Melissa and Corey Wed at Maggiano's!

Melissa and Corey came to see me and my wedding garden on February 6th and decided they wanted to get married there on April 3, 2010. Later, they decided to change the venue to Maggiano's in Southpoint Mall in Durham because they had more guests than my wedding garden could accommodate. So, on the morning of April 3rd, Marty I arrived at Maggiano's for the wedding.

 

Melissa looks gorgeous and her handsome escort is her son, Jackson.

I am embarrassed that I did not recognize Corey--at first. Must be because he looked so handsome all dressed up to get married. See the grin starting on his face? He was so happy to be marrying Melissa!

 I believe he is trying to get the ring on Melissa's finger here as Jackson is looking on. You can see the bottles of sand behind me. After the vows and rings, Melissa, Corey and Jackson poured their sand together as a symbol of family unity. They also presented Jackson with a special ring to commemorate the occasion.

"Jumping the broom is an ancient wedding ritual honoring and showing respect for your ancestors, their legacy, and your rich heritage from the African-American tradition.  This tradition is threefold: it is a leap of faith in each other that you take together; it is the overcoming of obstacles that you will face together throughout their lives; it is the cleansing of the spirit, both as individuals and as a united couple. Melissa and Corey will now signify their entrance into a new life and their creation of a new family by symbolically “sweeping away” their former single lives, former problems and concerns, and stepping over the broom to enter upon a new adventure as husband and wife."  

Married at last. Since I did not see Corey before the ceremony, I did not get a chance to pin his boutonniere on but  I  got it on him before the posed photos.

What a handsome family Melissa, Corey and Jackson make! They are also loving and incredibly thoughtful individuals. It was my honor to officiate for them. I wish you all the happiness in the world!!

Many thanks to Emily Slaughterbeck of Maggiano's Little Italy for all her help in putting this wedding together. Maggiano's is a great place for weddings--small up to almost 100 people in their private rooms which can be sectioned off. I also thank Kelly of Kelly Martin Photography for her talent in photographing the wedding and not minding Marty taking photos with my camera for this blog. The wedding cake was spectacular and was baked by a friend of theirs, Yelena Volchansky, who is just starting up her wedding cake business. 

Liz and Terry's Fabulous Wedding at the Matthews House!

Just 30 days before their wedding on March 27, 2010, the minister that Liz and Terry hired to officiate for them backed out. They found me and I was available so we quickly met and found we were a good fit. Liz and Terry have been together for a long time, have a wonderful sense of humor and are so laid back that they don't panic, thank goodness. I sent them all my ceremony material and they put together the ceremony that fit them. They provided me with information about the two of them and their history together and we created "their story" for the ceremony, making it unique to them and endearing to their guests with a good sprinkling of humor. We held their rehearsal off site at Liz's parents' home the day before and were all set for the wedding. The day was balmy and beautiful for their wedding. 

 

Liz's father, Tony, proudly escorted her in across the beautiful lawn.

 

I stepped to one side of the couple to address their parents. Both sets of parents were together and had marriages that had lasted about 35 years so Liz and Terry wanted to thank them for setting such a wonderful example of love and marriage. I believe I saw a few tears then!

 

Here I am making the pronouncement and wondered where the ladder was so that Liz could step up and kiss Terry! He did manage to lean down and they had a good kiss while our photographer captured the moment. See, she is standing there waiting for it to happen. After knowing each other 14 years, they have had a lot of practice!

Liz is so happy as she practically danced down the aisle in her magenta high heels! They were both so relaxed during the ceremony.

Terry is such a straight man with dry wit and you never know when it is coming! Their ceremony was full of sweet humor only they could create. 

 

Christina, Liz's sister and Maid of Honor, with Louis, Terry's brother and Best Man, exit followed by both sets of parents. 

 

We circled around through the house, left the guests to have cocktails and reassembled at the ceremony site for pictures. Liz and Terry........I wish you all the happiness and joy in the world! 

