One for those incurable romantics among you, this morning we bring you the American dream - a Connecticut wedding straight out of an Audrey Hepburn movie, a beautifully secluded garden, a beautiful bride and a dapper groom exchange vows among the heady scents of summer and retire to ballroom filled with roses for a sparkling celebration. This was the American dream wedding come true for Marget and Seth, who chose the Mansion at Harkness Memorial State Park in Connecticut for their Summer wedding and Katie Stoops to do the photographic honours. You will swoon...
Marget filled us in on how the two lovebirds found each other: "We first laid eyes on each other at my 26th birthday party on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Thanks to the sneaky matchmaking of a mutual friend, Seth attended believing he was going to meet a girl who had been told just as much about him as he had about her. The catch: our friend had never mentioned Seth to me. Strangers or not, we only talked for a few minutes before we felt we'd hit upon something special. Sparks flew. When I left for another location with friends, Seth convinced other friends to follow us, but by the time they made it to there, my group had already left for a third bar. Undeterred, he had our mutual friend call me to find out where we were, but once again, he arrived to the third bar just after we had left for yet another location. His persistence and a little bit of fate led us to run into each other on the sidewalk at the end of the evening, and this time Seth asked for my phone number. I was grinning ear to ear when he called two days later to ask me on a date.
Seth completely surprised me during a vacation in Europe. On our first afternoon in Paris, we walked down to the Seine for my first glimpse of Paris. While looking at the locks of love on the Pont des Arts, Seth dropped to one knee and asked me to spend my life with him. He had done such a good job convincing me that he wasn’t going to propose for another two years that I was in shock. Hence, it took me a while to process his question, but once I stopped asking, “what is happening?!”, I said, “yes!” Giddy, we then walked to the secluded tip of the Ile de la Cite, where Seth gave me the antique yellow diamond ring he had chosen for me and had been carrying in his pocket for 11 days of travelling.
Marget grew up in Connecticut, close to Eolia, the mansion in Harkness Memorial State Park, and played in the beautiful gardens often. Thus it was no surprise that from the first time she saw Audrey Hepburn's eponymous turn in Sabrina as a young girl, it was her dream to have a wedding party at a mansion surrounded by old trees and intricate gardens, and of course Harkness fitted the bill perfectly. Like the smart lady she is, she kept her dream wedding plan secret from Seth until after they were engaged, (note to single ladies with dreams of rings - don't scare the poor chap with wedding planning before the question is popped) but after the ring was on her finger, she told him of her idea. Seth has a love of history, so he was just as excited about the plan and it became their dream come true...
Among my favorite moments were taking a long walk across a field through the rain with my father so that we could surprise Seth by appearing at the very end of the garden for a long walk down the aisle. Seth loves to surprise me and was heavily invested in first laying eyes on me on our wedding day, so I wanted to turn the tables and give him a moment to remember. Indeed, seeing me in my dress for the first time is one of his favorite moments from the day. I also loved every moment of our ceremony, from hearing Seth’s personal vows to seeing friends’ faces in the audience. I was especially moved when the family friend who delivered our marriage address surprised us by including the unexpected inclusion of Seth and my thoughts on life, love, faith and family, in the marriage address.
We were married in the very garden that I played in as a child
So after creating such a breathtakingly beautiful and personal celebration, what advice do you have for those of us still planning our trip down the aisle? "Find what you like about planning, and embrace those aspects. Reflect on what moves you about your partner, and the act of marriage, and emphasize those qualities in every way you can. Seth and I found that wedding planning was sometimes burdensome but was actually, truly, an incredible opportunity to honor each other and the the people who matter to us. As much as you can, capitalize on this chance to celebrate the blessings of your life!
We drew inspiration from the lush greens of Harkness's natural beauty by choosing simple design elements only decorated with florals. We drew inspiration for the decor from the location. Situated right on the Long Island Sound, with a classic Italian garden and architecture from the turn of the 20th century, Harkness is a historical beauty that celebrates the juxtaposition of clean lines and nature. Our colour scheme was simple: black, grey and white, with accents of peach and green. The ambience inside the mansion was soft, with grey linens and candlelight, while we punched up the retro vibe with black and white striped linens under the tent for cocktail hour and dancing. We wanted the only color accents to be natural, and filled mint julep cups with peach David Austen garden roses, café au lait dahlias, and tons of herbs and greenery. Seth is a literary agent and a writer, and we both love to read. To celebrate this passion, we filled the mansion’s bookshelves with antique Victorian novels we collected, and set aside one shelf to fill with books written by friends and clients.
Many decorative elements were handcrafted by me and a special bridesmaid. We chose long tables with seasonal food served family style in order to encourage conversation, and it was such a joy to see friends from opposing parts of the world finding common ground. Finally, we wanted to really celebrate the expansive joy we felt, and our DJ was amazing, bringing the whole party onto the dance floor!
And Seth and I both agree that dancing to the last song played at our reception was an amazing feeling. Our DJ played an awesome version of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes’ Home as our last song, and our whole wedding party formed a circle around Seth and I, and we all sang and danced along. We felt so loved, and so very happy.
My mom hand sewed a special jewellery pouch to hold my wedding day jewelry, as well as pouches for all of my bridesmaids. My sister-in-law and I made the drink stirrer flags, and Seth and I made the tinsel donut hole skewers. My veil was custom made for me and my sister-in-law to each wear at our weddings this past summer, and we hope that it will be a family heirloom that our sisters and daughters will wear one day, too.
Congratulations Marget & Seth, your wedding is just such a delight to cheer us up on this grey January morning, and has me dreaming of balmy days to come this Summer. Many thanks too, of course to Katie Stoops for sharing her beautiful work with us - you can see more over on www.katiestoops.com
All the Wedding Details
- Venue: Eolia, the Mansion at Harkness Memorial State Park, Waterford, Connecticut
- Wedding Dress: Romona Keveza
- Bridesmaids dresses: White by Vera Wang, Halston Heritage and Zara
- Shoes: J. Crew Bridal Collection
- Flowers: Hana Floral Design
- Groomsmen’s suits: Black Fleece by Brooks Brothers
- Accessories: Jewellery by Lulu Frost
- Cake: A Thyme to Cook
- Stationery: Rifle Paper Co.
- Make Up & Hair: Jennie Fresa Makeup Boutiquerie
- Wedding Bands: Catbird
- Ceremony music: Richard Schenk
- Reception Music: Power Posse
