Advertisement
Weddings are good for seeing old friends, hitting an open bar and strutting around in a fancy dress. Though the brides picked their gowns months ago, most wedding guests are just beginning their hunt for the season’s flattering cocktail dresses and sultry evening gowns (in any colour but white, natch). Below 10 modern options that take you from ceremony through the final dance in style.
(Image: Fairmont Royal York Hotel)
Art Gallery of Ontario
317 Dundas St. W. (at McCaul St.), 416-979-6634
For a truly magnificent celebration, Frank Gehry’s transformed AGO offers an awe-inspiring event space. On the third floor of the south tower, the 7,200-square-foot Baillie Court affords panoramic city views on one end and overlooks the gallery’s iconic spiral staircase on the other. Designed in modern glass and Douglas fir, the room can be divided as needed and seats up to 300. Executive chef Anne Yarymowich works with couples on customized menus, and a small army of professional event staff ensures the experience is as effortless as it is unique. Baillie Court rental includes a one-year membership to the AGO for the newlyweds. The Walker Court is available to rent outside of gallery hours in conjunction with a reception in Baillie Court.
(Image: Mango Studios)
Boyfriend/Girlfriend
416-841-9125
Partners Vanessa Heins and Jess Baumung use their doubles act to get multiple perspectives on the client’s big day, producing stylish, candid images backed up by Heins’s experience in editorial photography and Baumung’s background in live-music shots. They only do 20 weddings a year, so book early. From $3,500. By appointment.
(Image: Coriander Girl)
Bloom the Flower Company
1009 Yonge St. (at Crescent Rd.), 416-324-9900
Event planner–cum–floral designer Paul Girling set out to bring inspiring flower design to Rosedale. The shop is famous for its jaw-dropping window arrangements, which feature unconventional elements like green roses, proteas, kiwi branches, asparagus and brussels sprouts. Bouquets start at $35, but average $150 for brides and $80 for bridesmaids. Centrepieces are $75–$600 plus delivery and set-up. Full service available. Closed Sunday.
(Image: Palettera Custom Correspondence)
Carte Blanche Design
35 Collahie St. (at Gladstone Ave.), 416-885-5399
Customized invitations allow the bride and groom to show off their personal style, but graphic designer M. J. Fontaine also has prototypes on hand to get the creative juices flowing. She specializes in creating
a specific look to be used throughout the special day. For an art deco wedding, she created a period monogram and all the printed materials (including seating board and gift tags). She also does thermal engraving. From $7 per custom invitation set. By appointment.
(Image: Let’s Party Consultants)
Bliss
60 Sumach St. (at Queen St. E.), 416-323-3353
Wedding coordinator Tara O’Grady is known for her unflaggingly good taste. Bliss’s staff of four consult from their downtown studio, pulling off six-tent high-society extravaganzas, small out-of-town gatherings in Niagara-on-the-Lake and chic urban restaurant weddings at places like Canoe. Clients’ budgets range from $50,000 to $250,000. Wedding day service from $2,500. Full service from $5,000. By appointment.
(Image: Bobbette and Belle)
Bakerbots Baking
416-901-3500
Trained as a visual artist as well as a baker, Rosanne Pezzelli loves to experiment with non-traditional shapes and sculptural forms (a cake that looks like a geisha, for example). Her sense of whimsy is evident in a simple cream-coloured three-tier with a handful of pastel macarons tumbling down the side. A stunning white cake with a sugar bow edged in black showcases beautiful restraint. Each cake—made with eggs, milk, butter and Belgian chocolate—features at least two layers, with possible fillings including chocolate-hazelnut buttercream or cream cheese frosting. Cakes from $1,000. By appointment.
(Image: Marigolds and Onions Catering)
À la Carte Kitchen
2 Thorncliffe Park Dr. (at Overlea Blvd.), Unit 43, 416-971-4068
Founders Simon Kattar (a chef) and Brian King (a sales and events professional) count royalty and other VIPs among their clients; they move effortlessly from large-scale events (at Roy Thomson Hall, the ROM and the Ontario Science Centre) to more intimate settings. The kitchen’s roster of chefs might start a meal with a chilled foie gras–fig jam appetizer with sauternes gelées and frisée-almond salad. Kattar strives to include local, organic ingredients, and has been pursuing his Lebanese roots with Middle Eastern–French cuisine, as in speckled trout with bulgur and green onion salad. Cocktail menu from $17.50 per person. Sit-down and buffet dinner $30–$60 per person (with a maximum of 2,000), plus wait staff and chef’s charges. No charge for tasting if event is booked. By appointment.