Our Vendors

First of all, it was great to start out this year with a wedding at the fabulous Matthews House operated by Nina Davis. Always a pleasure. They do their own catering for weddings and other events there. Here is the reception hall ready for the guests after the cocktail hour. They had pretty colored paper lanterns hanging on what looked like hat racks. Nice idea. The couple and their friends made the burlap wrapped favors of pretty potted flowers.

Here is the cupcake wedding cake by Mad Hatter Bakery. The florals were done by the English Garden florist.                                                                 

Here I am talking with Susan Hamilton before the ceremony. She is new to the area, having moved here recently from Arizona. The name of her business is Rogue Photo. This is the first wedding we have done together and I hope to see her at another wedding soon!

Our musicians for the ceremony were Marybeth Butler on the keyboard and John Butler, vocalist. The DJ for the reception came all the way from Hope Mills. He is Otara Mills of Livewire Entertainment. Liz had been to another event he worked and decided she wanted him to DJ her reception.

Sheree' and Brian's Beautiful Wedding at Second Empire!

Sheree' contacted me last October to see if I could officiate hers and Brian's wedding in March. Over the next few months Sheree', Brian and I got to know each other quite well as we worked on optimizing their relationship and planning their upcoming wedding. Finally March was here and the weather turned out to be absolutely beautiful for their well planned wedding on Saturday March 13, 2010. Many members of their families traveled all the way from Michigan, Missouri, Wisconsin, DC, Connecticut and South Carolina to be here for them. And the wedding was skyped  to Frankfurt, Germany.

 

Sheree's father was looking forward to escorting her down the aisle. 

Jacquie, niece of the bride, was our pretty flower girl.

The East Parlor of Second Empire is a stunning but cozy setting for a small intimate wedding. The walls are covered in a luscious warm color of ultra-suede which make the acoustics in the room extra nice. Sheree's sister, Kathy, was maid of honor and Brian's son, Corey, was best man. We also recognized Brian's other two adult children, Patrick and Heather, during the ceremony.

Both being of Irish descent, Brian and Sheree' chose to have the handfasting ceremony in their wedding. Here I am looping the traditional red handfasting cord around their clasped hands and wrists to show they are bound by love.

After they made their vows and exchanged rings, we had a closing prayer and I made the pronouncement of marriage.

That is Patrick, Brian's son, with the camera as they skipped merrily out to the front porch for photos.

Well, we caught Brian with his mouth open! What a great couple! Congratulations, Sheree' and Brian! You did it! I wish you a very happy and contented marriage with lots of adventures together!

John McHugh played the Uilleann Pipes (pronounced ilen) and tin whistles for the ceremony. This music is so beautiful and so fitting for a Celtic wedding. John and I have done a few weddings together and have another one coming up soon. John can be seen on this website about Irish Folklore and he also has an ad on Craig's List for playing at weddings! Sheree' had learned about John and his music on my wedding blog and knew that was the music she wanted. John sent me a thank you note he received after the wedding from Sheree':  
"Dear John,
We were so happy with the music you provided for our wedding.  We had many guests commenting on how they enjoyed it. It made our day very special and we really appreciated your presence there.  Loved the music and the outfit!  You were a pleasure to work with.
Sincerely, Sheree' and Brian"

Their reception was held downstairs in the Atrium of Second Empire. This is a lovely setting with lots of sunlight streaming in all the windows.

The chef at Second Empire does a fabulous job baking wedding cakes. This one is Mocha with raspberry filling I heard!

Our photographer for the wedding was Marie Fulcher. Marie is always a pleasure to work with and is so low key. She does a really good job, of course! Thanks, Marie.

Fabulous Wedding for Nancy and Steve at Maggiano's!

