Luxurious Vancouver Estate Wedding

After being neighbors for almost 4 years, Shabnam and Matthew met by chance when they noticed that they were both wearing the ring that engineer graduates in Canada wear and struck up a conversation. They arranged to take a walk that weekend and talked for 3 hours. For their one year anniversary of their first date, Matthew surprised Shabnam with a trip to Jamaica where he proposed during a romantic dinner. After returning from the Caribbean, they chose a wedding date of April 12th, 2014 - only 5 months away! - and began to plan their dream wedding with the help of Soha Lavin, an event planner from Count Down Events. 

The results are downright perfection. This glamorous wedding is basked in gold with classical patterns and accents of purple and hot pink. The team of vendors that created this spectacular wedding is incredibly talented, and Will Pursell Photography captured every detail beautifully. Shabnam and Matthew wanted a venue that had great indoor and outdoor options. They chose Hycroft Manor in Vancouver for their ceremony and reception because of its versatile nature and beauty. The inside features stunning chandeliers, gorgeous fireplace mantels, artwork, and decorative plaster work in a Parisian theme. The outside boasts a beautiful garden full of spring flowers, a magnolia tree, and a Juliet balcony which is nothing short of stunning as the backdrop for a wedding filled to the brim with luxury and elegance.

The bride's bouquet was a piece of art, full of mixed hot pink and white peonies, freesias, ranunculus and jasmine. It and the other floral arrangements at the wedding - from the ring box at the ceremony to the cascading reception centerpieces - were just breathtaking. 

Creative floral arrangements lined the aisle of the ceremony in princess vases on tall white empire pillars. The bride walked down the aisle on a white aisle runner personalized with the couple's monogram.

The reception was held in the luxurious dining room at Hycroft. Éclat Decor designed the decor in such a way that it enhanced the elegance and vintage look of the ballroom. Each table was beautifully decorated with gold leaf glass plate chargers on top of luxury linen champagne satin. Antique gold candelabras with extravagant floral arrangements added a distinctive look to the décor. 

The four-tiered wedding cake was decorated beautifully with white sugar flowers and intricate golden patterns. The design was inspired by the couple's wedding invitations. 

Venue: Hycroft Manor / Photography: Will and Lauren Pursell of Will Pursell Photography / Wedding Planner: Soha Lavin of Count Down Events / Floral Design: Hassan and Tina Aghamohseni of Tala Florist / Décor: Eclat Décor / Heirlooms and Extras: Noon Creative / Stationary: Phoebe Tsui of Love by Phoebe / Cake: Peter Fong of Ganache Patisserie / Catering: Lazy Gourmet / Wedding Gown: Casablanca Gown from Bryan’s Bridal / Makeup and Hair: Sonia Leal-Serafim / Earrings: Created by Elsa Corsi (Designed by Shabnam Parsa) / Bracelet: Tejani Jewelry / Wedding Rings: Maison Birks / Shoes: Michael Kors / Groom's Attire: Dolce and Gabbana from Harry Rosen / Reception Entertainment: Famous Players Band / Ceremony Music: String Trio from Siegel Entertainment

Glam Black Tie Jewish Wedding

Arielle and Jason's black tie New Jersey wedding was simple gorgeous and one for the storybooks.  Full of crystal, black and white details, and antique gold decor that glittered throughout their ceremony and reception.  The couple's wedding was held at the Crystal Plaza in New Jersey, which definitely comes by it's name naturally.  The stunning crystal chandeliers that echo throughout the hall are absolutely breathtaking.  Brought to life by EXO Photography, a big thank you for sharing Arielle and Jason's gorgeous day with us.

We love when our brides and grooms decide to do a first look before their ceremony.  There is nothing quite as beautiful as capturing the face of a groom seeing his bride for the first time.  The emotion that comes through the photos are why we love weddings in the first place.

Keeping with tradition, Jason breaks a glass to solidify his and Arielle's wedding vows.  A time honored practice upheld still at nearly every Jewish wedding.  Mazel tov!

 Photography: EXO Photography / Venue: Crystal Plaza, New Jersey

DIY Wedding Reception Coffee Station

Brides and grooms do a lot to make sure guests have a great time on their wedding day, and one of our favorite ways of doing this is by setting up a great food and/or drink station. These stations ensure that guests have access to anything they need to keep the party going all night long. A coffee station is the perfect addition to your wedding reception - not only during the colder months, but all year long!

Consider creating a beautiful set-up with any goodies your guests may need to create a custom creation, and dress up your drink station with personalized coffee cups and swizzle sticks. Simple signs make for the perfect accents to your display, and are really easy to incorporate. With our tips and inspiration below, you will have a custom coffee station planned and set-up in no time!

First, you'll want to choose a table or piece of furniture that has plenty of room for everything you want to include. We used an antique wooden buffet with a built-in mirror that is just beautiful, but you could use anything! Once you know how much room you will have to display all of your items, start to plan a list of everything you want to include.

Ideas: 
Coffee
Decaf Coffee
Hot Milk (to use with the hot cocoa on a stick)
Hot Water (to make hot cocoa or tea)
Tea Bags
Hot Cocoa on a Stick (find the recipe here) or Powdered Hot Cocoa Mix
Whipped Cream
Creamer
Sugar
Marshmallows
Crushed Candies - like peppermint and Andes mints
Chocolate Chips
Butterscotch Chips
Flavoring Syrups (we used Raspberry, Almond, and Hazelnut flavors)

Don't Forget: 
Cute Signs
Personalized Coffee Cups with lids
Custom Printed Swizzle Sticks

Make sure to personalize your coffee bar with decorations that tie into your event decor, and add custom touches like custom printed coffee cups and swizzle sticks personalized with a monogram or message. Chalkboard signs make great accessories for any drink station! We love the idea of a sweet message like 'Warm up here' or 'Baby it's cold outside' for a winter wedding, but we wanted to keep it simple with 'Hot Coffee' in large script lettering.

There are so many different options for toppings - so think outside the box for a truly unique display. Guests will love creating their own custom drinks at your fabulous coffee bar!