Alison and Aaron had to adjust their wedding plans due to COVID-19. Their original wedding date was October 3, 2020 and they were committed to getting married that day. Instead of the larger wedding we had originally planned which simply was not possible due to state mandates on events, we moved to planning a micro wedding for 37 guests in her family backyard in Connecticut. I started working on this new plan with 8 weeks to go until the big day. There was a lot to do with hiring of new vendors and adjusting our needs with our current vendors.
Her parents have a beautiful home in Connecticut with gorgeous lawns at the front and back of the house. It made for such beautiful wedding pictures with Heather Waraksa! After reviewing the many lovely options on where to place the events with the Greenwich Tent Company, we settled on keeping the festivities close to the back of the house.
As their friends and family arrived, we had a welcome table setup with cotton PPE bags, which were printed with ladies and gents options by Suite Paperie. Inside each bag were custom cloth masks (with a gold mask chain for the ladies), disposable masks and an individual hand sanitizer. We did a lot of brain storming on how to do the seating assignments for the tables. The clients didn’t want to have a table with traditional cards set out, as it didn’t feel safe to them. The idea of a seating chart didn’t appeal either as they felt it would have too many people congregated in one place looking at the chart. We even discussed texting or emailing table assignments to guests in advance! In the end I suggested doing individual seating charts in each PPE bag, and they liked that idea. I also placed some of these charts on the cocktail tables, in case anybody lost their own copy. Throughout the planning of this wedding, we wanted to make it as COVID safe as possible for everyone involved. We had mint lemonade and iced tea offered to guests in personalized tumblers with lids are they arrived.
We setup the ceremony around their pool. The chuppah looked so beautiful placed at the top of the swimming pool! Denise Fasanello did an amazing job creating something that feel so perfect for the setting. Alison is allergic to roses, so Denise avoided using roses anywhere in the floral design. Instead she created a birch poled chuppah decorated with textural grasses, foliage and florals. Alison carried a predominantly white and green bouquet with a few fall foliage accents. She wore a dress from Mira Zwillinger with a beautiful lace leaf pattern. Given the smaller wedding, Alison and Aaron sized down their bridal party. Alison had her two siblings standing under the chuppah with her parents. Aaron had a good friend standing with his parents. Aaron walked down the aisle to “Chasing Cars” by Snow Patrol and Alison walked down the aisle to “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran. Our rain plan for the ceremony was to setup a smaller tent next to the pool, but we lucked out with gorgeous weather that crisp fall day.
After the ceremony, guests enjoyed a cocktail reception next to the pool. Marcey Brownstein Catering did such a great job of listening to the client’s ideas and coming up with a delicious menu and version of service that felt safe. Alison’s mom Meryl wanted to reduce the amount of servers passing, so instead we had an hors d’oeuvres station setup on a table behind a plexiglass barrier. A server behind the glass placed the hors d’oeuvres of choice on a small plate and handed to each guest. They enjoyed mini chipotle chicken tacos, tuna crudo, kale Caesar salad, and Peking duck steamed buns. To reduce the number of people waiting, we also had a station setup with mini grab and go artisanal cheese and meat boards, fresh and dried fruit, nut breads, cured olives and spiced nuts. These were arranged beautifully in craft boxes with a clear lid and tied with twine. Alison loves to come up with interesting cocktails, so we had to do signature cocktails for them! For Her: Tequila blanco, grapefruit, housemade jalapeño syrup, fresh pressed lime & mezcal float with spicy Tajin rim. For Him: Classic Boulevardier: Bourbon, Campari, sweet vermouth and orange peel.
Guests were invited to the Sperry tent for the dinner reception. I have always been a fan of these beautiful sailcloth tents and I finally got to use one for a wedding! The interior was decorated with string lights that made it feel so festive and pretty. Alison and Aaron walked into the tent for their first dance to “All You Need To Know” by Gryffin and Slander. We had a few toasts and then the father daughter dance was a medley of “Alison” by Elvis Costello into “Macarena” (!) and back into “Alison”. The mother son dance was a more traditional pick “All You Need Is Love” by The Beatles.
The couple had discussed with their guests beforehand who they were comfortable with being seated with for dinner. We had tables ranging from 2 to 6 and used larger tables than normal to keep people more spread out. Each of the tables was separated with at least 6’ distance and more in some cases. We really used up every inch of the tent. The silverware was wrapped inside the napkins and placed on a rattan charger. At each place setting we had the lovely menu designed by Suite Paperie and individual challah rolls also wrapped in cellophane and tied with twine.
For dinner service, we had 2 stations setup at opposite ends of the tent and invited guests up by table. Guests enjoyed cabernet braised short ribs, roasted chicken with salsa verde, grilled langoustines, blistered brussels sprouts, duck fat roasted heirloom pee wee potatoes, caramelized heirloom carrots and warm cheddar cornbread. All the servers were wearing two masks, a surgical mask underneath and a black cloth mask on top.
The gluten free and dairy free cake from By the Way Bakery was carrot cake with cream cheese filling. It was finished in a naked style and Denise Fasanello added fresh flowers. We had a mini 2 tier cake for cutting and a sheet cake that could be sliced and placed in individual craft box containers with a disposable fork. That way the cake would be enclosed and guests could enjoy at their leisure or take home with them.
Marcus Reid Band had downsized from the original 10 piece to a 5 piece band for this smaller event. Despite being a much smaller band, Marcus did such a great job with the music and had the same powerhouse energy he always has!
As dinner was taking place, the pool area was being transformed into a s’mores party! Alison loves s’mores, so this was an important part of the festivities. We used individual table top firepits, which were setup at 5 high tops socially distanced around the pool. A s’mores station was setup with individually packaged DIY s’mores kits for guests to make their own. Aaron loves interesting fruit dipped in chocolate, so we also had chocolate dipped kiwi and espresso martinis. Under the chuppah, was a drinks station with coffee, hot chocolate, apple cider, and tea, which could be spiked with Patron Café XO, Pepermint Schnapps, Fireball or Bailey’s. It was getting cooler into the evening, so we had a basket of blankets for guests to keep warm and keep.
In this environment it is so important to be clear with guests about the safety around the event and expectations of them as guests too. With this micro wedding, we really tried to make it as safe as possible, posting signs around to remind guests to socially distance and wear their masks. We had tables setup at cocktail, dinner and outside the restrooms with extra masks and sanitizer. Guests were encouraged to quarantine leading up to the event and to get tested if they were unable to. Leading up to the big day, Alison and Aaron did a great job with sending reminders on all this, guidelines on dancing, shoe recommendations (for the grass) and weather updates (as everything as outside).
This wedding wasn’t what they had originally envisioned when we started working together, but it came together so beautifully at their family home and was truly special for everyone who attended. If you made the list of 35 guests, you know you’re extremely important! Celebrations need to look a bit different right now, but it is a delight to see them happening. Love can’t be cancelled!
Wedding planner: Ang Weddings and Events | Venue: private home | Photography: Heather Waraksa Photography | Videography: Mike Zhu Films | Floral Design: Denise Fasanello | Band: Marcus Reid Band via Hank Lane | Tenting: Sperry Tent and Greenwich Tent Company | Caterer: Marcey Brownstein Catering | Rentals: Broadway Party Rentals | Officiant: Cantor Shira Ginsburg | Cake: By The Way Bakery | Paperie: Suite Paperie
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