I am pleased to share my interview and some BEAUTIFUL photos of the newly married couple, Alli and Ben Steinberg. They were married on Sunday, June 21st at Princeton University, Alli's late father's alma mater. Alli is the sister of one of my best friends, Emily, who served as the maid of honor for their special day. After talking to Emily and stalking the wedding photos, I have been captivated by the uniqueness of Alli and Ben's special day. Their wedding day seemed to fit perfectly with their fun, sweet personalities.
Their photos were taken by Linda and Peter Photography. Alli said they were amazing--check them out: http://www.lbfoto.com/#! and http://lindaandpeter.com/BLOG/
Interview:
Katrina: Before I ask you questions about the big day, can each of you describe the other in 3 words to help us get to know you better?
Alli: Ben is driven, thoughtful and loving.
Ben: Alli is fun, caring and sharp.
K: What was your experiencing with wedding planning?
Alli: It wasn't as bad as everyone said it was going to be. We did a lot of the heavy lifting up front, and had a lull for a number of months, until about two months before, when it picked up again.
K: What did you care most about when planning?
B: I cared about the music, alcohol and the Horah going as best as it could.
A: I cared about the location and music. We both cared that our guests had the best time possible.
K: How did you choose a location for your wedding?
A: I wanted to get married at Princeton for quite some time--since after my father passed away. It was my father's alma matter (class of '65) and a special place he took our whole family.
(I love how sentimental the location of the wedding was. Now Princeton holds both wonderful, old memories for Alli but also amazing new memories of the wedding day).
K: How would you describe the theme of your wedding?
A: There was no theme--just good music and good alcohol in a beautiful setting surrounded by so much love. It felt authentic to us.
K: What was your favorite moment of the day?
A: The ceremony was amazing and walking down the aisle to my sister/cousin singing to us. I also loved the speeches.
B: Yeah, I would say the ceremony was great. Having my sister officiate the wedding was really special. The whole thing went by so fast.
K: It seems like you had a lot special, personalized details in your wedding. Can you share some of those with me?
We decided to list each table as a famous Princeton grad; we had a lot of fun choosing the table names! We also had a ketubah (Jewish wedding contract) signing beforehand, and that was a great way to incorporate a lot of family and friends into the wedding (including our friend who made the ketubah art!). We also had Ben's sister, Jessica, officiate the ceremony, which was really personal. We had a number of friends/family members come up during the ceremony and give us their individualized blessings--similar to the seven Jewish blessings in a traditional ceremony. We also wrote personalized notes to each of our guests in the table setting cards. There were some really funny ones (if we may say so).
(I'm in love with the personalized notes to each of the guests!!)
K: Best decision?
The best decision was to dance down the aisle together to a Beatles song. It really set the tone for a fun, lighthearted evening! And having family and friends incorporated into the ceremony was really heartwarming.
K: Anything you would change?
Absolutely not! It was all perfect. Maybe order less dessert since everyone was preoccupied with dancing to eat much of it!
K: Budget advice?
Splurge on the things that count the most; we cared a lot about good alcohol and food for our guests and great photos. We also made a videographer a priority. We didn't have any decorations besides flowers; the venue was beautiful enough to skip decorations and we really tried to keep in mind that a lot of the things that people spend money on, no one realizes in the end, anyway.
(I agree. One of my main pieces of advice for new brides is to pick top 3 things you want to prioritize/splurge on and be willing to budget in other areas).
K: Any marriage advice?
Respect and really listen to one another. Keep surprising one another and make sure to do thoughtful, romantic things often. Laugh a lot.
Bonus Q: One of my favorite parts of my wedding was the honeymoon afterwards. Yours looked quite amazing. Where did you go?
We went to Italy for two weeks--Venice, Florence, Cinque Terre, Tuscany and Rome. We traveled by train and car in the country and were able to see the country in so many ways. We hiked the Italian Rivivera, toured vineyards in Tuscany, visited art museums, sat in tiny wine shops, traveled by boat taxi in Venice and stood inside the Colosseum and ate gelato everyday (sometimes twice!).
(Anyone else feeling super envious?? Check out some cute honeymoon pictures below!).
