Real Wedding: Cate & Jake
Photographer(s): BK & Co
When Cate Ellison met Jake Mills at a little bar in New York City’s West Village, the attraction was instant. Cate walked right up to where Jake was standing at the bar, and the two spent the next three hours talking. That conversation kept going strong for a full year and a half, and was still keeping them busy one weekend when they took a sailing trip off Long Island with friends. Jake thought it would be fun to spend the night on the shore and enjoy the beach for another day, and Cate, who can’t get enough of the beach, enthusiastically agreed.
They woke up early for a morning walk and had the long stretch of shoreline to themselves. As they watched the sunlight sparkling on the crashing waves, Jake asked Cate to marry him. They’d talked about marriage before, but Cate had no idea that Jake was going to pop the question and was shocked to discover that he’d managed to find the perfect ring without her knowing about it.
Determined to start their married life as soon as possible, Cate and Jake ended up with just four months to plan the wedding. The location was easy: Jake’s home in Saratoga Springs was one of their favorite spots, and much of their relationship had been spent there. A wedding was the perfect opportunity to bring family and friends to the town they loved. Cate, who hails from Connecticut and has called New York City home for the past decade, and Jake, who grew up near Saratoga before moving to New York, also liked that the location was convenient for their New England–area families. The venue was a cinch, too: As soon as Cate and Jake saw the glorious Victorian Canfield Casino, they fell in love with the elegant historic space. “There were very few available dates, so we decided to take a chance and risk the weather,” says Cate.
The chance paid off. It was a perfect winter day as Cate walked down the aisle to a guitar arrangement created by her uncle, an accomplished musician. Cate and Jake wrote their own vows and wedding ceremony the morning before the wedding, giving the event a sweetness and spontaneity. They chose two special readings for the ceremony: an E.E. Cummings poem and a work by Pablo Neruda. Cate’s uncle did all the music for the ceremony, including a beautiful arrangement of The Beatles song “I Will.” Soft silvers, grays, and ivories punctuated by vivid red pomegranates set off the Victorian opulence of the space, and candles gleamed and twinkled on every surface. “The space is so beautiful and grand, we didn’t need much else,” Cate says. Guests snuggled under silver pashminas draped thoughtfully over their chair backs to enjoy a selection of wines handpicked by Jake. Instead of serving a wedding cake, Cate and Jake cut into a tiny cake while their guests enjoyed individual chocolate mousse domes.
Originally, Cate intended to plan the wedding on her own, but with the short timeline and her busy life, she reached out to a wedding planner, and is so glad she did. “I cannot say enough about how great our wedding planners were and how stress-free they made our wedding day,” says Cate, who says the day itself was totally smooth sailing.
Cate was touched that her mom chose one of her late grandmother’s dresses to wear for the ceremony, linking past and present. And everyone was delighted when the groom jumped up to grab the microphone and serenaded his new bride with the band. As snow fell softly beneath a glowing full moon, Cate and Jake reveled in the love of their friends and family around them.
“It was exhilarating and so full of joy,” Cate says.
Special Touch: One of Jake’s groomsmen brought a vintage Polaroid camera to snap photos of the bridal party.
Photography: Erin Kiernan from BK & Co.
Other Professionals: Cake: Mrs. Londons | Entertainment: Sultans of Swing | Hair & Makeup: Style On Location
Menu & Place Cards: Documents and Designs