Hold on to your kippot, everybody (and if you’re not wearing a kippah, just brace yourself) because we are telling you now, it does not get much more awesome than a chuppah overlooking the iconic New York skyline! No, seriously, look at it. What would you give to teleport into that sensational and stunning scene at the legendary Tribeca Rooftop? Actually, you almost can, by watching Tweed Video‘s cinematic story of the day below.
Alyssa and Jesse’s Big Apple big day was the dictionary definition of sophisticated. We can throw so many other adjectives its way: glamorous, contemporary, heartfelt, chic… it was genuinely packed with more good things than the thesaurus can handle.
Alyssa, a management consultant, and Jesse, a lawyer, opted for a black-tie theme, accented with gorgeous metallics (those bridesmaid dresses!!), and leafy, luscious floral arrangements. The theme was brought together with spectacular results by our dear STG Vendor, wedding planner Josà© Rolà³n Events. In a wedding packed with STG Vendors, Paper Source also made a notable appearance.
Every detail was caught on camera by phenomenal photographer, Christian Gideon Photography.
There are so many amazing ideas packed into this very special wedding, from the heartstring-tugging wording of the gorgeous ketubah (so much inspiration there), designed by our incredible STG Recommended Vendor, Ink with Intent, to the meditation during the ceremony. From Alyssa’s amazing Austin Scarlett dress to doughnuts for favors (yes. please.).
That’s quite enough gushing from us – over to the wonderfully articulate Alyssa for all the big-day gossip!
Start spreading the news…
Alyssa, the bride: We were married at Tribeca Rooftop in NYC. We choose the venue because it had the capacity for the number of guests we planned to invite, flexibility to accommodate guests on the roof and indoors, capability to provide great food to a large group of people with on-site kitchen and chef, and an amazing view of the NYC skyline from the roof and inside with big windows all around.
The venue also had an amazing experienced staff, in particular Tracey and Ryan, who were always available to answer any questions.
An urban, black-tie wedding with metallic accents
We wanted an urban, modern black-tie wedding so we went with a gold, silver, black, and white colour scheme.
Over the course of a year planning our wedding, we became close with our witty and supportive rabbi, Seth Wax. Seth learned the story of how we met and our hopes for the life we want to build together and he weaved those details into the ceremony, which felt very personal and intimate.
Seth also started the ceremony with a meditation to help everyone be present in the moment. We are both very close with our families and wanted to make sure they all had a special role in the ceremony, so we asked our parents and siblings to each read one of the seven blessings. Lastly, our close friends read and signed our ketubah during the ceremony.
We used a wedding planner for the month prior to and on the big day. Josà© Rolà³n and his team were great. He is open, personable, and all my bridesmaids fell in love with him.
Loose waves and glowing, flawless skin
It was important to me that I looked like myself on the wedding day. Andrew from Roman K Salon created loose waves and tied my hair back in a low, side pony tail. Devon from Adelyn’s Canvas did an amazing job on my makeup; she made my skin look flawless and glow-y.
A dramatically divine dress
My dress was by Austin Scarlett and I purchased it from Gabriella’s in NYC. I found it on Pinterest almost immediately and fell in love with the 3-D effect of the petals and the dramatic train. I went to a lot of stores searching for something similar, but nothing measured up. I finally decided to find a store that carried the dress and it was love at first sight.
Playing ‘wedding’
I was very close with my grandfather as a child and I would often make him play ‘wedding’ with me where he would walk me down a pretend aisle to the fire place.
To honour his memory, I tied his wedding ring to my bouquet so he could walk with me down the aisle one last time.
I also wore my mother’s tennis bracelet as my ‘something borrowed’ and these earrings from Carolee.
I purchased my veil at Gabriella’s and I wore metallic strappy heels from Pelle Moda.
The handsome groom
Jesse wore a custom tux, which he purchased when we visited his sister and brother-in-law in Hong Kong. He also bought a custom tux shirt from a men’s shop in DC called Read Wall and got our initials, A&J, stitched on the left wrist sleeve.
Bridesmaids in rose gold
My bridesmaids all picked out their own dresses. They chose gold and rose-gold sequined dresses.
A chuppah with a view
The NYC skyline was our backdrop, so we chose a simple chuppah wrapped in eucalyptus with white flowers scattered at the bottom. We loved the contrast of the skyscrapers with the leafy green vines and it smelled amazing.
An artistic Ink with Intent ketubah
We wanted our ketubah to look like a piece of art, and found an amazing ketubah artist whose company is called Ink with Intent; she worked with us to design a custom ketubah.
Our commitments from the ketubah included to:
- Love and live for each other.
- Support and challenge each other to grow as individuals and as a couple.
- Share our happiness, hopes, and dreams.
