Morgan and Fausto at Nanina’s In The Park

How did you meet?
We met at work, when I first moved to New York City. We were friends for about two years before we started dating.

How did you get engaged?
Since we started dating, we take one big trip each year together. We really love Asia so for our 2018 trip we originally planned to visit Vietnam and Dubai, but Singapore had been on my bucket list for years, so we decided to stop on the way. We booked one night at Marina Bay Sands because we couldn’t pass up swimming in the rooftop pool and I had wanted to visit Garden’s by the Bay. That night, close to midnight, he suggested we go down and see Supertree Grove. I was exhausted and jet lagged, so I fought him on it, but he got me with “well this is your last chance to see it at night before we leave.” Our friend happened to be with us on this leg of the trip, so as we were walking around under the supertrees, he turned to ask him to take a picture of us. As he did he got down on one knee. I was so surprised I forgot to say yes!

Details of the day!
We wanted the day to represent us as a couple, without excluding the people closest to us. We aren’t traditional or religious, but respected that some of our family members are, so our ceremony was a balance of the two. We included a ring warming ceremony and champagne toast as well as the Catholic tradition of the sign of peace. We also come from two different cultural backgrounds, so it was important to us to have the ceremony readings in Spanish, have a mix of food options during cocktail hour, as well as incorporate multiple genres of music at the reception. I’ve unfortunately lost a few close family members, so I wanted to honor and remember them throughout the day, since they couldn’t be there to celebrate with us. My bouquet had pictures of them in frames and I also incorporated one lilac rose, which was the flower that my parents had at their wedding. We also did a martini bar in memory of my father. My mom, brother and I danced to his favorite song in place of a father/daughter dance. We also incorporated our love for travel in small ways throughout the day. Our seating chart and table numbers were places we’ve been together, our wedding topper said “You’re My Greatest Adventure”, and our favors were luggage tags. After our ceremony and reception, we ended the night with an after party at one of our favorite restaurants. It truly was the best day!

Why did you choose your venue?
We heard from others how amazing the place was from the service to the food, so we made it one of the first places we visited. It checked all of the boxes for us, including having the ceremony and reception at the same place, multiple food options, along with an open bar as well as well as all the other inclusions. They treated us like family from the second we got there to the day of the wedding. We can’t recommend it enough.

What was on your menu
We started with an over-the-top cocktail hour, with passed hors d’oeuvres, multiple chef stations and a martini bar, that everyone is still talking about. At the reception, we started with a Tuscan salad. Our main entrees where a choice of Châteaubriand, red snapper marina, chicken Franchaise and eggplant Napoleon. We finished off with wedding cake and a dessert table that wrapped around the room, including an international coffee bar, chocolate fondue fountain, bananas foster station, crème brulee station and more. Our wedding cake was from Palermo’s and we chose two different flavors, dulce de leche and raspberry with French cream.

All about your gown!
My dress was a mermaid cut, with a sheer illusion bodice with lace detail. I first saw the dress while searching online and fell in love, but I didn’t try it on since something fitted isn’t what I’d normally go for. However, after multiple failed attempts with other style dresses, I made an appointment, really to rule it out. As soon as I put it on, I didn’t want to take it off.

What was your favorite moment?
I would have to say our first look and the pictures that followed, before the ceremony. It gave us some alone time before the craziness of the day.

One detail you couldn’t live without?
This is a tie between my photographer Fabi and day of coordinator, Giselle. Because of Fabi, we have pictures that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Giselle was equally as amazing. She made sure we were taken care of from the second we arrived and kept track of the timeline so we didn’t have to.

Did anything go wrong?
The sleeve of my dress ripped during pictures. Luckily my day of coordinator came to the rescue and sewed it for me during cocktail hour.

First dance song?
“Stand by Me” by Prince Royce. It was really important to us to have a song that was in both English and Spanish and this is a song most people know, so it was perfect.

Any advice for future brides?
I actually have two pieces of advice. First, I highly recommend doing what feels most comfortable to you as a couple. I struggled in the beginning with trying to please everyone and I finally realized I just couldn’t and began focusing on the two of us. If you don’t want to follow a certain tradition, don’t. If you want to get married outside in the freezing cold, do it! You don’t want to have regrets. There are also small ways to compromise with family members to make them happy, while still making the day about you as a couple. Second, everyone kept telling me not to stress the day of the wedding and I really took that to heart. I woke up that morning telling myself if anything goes wrong it’ll be a funny story to tell later on, which allowed me to relax and be excited about the day ahead. I would pass along the same advice. There will be something that goes wrong, but in the scheme of life it’s really not a big deal. You’re there to marry your best friend; everything else is icing on the cake.

Honeymoon Location
We are planning a two week honeymoon to Tahiti and Hawaii in the Spring.