Dramatic Industrial Wedding

Do you dream of a dramatic wedding? In this Dramatic Industrial Wedding Rachael and Mike created a space entirely unique to them. With their hand built Huppah and estate-found vintage furniture, they transformed their unique industrial venue into a work of art. Be sure to check out the words from the Event Designer and the Q and A with the couple to learn more about how they created their dramatic industrial wedding and how you can create a wedding look completely unique to you!

Words from the Event Designer:

Rachael and Mike were brought together over their work in the arts and love of theatre, so a dramatic wedding was always in the cards. A unique venue was a must that was striking yet intimate. Rachael is culturally jewish and Mike agnostic so they decided on a secular ceremony with jewish elements. One of which was a gorgeous huppah Mike built for their ceremony. Mike’s mother also played the piano while his sister (a chorus member is the Metropolitan opera at Lincoln center) sang them a blessing. A down to earth couple they served gourmet pizza and decorated the 19th-century factory turned arts center with a double seated swing, vintage furniture found on estate auction sites all curated by the couple. A VW photobus, bottle dancers (re-enacting the famous scene from fiddler on the roof) and a fire dancer entertained guests. Rachael and Mike wanted this to be a day both they and their guests would never forget.

Q and A 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: We were brought together over our work in the arts and love of theatre, so a dramatic wedding was definitely what we wanted. A unique venue was a must that was striking yet intimate. Mike didn’t want a barn and they both weren’t interested in a ballroom. We decided on a secular ceremony with jewish elements since I Rachael, the bride and culturally jewish and Mike is agnostic. Mike built us a gorgeous huppah for the ceremony, with the word in hebrew letters that means destined. Mike’s mother also played the piano while his sister (a chorus member is the Metropolitan opera at Lincoln center) sang us a blessing. It was incredible special, intimate and moving. The amtrak train outside kept making noise but it kept us all laughing. We wanted elements of fall, darker moodier colors that still felt warm. We kept our main colors deep purple, white, gold, grey and lots of greenery to soften and make the industrial space romantic.

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: We only took 9 months to plan our wedding but again both being theatrical we went right into design mode! We found lots of vintage pieces on the let go app or estate auctions. We bought or borrowed bar carts, vintage suitcases, cake stands, decanters, macrame, vintage rugs, chairs and a love seat. We wanted to create a vintage lounge space for two reasons. One because the space is huge, it can fit 300 people and we were having 100 and two, to have a place for guests that wanted a more relaxed vibe if they didn’t feel like dancing or needed a break.

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: We found an amazing florist. We wanted to go heavy with greenery. The bouquets had a lot of greenery with some blush roses, a few deeper purple colored florals and dusty miller. I love how dusty miller has a lace like texture. Similar florals also adorned the huppah. For the table we went with greenery runners accented with just pops of color. We wanted the candles both votives and deep purple taper candles to stand out and we also knew we wanted people to be able to see the other people at the table so tall arrangements were out!

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: Yes! We tried to incorporate so many personal touches. We really wanted this to be a reflection of who we are as a couple. Mike cried the entire ceremony and it was so sweet and loving. Our officiant had us write letters to each other but send them to him and he incorporated them into our ceremony so we were surprised by some of the funny and heartfelt things we shared without knowing what the other one wrote. Having Mike’s sister sing us a hebrew blessing was not only special because she is a professional opera singer but because it came straight from her heart. She is also not jewish and learned the blessing just for us. Our first dance was also very special. We decided to do the dancing on the cloud effect which can be cheesy but in our space we thought it looked magical. Mike timed the exact moment when the smoke was going to billow and pulled me in for a kiss and everyone started cheering, it was a movie moment, I’ll never forget. I also hired bottle dancers as a surprise for Mike and I was so excited to see the look on his face when they started dancing.

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

A: I was originally going to buy a dress online. My dear friend talked me into going to Kleinfeld’s “for fun” and of course I found a dress that just blew everything else out of the water. I wore the “beau” dress by Enaura bridal from Kleinfeld’s NYC. Mike wore a very sleek grey three piece suit by vera wang.

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

A: We met online on plenty of fish, which our officiant brought up in our ceremony saying that “our story began by us both believing there are plenty of fish in the sea” to which we both smiled half amused and half embarrassed. We went on one day and were pretty much inseparable after that. We dated for 3 years before Mike proposed. We’d discussed getting married so I knew it was coming I just didn’t know when. We went to see the broadway show “the band’s visit” Mike had intended to propose during intermission. When we arrived he realized there was no intermission. So 2 mins before curtain Mike pulls out the ring and whispers “will you marry me”. I quickly said yes then held his hand the entire show both very happy and kind of annoyed because I had to keep quiet and couldn’t really look at my ring in the dark. But given our relationship it was the perfect balance of romantic and silly.

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

A: Mike did not want to do a first look. He’s not a huge traditionalist but this was really important to him. So the moment when we he saw me for the first time in my dress was the most anticipated. I knew he would think I was beautiful but I wanted him to be really proud to marry me, which I knew he was but I wanted to see it in his eyes and I did.

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

A: Hire a good planner that you like! I actually became a wedding designer/planner after planning my own wedding with an awesome planner. Be flexible, not everything will go perfectly but that’s ok. Embrace the ebbs and flows. Try to be in the moment as much as possible. Hydrate. Try not to take it all too seriously. Enjoy yourself and realize any bumps in the road end up in the rear view mirror faster than you think!