The Bride’s Hair Was Audrey Hepburn-Inspired at This Intimate New York City Ceremony
While we’re all currently social distancing and committed to mask wearing, this wedding took place in the months before the coronavirus pandemic began. We hope it will bring some joy to your reading list.
In 2015, Seth Lockwood sat down at the table filmmaker Julia Loomis and her friend designer Hanako Maeda were sharing at Soho House in New York’s Meatpacking District. The two women were celebrating Hanako s Spring NYFW Collection for ADEAM. Conversation flowed, and Julia felt a connection. “Seth and I knew right away that this was something incredibly special,” Julia says. “And, I really felt I had to rise to the occasion.” Four months later, they found a home together in the West Village, and things came full circle when Seth proposed to Julia at Soho House on Valentine’s Day, about three and a half years after their first meeting.
“We usually cook at home for Valentine’s Day, but at the time I was overwhelmed working through a fiction screenplay, and we decided to do a stay-cation at Soho House, since it’s close to our home,” Julia says. “Seth works long hours so when he called me at market close that day to tell me he needed to stay later and that I should walk over and check in myself, it wasn’t too surprising. What was surprising is that the little sneak was in cahoots with the Soho House team, and arrived in the early afternoon with our good friends Kevin and Josh, who are interior designers, to decorate our favorite suite for the proposal. Even at check in, not a word from guest services! When I opened the door, our favorite concerto by Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2, 2nd Movement was playing, and there were beautiful white flowers in eleven bouquets, and black and white photos in silver frames throughout the room. The thoughtfulness and discreetness being just the two of us was everything to me.”
Soon after the engagement, the couple put down a deposit for the upstairs private event space at La Grenouille as they were originally thinking about hosting an engagement announcement dinner there. “Eventually, we decided to do something else to announce our engagement, but still had the deposit on the restaurant,” Julia remembers. They knew they wanted to incorporate La Grenouille into their wedding weekend, and ultimately decided to host an intimate civil ceremony in New York City. “This was even before the Coronavirus hit,” Julia notes. “We felt like we could host many for a party at any time, but to us, the ceremony and time spent around [the wedding’s] implications was sacred. I wanted to be able to take our time truly enjoying the moment without being personally worried with the responsibility that comes with entertaining large numbers of people. Imagining a large receiving line just after saying, ‘I do,’ was not something we were willing to do.”
Julia planned everything along with her friend and interior designer Kevin Barba-Hill, Sarah Bolton at the Lowell Hotel, and Elizabeth Stewart and Charles Masson at the restaurant Majorelle. “I won’t understate planning alone; it was work, even coordinating for only 40 guests,” Julia says. “But I was resolute that I would orchestrate the big picture while delegating tasks with the best, allowing them to shine for their particular craft. Because of this, everyone feels like they are really a part of something truly unique.”
From décor and flowers to food and service, Julia’s vision was all enhanced by the natural beauty of the environment. The marble architecture of the floors and columns was exposed; greens delicately enveloped French doorways; seasonal flowers created vignettes throughout the room, and fireplaces were aglow. Charles Masson designed the aesthetics for the ceremony in Majorelle and Club Room. “We were so inspired we used a painting by his son, Charlie Masson, as the cover of our ceremony program,” Julia says. “The painting was the exact view of our wedding vows.”
The weekend kicked off with a rehearsal cocktail party on Friday night in the Lowell Howe’s Penthouse Suite, where Julia and Seth were staying. Julia wore a hand-painted and embellished Valentino gown for the occasion. She worked with Nicole Absher of Ephemera on the floral design, inspired by Horst. P. Horst’s interior photographs. The complete floor plan of the suite was designed for a masculine look in Seth’s room—the entrance, terraces, and solarium with evergreen garlands and hints of small white flowers and citrus. Julia’s room and the master bath were dotted with white bouquets mixed with sweet smelling jasmine.
“Seth’s father gave an incredible welcome speech to everyone quoting, to my surprise, one of my favorite films, The Philadelphia Story, when Jimmy Stewart says ‘this champagne stuff… heavy mist before the eyes,’” Julia remembers. “It was the perfect summary and introduction to our ceremony weekend.” Afterwards, so the bride could get to sleep early, the guests were led to Jacques Bar just in front of Majorelle for late evening cocktails.
To get ready for the Saturday ceremony, Julia turned to her style icon Grace Kelly for wardrobe inspiration. “I wore a satin hostess pajama set with hand embellishment tassels made by famed MGM costume designer and Grace Kelly’s wedding dress designer, Helen Rose,” she says. “I’ve studied her designs and work with Grace since I was a little girl, so this was a very specific idea to incorporate into the styling. Also, hostess pajamas are a great alternative to sleepwear when you’re in the presence of a lot of people coming in and out of your bedroom!”
For the ceremony, the bride wore a pale green vintage silk Hubert de Givenchy Haute Couture gown with velvet embellishment from 1964. Her gloves were custom-made opera length kid leather by Wing and Weft. Nicole Absher at Ephemera created her wedding bouquet, which contained Lily of the Valley, Hellebore, Pine, and Jasmine Vine. Her something blue was an embroidered S (for Seth) that the Givenchy team sewed into her dress. Her something borrowed was a platinum Art Deco diamond and sapphire dinner ring from her great-great grandmother and namesake, and her shoes were satin Manolo Blahnik, custom dyed to match the gown.
Throughout the weekend, Julia wore a 1890 convertible diamond sunburst barrette-brooch. “Because of the barrette/brooch convertibility, I was inspired to use it as a tiara in the same hairstyle as Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady,” she says. “I took it to our trusted New York jeweler, who sourced and created my Zambian emerald and diamond engagement ring and matching earrings I wore for the ceremony.” Hair stylist Joseph Maine executed the look. “It was uncanny with a few modern edits,” the bride says. “He helped assemble the tiara and secure it to the crown of my hair. He said he lay awake visualizing the architecture of it the evening before.”
