Best part of our wedding? We really enjoyed our ceremony. Cité only allowed 50 people in the room, which created this intimate environment that made us feel close to everyone. My family is Irish and Marcy’s family is Filipino and Polish. We were able to incorporate our family traditions throughout the ceremony which felt special to us and them.

After we finished our first dance, we did something called a family dance where we played one song and divvied up a special part with immediate family members. We had the best time and got some of our best photos.

If you were to give advice to a couple planning a wedding, what would it be? Just know someone will get upset somewhere along the planning process. Weddings have this funny way of bringing up interesting family and friend dynamics. My advice is to just be aware that this could happen and don’t take it personal - just try to defuse the situation if it arises. Plan early and try to meet with your vendors face to face if you can because it helps you feel more comfortable with them on the day of the wedding. If I could do anything over, I wouldn’t have taken photos during the cocktail hour. Instead, I would have spent that time chatting with friends and family.

All photos taken by Elena Bazini.

Other Cool Couples

Looking for a wedding venue in Chicago? Personalized venue collections on free. Tell us what you’re looking for and we’ll send you a collection of venues that match.