Crystal Tea Room Wedding in Philadelphia, PA

It’s rare to get an inside view into a wedding day, however photographer J&J Studios takes us on the wedding day trip of this gorgeous Crystal Team Room Wedding in Philadelphia, PA. After the day’s play by play be sure to check out the couple’s Q and A session where they discuss all the planning for their Crystal Tea Room Wedding.

Words from the Photographer:

We were so excited to celebrate Elizabeth and Edward’s Crystal Tea Room wedding in Philadelphia, PA. From iconic Philadelphia City Hall bridal portraits to reception entrances in T-rex costumes, this is a wedding you don’t want to miss!

Elizabeth and Edward began their preparation at the luxurious Loews Hotel Philadelphia. The spacious bridal suite (2820) yielded the gorgeous floor to ceiling windows and contemporary decor for some epic bridal portraits.

The bride wore a beautiful Essence by Australia wedding gown from The Sample Rack, Pine St, Philadelphia, PA.

The gorgeous invitations were printed by Paper on Pine and the bride and groom’s rings were from Bario Neal. The carefully themed flowers by Kerry Fabrizio of Fabufloras featured ivory flowers with greenery, gold accents, feathers, and pearls.

At J&J Studios, we try to photograph wedding details creatively in action so here is a photo of the bride and her tribe with the fabulous Fabufloras flower arrangements.

Getting ready would not be complete without rocking out to Beyonce’s Single Ladies.

Elizabeth chose Abby Leoncini of Philly Hair and Makeup for herself and her bridesmaids, and Abby absolutely slayed it.

While the girls downed some mimosas, the boys had their own getting ready to do.

Edward prepared for the wedding on a different floor of the hotel which made it super convenient for our photo and video team. The groom and groomsmen wore The Black Tux: peak lapel tuxedo, a timeless classic.

After getting dressed, he prepared a few sentimental words for his bride.

Elizabeth was busy getting ready herself. With the help of her mother and maid of honor, she got into her Essence by Australia wedding dress.

After the bride was ready, we got everyone out of the main room for a touching father’s first look. The mother of the bride and bridesmaids peered on through some slits in the wall.

After a few family portraits and individual portraits of the bride with each of her bridesmaids, it was time to get married!

After the I dos and first kiss, we headed to City Hall for the bridal party pictures, and the infamous “Broad Street Bride” shot.

After we froze in the 30F city hall area, we warmed up at the Crystal Tea Room, where we did some additional creative bridal portraits.

With the reception underway, London Bridge by EBE Talent lit up the dance floor. The grand entrances were punctuated by the maid of honor running in in a T-rex costume. The bride’s father gave a moving speech that moved Elizabeth to tears. After the wedding, guests were treated to custom wine bottles by Korrie Leer Art @ korrieleerart.

Q and A session with the Couple:

Q: Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?

A: With our wedding date set for early 2020, we thought of incorporating some roaring 20s, Art Deco/Gatsby details into our day. We were cautious about maintaining an air of elegance—- not too many feathers and pearls, but just enough! Truthfully, our vendors really brought our vision to life.

Q: Let’s talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?

A: Our vendors really took over for our decor. Our friend from high school, Korrie Leer, made personalized wine labels for our favors and signature drink menus. The rest of the decor – candles and flowers- really was done by the team at FabuFloras and they killed it!!!!!

Q: What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?

A: Kerry at Fabufloras really helped narrow our vision for flower arrangements. We knew we wanted magnolia leaves for their dark green and bronze colors, and also feathers and pearls. She suggested adding gold accents of seeded eucalyptus and various greenery in addition to white and ivory roses, hydrangeas and Calle lillies.

Q: Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?

A: Our favorite part of our wedding was probably EBE London Bridge. They kept everyone dancing and having a great time. They did learn a song for us – The Git Up – which some of the wedding guests had learned at my country/line dancing themed bridal shower. That was something fun a lot of our guests practiced leading up to the wedding to perform on the dance floor!

Q: Let’s talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.

A: We both chose something very classic and elegant. That might’ve been one of the easiest decisions for us to make.

Q: How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.

A: We met roaming the halls at Gloucester Catholic High School. We lost touch for awhile after high school graduation, but started talking again our junior year of college and started dating soon after. After Liz finished grad school, she moved to Philadelphia with Ed. Eddie proposed just as Liz envisioned! When the topic of engagement would come up, Liz would say “I want to be at home, in my pajamas, drinking coffee and eating a bagel.” A few days after Christmas, just as she finished drinking her coffee and eating her bagel, Eddie got down on TWO knees to ask for Liz’s hand in marriage!

Q: What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?

A: We were so excited to celebrate our love with everyone we love. It was such a special feeling seeing 250+ of our relatives and neighbors together under one roof. Everyone had a great time, too!

Q: Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you’d like to share with other couples planning their day?

A: It’s true that the time flies. Make sure to enjoy every minute and remember the reason for the day is for the love between you and your partner— everything else is extra, so don’t sweat the small stuff and just have fun!