Tifini & William
By Margie Monin Dombrowski
Photography By Turn Loose the Art
A night out with fellow police officers on Tifini's birthday turned into a night she would never forget. When she met and hit it off with an officer from another station, Bill, she was unaware that he would someday become her husband. “Bill says that he was my birthday present and reminds me of that every year,” Tifini said.
When it came time for Bill’s perfect proposal, he booked a couple’s massage session for the two to get some much needed pampering. “After the massages, we were in the room alone,” Tifini said. “He asked if my massage was good. I told him, ‘Yes.’ He asked if I loved him and I said, ‘Of course.’ He got on one knee, reached into the pocket of his robe, pulled out my beautiful engagement ring and said, ‘Do you love me enough to marry me?’” She did.
They immediately drove to Tifini’s family house, where they were waiting in the driveway with champagne in hand to take the newly engaged couple out to dinner to celebrate. “My entire family kept the secret for some time,” Tifini said, and Bill had privately asked her father for her hand in marriage. “Asking my dad was very important to me, as my mother passed away six years ago and my dad is very important to me.”
Tifini and Bill’s ceremony included a full Catholic mass officiated by a State Police Chaplain at St. Barnabas Church, where the interior was aglow with lanterns at the end of each pew and a custom aisle runner saying “And they lived happily ever after” added a romantic touch. A flower girl and ring bearer preceded the bride down the aisle carrying a wooden sign announcing, “Here comes the bride,” that flipped over to also declare, “And they lived happily ever after,” as they exited the church to take off in a white Bentley Spur from Camelot Limos. A violinist accompanied the traditional church organ and soloist during the ceremony, and bubbles and custom programs were passed out to wedding guests.
The bride looked amazing in an ivory corset mermaid Pnina Tornai gown with Swarovski crystal embellishments as she carried her bouquet of cream-colored roses and hydrangeas from Flowers by Brian. She wore a custom cathedral veil for the ceremony and a fingertip veil for the first dance. She “blinged”up her Benjamin Adams shoes with Swarovski crystals, and other accessories, including a custom headpiece. Haute Bride earrings and a custom circle diamond pendant, completed her glamorous look.
Tifini’s bridesmaids were dressed in chocolate brown soft satin gowns by Watters and Watters, while the groomsmen all wore traditional Calvin Klein tuxedos with black bowties and a white winged shirt. Bill, also in the same tux, wore a special bowtie—a gift from his bride.
Chocolate and sparkle was the theme at the Garden City Hotel’s main ballroom, as a palate of chocolate brown, various creams and Swarovski crystals created a vision of elegant simplicity. The ballroom glowed with soft red and amber uplighting. Floral centerpieces were large balls of cream hydrangeas on tall pedestals with crystal strands, and three hurricane vases filled with water and floating candles punctuated the tables among the centerpieces and gold chargers. A Ferraro Roche chocolate candy propping up a calligraphed place card demarcated each guest’s setting.
Tifini and Bill served two signature martini drinks at the reception: a pomegranate martini with gold sugar on the rim and “Cocoa Loco,” a white chocolate martini they invented with chocolate shavings and a Hershey kiss sunken at the bottom of the glass. In keeping with their chocolate theme, they gave guests a stemless martini glass filled with Lindt chocolates and instructions on how to make the Cocoa Loco drink.
During the reception, guests enjoyed an assortment of appetizers and entrees to the sounds of a live percussionist and saxophonist. In addition to a five-tier cake with sugar flowers and crystal banding on the outside and carrot cake and peanut butter flavors on the inside, guests feasted on a dessert plate of various cakes, crème brûlée and a chocolate cup of vanilla ice cream as well as petit fours glacés and chocolate dipped strawberries. An after party at the hotel capped off the night with a DJ, lighting effects and more food. “It was packed and people were dancing until it ended,” Tifini said.
Tifini recalls their first dance as her favorite memory of the day. “Everything at that point seemed to stand still,” Tifini said. “It just felt like we were the only two people that existed in that moment.” For Bill, it was the first moment he saw Tifini as she walked down the aisle: “She had been talking about her dress for months. When those church doors opened, there were no words to describe how beautiful she looked.”
When it comes to making wedding plan decisions and choosing wedding professionals, Tifini’s words of wisdom are, “Definitely trust your gut with everything you do. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Most importantly, remember to step back from the planning and make time for each other.” And what did Bill learn from the wedding planning process? “It is very time consuming, but it will all be worth it in the end.”
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