Luminations of a New Wife

NYC Ceremony/Reception Sites

This is not intended to overwhelm you, rather get you started on your journey:

The University Club
1 W. 54th St., at Fifth Ave; 212-247-2100
Receptions are held in the Main Dining Room, with oak-paneled walls, a gold ceiling, and marble floors. There is a $3,000 space fee, plus a starting price of $210 per person for catering for 175 to 350 guests.

Angel Orensanz Foundation
172 Norfolk St., nr. E. Houston St.; 212-529-7194
orensanz.org
Once a synagogue, this dramatic 1849 building is now open to anyone who wants to throw a party. Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick said "I do" here. Prices vary depending on number of guests and day of the week (seats 260). Bring your own caterer.

Bridgewaters
11 Fulton St., nr. Front St.; 212-608-7400
theglaziergroup.com
This dramatic events space at South Street Seaport offers two lofty rooms that each seat 75 to 400 guests. Best feature: gorgeous views of the Brooklyn Bridge and New York Harbor, plus wraparound terraces. Buffet and seated-wedding menus, including alcohol, start at $185 per guest.

Capitale
130 Bowery, at Grand St.; 212-334-5500
capitaleny.com
The Stanford White–designed Bowery Savings Bank, complete with Corinthian columns and Venetian glass under 75-foot ceilings, is now the luxurious Capitale. Four private rooms are available for 75 to 1,500 guests. Prices vary depending on season and number of guests.

The Central Park Boathouse
Fifth Ave. at 72nd St.; 212-517-2233
This charming pavilion is set by the lake in the heart of the park and features wrapping French doors that open to an English garden and wooden patios that face the water's edge. Book the Boathouse's event space, which hosts up to 240 seated guests; from $145 per person.

Cipriani at 23rd St.
200 Fifth Avenue, at 23rd St.; 212-755-0900
cipriani.com
In terms of iconic Manhattan backdrops, this place is hard to beat: ornate 22-foot ceilings, the ballroom (accommodates 300 with dancing), and the Oak Room (400 for cocktails)—not to mention the Art Deco style. Rates vary depending on season.

The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers
23rd St. at the Hudson River; 212-336-6144
piersixty.com
This airy event space offers floor-to-ceiling windows with gorgeous views of the harbor and an enclosed terrace big enough to seat 180 (total seated capacity for the space is 300). Caterer Abigail Kirsch whips up delectable creations. Sit-down or buffet dinners range from $115 to $225 per guest. kosher. The windows light up at night when votive candles are placed on each window sill. The food and the views are supreme!

Mandarin Oriental, New York
80 Columbus Circle, at 60th St.; 212-805-8800
mandarinoriental.com
The hotel’s massive, chandelier-lit, 36th-floor ballroom with wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling views of Central Park is unlike any other—“stunning” seems too easy a description—and can host up to 400 guests for dinner and dancing; sit-down dinner starts at $350 and includes alcohol.

Manhattan Penthouse
80 Fifth Ave., at 14th St.; 212-627-8838
manhattanpenthouse.com
Located on the top floor of a historic building near Union Square, this bright 8,000-square-foot space lined with ficus trees can accommodate up to 225 seated guests (with dancing). Prices are $75 to $150 per person; in-house catering, full bar, and equipment are all included.

Metropolitan Pavilion
125 W. 18th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; 212-463-0071
metropolitanevents.com
The Metropolitan Pavilion may be a bare, high-ceilinged loft, but decked out with votive candles and sheer drapes to section off the room, it’s a warm and elegant party space. Celebrations can also be huge—up to 1,200 guests for a seated dinner, from $135 to $175 per person.

The Puck Building
295 Lafayette St., nr. Houston St.; 212-274-8900
puckcaterers.com
This landmarked Soho building boasts more than 14,000 square feet of event space, with sparsely decorated white walls and columns, two gorgeous chandeliers, and white curtains that can be parted to yield an incredible amount of natural light (think of all the flowers and lighting direction you'll need to spruce up the blank wall space!) The seventh-floor Skylight Ballroom seats up to 250 guests. Both are available year-round from $7,000 apiece.

The Rainbow Room
30 Rockefeller Plaza, nr. Fifth Ave.; 212-632-5000
rainbowroom.com
The famed local institution offers six private rooms from which to choose, all of which are decorated in the restaurant’s signature Art Deco style. The space accommodates 20 to 400 people for dinner, and the food is provided is by local fixture Cipriani. If you tire of dancing, look out the window to remember why you chose the space: the views of Central Park and the Empire State Building are nothing short of spectacular. Don't forget the spinning dance floor!

