Tell us a little about yourselves!
We both live and were born in Toronto and are currently 30 years old. Derek is a veterinarian, and Rachel is in infrastructure asset management.
We were set-up by a mutual friend six years ago and decided to meet for coffee in Toronto – despite Rachel preparing to move across the country to Vancouver shortly afterward. We instantly felt something special and decided it wasn’t worth letting go, so we decided to do long distance after only knowing each other for two months. Fast forward half a year, and Derek had finished veterinary school and decided to pack up his bags along with his lovely rescue cat Leila, to move to Vancouver. Call us crazy but we moved in together right away and haven’t looked back since!
After an amazing three years in Vancouver, we moved back to Toronto to further establish our careers. We connect through good humour, trying new restaurants, travelling, eating dark chocolate, playing with our cat and perfecting margaritas at home.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
In contrast to our moody reception space, we wanted our ceremony location to feel modern and bright. We rented a photography studio in Toronto’s West End – Preto Loft - taking advantage of their oversized windows, oak herringbone floors, and lime wash arch which naturally served as the backdrop for the ceremony.
For the reception, we weren’t tied to any specific location, so we prioritized finding a venue in our neighbourhood that served high-quality food and premium cocktails that could be tailored to our budget and style. We were confident that we did not want a formal sit-down dinner, and La Palma excels in a canapé and grazing style of service. Even though it was the only venue we visited, we didn’t want to overcomplicate things, so we found a date that worked and chose a menu that reflected our style, including Mezcal Margaritas, Oysters, Tuna Crudo, 100-Layer Lasagna, Cacio e Pepe pizza, and a Gelato Bar!
We opted out of a traditional dance-floor and moved the party over to a Karaoke bar just down the street to sing the night away. The space contained seven rooms, all interconnected, with neon pink and blue lighting!
How many guests did you have?
We had 33 guests attend our ceremony and then increased the total count to 80 guests for dinner, drinks and karaoke.
What was your budget?
We stuck to our budget of $60k for the day, not including our rings, honeymoon and adjacent wedding related events. It was very important to us to not spend excessively and to primarily invest in the three budget categories that were most meaningful to us – photography, food, and cocktails. Rachel has experience in wedding planning as she occasionally works as day-of coordinator for couples in the Toronto area. With this insight, Rachel designed and sourced most things for the wedding to minimize costs. The couple got crafty where possible including finding Rachel’s veil on Facebook Marketplace and having friends help them with a DIY project to make the lime wash plinths that served as décor for the florals at the wedding ceremony.
Tell us about your outfits.
Rachel’s cousin’s wife Carla owns an incredible menswear store - Charles & Hunt - which of course is where Derek and his groomsmen headed for their suits. The boys headed to their fitting, where Carla served them espresso and helped Derek through the design of his custom suit. He wanted a sharp look without being too formal, and Carla found the perfect fit. The black jacket had a custom paisley pattern on the inner lining and the classy design popped without a tie.
For Rachel, it was important to wear something comfortable and affordable that would still feel elegant. After trying on some long dresses, Rachel realized she felt much more herself in a shorter dress and ultimately found her silk mikado mini dress and ordered it online without trying it on. Rituals of Love Bridal shop in Vancouver was incredible in the process, the team even joined a FaceTime with Rachel to show her the fabric remotely and pair it with an overskirt from their collection. She ditched the overskirt for the reception so that she could mingle freely in the gown. Rachel decided to pair the dress with a Simon Miller gold heart purse and matching Jenny Bird puffy heart earrings to add a bold and energetic touch to the look.
For the bridesmaids, Rachel’s goal was to fashion them in something that was unique and could be worn again rather than waste away in the back of a closet. Rachel opted for an ivory-coloured skirt and top set from Meshki that she found on clearance!
