Wedding at Estate at Florentine Gardens in River Vale, NJ

Mary and Anthony at The Estate at Florentine Gardens

Posted on September 20, 2024
By Molly Gregor

Their Story

Anthony and Mary met back in high school and were always great friends. “It wasn’t until years later that our paths crossed again when living in Washington D.C. for our summer internships,” Mary explains. “We have been together ever since! I can thank Anthony for never giving up on me with his hard work and determination.”

Will You Marry Me?

The couple got engaged at the Horseshoe Bend in Arizona while on a week-long road trip to see a few National Parks out West in the Summer of 2022. “We were so excited after Anthony proposed that we forgot to take in the beauty of the Horseshoe Bend!” Mary adds. “The next day we rode in a helicopter over the Grand Canyon. It is a trip that we will never forget!”

Details of the Day

“We wanted our wedding to be timeless and romantic,” Mary explains. Since we were in the very early days of Spring, we really wanted our flowers to highlight that. We went for a garden style with pops of spring colors, which our florist delivered.”

“We also wanted our wedding to be intentional, so we added our personal touches. My sister and I crafted our save the dates, seating chart, and signs (check us out at Quirk’s corner!). Including the generations of love table was important for us to highlight the love shared between family members past and present. We wanted to capture our guests voices telling funny stories and sharing well-wishes with After the Tone audio guestbook. We had custom matches made with a picture of our puppy Juniper on them. Most importantly, we wanted everyone out on the dance floor all night, celebrating our love with us!”

Why Did You Choose the Estate at Florentine Gardens?

“We wanted a venue that was elegant and timeless,” Mary says. “The moment we stepped into Florentine, we were in awe of the large bright space complete with chandeliers, floor-to-ceiling windows and fireplaces. We could picture ourselves beginning a new chapter of our lives there.”

Favorite Moment

Mary’s favorite moment of the day was their first look. “I was so excited to see Anthony, and for him to finally see my dress,” she says. “We did our first look in the ceremony room, with our family and bridal party having a front-row seat on the balcony above. Anthony’s reaction was everything I hoped it would be.”

Favorite Detail

Mary had two favorite details: photography and the wedding ceremony. “Morgan Taylor Artistry captured our wedding so beautifully and she was an amazing addition to our wedding day,” Mary explains. “She set the timeline for the day, kept us all on track and delivered our gallery extremely fast. Maureen Jeffries crafted a perfect and very personalized ceremony for us. We had been meeting with her for months leading up to our wedding day, where she was able to learn a lot about us, and we learned a lot about what it takes to have a strong relationship from her. The ceremony is the most important part of the day, and the part that will always stick with me. Everyone is still raving about how beautiful the ceremony was, and it moved many people to tears—including myself!”

Advice for Others

“Your wedding day goes extremely fast. Make sure you are present in the moment and enjoying every second. Have trust in your vendors!” Mary says.

Honeymoon

The couple went to Costa Rica for a 10-day honeymoon immediately following their wedding. “We stayed in amazing resorts, relaxed by the pool, went jet-skiing in the Pacific Ocean, zip-lining through the rainforest and learned a lot about coffee and chocolate.” Mary says.