Get to Know Katherine & Ryan

Q: Tell us a bit about you and your spouse.

We make our home in New York City. I’ve always been passionate about fashion and now am a Production Manager for Stoney Clover Lane, a company that allows for a high degree of fun personalization of bags and accessories. I love yoga and pilates, and I have to admit I love shopping.

My mom is a floral designer. She’s so amazing at what she does, and I find it relaxing to be with her when she’s working and even help when I can. My other favorite hobby is spending time with my husband! We’ve been inseparable since we met eight years ago. Ryan works in IT for Fetch, a pet insurance company. He’s super passionate about golf and has been playing his entire life. He’s a people person who loves live music, something the two of us enjoy together.

The invitation was engraved onto heavyweight racing green card stock with a beveled edge. The suite is wrapped in a custom dyed velvet ribbon and features a wax seal with custom duogram in antique gold.

Q: What stands out about your experience with Bespoke?

My mom steered me toward working with Shari, but honestly I don’t think anyone could have steered me in a different direction. I would have gone to Shari no matter what. I know how creative Shari is. Even before I started shopping for my wedding, I remember going into the shop and seeing the wall of gorgeous invitations and thinking: I want to be on that wall.

All of her things are so beautiful, and it’s such a beautiful store. Each time I went in I felt like a kid in a candy store between the invitations and the gift registry as well. It was such a personal experience working with Shari, Monica and Tasmine. They kept me really strong throughout the process. I loved planning my wedding, but I have to admit there were times when the number of details felt like a lot. For example, I knew I wanted a ribbon on my invitation, and Shari steered me toward a color I’m not sure I would have thought of. It was fabulous, but then that ribbon became unavailable. Shari overnighted me 6 other options - it’s things like that that kept me strong and kept me from freaking out and panicking. Bespoke was there for us, and we appreciated them so much.

A collection of vintage stamps on each envelope added to the timeless design.

Q: What influenced your vision for your invitations and stationery?

I had a vision for what I wanted, and Shari helped point me in the right direction. Being in fashion, I have a plethora of ideas in my head all the time, which is both a blessing and a curse. It’s nice to have someone like Shari, who really knows what she’s doing, to respond to my ideas. I never thought I’d be a winter bride. When Ryan proposed, I wanted to marry him the very next day! My sister was engaged, and we felt we should wait until after my sister’s summer wedding.

Being married in December shifted my vision of what my wedding would be. In my head, my theme was Winter Wonderland meets Great Gatsby meets Ralph Lauren. I used to work for Ralph Lauren and I will always love the brand. I wanted everything to feel very special. Ryan’s favorite color is green, so I wanted to tie that in too. The racing green felt very masculine and reflected him. I was happy to see how Bespoke tied in my vision to the day-of details. There were two different styles of cocktail napkin, matchbooks, menus with a ribbon and wax seal. It was so personal and it all looked beautiful. These items became sentimental mementos of the day.

For the registry, the couple was drawn to green, and together we built a tabletop look with layers and textures that captured the interest and energy that they were looking for.

Q: How did you approach your registry?

I loved everything at Shari’s shop and knew I wanted to have a variety of china. I love when my mom sets the table for occasions - she makes the most beautiful tablescapes. Ryan helped me choose, and was drawn to green again, his favorite color, which I loved. The color guided me. I selected china and Tasmine helped me build the look of the table with layers and textures.

We were gifted all 12 sets of china by my Great Aunt, and we’re so excited. My Great Aunt told us not to be afraid to use china, that these items are replaceable. Don’t have a fit if something breaks, you can get another piece. I think we are all sometimes afraid to display and use our nice items, but I don’t think we should be afraid because when we surround ourselves with beautiful things, it makes us happy. Ryan is supportive of that, and loves that we chose these things. We can’t wait to entertain with everything!

The look of the invitation suite was carried through into the menu and other day-of items, such as the custom napkins.

Q: Any tips related to invitations, wedding inspiration and registry that might help other couples?

Throughout the entire wedding planning process, be easy on yourself. It’s important to remember not to be hard on yourself. Likewise, it’s important to listen to your gut. Take everything step by step. Connect with your partner and support each other.

I hope that no one would get so bogged down or hard on themselves they would forget the feeling of excitement of getting married. That feeling of excitement is critical. My other advice is to spend time looking around and preparing your ideas. It helps to get a sense of what you like, whether it’s online or window shopping. I spent years building a Pinterest board.

That helped a lot, although I was flexible as well because working with talented professionals opens you up to new ideas. With the registry, imagine that you want to host not just dinner, but brunch or lunch, even just having someone walk into your home. The wedding is not the finish line but just the beginning.

Don’t be shy. It’s easy to not add things to your registry that you want, but it’s fun to add! More is more! Go for it! This is the time to begin building your home. When I registered at Bespoke, Ryan was golfing, so I sent him a full-on video of what I had chosen for us. The items covered the table and even went on to the floor. He responded back, so beautiful, love it all. It made me giddy and happy. We were filled with the feeling that we just can’t wait to have our home together.