saratoga springs, NEW YORK{logo design above} melissadepasquale.com {photography} joe elario {reception site} saratoga national

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When Melissa DePasquale and Jerome Broderick first began dating after meeting online, the circumstances were less than perfect. Melissa was recovering from a bout of mono, so they had to wait nearly a month before sharing their first kiss. It’s safe to say the kiss was well worth the wait, and soon they both knew they had found something special. “We became so dependent on each other, but in the best way possible — where you can’t enjoy anything to the fullest unless you’re doing it together,” says Melissa. For the next few years, as they lived together in a succession of different cities, they fell more and more in love.

One weekend, Melissa and Jerome traveled to New Hampshire for a camping trip. On their last morning there, they decided to take a quick spin around the lake in a rowboat. “We were the only ones out that morning, so it was really quiet and the water looked like glass,” says Melissa. As the couple drifted through the quiet waters, they came upon an area thick with lily pads. Jerome lifted the paddles, letting the boat glide silently over the lake amid the cheerful chirping of birds. Suddenly, Jerome unexpectedly reached into his pocket, pulled out a box in the unmistakable Tiffany blue, and asked Melissa to be his wife. Of course she accepted, reasoning, “You can’t say no to the blue box, right?”

Though Melissa and Jerome currently live in North Carolina, they both grew up in New York, Melissa in Schenectady and Jerome in Rochester. Wanting to be married somewhere that felt like home, they began looking for a venue within a 90-minute radius of the Capital Region. They didn’t have to search long before they discovered Saratoga National. “It represented Jerome and me so well — modern and bold,” says Melissa. They took inspiration from the venue’s natural colors, incorporating the vibrant green of the golf course and the rich chocolate brown of the club. Since Melissa is a graphic designer by trade, she took on a lot of the wedding planning herself. “I need to have my hands on everything, and it would have been too hard for me to hand off work to others,” she says.

The bride’s talent as a graphic designer was put to good use. She began with their save the dates, creating the stationery using a real, bright-green gold tee that perfectly matched the spirit of the venue. Adding a bit of silliness to the celebration, Melissa attached a pin to each place card with phrases such as: “I heart weddings,” “I’m a dance machine,” and “Sorry, I’m taken.” Of course, Melissa and Jerome got the best

The couple Took inspiraTion from The region’s naTural colors, incorporaTing vibranT green hues and rich chocolaTe browns ThroughouT Their décor.

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pins, reading “Mr.” and Mrs.” Each of the couple’s parents received a delicate handkerchief hand-embroidered with a special message. “We really wanted to thank our parents in a unique way that was personal and meaningful,” says Melissa.

There was no shortage of treats for those with a sweet tooth. A quirky candy bar provided green-hued treats that were almost too cute to eat, and guests couldn’t help but be amazed at the spectacular fondant-enveloped lime-green cake.

Though there were the inevitable small mishaps — Melissa’s dress simply refused to bustle, for example — both agree that the day was so happy and full of joy, nothing that could have made it better. Besides, Melissa couldn’t help but laugh when a grasshopper leapt out from the bottom of her gown, a souvenir from all the time they had spent taking photos in a grassy field outside. “After spending all that time in the field for the photos, I am shocked that only one grasshopper made it back with us,” says Melissa. Just like that morning among the lily pads, it had been a day of love, laughter, and a dash of the unexpected.

wedding professionalsfeatured

melissa &

jerome’s Advice

the best advice is to really pace

your to ~ do list over the year.

whatever you can scratch off the

list early really helps in the end.1

No.

expect some things to go wrong.

everything takes longer than you

think it will & you just have

to get over it & enjoy the day.2No.

Cake: debbie coye cakes

Coordination: katie o weddings & eventskatieoevents.com

entertainment: music man entertainmentmusicmanentertainment.com

Floral design: renaissance Floral designrenaissanceFloraldesign.com

Hair + makeup: make me FabulousmakemeFabulous.com

pHotograpHy: Joe elario PhotograPhyJoeelarioPhotograPhy.com

reCeption site: saratoga nationalgolFsaratoga.com

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