I knew when I met Nancy and Steve that theirs would be a very special wedding. They have both been married before and have grown children. They were not expecting to meet anyone who would be so perfectly matched for them. But then Steve's brother, Ron, (now dubbed "St. Ron") arranged for them to meet each other and the rest is, as we say, history! Both Steve and Nancy wanted a fun evening with their friends with the wedding ceremony thrown in. They picked Maggiano's Little Italy in Southpoint Mall, Durham, not only because it is one of their favorite restaurants but because it was the perfect atmosphere for their wedding celebration. Steve is in the wine industry and he wanted to pick special wines for the evening and the food there is wonderful anyway!

After our meeting, I sent Nancy and Steve a proposed ceremony based on what they told me they wanted. They really wanted to emphasize their friends and family members and so they added a tribute to just about everyone there. Some were hilarious and others were tear-jerkers. I was looking forward to delivering this ceremony so much and it was such a pleasure on their wedding day.

The couple arrived together and most of the guests were already mingling around in the private dining room. Can you see the individual bottles of wine at each place setting?

Here we are discussing where we will stand for the ceremony and Nancy is pointing out people to me who are named in the ceremony.

Nancy's dress was stunning. The back of it was encrusted with Swarovski's crystals.

Nancy and her sister, Dori.

Now it is time for the ceremony. The DJ put on Canon in D and folks started gathering around. There were mirrors everywhere and this one liked to reflect the flash on my camera. (I am grateful that I can post these photos that would be unacceptable to a professional photographer!) Their wedding had many funny moments and parts of it were akin to a "roast" in good fun. Nancy is a "horse" person and her beloved horse is Pablo. One of the lines in the ceremony reads: "If Pablo was here, we would thank him too, but Nancy could not figure out how to get him through the revolving front door outside of Maggiano’s." I loved it and so did their guests. I doubt they will ever forget it.

And finally the big pronouncement of marriage. The deed is done!

Their first dance as husband and wife.

Are we happy or what! Nancy and Steve, I will never forget you and your wonderful wedding. Thanks so much for making me a special part of your special day. Congratulations!

This is Emily Slaughterbeck of Maggiano's that I am speaking with. She was in charge that evening and fabulous to work with. She took care of all the details and even sent Marty and me home with generous helpings of Maggiano's very delicious lasagna. Thanks, Emily! Thanks too to Michelle Castro of Maggiano's for making all the arrangements with Steve and Nancy to make this possible.

What an exquisite wedding cake! It is by Blue Moon Bakery.

Our super DJ was Frank Meldau of Joe Bunn DJ Company. Thanks for plugging my mic into your system and taking control of the sound, Frank!

Our photographer was Heather Swanner. Good to work with you again, Heather! Send me some photos!

Fabulous Candlelight Wedding for Courtney and Denny at All Saints Chapel!

Courtney and Denny and I met last January to plan their November 7, 2009 wedding at All Saints Chapel, one of my favorite places for weddings in Raleigh. They are a delightful young professional couple who are careful planners and knew what they wanted. All Saints Chapel was a perfect setting for them and their 130 guests. It was close to the Capital City Club where their reception was and they hired buses to transport their guests from the hotel to the chapel and then from the chapel to the reception.

After Courtney's grandparents and the parents and all the attendants and I had processed in down the candlelit aisle, it was time for our flower girl, Caitlin, to sprinkle the aisle with pretty fall leaves.

Here comes the beautiful bride escorted in by her beaming father!

Here we are during the ceremony. Can you see all the candles? I happen to know there were at least 100!

The deed is done and Courtney and Denny are husband and wife and so happy! They exited to the front of the chapel followed by their wedding party and parents and grandparents.

Then I asked all the guests to stand and turn around and fill in the aisle, being careful of all those candles in the aisle! Then the parents, grandparents, wedding party and finally the bride and groom came back in to stand in front of the guests while our photographer, Robin Lin, got a shot of everyone from the balcony in the rear of the chapel. (All the photos on this blog are with my point and shoot digital camera, courtesy of my "roadie" Marty!)