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
It seems simple enough, but we wanted to create a wedding that we would love to attend as guests and decided to ditch a few traditional customs that didn’t feel genuine to us. We tried to be efficient with our decisions and were intentional with the vendors we reached out to, rather than shopping around as we felt that would overcomplicate the planning. We were very lucky to have friends and family who were supportive of our ideas which made it easy to execute with confidence.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
We reflected on a lot of weddings we had gone to, and decided to incorporate various personal touches in an effort to leave guests with an impression of who we are and what is important to us. We initiated this by designing wedding invites using Rachel’s photo of Capri from a recent Europe trip. Fast forward to the morning of the wedding, we sent personalized e-vouchers to all guests that could be redeemed for a coffee at the same spot we met on our first date. Our wedding ceremony was led by Rachel’s sister, with a completely custom script, excluding all legal and traditional language, so that it was casual and concise. At our request, dried hydrangeas from both Rachel and Derek’s moms’ gardens were incorporated in the wedding florals by our florist. In lieu of traditional wedding favours, Rachel and Derek sourced edible treats that were made locally. Rachel’s brother made mini versions of his (family) famous “Pepperland” hot sauce and one of the guests’ dads, “Fine Chocolate by Ludwig”, made custom 70% Dark Chocolate bars. Rachel and Derek also designed and printed a custom guestbook that contained “fill-in-the-blank” statements where guests would write their response and add a polaroid above the entry.
Any tips for couples getting married?
Don’t get caught up in worrying about what other people will like or will have fun doing. Your wedding is not a show, it should be an expression of you as a couple and reflect what you love. Do what is genuine to you and guests will have a good time when they see you having a good time!
Perhaps most importantly, book vendors who are clear and effective communicators and who you feel a connection with. Your time is valuable, and it makes a world of a difference when you have vendors who are there to lift you up.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
We wouldn’t have been able to reflect on such an incredible day without our lovely photographer, Kaela Leone, who captured our day so perfectly. We gave her very little instruction on what we wanted from our photos and gave her space to create magic as we knew she would. Her bright and infectious energy was unmatched, and she felt like such a natural extension of our family and friends. When we look at our wedding photos, we are truly transported to that moment again and get to live vicariously through them for the rest of time. Your wedding photographer is the vendor you typically spend the most time with during your wedding day, so do not sleep on booking a photographer who is as excited for your wedding as you are!
Nadia is the creative force behind Floral Asylum and she went above and beyond to execute our floral vision. She was extremely organized and responsive during the planning process and was able to take Rachel’s crazy Pinterest concepts and turn them into a reality. A few months later and we are still swooning over the tomato infused arrangement that she made for our reception grazing table.
Special mention is also necessary for the La Palma team, who welcomed our ideas and had such a positive attitude during the planning process. They created a custom tiramisu tower that Rachel was inspired to create even though it wasn’t technically an offering for their weddings. The staff who worked on our wedding day were incredible and supportive, and we’ll be forever thankful to have collaborated to create such fond memories for us.
We could go on and on, but we really were so fortunate to have an amazing team of vendors who helped us bring our day together. We also would not have been able to pull it off without the help of friends who helped set-up, decorate and DJ for us on the day-of!
Photographer: Kaela Leone @kaelaleoneweddings | Flora: Floral Asylum @floralasylum | Videographer:
Patricia Dasz @patricia.dasz | Ceremony Location: Preto Loft @pretoloft | Reception Location: La Palma
@lapalmato | Makeup Artist: Beauty by Brooke Belliveau @beautybybrookebelliveau | Hair Stylist: Vanessa Maderic - The Bridal Party @thebridalparty_ @vmadshair | Dress: Rituals of Love Bridal @ritualsoflovebridal | Suit: Charles & Hunt @charlesandhunt | Tailor: Third Floor Tailors @3rdfloortailors | Engagement Ring: Greene Avenue Jewellers (formerly Lou Goldberg Jewellers) @lougoldbergjeweller | Wedding Rings: Emmerson Jewels @emmersonjewels | Shoes: Badgley Mischka @badgleymischka | Earrings: Jenny Bird @_jennybird | Heart Purse: Simon Miller @simonmillerusa | Wedding Party Attire: Charles & Hunt @charlesandhunt Suits & Meshki Dresses @meshki | Edible Flowers: Just Keep Growing @justkeepgrowingcompany