Real Couple Wedding: Victoria + Dan at Sodo Park Seattle

Victoria and Dan’s wedding celebration in Seattle combined compassion and inclusiveness like no other. With COVID-19 regulations constantly changing, this couple took the reins on their day and planned for every possible outcome. Come along with us through the planning process and how we created a virtual, fully-immersive experience alongside their Sodo Park celebration.

OUR TAPESTRY COUPLE.

First, we need to thank Dan’s wonderful brother, Ed, who played cupid in this couple’s love story. Dan and Ed had taken a snowboarding trip in Lake Tahoe, where a girl in a blue wig was about to change the rest of Dan’s life. Turns out, it just so happened to be “crazy hair day” at the resort and Victoria celebrated that fully, sporting her Katy Perry wig with pride. This little hair memento summed up the rest of their introduction, which was full of adventure, fun, and quirkiness. As the day went on, the two made every excuse to be together and both noted how at-ease they were from the get-go. Unfortunately, Dan was moving from California to Seattle within the next couple days. Victoria was residing in California at the time, so their story would have to continue further down the line. 

Over the next year and a half, the two knew that their bond was something special, as both Dan and Victoria were making trips to visit each other. They used the term “long-distance friends” as in their situation at the time, it didn’t make sense to start a relationship unless they had wound up in the same city. The two strengthened their bond and confided in each other over many video calls and text messages. Somewhere in the mix of virtual communication, the two fell in love. Victoria moved to Seattle after grad school and after their first official date, the rest was history. 

Dan and Victoria got engaged surrounded by their loved ones, both physically and virtually, on Thanksgiving Day. We think that it is important to note how much effort they put into including family and friends into their story. Dan’s father had been secretly streaming the proposal so that Victoria’s parents could watch this special moment. This theme of inclusion and compassion continues throughout their planning process. 

THE TAPESTRY PLANNING PROCESS.

Since their wedding planning process began mid-pandemic, both Victoria and Dan considered safety protocols from the beginning. The couple had decided on creating not only an intimate in-person experience, as well as an all-inclusive virtual experience for guests that were not able to attend in-person. With functionality and ease being of main importance, we recommended they go with Blue Danube, an audio and visual event production company, which specializes in streaming live events. This company was also a preferred vendor for the couple’s chosen venue, which made accessibility and execution even more flawless. Viewers would be able to watch the ceremony and celebration through Youtube Livestream, as well as a Zoom webinar.

Something truly unique that was incorporated into the experience was the use of GatherTown. GatherTown is a fully immersive virtual space that allows people to interact with each other, as if they were in the real world. With the use of avatars, guests would be able to converse with other virtual attendees, as well as those attending the event in person. The plan was to have laptops at the venue where family and friends could “plug-in” to this alternate reality and mingle amongst other loved ones. In order to execute this properly, we had to get technical and make sure that we had the wifi bandwidth required for this immersive experience.

The virtual celebration experience was something new to the Tapestry world, and we are so happy we got to navigate this educational moment with such an amazing and detail-oriented couple. One thing that we learned rather quickly was how much communication and support is needed to execute this kind of event, however with so many great tools at our disposal, we were certain to cover all bases that involved these logistics and made sure to ask ALL the questions. 

Let’s get into the onsite celebration. With COVID regulations and guidelines changing so rapidly at the beginning of 2021, a lot of day-of questions had to remain unanswered until about a month before the pandemic. This included factors such as head-count, masks, and vaccination requirements. We were constantly checking updates from the CDC and the state government. Both Dan and Victoria were super flexible and understanding throughout this whole process and when the time came to decide, the couple went for a fully personalized, vaccinated event.

THE WELCOMING ATMOSPHERE.

Can we just take a moment to acknowledge this couple's amazing taste? The event was to take place in the beautiful venue that is Sodo Park, an event space in the heart of Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood. This space offers breathtaking rooftop views of the city skyline, as well as exuding a rustic and warm aura. This choice truly reflected their personalities, and we love that they added in their own mix of vibrant florals and fabrics to the space. 

The attention to detail was OUTSTANDING, everything had come to fruition with such harmony, and our cooperative planning came full circle when we saw the space. At the entrance, there were custom printed masks for guests, as well as descriptive signage throughout the venue explaining the virtual experience and how guests could interact within that unique space. 

Precious family mementos filled the space and you could see personal touches everywhere you looked. The spunkiness of the environment mirrored the couple’s fun-loving attitude. There was instantly a smile on everyone’s faces as they were welcomed into this embracing and joyous setting. 

Also, I feel like we have to give Dan’s pink suit a special shoutout. WE ARE OBSESSED.

THE JOYOUS CELEBRATION.

The ceremony began with a Ketubah signing, a tradition in Jewish weddings for thousands of years. The vow exchange followed shortly after which definitely tugged at our heartstrings. Their marriage was celebrated immediately with a live band, adding to the already fairytale moment. Guests were then led to their seats where they were encouraged to hop onto the virtual space, which was definitely a hit! We put time aside to make sure that the newly-weds were able to interact with their virtual guests before the evening festivities began.

The night was full of love, laughter, and LOTS of dancing. There were endless details of sweetness that the couple incorporated such as: mementos from their grandmothers' weddings, funny cake toppers, gluten-free desserts, surprise slideshows to coordinate with the father-daughter/mother-son dances, a childhood Rabbi coming to offer a special blessing, a community-based version of the seven blessings during the ceremony, gifts at the welcome event for out of town guests, and so many more small details!

Working with Victoria and Dan made us feel like the luckiest planners in the world! We cannot thank them enough for their attentiveness, cooperation and their keen eye for detail. The opportunity to coordinate a virtual hybrid wedding was such a blast and we are so glad we could execute that special detail on their wedding day. 

-Sarah, Tapestry Blogger

Photos courtesy of Julia Kinnunen Photography.

THE VENDOR TEAM.

Designer, Planner, + Coordinator: Kate // Tapestry Event Co. // @tapestryeventco // tapestryeventco.com // Seattle, WA + Beyond

Photographer: Julia // Julia Kinnunen Photography // @jwkinnunen // juliakinnunenphotography.com // Seattle, WA

Videographer: Alexis // Green Attic Films // @greenatticfilms // greenatticfilms.com // Seattle, Atlanta + Beyond

Officiant: Rabbi Jim Mirel // templebnaitorah.org // Seattle, WA

Desserts: Flying Apron //@flyingapron // flyingapron.com // Seattle, WA

Florist: Carlee // Goldenrod Floral Design // @goldenrodfloral // goldenrodfloraldesign.com // Seattle, WA

Band + DJ: Blue Wave Band // @bluewaveband // bluewaveband.com // WA + OR

Paper Goods Vendor: Jerise // wp.jerise.com/portfolio/ketubahs/ Contact Via Etsy Shop

Hair + Makeup Artist: Holly Tipp // Holly Tipp Makeup // @hollytippmakeup hollytippmakeup.com // Seattle, WA + Beyond

Crystal Jenkins // Opal Artistry // @opalartistryseattle // opalartistry.me // Seattle, WA + Beyond

Livestream Production: Blue Danube Productions // @bluedanubepro // bluedanubeproductions.com // Seattle, WA

Venue + Caterer: Sodo Park // @herbanfeast // herbanfeast.com/venues/sodo-park // Seattle, WA