Modern Black Tie New York Wedding at the Bowery Hotel

This modern fall New York wedding at the Bowery hotel serves as a perfect example of how to celebrate a 200+ guest wedding that is classy, stylish, fun, feels intimate and tastefully includes the sophisticated elements of New York (music, food, fashion)

The Couple

They say music makes the world go round. It couldn’t be more true when it comes to Rosemary and Kyle’s love story. They met in 2017 through mutual friends, dancing their hearts out to a shared love for music at the Gray Mare.  After moving in together in 2020, many nights were spent cooking and hosting at their apartment, always with musical tracks playing in the background. 

On a typical Thursday evening after work, it was business as usual with a home cooked meal and listening to records.  Not to sound like a broken record, but Kyle set the mood utilizing their common love for music, by playing all of Rosemary’s favorite songs throughout dinner, and then sealed the deal playing her all time favorite song – At Last, by Etta James, while down on one knee.  

The Bowery Hotel

The couple are both from Oklahoma, with a majority of their guests coming from the South and the Midwest.  So they wanted an elegant, modern, and unforgettable New York wedding.  For the venue, they chose the Bowery Hotel, located in the Bowery district near south Manhattan.  The Bowery was known as New York City’s “Skid Row,” to accommodate returning soldiers from World War II, and the down-and-outs as a flophouse. Today, the hotel evokes the speakeasy glamour of New York with its velvet furniture, coupled with French accents like an immense woven antique wall tapestry, Moroccan tiled floors, and medieval cast iron chandeliers. 

The vibe is both dark and moody with the exposed wood beam ceilings and brick walls, but also romantic and intimate with its two candlelit bars and windowpane floor to ceiling walls that slide out to an open air terrace.  The night of the wedding, it was pouring rain, so they opened the windows to see and hear the storm and dimmed the lights.  It completely met their goal for guests to feel like they were at an intimate, but slightly upscale, dinner party.

Stunning Decor

The couple’s wedding invitation was created by A&P Design Co and included green etched imagery of the Bowery Hotel, which matches the green accents inside the hotel as well as the wedding palette. The bride’s reflections: “The colors were whites, greens, light pinks, and purples, timeless but whimsical. Whimsical like a secret garden with lots of texture and greenery.   I was very obsessed with Amaranthus and needed it to be everywhere!”  She called her florists, Vanessa and Michael from Verde Flowers, “magicians.”  They didn’t want to change much of the already beautiful space, so they simply added lots of candles and matching wedding theme colored beaded napkin rings as the main decor pieces. 

Getting ready the day of, the bridal party stayed in the hotel’s suites upstairs.  The rooms featured exposed brick painted in white, on the bed were crisp white linens with coral accents, and views of the tenement buildings outside on the street.  It was: “The best setup for a perfect day.  There was so much love and music, champagne and energy!”

Chic Fashion

The bride wore a chic satin low back dress with a giant accent bow just above the derrière, and satin buttons down to the train by Ines Di Santo.  She paired it with Sophia Webster pearl heels and borrowed diamond earrings and a tennis bracelet from her mom. “My sister and both of my sisters-in-law have all worn the tennis bracelet in their weddings too, so that was very special to me.” The green accents at the Bowery hotel inspired the color palette for the bridesmaids, who each wore a satin green dress of their choosing. Meanwhile, the groom wore a striking black tuxedo by John Varvatos and the groomsmen wore matching black tuxedos. 

New York Wedding Reception

When dinner was served, the room was transformed and completely bathed in candlelight.  The room’s full length windowpane wall reflected the light.  Ladderback chairs in dark wood resembling bamboo details were guided from end to end by the simple white clothed, warmly lit community tables.  The altar facing the moody dark green tiled backsplash of the central fireplace became the band’s stage area. 

Dinner was New York themed starting with a Waldorf Salad, followed by a Flatiron Halibut and NY Strip steak, and finished with a play on Black and White cookies with a chocolate and vanilla cake by Wild Flour NYC. From cocktail hour through dinner, the guests were treated to two specialty bespoke cocktails – a spicy margarita and an espresso martini. The after party on the terrace featured slices from their favorite pizza place, Scarr’s.

The music list was curated by the groom, bride, and father of the bride’s shared passion for music.  It was materialized by two live bands embodying the wedding couple’s daily lives.  They selected Cover Story, a Doo Wop band that busks around town where they run their errands, to play during cocktail hour.  For the reception, they selected the house band from their frequent excursions at Cafe Wha. Wedding guests also wore yellow and green boa feathers and pink cowboy hats, which elevated the festive energy of the dance floor.

As every song must come to an end, so did the ultimate elegant, but modern wedding at the Bowery Hotel for Rosemary and Kyle.  The bride’s special moment was: “Having all of our favorite people in our favorite place at the same time. And the bow.”  The bride’s advice for future brides: “Don’t cry! Everything works out! Have fun, you’re marrying your best friend! Write thank you’s as gifts come in! Don’t let that pile up. Take a dance lesson or two.”

Gallery

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