Elegant Fall Wedding at The Newberry Library in Chicago

Dominique Broxton (33 and a senior digital project manager) and Paul A. Bradley (32 and a financial center operations manager) “met on Facebook before it became cliché,” Dominique says. According to Paul, it’s a running debate about who actually “poked” whom, but from there, the two were inseparable. When planning their wedding, the couple went decidedly non-cliché, from Paul wearing a velvet burgundy jacket imprinted with paisley to the couple jumping the broom at the ceremony. Music further personalized their day, with Paul’s fraternity hymn and John Coltrane’s “Sentimental Mood,” which played as Dominique walked down the aisle, both on the set list. “It was special because Dominique grew up on jazz—a love passed down from her father—and it’s our favorite jazz song,” Paul says. Live jazz was only natural for cocktail hour.
A stunning cascade of hot-pink and red roses covered the treat that alternated between layers of devil’s food with cream cheese frosting and white cake with strawberry buttercream icing. “The season and historic library setting inspired our theme: ‘fall elegance,’” Dominique says. “It was dramatic, lush and romantic.” The 18-person crew rode around downtown Chicago in a trolley ahead of go-time to get everyone “pumped,” Dominique says.
Tall gold pedestals filled with deep-shaded roses, hydrangeas and smoke bush set the scene, and a stem of ruscus greenery accented each place setting. The pair sent guests home with a library card memo pad purchased from The Newberry Library. “We had so much fun at our reception, and our late-night snack from Uncle Remus Saucy Fried Chicken was a huge hit with our guests,” Dominique says.