Then I invited the guests to proceed to the reception while we took some photos of the bride and groom and their attendants and relatives. Courtney and Denny had decided to have a "First Look" before the ceremony so a lot of their wedding photos were taken in various spots around downtown Raleigh. Courtney's dress was gorgeous! She has such elegant beauty.

Courtney and Denny, I wish you lifetimes of happiness and all the best life has to offer!


Now to let you in on a few behind the scenes scenarios before this beautiful wedding happened: When Marty and I arrived at 4:00 for the 5:00 wedding, the aisle and the altar area were filled with beautiful glass vases of water of varying heights with white floating candles. The above photo shows where the candles were originally placed. But, the problem was, and I am sure the florist had no idea where the bridesmaids and groomsmen were to stand for the ceremony, that the candles were positioned where the attendants were to stand and there was nowhere else for the attendants to be. To leave the candles where they were was to risk them getting knocked over or the girls' dresses catching fire. The florist (Fresh Affairs) was long gone, having set up much earlier in the day.

Here Andrew Martin of All Saints Chapel and I are discussing what to do about this situation. (Andrew was filling in this weekend for Sarah Morris who was away at a wedding. Andrew told us that his wedding was at the chapel two weeks earlier!) We had no choice but to move the candles. So, Andrew, Marty and I set about rearranging the vases--some were quite heavy--toward the back of the altar to clear the steps and front of the altar. The photo below shows the final rearrangement and it is lovely. I loved all the candles and the romantic mood they create. But wait, another problem presented itself once we got the candles in place. It was now 4:30, 30 minutes before ceremony start time, and time to light the candles. We discovered we had no way to light all these candles! Andrew searched the chapel for a long handled butane lighter and Marty searched my car. Nothing but matches and the short cigarette lighters turned up. They would not work because you cannot stick your hand into the vases and light the wicks without burning yourself!

So, at 4:30 Marty and I hopped in my car and drove three blocks down the street to Caffe Luna where I also do many weddings and found Ryan Hill, the catering manager, and hurriedly explained the problem and she gave me two long handled butane lighters. Ryan, you saved the day! Marty and I sped back to the chapel waving to the wedding party on Person Street having photos taken. Andrew and Marty set about lighting the candles which were not easy to light, believe me. There were hanging glass candle holders in the little trees on the altar and in order to reach them, I had to climb up behind the altar, unhook each one from the tree branches, hold for Andrew to light, then hang up again. The guests were arriving and being seated as we were diligently lighting candles and one nice gentleman helped us immensely. Andrew found one taper candle that we could use as a lighter so with 3 of us lighting candles, we were done about 15 minutes before start time! The bride and groom had no idea what had gone on until I told them later! It would have been a shame if we could not have lit the candles.

In December of 2008, I officiated the wedding of Melissa and Chris at Long View Center (unfortunately now closed) and their musicians were Gregory Dixon on piano and Phillip Jefferson on oboe. I told Denny and Courtney how spectacular and mystical the combination of the two instruments was and so they decided that was what they wanted. So above are Gregory (919 274-1041) and Phillip (919 604-2431) making their beautiful music. I wish I had sound on this blog! I was so looking forward to hearing this music again. For one of the processional numbers, Denny and Courtney chose the theme from Forrest Gump. I have never heard it used in a wedding before but it was truly magical and perfect! I hope to hear it again in a wedding.

Marty and I did not go to the reception at the Capital City Club although we were invited. I rarely go to receptions any more. For one thing, most of the time I really only know the couple and I want them to have fun with their friends and families and not worry about me. Another thing is that if I went to all the receptions, I would weigh about 400 pounds by now! Just too tempting! I understand that Courtney and Denny had Complete Music as their DJ and that Simply Cakes did their wedding cake. Courtney's make-up and hair were by Primp Salon and she sure looked fabulous!