*(Alli and Emily's father passed away from pancreatic cancer when Emily and I were in college. Their father was funny, smart and inspiring. He would definitely be extremely proud of where his daughters are today in their lives. If you are interested in donating to pancreatic cancer research, here is a link: https://netcommunity.pancan.org/sslpage.aspx?pid=218
Their photos were taken by Linda and Peter Photography. Alli said they were amazing--check them out: http://www.lbfoto.com/#! and http://lindaandpeter.com/BLOG/
Interview:
Katrina: Before I ask you questions about the big day, can each of you describe the other in 3 words to help us get to know you better?
Alli: Ben is driven, thoughtful and loving.
Ben: Alli is fun, caring and sharp.
K: What was your experiencing with wedding planning?
Alli: It wasn't as bad as everyone said it was going to be. We did a lot of the heavy lifting up front, and had a lull for a number of months, until about two months before, when it picked up again.
K: What did you care most about when planning?
B: I cared about the music, alcohol and the Horah going as best as it could.
A: I cared about the location and music. We both cared that our guests had the best time possible.
K: How did you choose a location for your wedding?
A: I wanted to get married at Princeton for quite some time--since after my father passed away. It was my father's alma matter (class of '65) and a special place he took our whole family.
(I love how sentimental the location of the wedding was. Now Princeton holds both wonderful, old memories for Alli but also amazing new memories of the wedding day).
K: How would you describe the theme of your wedding?
A: There was no theme--just good music and good alcohol in a beautiful setting surrounded by so much love. It felt authentic to us.
K: What was your favorite moment of the day?
A: The ceremony was amazing and walking down the aisle to my sister/cousin singing to us. I also loved the speeches.
B: Yeah, I would say the ceremony was great. Having my sister officiate the wedding was really special. The whole thing went by so fast.
K: It seems like you had a lot special, personalized details in your wedding. Can you share some of those with me?
We decided to list each table as a famous Princeton grad; we had a lot of fun choosing the table names! We also had a ketubah (Jewish wedding contract) signing beforehand, and that was a great way to incorporate a lot of family and friends into the wedding (including our friend who made the ketubah art!). We also had Ben's sister, Jessica, officiate the ceremony, which was really personal. We had a number of friends/family members come up during the ceremony and give us their individualized blessings--similar to the seven Jewish blessings in a traditional ceremony. We also wrote personalized notes to each of our guests in the table setting cards. There were some really funny ones (if we may say so).
(I'm in love with the personalized notes to each of the guests!!)
K: Best decision?
The best decision was to dance down the aisle together to a Beatles song. It really set the tone for a fun, lighthearted evening! And having family and friends incorporated into the ceremony was really heartwarming.
K: Anything you would change?
Absolutely not! It was all perfect. Maybe order less dessert since everyone was preoccupied with dancing to eat much of it!
K: Budget advice?
Splurge on the things that count the most; we cared a lot about good alcohol and food for our guests and great photos. We also made a videographer a priority. We didn't have any decorations besides flowers; the venue was beautiful enough to skip decorations and we really tried to keep in mind that a lot of the things that people spend money on, no one realizes in the end, anyway.
(I agree. One of my main pieces of advice for new brides is to pick top 3 things you want to prioritize/splurge on and be willing to budget in other areas).
K: Any marriage advice?
Respect and really listen to one another. Keep surprising one another and make sure to do thoughtful, romantic things often. Laugh a lot.
Bonus Q: One of my favorite parts of my wedding was the honeymoon afterwards. Yours looked quite amazing. Where did you go?
We went to Italy for two weeks--Venice, Florence, Cinque Terre, Tuscany and Rome. We traveled by train and car in the country and were able to see the country in so many ways. We hiked the Italian Rivivera, toured vineyards in Tuscany, visited art museums, sat in tiny wine shops, traveled by boat taxi in Venice and stood inside the Colosseum and ate gelato everyday (sometimes twice!).
(Anyone else feeling super envious?? Check out some cute honeymoon pictures below!).
*(Alli and Emily's father passed away from pancreatic cancer when Emily and I were in college. Their father was funny, smart and inspiring. He would definitely be extremely proud of where his daughters are today in their lives. If you are interested in donating to pancreatic cancer research, here is a link: https://netcommunity.pancan.org/sslpage.aspx?pid=218