1. Real Weddings

April & Jonathan: A Purple Wedding in Old Saybrook, CT

April and Jonathan made sure every detail of their wedding (from the welcome BBQ dinner and the lobster bake rehearsal dinner to the Bloody Mary morni

April and Jonathan made sure every detail of their wedding (from the welcome BBQ dinner and the lobster bake rehearsal dinner to the Bloody Mary morning-after brunch) featured the wine-inspired wedding's motif: purple grapes. THE BRIDE April Massaro THE GROOM Jonathan Larken THE DATE August 28 April and Jonathan are both good sports. The pair (she's 30, he's 31) met at a dinner party in New York City the night before he had a big rackets match. (Rackets is an older, harder, faster form of squash; Jonathan is a world champion.) At the end of the evening, Jonathan, an investment banker, asked April to watch him play the next day. I went even though I'd never heard of this English sport! -- and that was our first date, she says. What can I say, he was very charming at dinner. Jonathan won the match, a case of Veuve Clicquot champagne, and my heart, April sighs. Five years later, Jonathan proposed during a surprise weekend trip to Bermuda, and then the madness hit -- more than a year of nonstop planning for their four-day wedding. More than 150 guests came to celebrate, from as far away as England, Australia, and Singapore. We wanted to show our appreciation by creating a weekend they would never forget! says April.

The bride and groom hired a trolley to shuttle guests back and forth to the hotel.
April and Jonathan's wedding cake had four tiers and was covered in rich chocolate ganache with cascading marzipan and sugared grapes. The top tier was fruitcake, an English tradition.
The Transportation
The Menu/Food
April and Jonathan first danced to As by Stevie Wonder as played by their 16-piece band.
April and Jonathan incorporated English and American traditions into their ceremony held at St. Mary's by the Sea -- an old chapel in Fenwick, Connecticut, near where they have spent the last six summers. The couple also exchanged the same traditional vows their parents and grandparents had. It was my favorite part of the day ... it felt so intense saying them with so much meaning behind them, says April.
The Exit
April worked with dress designer Kathryn Conover to individualize each knee-length, purple silk dress to suit all six bridesmaids. I had every type of girl: from sexy singles and modest moms to a bride to be who lived in England and a glowing mom to be (my pregnant sister, who ended up giving birth to my niece the week before!), the bride says. The purple dresses were knee-length and worn with plaid sashes around the waist.
The Escort Cards
The Reception
The Programs