Veronica and Sam chose to honor their Latin roots  (her parents are Peruvian-Honduran, his are Mexican-Puerto Rican) in their impeccably chic NYC nuptials at The Foundry.  With gown inspiration from Spain, Mexican artwork as their design muse, and a few special surprises for their guests, this gorgeous couple threw a party that honored their pasts and celebrated their future!  Veronica and Sam chose two talented photographers to capture their fabulous fiesta: Aaron Almendral at ArtbyDNA and Kiko Restrepo at The Kiko Group.

Lovely: Tell us about THE dress and what inspired your look.

Veronica: On a trip to Spain I saw a dress in a window that was made by San Patrick. I knew instantly that this was the kind of dress I wanted. Body hugging with a Spanish flair minus the lace. I came home and found the only boutique in my area that carried that designer. When I first tried on the dress I didn’t notice it had actually been altered to a sweetheart strapless. I liked it but it wasn’t it. The saleslady noticed it was still pinned and took it out. Once it became a one shoulder, I was in love. I still hesitated though! Meanwhile, my fiancée had been looking at a lot of Mexican/Spanish inspiration and when he showed me what he liked I instantly pictured our wedding and knew I had my dress. I chose more modern looking jewelry that had sharp lines to contrast the flowy ruffles on the dress.

Lovely: What were the most important details to pulling off your dream wedding?

Veronica: Right from the beginning we knew that we didn’t want a traditional banquet hall because it wasn’t us. We had to have 3 things. Great food, great music and an amazing venue. Quality over quantity! With that in mind we chose a DJ who understood what we meant when we said salsa, hip hop and 80’s, our caterer served an amazing family style dinner that allowed people at tables to mingle and everyone said they couldn’t imagine us getting married anywhere else.

Lovely: What was the most memorable moment?

Veronica: There are two moments that stick out the most. The guys’ entrance and our kiss.

I mentioned to Sam that it would be a cool idea if he had a special entrance instead of just standing there waiting for me. He took that and ran. According to him, the intro song that Michael Jordan came out in the 90’s signified a championship so that’s what he wanted himself AND the guys to come into. They wrote out little scripts that were read over as if they were the starting lineup to a team. No one knew they were going to do this. They didn’t even practice it at the rehearsal. It was all spur of the moment. When our guests arrived they all took their seats and all of a sudden this song comes on and people are looking around confused. The “announcer” goes “Ladies and gentlemen get ready for….” and the groomsmen including Sam were introduced one by one to a cheering crowd of our guests. Since they are all soccer players they were wearing Sambas which just added to the whole athletic thing they were going for. I can tell you all of our male guests loved it. It was a party from the beginning.

The second moment was also a surprise for our guests. As soon as Sam’s dad (who married us) said “you may kiss the bride.” A Mariachi band walked out onto the balcony and started playing music that lasted all through the cocktail hour. The timing was perfect!!

Lovely: If you could give future brides any advice, what would it be?

Veronica: I would say to consider this project a team building one with your fiancé. You’d be surprised how much you learn from each other during this time. I’d also say to carry around some pictures of what inspired the look for your wedding. This way, you can always look at your pictures and re-focus. All the wedding stuff out there can be overwhelming!

DRESS: San Patrick

ACCESSORIES: Givenchy

PHOTOGRAPHER: Aaron Almendral at ArtbyDNA and Kiko Restrepo at The Kiko Group

FLORIST: Emerald Garden

WEDDING PLANNER & STATIONERY: Theory-Y (Bride’s business)

CATERING: DeMole Restaurant

VENUE: The Foundry