Lacey Vintage at the Lyceum

Dyana and Chris

Selected Photos by Ashley Hamilton Photography*

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This savvy couple had an equal amount of input into the look, feel, and format of their wedding day. Dyana and Chris embraced the vintage aspects of their ceremony/reception site: Mirror Lake Lyceum in St. Petersburg. For Dyana, there was never any doubt this historic building (a former church), complimented their expectations.

Because of Dyana's intense schedule as a nurse, Chris was her amazing "clone" in taking care of details leading up the their wedding day. He was my first contact from the very start.

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 Both spent several hours there prior to ceremony for getting ready and picture-taking with bridal party and family members. Dyana and Chris enlisted Flowers by Jenny in Trinity to provide the fresh floral elements of their celebration. This included alternating guest table centerpieces, bouquets, and lots of loose stems of white garden roses and baby's breath used in white vases (a combination of ours and the bride's) for the entry, buffet, and other accent tables. 

                                           

Ivory and lace was generously used throughout the wedding. As trends go, we had accumulated quite a bit of lace cloth pieces from past weddings in the 80s and 90s. It was great to give them a new try for a nostalgic revival.

Dyana also provided many "lacey" votive candle holders and cylinders she had acquired from a friend. Gold leaves also added sparkle to tabletops. 

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After the ceremony, the reception kicked off on the bottom floor of the Lyceum where guests picked up place cards, ate hand-passed hors d'oeuvres, and enjoyed some specialty drinks chosen by the bride and groom. 

 

  Caprese Salad Skewers


 Spicy Deep Fried Crabcakes

Meatballs with Pretzel Handles and Mini Beef Empanadas

 Salad Skewers with Gazpacho Soup Shooters

Meanwhile, upstairs, our staff along with the Lyceum crew, were busy placing pre-set guest tables in the main ballroom where the ceremony had just been held. 

Dyana and Chris provided lace overlays for each of the guest tables. Centerpieces alternated between the florist's wood trays and bell-shaped clear glass "shades" both accented with an assortment of white hydrangea, roses, and other garden-style flowers. Even though bridal party members donned chocolate brown, latte, and rose in their attire, Dyana chose to only use the darker brown in the chair ties. The guest tables were mostly ivory with a touch of gold in the charger plates and rose inside favor candy bags at each place setting. Dazzling table number holders added a vintage element.

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Two spectacular cakes graced the reception stage: a two-tiered quilted vintage wedding cake along with a special chocolate cake for Chris featuring his Alma Mater, USF. Cakes by Nomedia provided both.

                     

   

                                           

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Our tall black lantern piece towered above the main buffet table which was draped with our lace skirting (Circa 1989).

                                      

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The couple chose our Gold Medallion package which featured a marinated Mediterranean Salad, Seasonal Fresh Fruit, and our "crowdpleaser," traditional Spanish Paella.

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The end of Dyana and Chris's wedding day ended in a big way with a sparkler send-off, well captured by photographer, Ashley Hamilton. 

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Congratulations, Dyana and Chris!

Event Planning, Design, Coordinating and Catering: Catering By Robert / Event Concepts . FL

DJ: Danny DeLeon

Photo Booth: Bliss Booths

Officiant: Katherine DeMarco

"Reflections" of Two Mirror Lake Weddings

Late last summer, we had the opportunity to host two distinctly different weddings at the Mirror Lake Lyceum in Downtown St. Petersburg. Both were within a month of each other. The profile of each below shows the dramatic differences in the set-up and color schemes reflecting the personal style of each client.

The Lyceum is a lovely, historic, rennovated church. Ceremonies and receptions share the same basic space with a dramatic transformation during the social hour orchestrated by the hall manager, Brian, and his staff. The well-maintained venue with lots of stained glass and dark wood elements definitely holds an appeal to the bride and groom who wants a traditional feel for their wedding.

Stephanie's 9-10-11 celebration was planned with us 18 months in advance, while Euwana had a shorter timeline that originated just six months prior to her mid-August 2011 date.

Many thanks to Brad Hall Studios for many of Stephanie's wedding pictures he shared. Also, kudos to Black Onyx Photography for Euwana's beautiful images.

Small details were very important to Stephanie. She and her mom spent a great deal of time sharing many ideas with us on styling and exact color matches for linens and flowers.

The Lyceum features many lighting options in-house and through suggestions for dj/lighting pros. This look perfectly reflected Stephanie and Greg's purple-pink focus for private photos between ceremony and main reception.

Yum, had to plug the food early in this blog. Consistently, one of our clients' favorite selections: our carved Roast Baron of Beef served with our tangy horseradish sauce.

The buffet was set in the side room off the main hall.

Stephanie chose dark pink fresh floral elements for her guest table centerpieces in alternating fish bowls and glass cylinders. These orchid features actually complimented the lavender/dark purple table accents well. Her wedding florist provided all of the pieces.

Stephanie's guest table look was featured nine months prior at one of our open houses. In the last few months, Stephanie made a few changes to original floral piece.

Here's the original design as pulled together by event designer Bradley:

A fabulous outdoor view of the Lyceum after dark - indoors and out.

Stephanie and Greg make their way down the aisle after a simple unity candle celebration. They were joined by 140 family and friends.

Mom, Sandy, and daughter share some getting ready time before the wedding. Stephanie's mom was a consistent part of all of her daughter's planning. I am glad that the photographer caught this precious moment that reflected everything that went into this celebration.

The bride chose to set her cake table in the side room dance floor area. With white, purple, and lavender decor, we accented  this traditional four-tieerd cake in a pool of platinum.

Euwana's mid-August wedding surprised us with a combination of navy blue and coral. Event Designer, Kent Billiter found Euwana's soft spot in her feasting table which included her entire bridal party. Here she was able to adorn the center of this wide table with clear vases holding hers and her attendant bouquets intermingled with candle elements.

Bridesmaid bouquets included coral and mid-green and blush pink rose buds

provided by Carmen of Carmen's Flowers. Above is her sample feasting head table at one of our open houses. Below is her actual table at the reception. This is an example of how ceremony elements can enhance reception tables.

  Ewana's concepts were warmly embraced her photographer, Black Onyx Photography, who took the opportunity to capture some amazing architectual images involving both permanent building features along with our temporary decor infusions.

 The bridal room on the second level provided a private, secluded gathering space for Euwana and her female bridal party members.

 Euwana shared a bookmark sentiment with guests at their placesettings. Sometimes a napkin fold has everything to do with presentation.

 The original ceremony area of the Lyceum became a romantic reception space with the dance floor right in front of the ceremony stage where the cake was placed. The Lyceum has a variety of options for specialty lighting along with client dj offerings Above, hearts were part of Euwana's theme as they floated across the dance floor just prior to the main reception.

The couple decided to display their wedding cake on the main stage surrounded b ytall candlelabras originally used for the ceremony down the main aisle. Centerpieces for each table included our 14" tall glass cylinders with submerged in-house orchid stems anchored with client orange flat marbles.

The bride was concerned about the step up to the dance floor area where the buffet is usually placed. So she has us place the tables on wheels and they were positioned right at the edge.

Congratulations to both couples for sharing their personality and style on their special day!