Dragonfly Photography
K and M’s Ritz-Carlton Cleveland Winter Wedding
Are you a winter wedding person? I guess I should ask if you’re a winter person at all. Full disclosure, I love the change of seasons and I’m a huge fan of pretty much all of them. The exception is when winter overstays her welcome. Which as we all know tends to happen. Generally, though for me there is nothing so cozy as a December night.
While we photograph weddings all over the world we’re based in Cleveland, Ohio. That means many of our favorite weddings are right here at home in the four-season Midwest. Traditionally the Midwest is a May-October hotbed for weddings with a much lighter schedule during the colder months. But I’m here to tell you about some of the loveliest celebrations happy in the coldest months. Case in point: this lovely Ritz-Carlton Cleveland winter wedding had gusty cold winds outside, but from the inside, the guests didn’t have a clue what the weather was like.
Ritz-Carlton Cleveland
K and M planned their wedding just outside of that window with a November wedding. Braving the cold and planning for a celebration that was cozied up inside. The only thing missing was a snow dusting. To be clear, I’m all for it. The Ritz-Carlton Cleveland is a perfect place for a wedding any time of the year, but it is especially lovely during the winter because realistically you don’t ever have to go outside if the weather is terrible. Gorgeous historic ballrooms and classic decor make for a perfect place to celebrate with the people you love most in the world. Exactly what these two did.
K and M’s celebration was relaxed and breezy, just like the two of them. They both have such a sense of classic style. It was so fun to see how they incorporated their mid-century love into such an important day. You could have been a total stranger, walked in, and known immediately how treasured they were by the people they love. A celebration in the truest sense.
As she was planning, she knew she wanted something classic in style but also fun. Nothing pretentious. Although she joked that was “missing the bride gene” I think when you look the fun their friends and family had you’ll easily disagree with her.
The two of them met at a Cleveland Guardians baseball game. He was the row behind her, and after finding out it was her birthday, he bought everyone drinks. The rest is history and there may or may not have been more than one credit card flashed at him on the dance floor. His friends will never let him live it down, but his response was simply to flash his wedding ring right back at them. Touché. When I first met K she said that her favorite thing about M was how truly genuine he was. I think that can easily be said about the two of them. I’m not sure they’ve ever met a stranger. They are welcoming people – always bringing people into their circle. Simply delightful to celebrate with!
Choosing a Winter Wedding
So why choose a winter wedding? There are lots of different reasons to consider the overall timing of your wedding day, but a winter wedding has a few unique benefits. One is that it’s a slower season in the wedding industry. This means that you’ll have more of your first-choice professionals available for your day. I’m a strong believer that a wedding day is only as great as it’s creative team. The right creative team takes your stress levels down in ways you can only imagine. It’s a matter of synergy. Those years of experience and problem-solving skills don’t just add when we’re working with other amazing professionals. They multiply. When you have the right people on your creative team, there isn’t anything we can’t solve for you.
The reality is that on a wedding day we’ll need to solve a few things. For instance, the HeatherLily floral team and the Ritz-Carlton team both were working far beyond their scope (as were we) when moments came up that needed to be handled. Because when you have professionals of that level, it’s not about anything except the couple’s experience. That’s something to remember all year long of course. But it can be easier to put your dream team together in the off-season, especially if it’s quite large.
Planning a Winter Wedding
Something to consider for a colder wedding is simply the weather. I know obvious, right? But it’s all that the weather affects. This is one of the reasons the Ritz-Carlton is such a lovely winter wedding venue. Once inside you genuinely don’t have to go out if you didn’t want to. However, planning for those little things can make a big difference. Extra layers if you are planning on going out are essential and choosing places with Plan B options that you love. You may be hoping for a dusting of gorgeous snow for your portraits, but you’re definitely not about to take grandma out there for her family photos. So making sure that you’ve thought through all the logistics with your planner and how it affects your guests is important.
Below you’ll see K and M’s Ritz-Carlton Cleveland winter wedding day and see that relaxed and breezy style they love. Such a joy to be part of this beautiful wedding day.
