I am so thrilled to bring you Leah and Scott’s Publick House Wedding. They absolutely killed it at their engagement session last year, so I knew they would have an incredible wedding!
Let’s hear about Leah and Scott’s Publick House Wedding from the happy couple.
June 25, 2021
We were introduced through close friends who had been working behind the scenes to try to get us together since we had a chance encounter the previous summer. Later that year, at a house party the same mutual friends were throwing, we had the opportunity to officially meet. The connection was immediate, but the timing wasn’t quite right. Flash forward two months later… and fate took over! Leah was nudged back toward Scott by a friend and good samaritan who knew she needed a push to overcome her nerves to reach out. Scott was enamored at the opportunity to re-connect with Leah, and we jumped wholeheartedly into what would become the chance of a lifetime.
Scott knew that Leah was passionate for her French Canadian heritage. The previous summer, we took a summer trip to Quebec City where we fell deeply for each other. That Christmas, Scott surprised Leah with a return trip to attend the winter festival in Quebec City which occurs in February. After Scott’s first and second attempt to pop the question were foiled by the -20 degree temperatures, Scott decided that the romantic old world suite they were staying in was just the right setting (and warm enough) to ask for her hand in marriage. We walked (briskly) to a romantic restaurant to celebrate with French cuisine and champagne.
After the rehearsal dinner, we walked across the street from the Publick House to the town common in Sturbridge to do a final practice session of our first dance. We had been practicing with Leah’s stepmother who used to be a ballroom dance instructor. The gazebo was (by chance) perfectly aligned with the rising strawberry moon, which rose over the horizon as we rehearsed. It was such a romantic memory. We had written our own vows and asked Scott’s godfather to officiate our ceremony. The ceremony was so special to us and only topped by the emotions that we felt hearing each other’s vows. Our first dance made us nervous, as we had not rehearsed it with Leah’s ballgown, however, we pulled it off and it felt perfect.
Two and a half years
Planning the wedding was stressful especially since we did it during COVID. We also made a lot of items ourselves which took a great deal of time, but in the end, we couldn’t have asked for a better experience! It does go by in a flash though! We definitely wished we could have had more time!
Make it sentimental for you! We loved choosing our own music and writing our own vows. We also themed our wedding around the destinations that brought us closer together. Be detail oriented! It’s all of the small details that have the biggest impact.
Try and visit the area where you will be shooting your photos in advance to plan out where you would like to shoot. Do this at the time of year/day that your wedding will occur.
Leah’s dress was from Bridal Reflections in Carle Place, NY. Since we had to go during COVID, Leah was only allowed to bring one person with her to the appointment. As the one who took her to the appointment (since he’s the better driver), Scott got the gig! The staff was very impressed with him when all those Sunday mornings of being forced to watch Say Yes to the Dress paid off, and he knew all the terminology. Not to mention he had lots of helpful opinions!
Greg and Lesley did a wonderful job of helping us through the day! They were great about taking our ideas and running with them, and they went above and beyond supporting us through the process. They were incredibly kind and made us both feel very comfortable. Greg was also supportive throughout the process. He was always available if we reached out and offered tips and tricks along the way to make sure everything went smoothly!
We did a first look which we loved because it allowed our families and wedding party to be able to enjoy cocktail hour. It also allowed us to be able to take more photos after the ceremony.
Make a thorough list of all the shots you would like so you don’t forget any on the big day. In the moment, you won’t remember to ask for them.
Our wedding party was very cooperative. We didn’t do much in the way of prepping them for photos, and luckily they all looked amazing! The one thing I would have done differently is to remember to take individual shots with each of the members of our bridal party.
Make sure to have all of your accessories with you for photos (flowers, veil, etc)!
Mark Henry – Florist. Indian Orchard, MA. He was amazing to work with, and our flowers were gorgeous!
Jay Cote – DJ. Easthampton, MA. He was so fun, sweet, and kept the party going all night!
Patrick Smith – Videography. Easthampton, MA. Pat always made sure to guide us through the shots was doing and was such a hard worker running around!
Liz Washer – Make-Up. Holyoke, MA. Liz was great at making sure everyone was comfortable and felt natural in the make-up looks she did.
Pamela Tresca – Hair. Worcester, MA. Pam was super sweet and great about always getting back to me with any ideas or questions I had.
Our wedding was basically brought to you by Etsy (Lol)! That and a lot of crafting (with the help of our families) and building/constructing our own arbor/corn hole boards.
We were the most anxious about the weather as it was an outdoor ceremony. Luckily, we had a perfect day! The sun came out right before our ceremony and it was beautiful!
