All Photography © Annabel Braithwaite, Belathee Photography
Rachael Scibior married Ricardo Silva almost 10 years to the day they first met at college in upstate New York. It was their mutual love of soccer that brought them together.
Born in Portugal, Ricardo moved to Yonkers with his parents and brother when he was 12 years old and like most European kids, he started playing soccer as soon as he could walk. He played through high school and was ultimately recruited to play for SUNY Institute of Technology in Utica, where he majored in business.
Rachael was born and raised in Cassville, in upstate New York, on 100 acres with cows, horses, and chickens. It wasn’t until high school that she fell in love with soccer and she went to SUNY Tech specifically to play the game and bide time for one semester before transferring to another college…but then she met Ricardo.
As co-captains of the men’s and women’s soccer team, they first spotted each other from across the room at the semester’s first soccer party. “When Ricardo found out we were neighbors on campus,” Rachael recalls, “he gathered the courage to knock on my door, and the rest is history!”
One of the couple’s favorite activities is skiing, so Ricardo proposed during a visit in Zermatt, in the Swiss Alps, the highest point in Europe accessible by a lift. “On our last night there, and after struggling to find the perfect time and place, Ricardo couldn’t wait anymore and popped the question,” Rachael says. “After eight years together, my answer was, of course, “Yes!”
The couple wanted to integrate some elements of Ricardo’s Portuguese heritage into the wedding at the Castle on the Hudson, which they chose because it reminded them of the castles of Portugal. They imported special, unique-shaped bottles of Ginja (a Portuguese cherry liquor) and used them to display the table numbers/names. Each table was named for a different Portuguese castle and a short story of each castle’s history was included on the back of the table number. The label was designed so it could slide off to reveal the bottle’s own label and each bottle was given to someone at the table.
Rachael, a graphic designer, custom-designed and branded the save-the-date cards, invitations, programs, petal cones, and escort cards by creating a logo of their similar R&R names, using metallic and transparent paper and baroque patterns of layered paper. “Our color theme was untraditional, orange, green, and yellow – and the amazing bright flowers brought everything together to make this unusual combination really striking,” she said. “A Frank Sinatra-like singer and a photobooth were some fun entertainment aspects of our wedding.”
After their perfect day, the couple honeymooned in Tahiti on the islands of Moorea and Bora Bora.
Resource Guide
RECEPTION
Castle on the Hudson, Tarrytown
www.castleonthehudson.com
We chose to be married at the Castle on the Hudson for its quaint, private atmosphere and exceptional service. It reminded us of the many beautiful castles of Portugal.
FLOWERS
Celebrate Flowers, New York, NY
MUSIC
CraigScott Entertainment
DANCE INSTRUCTION
Dance Center, Ardsley
PHOTOGRAPHER
Annabel Braithwaite of Belathee Photography
DRESS
Jasmine Couture
RK Bridal, New York
BRIDESMAIDS JEWELRY
Custom-designed pearl and crystal from Turkish jewelry designer byenise.com
FAVORS
Monogramed petits fours by dragonflycakes.com
STATIONERY
Self-Designed, paper by envelopments.com
PHOTOBOOTH
Partybooths, Inc.
BRIDAL ALTERATIONS
Isabel Silva, Needle n’ Thread
Yonkers
(914) 376-1386
HAIR
Maria Palazzo
New York, NY
(917) 670-4172
MAKEUP
Kristy Rodriquez
(917) 744-3561
Queens (Ozone Park), NY
VIDEOGRAPHER
Moses Lee
DvPixl Productions
917-683-1248
