Alyssa and Corey at The Ashford Estate

Posted on June 14, 2021 by Allison Dupree

alyssa-corey-ashford

How did you meet?
Corey and I met at our work!

How did you get engaged?
On December 16, 2018, Corey told me he wanted to take me on a “Christmas” date. I told him I didn’t want to go out because it was pouring rain outside. Corey wouldn’t take no for an answer and he took me to Peddler’s Village in New Hope, PA. We were walking around the shops and suddenly Corey was adamant about showing me the Christmas lights over the bridge. As we walked over the bridge, Corey said there was a present under a weeping willow–like tree with my name on it from Santa. I started opening the gifts. First, I opened a box of diamond earrings and was confused because I was hoping for an engagement ring. As soon as Corey saw my face he got down on one knee and said, “Those earrings are from Santa, but this ring is from me. Alyssa, will you marry me?” I was so shocked that I didn’t believe it! After his proposal, he had a dinner set up with both of our parents. Looking back on the proposal it was simply perfect, and I wouldn’t change a thing!

Details of the day!
Our wedding day November 14, 2020, was the best day of our life hands down. The morning of the wedding, my mom picked me up and we went over to the salon Coterie17 to get ready since Corey and I decided to do a first look. My cascading bouquet had a mixture of greenery, burgundy roses, red roses and different types of yellow sunflowers throughout. I had all my bridesmaids wear different styles of burgundy dresses. They also had similar bouquets of sunflowers and roses. I thought this fall color combination would add a bright splash of color next to my gown and go with the fall theme. Our ceremony was at Saint Gregory The Great in Hamilton. We had our siblings do the readings, and Deacon Jeffrey Hanna read the homily. My engagement ring and our weddings bands were from Tacori. We could not decide on just one favor, so we had four! Our favors were: 1. Jordan Almonds, a traditional Italian wedding favor with five almonds that signify five wishes for the couple: health, wealth, happiness, fertility and longevity 2. Wine stoppers with a crystal heart on top 3. A gold rose wine opener 4. Burgundy and white personalized M&Ms

Why did you choose your venue?
The real question is why wouldn’t we choose the Ashford Estate?! After visiting five to ten different sites, we were left frustrated and confused as to why not one of them stood out above the others. We started to wonder if we were being too picky wanting a vintage feel with a modern twist, and then we visited the Ashford Estate, which checked all of our wedding requirements! We had a black-tie wedding that was elegant and classic with contemporary details and a fall color palette. The Ashford Estate is breathtaking, and we feel so blessed that we were fortunate enough to have our wedding reception there.

What was on your menu?
Dinner startsed with a sun-kissed salad with bitter and sweet field greens, local blueberries and strawberries, topped with shaved white chocolate and vanilla-bean vinaigrette. Guests then had a choice of tournedos of slow-roasted New York strip steak with horseradish, chive-encrusted salmon or grilled vegetable Napoleon, which were all accompanied by Dauphinoise potato and haricot vert. Dessert was then a tiered wedding cake with an ice cream sundae bar.

All about your gown!
My dress was designed by Martina Liana. It had a sweetheart neckline embellished with bold lace that was hand-placed to elongate the body. I had lace straps that fell elegantly off the shoulder, with the option to take them off for the reception. The lace from the bodice extended slightly onto my hips, which created a negative space at the front of the gown. This allowed the lace to really stand out. Below my hips, the lace and tulle skirt extended to the floor with a subtle sparkle throughout. My bodice was also sheer that highlighted my petite frame.

What was your favorite moment?
We have so many favorite moments from that day but one includes the 40 minutes that our maitre’d built into our wedding day timeline. It gave us time to soak in the first part of the day and rest. In addition to alone time, another part that made the moment so special was that the hors d’oeuvres that Corey and I were enjoying together was the exact same food that was being served at the cocktail hour we were about to join shortly. The food not only stood out for how delicious it was but for our hors d’oeuvres theme of “around the world.” Small hors d’oeuvres from all different cultures (American, Italian, Asian, etc). Another one of our favorite moments was toward the end of the night when our grandmother, Nonna, was leaving our reception. She exited in her wheelchair through the dance floor! She was wearing her adorable mask that said “Alyssa and Corey November 14, 2020” and a few close family and friends danced around her.

One detail you couldn’t live without?
There are so many details that we could not live without. Our Maitre D Laura and the staff from Merri Makers were absolutely fabulous. I was obsessed with my wedding bouquet—my florist Karen really worked with me to bring my fall bouquet to life. Our band from Hank Lane was so fun and had us on our feet all night. Our photographer, Jeff Tisman, was amazing at capturing our special day—he adds such a creative aspect to his pictures! Our flower girls, Brynlee and Ella, as well as our ring bearer, Gunner, were so cute and definitely stole our guests’ hearts as they walked down the aisle. We also really loved our memory table. It included pictures of our parents’ weddings, our grandparents who could not make it to our wedding day, and our grandparents who are deceased.

Did anything go wrong?
Of course! Our priest did not know our names and had to ask our deacon what our names were during our ceremony.

First dance song?
“Drowning,” by the Backstreet Boys.

Any advice for future brides?
Live in the moment!! Things will go wrong but you have to accept it and continue to live in the moment because the day goes by very quickly.

Honeymoon location?
We wanted to go to Greece but due to Covid, we were not able to go. We did a mini-moon in West Palm Beach.