This past December, I had the pleasure of painting at a beautiful Jewish/Christian, New Orleans wedding at the Royal Sonesta hotel downtown. I’ve been patiently waiting for Lance Nicoll to share his breathtaking photos of the wedding so that I can share it all with you! And as luck would have it, I just received a sweet, sweet testimonial from the bride as well.
As soon as I float down from cloud nine, I’ll share a few details from the reception that made it into the painting. I got a little creative with the composition because the details were everywhere…. you’ll see what I mean. Ahh, I can’t wait for you to see this.
Here is the beautiful couple, Kaitlin and James. They danced all night long, with friends and family who came into New Orleans from all over to celebrate with them. I chatted with a few of the guests, and from what they had to say, this was the ‘biggest and baddest’ wedding of all time. A lot of them had never seen a live wedding painter before. They seemed delighted with the concept and with the painting itself, and that’s always a treat for me!
Here’s a stressful albeit funny thing that happened to me that night:
I arrived at the Royal Sonesta two hours before the reception began, as per usual. I walked up to the concierge and asked him to kindly point me towards the correct ballroom. There are multiple ballrooms in that hotel. Expecting to walk into an empty room scattered with florists preparing centerpieces and band members setting up the stage, I entered a room filled with people. These party-goers were dressed to the nines, eating, drinking and chatting away. It looked as if they had been there for quite some time.
My heart leapt into my throat – I instantly checked my calendar to confirm that I was not losing my mind, and hadn’t shown up to do my job two hours too late.
Turns out, this wedding was a day-long event. Everyone in attendance bounced between a Christian ceremony, a cocktail party, a Jewish blessing ceremony and finally the four hour New Orleans wedding reception, and I showed up prepared only for that last part of the day.
I went back and asked the concierge if I was crazy. He laughed and ushered me to the other ballroom, on the other side of the building. The photos above were taken in this room before guests arrived and the lights were dimmed.
“Just WOW! Stephanie did an incredible job on my live wedding painting. She was so lovely and easy to work with; I told her what I wanted and she delivered an even better job than I could have ever imagined. She captured my wedding so beautifully, but what I really loved was how she captured my wedding dress and all the small details. Everyone was in awe at my wedding seeing her paint live. So excited to hang my painting up in our formal living room!!
Thank you Stephanie for my GORGEOUS painting. I recommend Torregrossa Fine Art to all of my family, friends, and whoever needs a beautiful painting.”
– Kaitlin Kotler Casadaban
I painted my heart out that night, and am SO happy with how the painting came out. You can look at it over and over again, and see new details every time! Check out some of the band members, the cake display and the boxwood hedge wall and neon “Cheers,” which was actually in a separate room as a photo backdrop! The florals were breathtaking, the catering was divine, and not one detail was forgotten.
I have listed all the vendors featured in this post below, and I highly recommend each one of them. Thanks for reading, and feel welcome to share. Cheers!
Bride @kaitlinkotler
Groom @jamescasadaban
Vendors featured above:
Planning +Design: @mintjulepproductions
Photography @lancenicoll
Lighting + Custom Decor: @luminousevents
Florals: @herbivorefloraldesigns
Entertainment: @samhillentertainment Young hearts band
Live Event Painter: @torregrossa.art
Grooms cake : @chasingwang
Event Rentals : @exploreelement
Linens: @latavolalinen
