Nicola + Aaron by Sylvie Rosokoff - Together Journal

We adore a chic New York City wedding. Especially one with hip details like a contemporary cake from Magnolia bakery and iconic YSL heart glasses.

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
My name is Nicola; I’m a Creative Producer. I make people and brands shine with amazing experiences, events, culture, and design. My partner’s name is Aaron; he is a senior executive at a global bank specializing in investor relations and environmental, social, and governance matters.

We both grew up in Sydney (we were actually next-door neighbours and high school sweethearts), and we currently live in Brooklyn with our French Bulldog, Oscar. Aaron and I both love the beach, travelling, meeting new people, film and music, exploring culture and food, and adventure-seeking, preferably with Oscar – our Frenchie in crime.

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
New Year’s Day 2000 – at the park at the end of our street when we were both still in high school. Aaron was uncharacteristically shy but asked me out a week later.

When did you first realize that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with? In hindsight, it was always obvious there was something special. Our friends were not at all surprised when we got back together after 20 years apart – they were relieved and celebrated. We had always stayed in touch as friends and had mutual friends, but Aaron lived overseas and we both were in a series of long-term relationships. It became obvious when we were both single for the first time in two decades during the pandemic and we reconnected in person in Sydney when he was renewing a visa. We decide to roll the dice and spend 3 months living together in New York. The chemistry was stronger than ever, our relationship was natural and easy, and we both loved and respected the people we had independently become. Neither of us thought we would ever consider marriage and/or children until we reconnected. Absence had truly made our hearts grow fonder.

Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it… We had already decided to elope, however on a trip to Hawaii we found the perfect handmade ring at a tiny store on the road to Hana. Aaron asked me to marry him after I conquered my claustrophobic fear inside a 1000-year-old lava tube on Maui with the light shining through from above.

Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding… The theme was Brooklyn Brownstone’s backyard wedding with a neighborhood reception. We wanted a simple and relaxed backyard elopement with our close friends and family in NY.

What was one element you were happy to splurge on? The wedding cake, as soon as I saw the cake designs from Yip Studio I knew we had to have the Oishii Berry Strawberry Dream Mossy Rock Cake.

Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about or was there anything special or unusual? at the time)? One of our friends misread a text from me, I has asked him to “keep Aaron out the back” so he wouldn’t see me arrive. Our friend misinterpreted this text and thought I meant to keep him out of the backyard, so he locked Aaron in our bedroom. This meant that Aaron missed most of the pre-drinks and pre-ceremony entertainment in the backyard that I had organised as a surprise for him, he was a little flustered on the day, but we laugh about it now. Our wonderful neighbour, writer, and New York Times reporter Madison Malone Kircher had previously obtained a marriage celebrant license when she married our other neighbours on our front stoop. It was only natural that we chose to have Madison officiate our special day. Two days before the wedding I saw the Matthew Brier Duo playing outside Petit Paulette, where we were to have our reception. As a wedding gift to Aaron, I booked the duo to play from our neighbours’ balcony during the pre-drinks and ceremony.

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, and whether is there a story.
Not really, I bought the first dress I tried on with my Mum. We both knew immediately that this was the one. Aaron and our French Bulldog Oscar both wore bowties for the occasion.