I have been wanting to plan a wedding at Chelsea Square (née Highline Hotel and General Theological Seminary) for a while and finally the stars aligned with Ellie and Joe! The combination of working with an excellent caterer like Events by RHC at a stunning venue like Chelsea Square is this wedding planner’s dream. We looked at a few different Manhattan venues in their search and Chelsea Square was the winner. Ellie and Joe both work long hours in the medical field, so I did much of the wedding planning with her mom Stacey, who was an absolute delight to collaborate with. I miss our chats very much!
There are two spacious rooms at Chelsea Square for the wedding parties to get ready. Ellie and her party were able to use the 5th floor suite for hair and makeup. Joe and his party dropped off their suits in the 4th floor suite and then all went to have lunch at a restaurant nearby before returning to get dressed. The wedding was in February, so the weather was on the chilly side (as expected), but thankfully no rain! I had advised them to purchase a batch of umbrellas just in case for the walk from ceremony to cocktail, but we didn’t need them. Good to be over prepared and then maybe it won’t happen! Instead we got some really pretty light for pictures that day. We did the first look right in front of the chapel and portraits at the Close on property. It is such a special hidden gem to have this lovely green space surrounded by beautiful buildings in the middle of Chelsea. Ellie wore a gown from Amsale with a statement bow on the back. She carried a delicate white bouquet of orchids, calla lilies, ranunculus and poppies designed by A.P. Bio.
The ceremony took place in the chapel with two good friends officiating. The chapel houses a grand piano, so of course we had to use it! The Hudson Project provided the ceremony music with a pianist and a flautist who also played the saxophone. The wedding party walked down the aisle to John Mayer’s XO and the bride to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah (played by the pianist which created such a magical moment). There is a beautiful wooden archway towards the front of the chapel and A.P. Bio used branches, greenery and flowers to curl along the two side arches to create an impressive entry to the space. The alter flowers had an asymmetrical design with pedestals in a sand colour to complement the space. The colour palette was mostly whites and greens with a little touch of neutrals like mauve to add depth to the design. Pillar candles added a lovely glow.
Sunset was during the ceremony time. While the ceremony was in progress, L&M Sound and Light were setting up pathway lighting for the walk from the chapel to the cocktail in the Hoffman Conference Center. I wanted the pathways clear as guests arrived while there was still daylight and only added the pathway lighting when needed. L&M were kind enough to accommodate. With our guest count of 180, we had to use all three of the adjoining rooms on the first floor for cocktails. The middle Pre Function Room had a set of double doors in black, which was rather oppressive in the room, so we brought in Drape Kings to drape that area off with a latte drape. This became the backdrop for the cocktail trio from The Hudson Project. They extended speakers into the Matthew’s and Rusack Rooms so that guests could enjoy the music in all the different areas of cocktail. We brought in lounge furniture through Patina with a statement piece in the modern Cama Sofa. The camel velvet was so cozy and the palette suited the room really well. We decorated the existing dark wooden bookshelves with flowers. Ellie’s mother and Joe’s mother put together 40 framed photos of them to display. It was a really sweet and special touch. We used a grey rattan bar screen for the bars in the Matthew’s and Rusack Rooms and velvet and shantung linens for our cocktail tables. Uplighting around the room to created some nice ambiance.
For passed hors d'oeuvres, guests enjoyed from RHC:
coronation chicken
everything spice pigs in a blanket
beef slider
paella arancini
hamachi crudo
ahi tuna tartare
blue cheese tart
shimeji mushroom roll
While cocktails were in progress, A.P. Bio’s team was repurposing the ceremony alter flowers to the staircase landings and the Refectory for dinner and dancing. The Refectory is a cathedral like room on the third floor with soaring ceilings and reached by a grand marble staircase. The staircase was decorated with clusters of pillar candles, flowers on pedestals, greenery along the railings and an impressive installation for the escort cards. This was not an escort card table. This was an escort card wall! The floral team had started work on this the day before by installing the greenery with extremely tall ladders. The work continued for many more hours on the wedding day with flowers that seemed to grow naturally up the ground to the escort table and onto the windowsill and walls. It really took my breath away. When we invited guests up the marble staircase for dinner, we had a saxophonist on the first landing to welcome them.
The Refectory is a long room with an elevated level on one end. It would have been great to place the band on the elevated level, but we had a big guest count and wanted to maximize the space in the best possible way. We chose to place the band in the middle, so when guests walked into the room, the band and dance floor were right in front of them. We used a combination of long and round tables with 24 foot long tables along the length of the room. The tables were draped with silver shantung linens and a sage green napkin was folded around a letterpressed menu. The menus also had the guest names printed at the top as the place cards. A belmont platinum charger completed the look with the remaining china, silverware and glassware from Chelsea Square’s beautiful inhouse collection. Black crossback chairs were a sleek and dramatic look for the room. The dining tables had low lush flower arrangements with greige taper candles for the long tables. A.P. Bio stunned us all again in this room with the windowsill decor. These were a combination of towering branches, flowers and candle lit design. I loved how this decor created height in the room without actually doing so on the dining tables themselves. Leaving guests free to converse easily at the dining tables. L&M highlighted the floral design and architecture of the room beautifully with an elegant touch.
The first course was Jersey Girl burrata with chicory, butternut squash chow chow, apple vincotto and pumpkin seed brittle. Main course was a choice of Wagyu sirloin with sunchoke confit, parsnip aligot, glazed romanesco and a picked mustard seed demi, or roasted salmon with poached turnips, braised mustard greens, sweet potato and pickled salmon roe. Lulu designed the white wedding cake with white raining dots and a single cluster of white and green flowers. Inside was carrot cake with vanilla bean cream cheese and toasted pecans. As guests were dancing away to the high energy Hudson Project band, we also had a wonderful selection of passed sweets. Matcha macaron, kabocha squash woopie pie, roasted almond crinkle cookie, passion fruit pate de fruit and Earl Grey chocolate truffle.
This was an incredible wedding to start out my year! It was my first time working at Chelsea Square, but I hope there will be many more opportunities to return. Such a delight to work with the team there. Thank you to Liron Erel for capturing the day so artistically. It was truly an honour and pleasure to work with such wonderful families. Seeing how much fun they had that day (especially on the dance floor) was an absolute joy. Much love to E+J!
Planning: Ang Weddings and Events | Photography: Liron Erel | Venue: Chelsea Square | Catering: Events by RHC | Florist: A.P. Bio | Lighting and Staging: L&M Sound and Light | Band: The Hudson Project | Rentals: Party Rental Ltd | Lounge Rentals: Patina | Draping: Drape Kings | Cake: Lulu | Hair and Makeup: Willow House Beauty | Gown: Amsale | Paperie: Bella Figura | Cocktail Napkins and Hand Towels: For Your Party
Chelsea Square Wedding Venue at a Glance
Location: Chelsea Square, New York, New York
Address: 429 West 20th Street, New York, New York
Email: hello@eventsatchelseasquare.com
Venue website: https://eventsatchelseasquare.com
Capacity: The space works well for 120-180 guests for a seated dinner with dancing. Intimate weddings would be beautiful there as well.
Events: Ceremony, cocktail, dinner and dancing
Dining style: Passed hors d’oeuvres, plated dinner with a choice of entree, plated or passed desserts.
Amenities included: Tables, china, silverware and glassware.
Rentals needed: Linens, napkins, chairs and bars.