SAGAMORE PERFECTION, NO MATTER WHAT …
Months of planning were about to unfold. An outdoor ceremony by the water overlooking Lake George, cocktails on Dollar Terrace, and Shelving Rock Terrace was set to be pimped out for the dinner portion of the evening with a slick design for Carissa & Scott.
SCRATCH PLAN A …
Saturday’s forecast was iffy at best. By 10:00pm on the eve of the wedding, I had called Christine and told her I was going to flip the room, meaning we would be hosting the reception in the same space as the ceremony. This had never been done at the Sagamore. I needed Christine to back me up, and reassure the hotel I knew what I was doing. When I arrived at the Sagamore, I saw Christine and asked, “where is Dawn?” Just then, Dawn (of Sagamore Hotel) entered the room and said, “I have good news.” … Christine had already gotten to her and told her of my plan. Dawn said, “Only because it’s you, it has been approved.” YES!
FLIPPING OUT WITH DMS …
My boys at CPRC were like lightning getting everything we needed to hang 350 feet of drape to the location and then up. Everything had to be moved … chandeliers that had just been hung had to be taken down, and the tables and chairs needed to be removed and adjusted to set the stage for the ceremony. All this was finished just in time for guests to enter the ceremony. In total, we had 35 people standing behind the drape in silence during the ceremony. As the last guest slowly left the ceremony, it was time to “flip”. Drape dropped and hauled out, tables moved into position, glassware down, arrangements placed, aisle runner out, chair jackets off, lights focused, chandeliers moved, dance floor monogram applied, crystals hung, candles lit, and BOOM! Queue the music …
As guests walked through the doors of shelving rock for the second time … well, let’s just say jaws were dropping.
THE DESIGN…
Carissa wanted something fun and unusual for her guests. Carissa said, “I’m thinking Alice down the rabbit hole.” I was so in! Every bit of the process was an absolute blast. I worked with Carissa and Scott, Scott’s parents, and Mother of the Bride, Carol. The design included all white flowers with a few little vintage hints, and a combination of table covers, gun metal sequin, and silver chain over pewter bamboo. The head table and the lounge tables had mirror ball cloths. I used a floor chandelier for behind the head table, pewter vases, vintage mirrored trays, sterling sliver platters, and a black dance floor with a custom monogram.
THANK YOU …
Mike Frodey and the Clifton Park Rental team, Christine Wheat and crew, Dawn and the entire Sagamore crew, my staff at Renaissance Floral Design, and Garland from Soul Session for going with the flow.
This was a tremendously difficult design even before we had to flip the room, and without the exact team we had in place it would never have worked. Additional thanks to Rebecca of The Pink Orange, Tracey Buyce and Dan Cooper, and Philip Coltart for filming the day.
Carissa and Scott, you and your families were all so wonderful to work with. I will showboat about and relive the weekend I spent with you, over and over for the rest of my career.
All Photos provided by Tracey Buyce Photography
