Tendenza Wedding | Marikate Cook & Jonathan Wolff

Marikate and Jonathan had a fun filled day exploring Philadelphia on their big day! We started getting ready at the Loews Hotel, met for the first look and adventured around City Hall, took a detour to Broad Street, headed to Old City for their ceremony at Old St. Mary’s Church, and finally finished up with a beautiful reception at Tendenza by Cescaphe

Getting Ready for their Tendenza Wedding

When our team knocked on the door and entered the hotel room with Marikate and her friends, we could already feel it was going to be a wonderful day. All the girls were having such a good time while helping each other and Marikate get ready for her big day. They popped champagne, took a bunch of instant-polaroid selfies, and blasted some feel-good tunes to get the day going! While the girls got dressed, Jonathan was getting ready to get married, throwing on his cool custom jacket. His mother confirmed how handsome he looked, and off to City Hall we went!

Blue wedding invitation suite with traditional Philadelphia "LOVE" stamp and blue wedding heels for Tendenza Wedding
Philadelphia wedding invitation suite with skyscrapers, LOVE stamp, florals, and wedding rings for Tendenza Wedding
Gold engagement and wedding rings with brides name and bouquet
Wedding gown and gold bracelet in white floral details
Bride getting into wedding gown with help of her sister and mother
Mother and sister of the bride perfecting her gown and veil
Bridal portrait with bride putting on her earrings
Traditional bridal portraits with bride looking over her shoulder with bouquet
Elegant bridal portrait with unique large bouquet and long greenery
Father of the bride excited at first look
Grooms tuxedo, tie, wedding band, and florals
Groom getting ready with unique tie and socks before wedding
Traditional groom portrait with navy tuxedo and pink details

The First Look before their Tendenza Wedding

Marikate and Jonathan’s first look took place in the center of Philadelphia’s City Hall. Jonathon stood patiently waiting for his bride and nervously made small talk with our team as she slowly walked toward him. Her journey through the tunnels and gates felt like eternity- but when she finally tapped his shoulder, he was overwhelmed with excitement. Marikate hugged her groom and he looked so comforted. 

Bride and groom first look at Philadelphia City Hall
Bride and groom portrait at Philadelphia City Hall

Portraits Around City Hall

While waiting for the wedding party to arrive, we explored the many nooks and crannies of City Hall for Marikate and Jonathan’s portraits. One of the great things about shooting our couples in the city is all the possibilities for some stunning portrait locations! 

Marikate and Jonathan were greeted with cheers and applause from their stunning bridesmaids and groomsmen when we all met back up in the center for bridal party portraits. While the guys were getting serious with Ashley, showing off their custom jackets, Rachel got some sweet shots of Marikate and her closest friends just hanging out and enjoying the day. 

Our extra-padded timeline for the day allowed us some extra time for couples portraits, so we left the wedding party in the cool shade and did some more City Hall exploring with Marikate and Jonathan. 

On the way to the church, we stopped for the signature shot down Broad Street in the midst of a college graduation. The couple was bombarded with congratulations and compliments as they posed in the middle of Broad. 

Black and white wedding portrait of bride and groom walking through tunnels at Philadelphia City Hall
Bride and groom portrait through water fountains at Philadelphia City Hall
Romantic bride and groom wedding portraits with reflections at Philadelphia City Hall
Romantic bride and groom laughing at Philadelphia City Hall
Wedding party portraits at Philadelphia City Hall
White and green bridesmaid and bridal bouquets
Bridesmaids and groomsmen portraits outside Philadelphia City Hall
Romantic bride and groom smiling at each other for wedding portrait at Philadelphia city hall
Traditional bride and groom wedding portrait at Philadelphia City Hall
Black and white wedding portrait bride and groom embracing in tunnels at Philadelphia City Hall with motion blur
Broad Street and Philadelphia City Hall wedding portrait bride and groom dipping in front of city hall
black and white bride and groom portrait in front of Philadelphia city hall on Broad Street

The Ceremony at Old St Mary’s

Before we could celebrate these two at Tendenza, we had to get them married! When we arrived at the beautiful Old St. Mary’s Church, Jonathan’s nerves started to get the best of him, and Ashley gave him her squeezey apple sauce to calm his stomach. Marikate was walked down the aisle and given away to Jonathan at the alter by her father. Once he kissed and officially married his best friend, he felt much better and was ready to party! We quickly captured some family portraits with the cutest tiny ring bearer and flower girl, then it was off to Tendenza!

