A Whimsical, Flower-Filled Wedding at the Central Park Zoo in New York City

The wedding of Alexia Panza and Colin Williams expertly mixed traditional and modern elements. To start the day, they had a Catholic ceremony at St. Patricks Cathedral. The bride stunned in a self-designed wedding dress full of colorful hand-embroidered and beaded flowers. "It was a year-long process of finding fabric, creating the actual embroidery, getting approvals, fittings and more fittings—and at the end, it was perfect," Alexia says. After the ceremony, the newlyweds and their wedding party took pictures along the streets of New York City before arriving at their Central Park Zoo reception. The décor centered around lush flower arrangements with roses and dahlias. For escort cards, "each couple or guest received a small vase with a beautiful bud inside," the couple says. "This was really fun because when people were sitting down for cocktail hour, they would set their ‘place card’ down and the cocktail tables started to organically develop into really amazing centerpieces." Other wedding highlights included hanging greenery, custom watercolor and foil table numbers, bistro lights strung over the dance floor, and a naked wedding cake with berries. 
Our favorite #MakeTradition Moment: "Upon the exit of the reception, we had my favorite NYC street cart nuts, along with a cart filled with mini hot dogs and several of my husband's favorite condiments/dipping sauces," the bride says. "As you walked out of Central Park Zoo, the smell of the nuts really topped of the evening."