Robert and Nick

Robert and Nick’s wedding at The Plaza Hotel majestically highlights the love these two gentlemen share. It is love bursting with energy and wholeness that is evident in the wedding day they created, a wedding that is a genuine reflection of their authentic selves.

Location New York, New York | Venue The Plaza Hotel

How and when did you meet? We met casually through a mutual friends, and from there things escalated naturally and with ease.

Tell us a little about the earlier days of your relationship... We’ve rarely spent time apart since meeting; there was a familiarity that occurred from the first day and ultimately brought us to the point of getting married. Our families are both supportive and were accepting of our relationship.

What does Marriage mean to you? Marriage has been a formal way to solidify the family we’ve created in each other and hope to continue to grow.

“We weren’t precious about including any traditions. We customised the day to represent us as a couple.”

— Robert & Nick

How did the proposal happen? Nick proposed on the anniversary of the first night we met. He took me (Robert) to our favourite restaurant and then surprised me with an engagement party at the bar where we actually first met.

When did you get married? April 28, 2018

Robert & Nick’s story continues below the gallery →

What was the main influence behind your wedding day? While we wanted a decadent black tie affair, it was important to us that it also felt like an intimate occasion. We had been very hands-on, and probably not like the traditional Plaza couple. I (Robert) am a Creative Director for a Broadway ad agency, so I had designed every detail and Nick helped in the assembly and logistics of everything. We called in every favour we could.

What was the most important thing to you surrounding your wedding? We wanted our guests to feel important. Each place card had an individualised note stating why each guest was important to us and listed a favourite memory with them. We wanted to make sure each guest felt welcomed and important to us, we had an overwhelming amount of feedback on that specific detail. I designed enamel pins that had illustrations of Nick and I on them. It was really fun seeing all the pins across the dance floor.

Where did you find the bulk of your inspiration?Everything had to be branded in our colour palette and designed logo. Our engagement photos set the tone, we wanted them to be unique - classic, but fun. Broadway photographer Murphy Made took the photos. They were seen on our website, invites, envelope liners, and on mounted boards in our cocktail hour space.

How did you choose your suppliers? We found most of our suppliers on The Knot or via Instagram.

Any standout suppliers? Many of our vendors had never ever worked on a gay wedding. Our wedding became an opportunity for them to diversify their portfolio, so they definitely went above and beyond for us.

Did you find it difficult to translate more common traditions into a ‘same-sex’ wedding? We weren’t precious about including any traditions. We customised the day to represent us as a couple.

The ceremony was intimate and light. Nick’s uncle Ken officiated. Our reading was “Blessing of the Hands” by Daniel L. Harris . During the reception the guests rarely left the dance floor. We had choreographed dances with our mothers that brought the house down. During dinner we did a photo race where we went to each table during one song to ensure that we got a photo with all of our guests. After dinner, Nick and I changed into custom sequin tuxedos created by Any Old Iron.

What was the most difficult thing about planning your wedding? Seven months before our wedding date, my husband Nick got a nightmare phone call from the hospitality group managing the space telling us they'd been shut down and were cancelling all events.

We immediately left work and began calling nearly 90 venues - theatres, warehouses, lofts, you name it. We must have called every venue in New York. 7 months out, nearly 75% were booked. Every venue on our maybe list was gone, and we knew we weren't going to come anywhere near what we had budgeted. The first venue we visited, though beautiful, resulted in tears, mostly a reaction to what we had just lost.

On a whim, Nick contacted The Plaza. He explained our situation and honestly didn’t expect a response. They quickly responded, understanding our panic. Their events director got on the phone with Nick with a proposition. The Plaza’s wedding schedule was full for the spring. Most Plaza wedding receptions are held in the Grand Ballroom, but she explained that for our wedding date she had one available ballroom. The Grand Ballroom was reserved for a charity event, but the The Terrace Room was available. The Plaza was less familiar with throwing a reception in that room, but we were a happy to give it a test run! We met with her the following day and made the decision almost immediately.

As soon as the wedding venue was secured, we had to start over. The style of everything went from quirky to much more traditional. Of course, there were still hiccups along the way, including needing to relocate our ceremony space. And the day before the wedding the entire hotel went on strike, causing us to relocate all of our guests. Even with the bumps in the road, our wedding day was beyond anything we could have imagined.

Any advice for other couples planning their day and finding it difficult to navigate the journey? Our photographer recommended taking photos starting at 6AM so that we could take photos outside before it got too busy in Central Park. Our time together in the morning was the only time of the day that wasn’t over scheduled or rushed, and it became our favourite memory from the day.

Our wedding was nothing like we could have pictured at the start of planning, but all of the challenges along the way only brought us closer together and made the day that much more special to us.