Briana was not surprised at all when Rob proposed. In fact, the two had set a wedding date before they were even engaged.
They had actually looked at a few venues before the proposal as well, but, when it came time to the actual wedding planning, they hired Ali Barone of Ali Barone Events to help them achieve the rustic elegance they wanted for their nuptials.
Barone recommended the Brotherhood Winery inWashingtonville, and they instantly knew it was the right place for them. There were gorgeous crystal chandeliers brought in by Enza Anastasi of Diana Gould, Ltd., which Barone combined with rustic wooden tables that she added to seamlessly mix and match the two different décor styles.
Briana is a graphic designer, so she created all of the invitations, table numbers, and signs. “I wanted to set a tone throughout,” she says, “so I did everything myself.” She also included in her invitations a timeline of all of the events during their wedding weekend displayed adjacent to appropriately matching icons.
Instead of traditional RSVP cards, Briana asked everyone to respond creatively, be it with a poem, a picture, or anything else of that nature. She then displayed the responses on a manzanita tree at the reception.
The table numbers at the reception were all names of something special to the couple, such as a restaurant or place that had notable meaning to them, which were held up by corks—fitting for their winery location.
For the programs, Briana used her artistic skills to create a drawing of everyone in the bridal party, along with a little something about each of them and how they related to herself and Rob. She also threw in some fun facts about the winery, one being it is the oldest winery in the country.
Briana has the great fortune to work at Diana Gould, Ltd.—one of the premier florists in the area—who happily did her flowers. “I went with coral and peach for my flowers with a pop of light turquoise,” Briana says. “I wanted all my flowers to have an organic look and feel to them. I went with a lot of little containers, some rectangular, some circular.”
All of the food was served in a variety of buffet stations, such as a taco station and a slider station, to name a couple. “Everything was custom to our tastes,” she says. “I know how some brides don’t actually eat on their wedding day, but I ate everything!”
For dessert, they opted for a table of miniature sweets and a small cake. “I find people enjoy picking and choosing little things,” she says. The cake was color-coordinated in the peach-and-coral color scheme, and there were to-go boxes for guests to take treats home.
“I had a vision, and I stuck to my gut and did things the way I wanted,” Briana adds. “I didn’t conform to any rules. I wanted everything to be special—and it most certainly was.”
THE DETAILS: Photographer: Kimberly Coccagnia Photography, Beacon; kimberlycoccagnia.com. Ceremony and Reception Location: Brotherhood Winery, Washingtonville (845) 496-3661; brotherhood-winery.com. Planner: Ali Barone Events (347) 992-2038; nyweddingmaven.com. Florist: Diana Gould, Ltd., Elmsford (914) 347-7134; dianagouldltd.com; Caterer: Lola’s Cafe and Gourmet Catering, Poughkeepsie (845) 471-8555; lolascafeandcatering.com. Cake: Lulu Cake Boutique, Scarsdale (914) 722-8300; everythinglulu.com. Invitations/Paper Goods: Sudz & Ink (914) 309-4768; sudzandink.com. Bridal Attire: Elephant’s Trunk, Ltd., Mount Kisco (914) 666-7666; elephantstrunk.com. Hair: Jayne DeLucia, Richard Scott Salon & Day Spa, Mount Kisco (914) 242-1700; richardscottsalon.com. Makeup: Cati James Hair & Makeup, New York, NY; info@catijames.com.
