Pike Place Market wedding: Kate + Brian

May 9, 2016

Weddings

Brian concerns himself with high quality over most other characteristics about the things that he has in his life. His clothing brand Urban Swell is made with textiles and products from American companies that he has specifically sourced for his products. His shoes were special ordered from New England from custom cobblers and it took a year for the purchase to be received. He takes time to find the best because he cares about the story behind his choices. And with all this focus on quality for the things that he creates and buys, it makes perfect sense that the woman he chooses to spend the rest of his life with is of the finest quality is well. Kate is a go-getter, a food blogger, a social media expert, quick to laugh, quicker to hug. There was no way these two wouldn’t end up together. When Brian proposed to Kate while they were in Italy – IN Italian (did you expect any less?) – Kate responded with an emphatic “sì”.

And as the trend continues, they curated their wedding day to be exactly what they wanted, surrounded by exactly everyone that they wanted to be there.

Kate and Brian, you and your families were absolute delights to work with. We couldn’t have asked for a better day. Thank you for so much for choosing me to be there with you to document it. I’m so excited for you both – congratulations!

Brian and Kate prepared for their day  in a suite at the Seattle Marriott Waterfront. As Kate was off getting hair and makeup done, Brian treated me to the inside scoop about his own hair styling process. (And when he’s not doing his hair, he’s wearing this awesome Urban Swell hat.)

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Brian is meticulous about his part and the products he uses. Kate often teases him that he takes longer than she does to get ready. 😉

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But hey, especially on his wedding day, he has every right to take his time to make sure every hair is in place.

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Brian is very proud of his custom Alden shoes. They are made from horse leather and the grain is so, so smooth. Alden began in 1884 and is the only New England shoe company remaining from that time. I’m telling you, if you ever need to know about the best anything, ask this guy. He’ll find it.

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Brian’s suit, complete with a monogrammed shirt. No detail left behind. 🙂

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Brian had to hustle out of the suite and finish getting ready elsewhere once Kate returned, so I started on Kate’s details. Kate had received a gorgeous clutch as a gift from her sister-in-law at the rehearsal dinner, which was a perfect backdrop for the rings!

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And doesn’t it go so well with her glittery Jessica Simpson heels.

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And my goodness, when I saw Kate’s wedding dress my jaw dropped. Custom-made, a beautiful flowing skirt and a lacy top that was the perfect combination of modern fashion and total class and elegance.

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Kate, you stunner!

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Kate and Brian chose to have a first look before their wedding so that we could have plenty of time for photos. We found a quiet hall in the Marriott for Brian to wait.

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Needless to say, when Brian saw his bride-to-be, his jaw dropped, too!

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And they were all smiles together the rest of the day.

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We hopped on a shuttle bus with Kate and Brian’s families and headed a few blocks away to the Olympic Sculpture Park. The weather was threatening rain the entire time, but we got so so so lucky that rain drops didn’t fall until nearly the very end.

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I couldn’t get enough photographing these two! Their smiles were infectious and they looked like royalty.

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Stunners.

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This was one of the most scenic situations for family photos in which I’ve had the opportunity to photograph, so I just had to include a few – as well as acknowledge Kate and Brian’s fun and loving family members!

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There’s way more sass and goofiness where this came from. 🙂

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Then it started to rain a bit – ack! – but it was still light enough that Brian and Kate were comfortable continuing to take photos.

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I mean…come onnnnn…

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After feeling totally lucky at the Sculpture Park, we then went to Pike Place Market for their wedding in the Atrium Suites, which I never even knew existed!

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Kate and Brian were surrounded by 40 of their most favorite people, and enjoyed an intimate and happy ceremony.

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The new Mr. and Mrs.!

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Check out this cake topper. I love it. For all of the quality and class that Kate and Brian have, they still 100% absolutely know how to have fun and joke around.

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And also, let’s talk about those cakes. They might look unique. Well, that top one is a scrumptious carrot cake from Bakery Nouveau. …and did I just give the rest away? Those other three are Bakery Nouveau’s famous twice baked almond croissant CAKES! Nope, that’s not something they regularly create. But Brian loves, like, zealously, those croissants. If he had only one must-have for the wedding, it was this. He called Bakery Nouveau and asked them if they could make the croissant into a cake. And then thought, “make it three…actually…five.” (I’m sure they enjoyed the other two for breakfast the next day.) 😉

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The room buzzed with conversation throughout the evening. With a smaller group, it was really nice to see a bride and groom actually able to spend time with each of their guests.

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Special memories were shared during the toasts, which always endear my couples to me even more. Kate and Brian have some pretty sensational people in their lives.

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And I’m going to end with this photo of dessert, because it looks delicious and we could all use some eye candy. Kate and Brian spent the rest of the evening chatting with and hugging their friends and family.

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So many more photos of Kate and Brian’s day can be seen in this slideshow!

Huge thank you to the wonderful creative team who made Kate and Brian’s wedding such a fun day…
Wedding Venue: Pike Place Market Atrium Suites
Coordinator: Alex Akhavan, personal friend
Hair: Tania at Bocz Salon
Makeup: Denise Linares Artistry
Wedding top: Ada by Theia
Wedding skirt: Custom made by Ruth Forguson
Bride’s shoes: Jessica Simpson
Suit: J. Lindberg
Groom’s shoes: Alden
Floral Designer: Lue Eng from Thao Farm Woodinville
Catering: Chris Anderson, personal friend and
Cakes: Bakery Nouveau
Rentals/Linens- Pedersen’s
Photographer: Seattle wedding photographer Tara Brown