Splashlight Studios
529-535 W. 35th St., nr. Tenth Ave.; 212-268-7247
splashlightstudios.com
If you've always imagined your wedding orchestrated by Leo Castelli, you’ll want to check out Splashlight, a columnless 23,000-square-foot space with brushed-concrete floors, eighteen-foot-high ceilings, and southern and northern city views. Prices range from a mere $4,500 to $30,000 for the whole building. Remember, think of LOTS of flowers and LOTS of lighting direction.

Tavern on the Green
Central Park at W. 67th St.; 212-873-4111
tavernonthegreen.com
Many couples looking to plan an old-fashioned fairy-tale wedding choose this sprawling, fanciful space on the western edge of Central Park, surrounded by topiary animals and trees with twinkling white lights. In-house event planners arrange everything from flowers to entertainment to wedding souvenirs. The suggested wedding menu starts at $110 per guest (I know, surprising, right?) and range dramatically based on space chosen and number of guests. No outside catering except kosher.

Beekman Tower Hotel; 3 Mitchell Pl., nr. 49th St.; 212-355-7300
topofthetowernyc.com
Located on 26th floor, this restaurant features live piano entertainment and a wraparound terrace that ups the romance factor. Catering options are available, and the well-trained staff offers a customized menu for private parties of up to 120 guests. From $125 per person.

Tribeca Rooftop
2 Desbrosses St., nr. Hudson St.; 212-625-2600
tribec.com
One of the most popular wedding sites in Manhattan, this bright, indoor-outdoor event space usually books a year in advance, thanks to its wide-open feeling and excellent location. The 15,000-square-foot, skylight-lit penthouse offers striking views of the Hudson River, the Empire State Building, Soho, and Chinatown, and can seat up to 360 guests. Prices run about $165 to $225 per guest. I love the choice between either an outdoor or indoor ceremony. After the reception, why not use the outdoor lounge space and convert the white couches into a trendy cigar bar?

Twenty Four Fifth
24 Fifth Ave., nr. 9th St.; 212-505-8000
theglaziergroup.com
Etched silver-leaf mirrors set off the cream-colored walls, and chandeliers light the sunken marble dance floor. The building can accommodate up to 200 for dinner, or 400 for cocktails; customized menus will cost $165 per guest, including cocktails. No outside catering except kosher.

'21' Club
21 W. 52nd St., nr. Fifth Ave.; 212-582-1400
21club.com
The elegant townhouse setting of this famed speakeasy turned restaurant will accommodate groups as small as 10 or as large as 800. You may choose the chef’s seven-course “Wine Cellar” tasting menu ($450 per person) or plan a menu of your own (from $139). No outside catering except kosher.

Union Square Ballroom
27 Union Square West, nr. 16th St.; 212-645-1802
unionsquareballroom.com
Though a few unobtrusive features like recessed floor lighting give it a modern feel, the two-room, 4,000-square-foot Ballroom is generally (and intentionally) a “blank palette” that guests can tailor to any desired style. The venue can host up to 150 seated for weddings at a cost of $150 per person, in-house, modern American catering included and mandatory (kosher allowed).

West Side Loft
336 W. 37th St., nr. Eighth Ave.; 212-871-0940
westsideloft.com
Located in the same building as Loft Eleven and Penthouse 15, it is the most classically decorated of the trio, marked by fireplaces, chandeliers, and a “garden room” with slate floors. The space holds 200 for dinner or 350 for drinks. Prices range from $5,500 to $7,000.

Brooklyn Botanic Garden
1000 Washington Ave., at Eastern Pkwy.; Prospect Heights, Brooklyn; 718-623-7220
bbg.org
The 52-acre Botanic Garden has numerous sites for ceremonies. Exclusive caterers Charles, Sally & Charles will take over the whole garden (which can host 400 guests for cocktails and 300 for seated dinner) for your party for a site fee of $2,000 to $4,000, plus $110 to $160 per person. Open year-round, but BOOK EARLY! When I called them in Sept. of 2004, they were already booked for 2005!

The New York Botanical Garden
Bronx River Parkway at Fordham Rd., the Bronx; 718-220-0300
nybg.org
There are two sites to choose from in these beautifully maintained gardens. The Garden Terrace Room, with lush-looking murals on the walls and soft sconce lighting, will seat 300. Seated groups of 110 might prefer Snuff Mill. Catering is provided by Abigail Kirsch, starting at $120 per person.

Will You Be My Bridesmaid?

