The Spring/Summer 2016 issue of New York Weddings, our essential, semi-annual guide to having a chic wedding in New York and beyond, hits newsstands tomorrow and is available for purchase online. Senior editor Jessica Silvester previews the issue and the New York Weddings Event, which will take place March 31 at Capitale.
What are some of the highlights of the new issue?
This has to be the most delicious-looking issue we’ve ever done, thanks in large part to our art director, Randy Minor. In the past, with stories like the cakes feature, we tended to get caught up in the “theme”— arty cakes! pastel cakes! — and Randy would be like, “I don’t think brides want purple fondant. Shouldn’t the cakes just look like something you want to eat?” That’s how we got the idea for “Cakes You Actually Want to Eat.” Lauren Schwartzberg, who wrote and edited much of the issue, worked with dozens of local bakers to come up with the most mouthwatering options possible — lots of gooey chocolate icing and toasted coconut flakes and crumbling strawberry-frosted tiers (and we put a moratorium on fondant). Equally dreamy are the flowers story (overgrown bouquets) and the food story (appetizers and entrées from the hottest new restaurants that also happen to do wedding catering).
I always enjoy reading the stories about real couples’ weddings. How do you find the people you feature in that section?
Our photo team finds them through their gigantic dossier of wedding photographers. They look for shots with the perfect mix of couples and overall vibes (a little Williamsburg loft, a little Fire Island lighthouse). Then we hunt down the newlyweds in the photos and find out the real story behind that movie-theater venue or pair of bridal combat boots.
Having gotten married yourself in 2011, are there things that you wish you’d done differently (other than deciding to go braless at the last minute)?
Mostly I’m glad I didn’t start working on New York Weddings until after I got married. Alexis Swerdloff, the editor of the issue, is getting married in the spring, and every step of the way — choosing the venue, the DJ, the registry items — she’s felt compelled to live up to the standards we have for what goes in the issue. (Very high standards.) She keeps saying, “I know too much.”
What’s the best wedding you’ve ever attended (aside from your own of course)?
I’m not just saying this because it’s one of the stories in this issue, but I’m a big fan of the “Weddingmoon”: a destination wedding that turns into the couple’s honeymoon once their guests go home. My friend Vanessa did that with her wedding in Riviera Maya. It was three days of group-bonding and binge-tequila-drinking, after which Vanessa and her new spouse got to stay put, in paradise, and just chill. I was so jealous.
What’s one wedding trend you’re tired of?
The flower crown! See page 110 for some alternative ways to wear flowers in your hair.
What style wedding dress would you suggest for Miley Cyrus?
I had to outsource this answer to our style director, Rebecca Ramsey, who’s responsible for all the gorgeous organza sheaths and parachute skirts in our gowns features. She said, “I could see Miley doing a sleek, old-Hollywood satin gown like when Courtney Love went to the Oscars (or like the Zac Posen gown on page 116). Or a custom Moschino design from her friend Jeremy Scott.”
Our New York Weddings Event is March 31 at Capitale — what can brides-to-be expect to find there?
It’s like a Pinterest board meets Disney World: dresses from Kleinfeld, cake tastings from Momofuku Milk Bar and Magnolia, an onsite tutorial from Squarespace on how to make your own wedding website, rings from Greenwich Jewelers, DJs, bands, and, of course, booze.