Jill & Joseph
By Margie Monin Dombrowski
Photography By Park Ave Studio
When Joseph made Jill's lifelong dream come true with a surprise visit to Graceland, she knew he was The One. But she didn’t know what else he had planned that day. After their tour, Joseph asked a tour guide to take their picture on the house’s front steps—and then Joseph got down on his knee and asked Jill to marry him. Of course, she said Yes. “We both got lost in the moment as we stood there and hugged,” Jill said. “I looked around and saw tons of Elvis fans waving and pointing at us. It was surreal.”
The couple’s story began when a mutual friend introduced them one night. They briefly conversed then, but that was it. Not wanting her to slip away, he later found and friended her on Facebook. Jill eventually looked forward to Joseph’s humorous status updates and comments every day, and it wasn’t long before their first date. After a dinner-and-a-movie night, they became inseparable.
Jill and Joseph’s non-religious ceremony took place on the beautiful lawn at the Old Field Club in East Setauket overlooking West Meadow Creek. “Since the view is organically scenic, we used minimal decoration. Our florist tied flowers into the trees and bushes surrounding the seating area,” Jill said.
The bride wore a gown from the James Clifford Collection, a satin and lace gown in gold spun ivory with scalloped re-embroidered lace accenting the bodice and hemline, and carried a bouquet of ivory and sahara roses. For a personal twist, Jill added a scalloped lace cap sleeve and keyhole back to the strapless mermaid gown with a sweetheart neckline and chapel length train. She wore a simple champagne double-tier 36-inch veil for the ceremony and then replaced it with a vintage ivory feather hair clip with a pearl and crystal brooch for the reception. Other vintage-style accessories she adorned herself with were two-and-a-half-inch ivory satin peep toe heels with a crystal brooch accent on the toe, her mother’s 16-inch cultured pearl strand and Carolee daisy motif pearl and crystal matching bracelet and earrings.
Jill’s bridesmaids were bedecked in A-line gowns in ice blue chiffon over a cashmere lining from the Jim Hjelm Occasions Collection. The gowns featured a crossover V-neckline and gathered empire bodice that self-tied above a tiered back, complementing Jill’s with a similar romantic look. Groomsmen donned classic black tuxedos with white tuxedo shirts and pewter paisley vests underneath and pewter ties. The groom stood out in a black mandarin collar tuxedo, ivory tuxedo shirt, and an ivory paisley vest and tie.
The Old Field Club was also the backdrop for the reception, which provided a rustic and romantic atmosphere with cathedral ceilings, exposed beams and chandeliers. Meaningful details included decorating the dining area mantle with photos of loved ones who had passed or couldn’t attend. The couple also incorporated Elvis into different elements—invitations containing a lyrical quote from the song “Love Me Tender” (which she walked down the aisle to), a seating chart using Elvis album titles and CD case place settings with album covers on the front and their Graceland engagement photo on the back. All tables were decorated with votive candles and three cylindrical vases filled with water, roses, peach stock and floating votive candles.
Guests were treated to a top shelf open bar, bottled wine, appetizers, fruit and cheese, antipasto and pasta station; entrée choices were filet mignon, apple and brie stuffed chicken breast or lime and rosemary Chilean sea bass. Skipping the traditional wedding cake, Jill and Joseph had a chocolate and vanilla cupcake tower with a six-inch vanilla cake with vanilla fondant on top for cutting. “On the side of the cake were our initials ‘J & J’ overlapping each other in a shadow effect,” Jill said. The cupcakes were topped with vanilla whipped cream frosting and silver ball accents. Chocolate dipped strawberries, coffee, tea and espresso were also offered at dessert.
As a treat for the bride, Joseph became the DJ for a 20-minute set of her favorite dance songs to get the crowd going. An anniversary dance honored the couple who had been together the longest, which received a bottle of wine and a bouquet of flowers. “Our evening closed with dancing until the very end,” Jill said. The couple rode off from the reception in Joseph’s 1938 Chevy that he rebuilt with his late father, which was sentimental for the family.
The first time Jill and Joseph saw each other before the ceremony was their favorite memory, which their photographer was able to capture. “I waited in the bridal suite until I was brought out to the deck overlooking the creek,” Jill said. “I had my back to the crowd and waited for Joseph to touch my shoulder. I turned around, and we kissed and embraced.” Joseph refers to this as the moment in which “everyone around us disappeared.”
Their weeklong honeymoon in St. Lucia was spent lounging on the beach at Sandals La Toc in a private cabana with butler service. They also enjoyed zip-lining through the rainforest, getting pampered at the spa with massages and champagne, and a candlelit beachside dinner.
Both Jill and Joseph advise to not overwhelm yourself with the wedding planning, and to take time to relax and refocus. “Allow yourselves date nights and alone time so that you never forget the reason that you are getting married in the first place,” Joseph said.
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