Julia & Dan Van der Werf
MARRIED OCTOBER 20, 2018
Julia and I met at the University of Guelph, in graduate school, where we were both studying Psychology. The psychology grad students at Guelph had a strange affinity for hosting themed costume parties. Naturally, it did not take long for our paths to cross at several of these parties, with things culminating during a magical Halloween evening where I was dressed as a baby and her as a black swan (more like Natalie Portman, less like the water bird in Stratford).
Our proposal was a bit less traditional than most. Both Julia and I knew for a while that we were going to get married, but I kept saying that we needed more consistency and stability in our lives before tying the knot. I mostly wanted clarity around where we would both be working and living. Julia accepted a supervised practice position in Toronto, and in May of 2017 we found an apartment in the heart of the city. In July of 2017 I also accepted a position in Toronto. The same afternoon I got this job offer, Julia and I sat on my parent’s patio with a celebratory drink, and decided, as a team, that it was time to get married. Even though it was a team decision, we both still wanted the more traditional proposal with the engagement ring, champagne, and other surprises. I didn’t yet have a ring or a plan for the proposal, so we knew it would still be a couple of months before the more formal engagement happened. Julia and I are both pretty organized and enjoy making plans as soon as decisions are made, so naturally we wanted to start the wedding planning process immediately. Given most people find it strange to start planning a wedding when you are not yet engaged, we decided to tell our immediate families that we had finally decided to get married. We also told friends or other relatives that we saw in person, but decided to hold off on telling the masses until the more traditional proposal had happened.
After we decided that operation marriage was a go, my first task was to pick out an engagement ring. Luckily for me, Julia had sent pictures and links of her dream ring to her sister. Julia’s sister and I took a trip down to Swanson’s Jewellers in Stratford, and they were able to create Julia’s dream ring to the exact detail of the pictures provided. We were both so impressed with the quality and service at Swanson’s Jewellers that we also got our wedding bands there when the time came.
Now that I had the ring, the last and final piece of the proposal was to figure out when and where to do it. On Friday, September 22nd, 2017 in our apartment, after we both got home from work, I officially popped the question. Julia said yes, we opened a bottle of Veuve, and began the full weekend celebrations at one of Julia’s bucket list restaurants in Toronto, Canoe. After dinner, we went over to Julia’s parents for more celebratory drinks, where our whole wedding party was waiting to greet us. The next day we made our way to Niagara-on-the-Lake to spend the remainder of the weekend touring some of our favourite wineries.
My parents had recently moved to St. Marys and had heard very good things about weddings at SMGCC, so we decided to check it out in addition to a few other venues. As soon as we met Courtney Ordway, that was pretty much it. Courtney spent over an hour with us showing us around the venue, and thoroughly going over all the options for the ceremony and Ballroom reception. We went to see some other venues, but it was already a done deal. SMGCC was instantly devoted to our vision for the wedding in a way that no other wedding venue had been able to match.
In the days before our October 20th wedding, the forecast was looking like it was going to a be a cool and rainy day. For our rehearsal the day prior, Ashton and Taryn had set up the Hideaway room for us to run through the ceremony rehearsal, and also mentioned that the Hideaway could be an indoor option for our actual ceremony the next day. Having this option is not something that is typical (since both rooms are normally booked every Friday and Saturday); and we were so lucky that it somehow worked out for our day. The room looked perfect, so we decided right then and there that we would have our ceremony in the Hideaway, followed by our reception in the Ballroom.
On the morning of our wedding, Julia, our Moms, her bridesmaids, and my Best Woman made their way to SMGCC for breakfast, hair, and makeup. These women always look fantastic, but with some additional help from Cristina Penge (hair stylist) and Heather Sydorko (makeup artist), they all looked exceptionally gorgeous. While the women were getting pampered at SMGCC, our Dads, my groomsmen, and I were getting ready and hanging out at the Westover Inn.
At noon, both parties met for photos at the Via Rail station in St. Marys. It was the perfect place for a first look, because our wedding party could wait inside while we saw each other for the first time that day. After taking in my stunning bride, one of the first things I noticed (after her dress) was her bouquet, because Lyric Flowers did such an extraordinary job with the florals!
Julia found her wedding dress and the bridesmaid dresses at Original, in Toronto. It was Julia’s Mom who suggested she try out Original, and Julia was so happy with her experience there – mentioning that they were so lovely to deal with, and talented at pulling dresses that matched her vision.
After wedding pictures, we returned back to SMGCC for our ceremony. The ceremony was a perfect representation of us because our Uncle Jim performed the ceremony, my mother-in-law legalized our marriage, and two of my best friends from childhood performed our favourite songs acoustically.
The décor for both the ceremony and reception was incredible because of Above & Beyond Event Design & Decor. We received so many compliments on the sophistication and elegance of the décor. The party was a blast because of DJ Alpha Productions. DJ Jay played all of our desired club beats, and ensured not to play any of our worst cringe beats (e.g., chicken dance). Amongst all of the dancing, our guests helped themselves to the wedding cake made by my mother-in-law, and ombre macarons made by Bobbette and Belle. Everyone got home safely because of a shuttle provided by Cherry Bus Lines. Our guests were quite pleased with their accommodations, staying at Stone Willow Inn or Westover Inn in St. Marys, and the Arden Park Hotel in Stratford. We were especially grateful to the Westover Inn for allowing us to take so many of our photos on their property. The grounds at Westover are spectacular, and they seemed particularly so on our wedding day.
Luckily we can relive the day anytime we want because of our incredibly talented photographer Nina Polidoro (and second shooter Laura Thompson), as well as our awesome videographer Jazz Kopcic (and second shooter Lauren Huston) from Amanda Kopcic Photography and Videography.
We could really tell that SMGCC is a family-run business, where everyone on staff is attentive, friendly, and so warm. Fortunately for us, they extend those feelings to their clients as well, so both Julia and I feel very much a part of the amazing SMGCC family. From the initial consultation to the days after the wedding, SMGCC made sure that planning the wedding was an enjoyable and stress-free experience. They helped us with the selection of our incredibly talented team of vendors, including the supremely talented ‘Dream Team’ (Above & Beyond, Lyric Flowers and Nina Polidoro). Also, the food was unbelievably delicious. At the pre-wedding tasting, we thought the food was really good, but on the actual day of our wedding, the food was next-level good – and we received several compliments from our guests about the food too!
We feel so lucky about the choices we made for the wedding, and one of the choices we feel most fortunate about was choosing SMGCC as our venue! Thank you SMGCC for making our wedding a day we will always remember.
Story by Dan Van Der Werf
Photography by Nina Polidoro Photography