Some people will remember October 29, 2011 because of the snow, some will remember days without power… but for a lucky few it will be remembered as the best night of their lives. Let me set the scene for you…
It was an ordinary October day, except that on this October day they were calling for snow. People said “Don’t be crazy, its October…. its not going to REALLY snow.” But snow it did!
Jenna and Chris had planned an intimate evening wedding. Attended by about 65 guests and officiated by Chris’ father. The ceremony was slated to begin at 4:30… but because of the weather, we decided to give some of the guests a little extra time arriving. At about 4:50 the ceremony began, and Jenna walked down the isle to be married to Chris. Even though they were not married in a church, Chris’ father conducted the ceremony much in the same way. About 5 minutes in, just as he was beginning his homily it went silent… and dark. Its funny how much white noise lights and fans make. I expected to see Jenna’s face drop, a tear well up even… it would have been acceptable. But she didn’t flinch. It was romanic, the silence, the sound of snow falling outside, and Chris’s father’s voice echoing their vows throughout the atrium at the hotel. It was just becoming twilight, but the candles that Jenna & Chris’ mothers lit gave a warm glow to the couple. After they kissed, and were pronounced husband and wife Jenna and Chris walked up the isle to Rich playing their processional music on his iPhone. It wasn’t loud, but loud enough so that when you walked by, it put a smile on your face… because we were making it work.
As we headed out to document some snowy images, the guests enjoyed cocktail hour. There was an abundance of appetizers, and champaign… although we were informed that dinner was not so lucky. But no one seemed to care. They were all togther, safe and celebrating this joyous occasion.
The staff at The Avon old Farms was so great. They were able to put together salads and pasta, while Jenna’s sister and Chris’ brother toasted the couple and then Chris’ father blessed the meal. Hundreds of candles illuminated the room, and people mingled and ate. Thanks to our road crew we were able to have a generator delivered, and with a flip of a switch we lit the room pink and Rich began playing “Let it Snow”. The guests went wild, singing along and laughing.. and the night was saved. Jenna and Chris had their formal introductions as husband and wife, their first dance, dances with their parents, and after cutting their cake the party went crazy!
At the end of the night Jenna’s father asked the entire staff of the hotel to come out and be recognized, along with myself and Rich, and one of their guests snapped a shot of all of us. Its a reminder that its not all the fancy stuff that makes a wedding. its about love, and people to share it with.
Jenna told me ”We wanted our wedding to be memorable not only for us, but for our family as well. We stayed organized and kept our planning process simple so we could focus on having an amazing time when the day finally arrived. Not only did we have a phenomenal time, but our guests had an evening they will never forget. Some people will remember that night because of the hardships they faced because of the storm, but we will remember it for the incredible time we had in spite of it. Without the hard work of the staff at The Avon Old Farms Hotel, our photographer Heather and our DJ Rich, we never could have had such an unforgettable night!”
So now that you know the story… get to know the couple.
Meet :: Jenna and Chris
Jenna and Chris met back in 2006 through mutual friends and reconnected in February 2009. Coincidentally, they were both heading home from dinner with their parents one Sunday night. Jenna was stuck in traffic, looked through her phone and found Chris’s screen name. She asked him if he remembered her, and he said of course! They started hanging out and it was like no time had passed.
When Chris got home on Friday March 18, 2010, he “acted” very stressed after a long day and headed to the kitchen. He slammed things around in the fridge looking for a snack and complained how it looked like something was going bad. Not thinking anything of it Jenna went into the kitchen to see what he had found. As she entered the room Chris closed the fridge door and was kneeling behind it holding the ring and proposed. He had designed the ring with his Grandmother’s diamond, two other diamonds passed down in his family, and two pink tourmaline stones because Jenna’s favorite color is pink. That Sunday was Jenna’s birthday so in addition to celebrating that with family and friends, they were able to celebrate their engagement.
Jenna & Chris both love modern design so they chose black and white to reflect their clean/modern taste and added accents of pink as a pop of color. Jenna said “We aren’t traditional so we wanted something to stand out rather than blend in with the colors of Fall. Mother Nature obviously wanted to coordinate with the snow we had on our wedding day!”
Jenna and Chris, its clear that your love will last through anything, and I wish you nothing but the best. Enjoy the sneak peek of your day!
Location: Avon Old Farms Hotel – Avon, CT.
DJ: Rich Gumpert – Powerstation Events
Photographer: Heather Colt – Powerstation Events
Invitations/Paper: Invitation Consultants
Flowers: A Victorian Garden - Wethersfield, CT.
Hair: Salon Alexander - Newington, CT.
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