My sister-in-law sent personalized cookies to her bridesmaids when she asked them to be in her party. You can find personalized cookies such as these at www.thesecretchefonline.com

 

How To Register and Where To Do It

Registering can be a very enjoyable part of the wedding process, or a complete anxiety-producing headache. First, register yourself on www.weddingchannel.com as this is the best and easiest and most popular way for your guests to view your registry list. Take a look at the stores that wedding channel affiliates yourself with, and choose three different types of stores to register.

Most of your guests will use the wedding channel to locate a gift they want to purchase for you, but others will enjoy going into a store and hand selecting a special gift for you. Make sure to choose a store that is not just in New York City for your out-of-town guests. We choose to register at Bloomingdales, www.bloomingdales.com, for pretty much everything except our kitchenware and fine china and silver. We selected Michael C. Fina to register for our china, www.michaelcfina.com, because Fina not only has a great selection, but has a wonderful holding program in which the store holds all your gifts till after your wedding. We saved so much time and energy this way without having to schlep back and forth to the store with all of our returns. Fina also gives you such individualized attention that selecting your china with them is a breeze. They'll even set a table for you so you can see how your china collaborates with your glasses and silver. Finally, we choose Williams Sonoma, www.williamsonoma.com, for our kitchenware.

Initially I went with my mom to register and selected things with her I knew I would not be able to do on my own, or with Steve. Afterwards, I took Steve with me back to the stores so he could see what I registered for. In my experience, guys might have more of an opinion about the bar-related products, such as decanters and wine glasses than your china selection. When I saw Steve's interest start waning once this was finished, I completed the registry on my own (MUCH easier in the end!) Plus, nowadays it's so easy to register at home online where you can easily change or add gifts to your list.

Other stores for some good ideas:

Bed Bath & Beyond
620 Sixth Ave., at 18th St.; 212-255-3550; 410 E. 61st St., at First Ave.; 646-215-4702; 1932 Broadway, at 65th St.; 917-441-9391; bedbathandbeyond.com
You'll want to register here for kitchen things, tableware, and a good selection of towels and everyday linens. 

Fortunoff
681 Fifth Ave., nr. 54th St.; 212-758-6660; fortunoff.com
The third floor of this large, unpretentious store has tableware for every taste—there are more than 150 dinnerware patterns. Register and you get a 10 percent discount on the store’s wedding bands.

Gracious Home
1992 Broadway, at 67th St.; 212-231-7800; 1220 Third Ave., at 70th St.;212-517-6300
gracioushome.com
Gracious Home specializes in European goods that will stand out from your neighbors’ wall-to-wall Pottery Barn wares.

The Jewish Museum gift Shops
1 E. 92nd St., at Fifth Ave.; 212-423-3260
1109 Fifth Ave., at 92nd St.;212-423-3211
334 Amsterdam Ave., at 76th St.;646-505-5730; thejewishmuseum.org
The Jewish Museum's gift shop sells Judaica inspired by its collections, including plenty of Seder plates ($10–$3,000), menorahs ($15–$3,000), and ketubot ($40–$400). If I knew about this option then, I would definitely of registered here!

Pottery Barn
600 Broadway, at Houston St.; 212-219-2420
1965 Broadway, at 67th St.;212-579-8477
127 E. 59th St., at Lexington Ave.; 917-369-0050; potterybarn.com
The originator of chic, affordable housewares, Pottery Barn is still a good bet for oversize, inexpensive dinner-plate settings. Most couples opt to roam the store on their own and then use its online registry service.

Restoration Hardware
935 Broadway, at 22nd St.; 212-260-9479; restorationhardware.com
You’ll want to cherry-pick from classic Paradigm bath sheets, 600-thread-count bedding, and a supremely refined eleven-drawer maple dresser. One of my favorite stores in the city! You can't go wrong with registering here. 

Simon Pearce
120 Wooster St., nr. Prince St.; 212-334-2393
500 Park Ave., at 59th St.; 212-421-8801; simonpearce.com
Couples can come in or register online for chic, timeless handmade stoneware and glassware, a favorite among stylish brides no matter their Zip Code.

Tiffany & Co.
727 Fifth Ave., at 57th St.; 212-755-8000; tiffany.com
One of the city’s most popular places to register, the fourth floor brims with silver, fine china, and crystal.

Bridesmaids Gifts

Selecting a special bridesmaid gifts for your girls is so special! I really enjoyed selecting gifts for my party. I went to Fortunoff's, www.fortunoffs.com, who have a terrific selection of crystal and vanity products. I individualized the gifts giving a different type of vanity table present to each girl -- perfume bottles, ring holders, and crystal boxes...

Other ideas:

You can design a Longchamp bag for each one of your bridesmaids with their own color selection and initials!http://www.eboutiquelongchamp.com/catalog/index_en.php

Tiffany's has a gorgeous selection of porcelain and crystal boxes. Why not give a different one to each girl?!

