“In 2018, I met a guy named Karl on a dating app who joked that we had the same name,” Carly says. It caught his attention and after meeting in real life, the two quickly fell in love. A year later, they got a dog; During the first year of the pandemic, he proposed with his grandmother’s engagement ring. Carly and Karl ended up getting married over lunch with friends and family at Café Spaghetti. Here, Carly tells us about her unforgettable day…
“It was so nice to have the wedding in our Brooklyn neighborhood, in the backyard of Café Spaghetti. Before we went down to see everyone, the staff prepared an Aperol Spritz for me and an Old Fashioned for Karl. We took a sip together before entering. We were nervous!
“We said our vows in front of friends and family. I was choking and absentmindedly said ‘shit!’ My little nephew stepped in and said, ‘Hey, there are kids here!’ “Everyone started laughing and that broke the ice.”
“Our wedding wasn’t very traditional, but there were two things we wanted to do: break the glass and light a unity candle. When we finally kissed, everyone clapped and cheered.”
“My nephews were so excited to wear suits. They talked about them for months before the wedding. My youngest nephew, in front, has his birthday the same month we got married. He asked his parents for a motorcycle, but my brother and sister-in-law said, ‘No.’ So I was delighted to turn up and see this Vespa parked in the restaurant’s backyard!
“Wedding food can be bland, but since we had it in a restaurant, it was so good. The eggplant was excellent, but it’s hard to choose a favorite thing because everything was delicious.”
“At your own wedding, you can get caught up greeting everyone and suddenly realize you haven’t eaten anything. So Karl and I made a pact to sit down and enjoy the food.”
“I went to Cha Cha Linda for a vintage dress. I wanted to shine and I didn’t mind wearing white. This 70s sequin disco dress was perfect. Since my mom doesn’t live in New York, she couldn’t come dress shopping with me, and she felt a pang of sadness about that. So the next time he came to visit, we returned to Cha Cha Linda to find his a suit, which she is wearing here. I thought, ‘Someone has to wear white!’ She looked fabulous.”
“Guest books can be expensive, so for their wedding, my brother and sister-in-law chose a coffee table book they liked and had people sign each page with a marker. They chose a book about architecture; We chose one about New York graffiti. “The guests had fun choosing which page they wanted to sign.”
“We serve homemade desserts prepared by owner Sal’s father, such as tiramisu, cannolis and ice cream. There was so much food that the staff packed takeout boxes and left them at the exit, so our guests could take the leftovers home.”
Thank you so much Carly and Karl! What a beautiful day.
PS: Four weddings at New York City Hall, stories of romantic proposals and which wedding dress would you choose?
(Photos by Thalía Niño.)
