December in Pennsylvania is a great but difficult time for a wedding. It’s cold, the daylight hours are few, the freezing temps hinder a lot of super cute bridal/bridesmaid dress options, and did I mention that it’s really cold? (Maybe that was Mike talking.) On the other hand, winter weddings have a crisp, festive feel with twinkling lights, evergreens, and beautiful nighttime moments snuggling close. Perhaps you decide to have a winter wedding because your coffee shop is opening soon after and there’s no time for a break when you’re running your own business! That’s how things worked for Ali and Mike and I feel very lucky that I was there for it.
I absolutely love Holly Hedge Estate in any season. It has beautiful grounds with lots of trees, a pond, plantings, a lovely historic inn, and a fantastic old barn with a picturesque brick patio, complete with wrought iron gates, twinkling lights, and a fountain. It’s one of the most charming venues in the area. Ali and Mike (and Ali’s mom!) chose well!
Ali chose a ballgown with rhinestone straps and belt and a sexy plunging v neck. She bought this *second* dress the month before the wedding and had it fitted within a week. She told me that the first one was lovely but it just didn’t feel special. This one fit the bill!
Ali remained amazingly calm as a half dozen people worked to get the dress zipped the final few inches over a seam. None could do it and we already had people looking for a sewing kit to sew her into the dress. Feeling like Arthur from The Sword in the Stone, a certain magical photographer gave one gentle tug and up it went.
Ali looked the part of a giggling Disney princess. Ali Rapunzel’s bright green eyes, Snow White’s creamy complexion, Cinderella’s golden hair, and Elsa’s cold tolerance.
She carried a cascading bouquet of burgundy and white flowers with wintry soft greens. The handle was specially designed to hold her grandmother’s prayer book.
Mike gallantly stuck it out for some pictures while we still had some winter daylight. The Old Barn is one of my favorite places for pictures!
The bridesmaids were amazing! If you ever feel the need to hire some for your own wedding, I can’t recommend this trio highly enough. All coming from Ali’s musical theater background, they were a hoot! Their expressions, comfort, looks, and ability to laugh at will was A+. Oh! And they’re talented as hell! (Ladies, charge extra for the serenades!) Each of them could have been one of the daughters of Triton. Ali had a collection of her grandmother’s heirloom furs that were utterly perfect for these foxy sirens.
This is completely appropriate since their wedding ceremony was influenced by musical theater. Friends PERFORMED a series of musical numbers from Fiddler on the Roof, Once, Les Miserables, Children of Eden, Memphis, Bridges of Madison County, Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, and Jersey Boys.
Add to that the fact that the minister was Ali’s step-father and the pianist was Ali’s childhood music teacher.
Mike, a sommelier, contributed with a special wine he had picked for them to share on this occasion. A 100 point wine. Ali contributed… tears. Lots and lots of tears. It was wonderful and emotional.
The reception space was warm and inviting.
The two entered and shared their first dance to Landon Pigg’s “I Fell in Love in a Coffee Shop,” a cute nod to the venture they started mere weeks after the wedding. They swept across the dancefloor like Belle and Beast (sorry, Mike!).
As expected, the guests and the dancing were phenomenal! If you’re going to party, party with creatives. They know how to get down!
The day was all things magic, music, laughter, and romance. A total fairy tale.
I never knew just what it was about this old coffee shop
I love so much
All of the while I never knew
I never knew just what it was about this old coffee shop
I love so much
All of the while, I never knew
All of the while, all of the while,
it was you~ Landon Pigg, “Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop”
