This past week & 1/2 have been extremely busy with wedding things and not my normal wedding things. You see I was asked to be IN a wedding, and not only participate but the joy of being the Maid of Honor! Witnessing and documenting so many weddings, I’ve seen a lot of MOH’s, and I take my responsibilities very seriously. So when this week came along and I had to drive to sunny FL for my best friends wedding, I put everything else aside. That includes blog posts & emails. So, if you received a blanketed reply from my inbox this week, you now know why. This experience has really given me a new perspective on weddings. I now look at Heidi & Matt’s wedding below and think “Wow, that was an exceptional day, their family & friends really put in a lot of haaaaard work!” It also heightens my responsibility to document it all with excellence.

After the decorations have been set, the vows have been given, and the dancing is done, there is a bit of a let down. You put in hours upon hours of planning, coordinating and dreaming of your big day and it flies by in a blink of an eye. Sometimes there are elements out of your control, like with Heidi & Matt’s big day. There was a wall of rain that engulfed the entire east coast! Luckily, Heidi & Matt didn’t mind a bit, they made the switch to an indoor ceremony that was every bit as beautiful as if it had been outside in Mirbeau’s gardens. We even made the most of the rain and created  dreamy & romantic formal shots after their first look. I don’t mind getting a little wet if the shots look like this!

When I step back and look at how I documented their day, it was almost as if they had planned the rain. It definitely didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits! It was such a joy to be there to capture every little moment and my heart is with Heidi & Matt as they relive their wedding day slowly and with fresh eyes. I pray that they can relive it all as if it were right there in front of them. Thank you so much Heidi and Matt, it was an amazing day!

XOXOXO,
Mabyn

This little guy was Amy’s model. She got him good! Thanks Amy Semple! 🙂

How did your fiance propose? We had talked about getting married and had even gone to pick out a ring, but I had no idea when it would be ready or when he would ask. So, on a warm summer day in July, we decided to take a walk along the creek from Carousel Mall to downtown Syracuse, which we had been meaning to do for quite some time, with our dog, Benson. After we had walked up and back, we stopped to sit at a bench at the Inner Harbor to relax and look out at the water, when he proposed!
Tell me a bit about the planning process for your wedding (how did you pick the venue, colors, funny stories, etc..): We visited A LOT of venues in a very short amount of time … I always have wanted a fall wedding because it’s my favorite season, and given that we got engaged in July, we didn’t have much time before we knew we had to book a venue. Mirbeau was actually the last place that we looked at (and ironically the closest to home), and as soon as we visited, we knew our search was over. From there, we found Mabyn (through a friend’s recommendation), and all of our other wonderful vendors just kind of fell in place from there. I can’t say enough about our terrific vendors – they made the planning process so easy & enjoyable! Our colors were essentially dictated by the season, as I wanted to focus on rich, vibrant, fall colors, while keeping it classic and timeless!
What was the most memorable moment(s) of your day?
Heidi – I would have to say our first look. I loved having some time with just the two of us before the ceremony to be able to take in the day – and focus on what the day is really about. It also helped to take some of the nervous energy away. It was also helpful to get some of the ‘us’ pictures out of the way before the ceremony so that we could mingle a bit during our cocktail hour and enjoy our family and friends! I also loved looking out at all of our family and friends that were there with us that day, both during the ceremony and the reception, as it is so rare that you have so many people that you care about in the same place at the same time.
Matt – Taking the night photos. It had been raining all day, and so far all the photos were in the venue or reception tent, but we missed some of the beautiful views of the garden, pond, and bridge. Luckily the rain let up for long enough that we snuck out and took some night photos outdoors. It was amazing how peaceful it was only 50 feet from the reception.
Funniest memory from your wedding day?
Heidi – Having to carry around the train of my dress while going from table to table greeting people at our reception because the bustle just wouldn’t stay fastened at first! Eventually though we got it fixed for good and much dancing was done.
Matt – Yeah… almost falling while spinning myself during the last dance. Pro tip, don’t do that.
If you had to do it all over again would you change anything? Make it not rain?! Actually I think the rain was actually a blessing in disguise (not too mention good luck!), for our ceremony at least. We kept on getting comments about how nice & intimate our ceremony was, since everyone was a lot closer to us physically in the “rain” location, than they would have been in the “shine” location. Seriously though, I don’t think I’d change a thing. Maybe I would just have not stressed out so much about the little details during the planning process!
Any advice for future bride & grooms? Stay true to what you want out of your day and don’t let yourself get carried away in all the wedding hoopla and the “must haves” list. In the end it’s about starting a marriage & a life together surrounded by the people that mean the most to you.
What was your favorite part about working with Mabyn Ludke Photography? Mabyn was great to work with! She is so creative & adaptable – especially when we had to move our ceremony location in the last hour from an outdoor ceremony on a bridge to an indoor ceremony against a wall of windows – and scouting out creative (and covered!) spaces for our (rainy) first look! She also is very discrete – you know she is there taking crazy shots, but she’s not in your face about it. Amy (second/assistant photographer) was great as well – we had a lot of fun taking pictures before the ceremony!

Hair: Artistry in Hanover, Syracuse, NY (Bride: Antonietta Moritz)// Makeup Artist: Artistry in Hanover, Syracuse, NY (Bride: Antonietta Moritz)// Dress Designer & Store Location: Maggie Sottero, SpyBaby Bridal, Syracuse, NY// Jewelry: Necklace – Ann Taylor; Earrings – From my mom; Right hand rings – A ring from each of my grandmothers (my something old!)// Veil or Hair accessories: SpyBaby Bridal, Syracuse NY (veil); Joette’s Gifts, Syracuse, NY (reception hair piece); and I also had hair jewels woven into my hair (borrowed from my best friend/matron of honor who also wore them on her wedding day) (my something borrowed!)// Shoes: Badgley Mischka Lacie heels (my something blue!)// Bridesmaids Dresses: Bill Levkoff, SpyBaby Bridal, Syracuse, NY// Grooms Attire: Men’s Warehouse, Syracuse, NY// Ceremony Venue: Mirbeau Inn & Spa, Skaneateles, NY// Reception Venue: Mirbeau Inn & Spa, Skaneateles, NY// Florist: Backyard Garden Florist, Fayetteville, NY// DJ: Great Music Company, North Syracuse, NY// Caterer: Mirbeau Inn & Spa, Skaneateles, NY // Cake: Mirbeau Inn & Spa, Skaneateles, NY// Wedding Coordinator: No official wedding coordinator/event designer, but LOTS of help with wedding planning from both Catherine Sinclair and Nina Vitale of Mirbeau and day-of coordination by Nina Vitale of Mirbeau// Lighting: Great Music Company, Syracuse, NY// Invitations: Rainbow Papers, Syracuse, NY// Other: BBJ Linens