Wedding ceremony at Old St. Mary's Church in Old City Philadelphia
Bride being walked down the aisle wedding ceremony at Old St. Mary's Church in Philadelphia
Bride and groom and wedding party florals in Old St. Mary's Church Philadelphia
Wedding ceremony at Old St. Mary's Church in Old City Philadelphia
Bride and groom exchanging rings during wedding ceremony at Old St. Mary's Church in Philadelphia
First kiss as husband and wife in Old St. Mary's Church wedding ceremony
Bride and groom kissing and praying during wedding ceremony at Old St. Mary's Church in Old City Philadelphia

The Tendenza Wedding Reception

Guests arrived at Tendenza by Cescaphe and enjoyed some unique snacks along the bar while catching up with old friends and family. We snuck away with Marikate and Johnathon for a few minutes to take advantage of the surrounding neighborhoods and Pod Park for some more portraits. 

Marikate and Jonathan made a killer entrance as Mr. & Mrs. Wolff and romantic first dance to “You are the Best Thing” by Ray LaMontagne. They invited their guests to join them and suddenly all the tables and chairs were empty, and the dance floor was packed! While everyone settled for their delicious dinner, Marikate and Jonathan’s fathers’ made speeches praising new family members. Marikate’s maid of honor and Jonathans best man toasted and told stories of their early days as a couple. After everyone’s bellies’ were full, so was the dance floor! Marikate and Jonathan danced with their loved ones who didn’t quit moving the whole night, until the dessert station opened. They skipped the traditional cake cutting, and opted for an ice cream bar, donut station, and R2D2 mini cake. Of course we had to capture Cescaphe’s signature flambe station being lit up for our couple, too! It was the perfect ending to an amazing night at Tendenza, we can’t wait to be back!

black and white wedding portrait in front of "do what you love" mural in Philadelphia
Bride and groom laughing with each other in front of "do what you love" mural in Philadelphia wedding
Groom spinning bride and pulling her in for a kiss portraits
romantic wedding portraits bride and groom share kisses
Cocktail hour food and champagne at Tendenza by Cescaphe wedding
Wedding reception and table detail setup at Tendenza by Cescaphe wedding
Wedding reception and table detail setup at Tendenza by Cescaphe wedding
Traditional wedding cake with unique Star Wars wedding cake and bridal bouquet
Bride and groom pose for a portrait in their reception area at Tendenza by Cescaphe
Groom spins and dips bride during first dance at Tendenza by Cescaphe wedding
Best man, maid of honor, and fathers of the bride and groom making their toasts during wedding reception at Tendenza
Father of the bride and mother of the groom parent dances during wedding reception at Tendenza by Cescaphe
Bride and groom dancing with their guests and each other during wedding reception at Tendenza
Bride and groom portrait through flames at Cescaphes signature flambé station
Bride and groom wedding night portrait outside venue Tendenza by Cescaphe

Thanks to Marikate and Jonathan for having such a fun and stress-free wedding day! We loved capturing your special moments, congratulations again! 

Their special day was made possible by:

— Photography — Ashley Gerrity PhotographyVenue — Tendenza by Cescaphe — Ceremony — Old St. Marys Church — Florist — Beautiful Blooms — Caterer — Cescaphe — Entertainment — DJ Timmy DeSimone — Wedding Dress — Stella York — Bridal Salon — Le Bella Donna — Bride’s Shoes — Sam Edelman — Wedding Rings — Desumma Wexler — Menswear — Joseph A. Bank — Bridesmaid Dresses — Bill Levikoff — Photo Booth — Lacey Face Photo

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