The Stone Mill at The New York Botanical Garden was the perfect venue for Olivia and Steve’s wedding in more ways than they realized. Not only had they fallen for the overall beauty and ambiance of the botanical garden itself, but come to find out it was also the same location the mother-of-the-bride had held her baby shower. How cute is that?!
Fast forward decades later, and this bride and groom had a gorgeous garden wedding to celebrate their beginning together. The soft romantic look featured dramatic florals and elegant candlelight. Keep scrolling to see their day unfold, and you’ll definitely want to check out the full gallery after from Stout Studios.
finding the perfect location
From Michelle Elaine Wedding: The Stone Mill at The New York Botanical Garden was more near and dear than Olivia and Steve had known. They’d fallen in love with the overall beauty that the Botanical Garden naturally offers, and the charm of the Stone Mill felt like the perfect intimate setting for their wedding day. Olivia, discussing this wedding location possibility with her parents, came to find that when her mom was pregnant (with her) her baby shower was held at the Stone Mill. It was then they decided this location was meant to be.
Tying it all together
Val of Brave Floral did an incredible job adding color and vibrance in the most effortless way. Amazing Etsy and BHLDN finds like the guest book, frames, welcome sign and card box helped tie each little piece of their personalized day together. On their day, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect, and the soothing sounds of the river as they made their way down the aisle completed the setting.
THE PERFECT ENDING
Olivia and Steve mingled with friends and family, enjoyed the funniest and most heartfelt speeches, cut the cake and before we knew it things were moving back downstairs where the outdoor space had been transformed into the most amazing dance floor. As the night came to a close, guests gathered to send off the new Mr. & Mrs. as they were whisked away in a vintage checkered cab.
The best investment
From the bride: The best investment in your big day is hiring a planner who understands and helps you define and execute your wedding vision. Spending the time up front to find Michelle from Michelle Elaine Weddings saved us so much time, stress, and money in the long run! A great planner will know where your budget is best spent, when to contract a vendor or DIY, and manage all those vendors during the process and on the day of.
We ended up exceeding our budget by about 30% (keep in mind that we live in an expensive market and were very particular about our vision). That said, we found we had been a bit unrealistic about what it would cost to execute our vision initially. As you are building your budget and planning, don’t underestimate the cost of details, think about vendor gratuity, and make sure to determine who is paying for what (ie what are you paying for personally versus what is being covered by family or the wedding party) so you can be as accurate as possible.
This real wedding feature has been sponsored by Michelle Elaine Weddings. As always, thank you for supporting our sponsors!