What Came First - the Man or the Marriage?

Last night after seeing the Knicks play their (disappointing) home opener, we met friends for dinner. This other couple is also recently married, so we were discussing what it's like to be a newlywed, and how other people's impressions and fantasies of your first year of marriage are often slightly skewed from reality. Melissa told me about another one of our friends who is recently engaged, and has become obsessed with wedding planning. "She attends every single bridal show! She's made FRIENDS from these bridal shows! And then she asked how you were - if you are the happiest you have EVER been because you're now MARRIED!" We laughed and thought how some women grow up planning and fantasizing about their wedding ever since they were little girls. For Melissa and I, this wasn't so much the case. We happened to find a man, fell in love, and things clicked into place. Marriage became the next feasible step; it was the man that made us think of marriage, not the other way around. I thought it a curious question, what our engaged friend had asked. Am I the happiest I have ever been BECAUSE i'm married? I'm happy because i'm with Steve. I'm happy AND i'm married. The marriage didn't make me happy...the man did.

Throw out your bridal magazines!

Just before I got engaged I had compiled lots of bridal magazines that I eagerly fipped through in anticipation of planning the wedding. As soon as I got engaged, so much had changed...the magazines appeared to be a blur of confusing, overwhelming information. They taunted me from their glossy pages bellowing out to me that I should be doing this, how dare I think of doing that. I had a very different way of planning my wedding than the magazines proposed - first and most importantly, planning a wedding did not (and should not!) take over your life! I did not become a bridezilla because I wasn't interested in becoming one. At all. I didn't have long introspective moments where I became lost in a dreamworld fantasizing about the color of my calla lillies. Other things were so much more important to me - getting married is a life transition, there is no other way around it. So many girls get caught up in the touch and feel of their table linen that they loose the real meaning and essence of their wedding day. Use the time of your engagement to think about what it means to YOU to become a wife. What will change? What will most definitely not? Try not to get too caught up in the details; this day is so much more meaningful than the intertwining minutiae composing the event. You do have control - this is YOUR day, so try to relax and enjoy...

Groomsmen Gifts

Usually guys give their groomsmen gifts at their rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. I just heard of a great idea and wanted to share. Why not get the guys IPOD Nanos? http://www.apple.com/ipodnano/

Other good ideas: give them a Tiffany keychain based on his favorite pasttime. Choose from tennis, golf, or fishing.

http://www.theartofshaving.com/taos/the-blue-box.php 

The Art of Shaving makes a great groomsmen gift. Why not get them all starter sets?

 

The World of Golf is New York City's answer to all its golfing needs.  Give the guys putters and go home a happy man. http://www.theworldofgolf.com/sort.asp?start=0&search=1 

Best Kept Secret...

For all your bridal-related needs, skp the retail stores and check out the fashion district for some unbelievable savings. Here you'll find countless stores carrying an assortment of veils, hair clips, jewelry and so much more. Here's a list of some to get you started:

Kortia Couture Bridal & Salon; 150w. 36th St., Fashion District; 212.239.3491

Betty Wales Bridal; 135 W. 36th St., Fashion District; 212.279.8895

Kortia Couture Bridal & Salon; 150 W. 36th St., Fashion District; 212.239.3491

   

One-of-a-Kind Bridesmaid Gifts

For a unique and personalized gift for your girls, check out www.designsbyhillary.com - my friend Hillary will work with you to custom design the perfect accessories for your wedding, and create fabulous gifts for your bridal party to wear for years to come.

The Wedding Coach

I've always thought getting married and planning a wedding are two entirely different things. Getting married is romantic, idealistic - it tends to be what we as little girls used to dream of. The proposal itself is a fairytale come true. No matter how he asks, it's one of the best, most memorable moments of your life. Planning a wedding ladies, is quite a different story. It's so much more than just event planning, it's about intertweaving the lives of two people, including their families and friends as well. It can be exhausting and at times overwhelming to seek out the best vendors, stay on a timeline and focus on a budget, all while trying to keep this fairytale romance of  a wedding alive.

I found one of the most helpful things for me was to talk to other people about my experience of being engaged. You'll find that others might even feel similarly. I even found my own "wedding coach." Yep, that's right, a wedding coach. I was lucky enough to have a close friend that recently got married, and had experienced similar issues that I was during my own engagement. Lisa was understanding, never judgmental, and full of concrete advice. She kept me on schedule, but most importantly she kept me sane. The best advice I can give to those who are recently engaged is to seek out a supportive person in your life that has been through all this before, who can most of all listen to you, offer you sound advice and make you realize what you are feeling is NORMAL!