or the complex whirlwind inside her. I want to walk down the aisle and at the moment I feel most overwhelmed, look down and see in my hands a reflection of myself. A visual reminder that despite the fact that I am becoming a part of something bigger, I am not losing myself. I look at Emily's arrangements and they refuse to conform. There is a sense of urgency, as if the flowers themselves are aspiring towards replicating the truest sense of the moment. Their temporality only underscores the fact that some things happen only once.  And let's face it, that's what you are hoping for. At moments like those you want the best. Ladies and gentlemen, I've found her.

This is an actual arrangement from Emily Thompson Flowers. I would hump it if it wouldn't stab me...

If you are my bridesmaid DO NOT READ

How fabulous are these jene de spain earrings!

They are modeled after the Chrystel and Empire State buildings...

...you can't get more NYC than that!