(Image: Ines di Santo)
Becker’s Bridal
387 Danforth Ave. (at Chester Ave.), 416-463-6601
A family business since 1944, this Danforth boutique is reliable, safe and considerate—the same qualities as a good marriage. Friends and family of the bride can settle into oversized club chairs and watch as the lucky lady tries on jewel-trimmed, beaded and lace styles from international labels like Pronovias from Barcelona, Sottero and Midgley from Australia and Cymbeline from France ($800–$5,000, plus alterations). Look for dresses by Barbra Allin Couture, the in-house line known for customizable gowns in contemporary silhouettes (tea length, empire waist). Some Swarovski crystal–encrusted combs and clips ($70–$250) can be turned into brooches after the big day.
As soon as you’ve said yes to the dress, it’s time to start thinking about the hairstyle, makeup and accessories to go with it. To help, we assembled four beauty looks with four very different inspirations: Old Hollywood starlet, ballerina, flower child and ‘60s retro.
(Image: ~Someone Else~)
Dear Wedding Diplomat, Read the rest of this entry »
My bridesmaids planned my bachelorette party but didn’t invite one of my close friends because he’s a guy. Instead, he’s supposed to go to my fiancé’s bachelor party, which will involve a trip to the Brass Rail strip club. He’s gay and has no interest in boobs; plus, I’d really like him to be part of my night. I explained this to my bridesmaids but they gave me the old “no boys allowed” spiel and breezed over the issue. It feels sexist to exclude him. Should I call them on it?
—Gender Defender, Yonge and St. Clair
(Image: Fylkesarkivet i Sogn og Fjordane)
Dear Wedding Diplomat, Read the rest of this entry »
My fiancé’s mother and grandmother are pressuring me to wear his great grandmother’s dress from 1915, which has been worn by three generations of brides. This dress is as frumpy as a Mormon frock, with a chin-skimming neck and long sleeves that button up to the elbows. I can’t imagine walking down the aisle in it. When I suggested trying on new dresses, his mom nearly broke into tears and said I would be destroying a century-long tradition. To make matters worse, my fiancé agrees with her. What should I do?
—Dressed Down, Bayview
(Image: Cranky Pressman)
Dear Wedding Diplomat, Read the rest of this entry »
My fiancé and I are having a destination wedding in Cancún in April. We reserved a villa for 40 guests but sent out 60 invites, assuming at least 20 people—acquaintances, second cousins and the like—would decline. We were shocked when we counted the RSVPs and realized we had 66 people, including partners and kids. The rest of the resort is booked. Should we tell them about the room shortage and hope they back out?
—RSVPeeved, Roncesvalles
By Courtney Jane Walker | Photograph by Jo-Anne McArthur
In the early weeks of 2005, I attended a tsunami relief fundraiser at a vegetarian co-op in the Annex, where I met a cute guy named Andrew wearing hemp necklaces and a Burton Cummings T-shirt. Andrew and I both left with other people, but we ran into each other a few months later and fell into conversation like old friends, talking for hours on the sidewalk. We were both still in undergrad at U of T when we started dating, and it got serious fast. After just a few months, we moved in together, occupying a bedroom in a shared house on Borden Street that should have been condemned, especially given the size and frequency of our parties. We weren’t thinking about marriage, and that was fine by me. But I knew early on that I wanted to hang on to this guy who always called me when he said he would and loved to travel as much as I did and tolerated my incessant renditions of scenes from Les Miz. We fell into a natural rhythm and time flew by, as it does when you find someone who fits. We graduated from university, acquired a couple of cats and abandoned our Annex slum for a cozy one-bedroom in Cabbagetown. Before we knew it, we were grown-ups—kind of.
Serving custom-designed drinks is the latest wedding craze, but that doesn’t mean you have to go without a champagne toast. Below, four of Toronto’s most creative bartenders riff on the classic sparkling cocktail
THE SPARKLING BOUQUET
Brad Gubbins, bartender at SpiritHouse
This elegant emulsion blends 1 oz Lillet Rosé with ¾ oz gin, a spoonful of simple syrup and 2 dashes of rhubarb bitters. Gubbins tops up the flute with chilled champagne and a grapefruit twist.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Latest from TorontoistAdvertisement
© 2013. All Rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part strictly prohibited. Toronto Life is a registered trademark of Toronto Life Publishing Company Limited