- Communicate honestly about our struggles, vulnerabilities, and disappointments.
- Be gentle with each other, even when we don’t fully attain our goals.
- Routinely unplug from the world and seek renewal from each other.
- Honour each other’s opinions and concerns, especially in times of disagreement.
- Participate as equal partners in all decisions, domestic responsibilities, and family roles.
- Create a home filled with laughter, joy, and play.
- Foster an open and vibrant home imbued with the values of Torah, Tzedakah, and Tikkun olam.
- Work to ensure our home is a sacred space for honesty and respectful dialogue.
- Make our family our first priority. We also made time to pause and enjoy the moment during Yichud, immediately after the ceremony
A string quartet and an energetic live band
We had a four-piece string quartet play the music during our ceremony and cocktail hour, and a band called Radio Underground play during the reception. Both were from Element Music in NYC.
Jesse and I took dance lessons offered as part of Jose Rolon’s package, which was so much fun. The choreographer, Ranardo, worked with our schedule and helped us feel comfortable on the dance floor. The father-daughter dance was very special to me. I chose Only One by Kanye West because I felt that the lyrics were beautiful and touching.
We chose Titanium and Without You by David Guetta for the professional, Sugar by Maroon 5 for the recessional, our reception entrance was made to the sounds of Shut Up and Dance by Walk The Moon, and our first dance was to Hold On, We’re Going Home by Drake.
We chose Element Music’s, Radio Underground band for the reception. They had a great energy and are very talented. We first heard Element Music, which we loved, at Jesse’s sister’s wedding.
Elegant and sophisticated flowers
We worked with Dorothy from Cornucopia Flowers, who is incredibly talented. For the ceremony, she created a chuppah with eucalyptus garland and had gold candles floating in tall vases lining the aisle at sunset.
She created a beautiful bouquet for me with my favourite flowers — white anemones, peonies, and eucalyptus to match the petals on my dress. The cocktail hour tables had succulents and votive candles.
For the reception, we used black tablecloths with a mix of pink flowers in black vases and candles that looked elegant and sophisticated.
Cocktail hour on the roof
Tribeca Rooftop has an on-site kitchen and chef which is an amazing plus. The food was absolutely delicious. Our cocktail hour was on the roof and was a major highlight.
Tribeca Rooftop orders the cake for you from Audrey’s Fine Baked Goods, which made the process seamless. We chose alternating layers of chocolate cake with fresh raspberry filling and funfetti cake with chocolate filling. The icing was vanilla and the cake was topped with succulents.
Favors everyone can enjoy
Doughnuts are my favorite food, so we provided fresh doughnuts from the Doughnuttery as favors.
Gold decal decorations
We worked with Wade from Sign of Success to create gold decals of our names the front doors and incorporate our wedding hashtag in the elevators and bathrooms. It helped guests easily find the venue and let guests know how to share photos on social media. Wade was amazing in helping to come up with a unique design based on our invitations.
Av Workshop helped to set the mood with up-lighting and hung string lights up against the dance floor.
Advice to brides and grooms currently planning their wedding
1. Definitely hire a videographer! The day goes by so quickly, so it’s nice to have footage to relive all those exciting moments. We used Tweed, and they really made sure to capture all the key moments and tailor to video to our personal style.
2. Work out the morning of the wedding. I went to a Soul Cycle class with my sister-in-law and best friend. It was good to sweat it out and calm my nerves.
3. Finally, try to be present and enjoy the moment because the day goes by in an instant. We had a lot of people give us that advice and it is really true. That’s why we incorporated the mediation into our ceremony and did Yichud. Ryan from Tribeca and Jose from Josà© Rolà³n Events were also really instrumental in helping us enjoy the day. They kept the event on schedule and anticipated our every need throughout the day.
Alyssa & Jesse’s little white book
Wedding Planner – Josà© Rolà³n Events
Photographer – Christian Gideon Photography
Videographer – Tweed Video
Venue and caterer – Tribeca Rooftop
Bride’s dress – Austin Scarlett purchased at Gabriella
Bride’s jewellery – Carolee
Bride’s shoes – Pelle Moda
Groom’s attire – Read Wall
Hair – Roman K Salon and The Dry Bar
Makeup – Adelyn’s Canvas
Flowers – Cornucopia Flowers
Lighting – Av Workshop
Band – Element Music
Cake – Audrey’s Fine Baked Goods
Doughnuts – Doughnuttery
Photo booth – NYC Photobooth
Ketubah – Ink with Intent
Decals – Sign of Success
Stationery – Wedding Paper Divas, Paper Source and Minted
Getting ready – Soho Grand Hotel
Rabbi — Seth Wax
awesome…fabulous ..amazing….and memorable …..may it always be …..
a joy to relive ………love both of you so much …… …gramdma