This Fun + Silly Summer Wedding In NYC Was Anything But Serious

“We’re not serious people,” explain Sam + Justin, “so the wedding had to be fun and silly.”

That’s the kind of joyful, radically authentic thinking that led this beautiful and deeply un-serious couple to plan one of the most wonderfully off-the-wall celebrations we’ve ever seen.

Yes, there were bubble machines 🫧. Yes, there were silly hats 🤠. Yes, the bride + groom did their first dance to “Rubber Ducky” from Sesame Street 🛁🐥.  Sam + Justin really took The Foundry in NYC and, with the help of event designers + planners from Poppy + Lynn, packed the place with playfulness, dreaming up the kind of wedding your inner child would be thrilled to attend.

“At Poppy + Lynn, we always say there are no rules for weddings. All you need are two people in love and someone licensed to officiate — the rest is optional,” says planner Amy. “So when Sam and Justin came to us and said they wanted a wedding that was not really a wedding at all- we were hooked.”

How did the bride + groom decide which zany ideas would make the cut when they were planning? “When we came up with an idea that felt stupid but made us laugh, we stuck with it,” Sam + Justin say. That’s how you end up with a kiddie pool, a giant game of checkers, a googly eyes portrait artist, an actual easter egg hunt, and nothing but straight, start-to-finish joy for everyone involved.

Take notes, all you non-traditional couples: There were no “shoulds” or “musts” or “supposed to’s” in this process. No rules. No stuffiness in sight. These two trusted themselves instead of relying on traditions, and they knew that the best way to honor their love story was with pure, undiluted FUN.

Amy said it best (and you’ll see it in these amazing photos from Lensy Michelle): “It’s safe to say this was probably the most fun wedding to have ever been thrown.”

“I bought my wedding dress pre-owned,” says Sam of her sparkly, second-hand KWH Bridal gown. “It was in worse shape than the seller described: a couple holes here, a lot of missing sequins, boning coming out of it. It seemed like a decent price for the state it was in, and I really did love it, but finding someone to alter it and repair the sequins was hard and expensive.”

“There were tailors who would do it but said it had to be dry cleaned first. A lot of dry cleaners wouldn’t take it because it was actively shedding sequins and said it had to be altered first. It was stressful. Eventually, I found Pinpoint Bridal on the Upper East Side. She did an amazing job repairing and altering it.”

How precious is this peek-y, playful first look moment!

“We met at an adult sports league called Adult Recess,” the young-at-heart couple shares, “which is a grab bag of silly recess-themed field games.”

Oh, Joi Blooms Co.! These bright, wild florals are playful perfection.

Sometimes the shopping stars just align. How did Justin find his groom attire? “Men’s Warehouse discount rack unexpectedly had a fantastic silver suit!”

Simply Sparkly

Sequin looks that capture Sam’s shimmery bridal vibe.

Anderson Maxi Dress from Show Me Your Mumu$248SHOP NOW

Frankie Dress from Reformation$348SHOP NOW

Helsi Helen Stretch Strapless Mermaid Dress from Anthro$625SHOP NOW

A Courtyard Ceremony

“They had a brief and personal ceremony outside in the courtyard before the festivities started,” Amy remembers of the day’s timeline.

“We worked with Joi Blooms to design a beautiful ceremony backdrop that felt whimsical and playful on the steps.”

Our Favorite Memory
The vows meant the most to each of us personally. We were surprised how much of a blur the rest of the wedding felt because you're really like a host at a party, and it ends up feeling like it's really about your guests rather than yourselves. But the vows, despite the microphones and eyeballs, were really heartwarming and intimate for us.

Take a look through our collection of Creative + Meaningful Wedding Ceremony Ideas to put your own one-of-a-kind stamp on how you say “I do” like Sam + Justin did.

Our Musical Choices
Processional
 "Love Like You" from Steven Universe - piano cover
Recessional
1812 Overture -- the part with the cannons
First Dance
"Rubber Duckie" -- Bert and Ernie

Our Advice
Before you plan anything, find a cozy cafe you love to visit and sit with your partner and discuss your vision and expectations. Print out a questionnaire that forces you to consider all aspects of the wedding, including the parts you might dread. Your expectations could be wildly different from your partner's, and you're either going to find that out eventually. Find it out before you spend money. Deeply listen to where they're coming from and try to make the day wonderful for them. If your partner isn't enjoying your wedding, the day will suck.

A Delightufully Silly Reception

“First and foremost, Justin and Sam were adamant that they did not have formal seating for dinner,” Amy says of the couple’s super free approach to reception planning. “They didn’t want to see any tablescapes – no long tables with chairs lined up and plated dinner.”

“So, we worked with Fig & Pig Catering to create a floating cocktail style dinner full of all their favorite things. We had stations set up as well as passed bites and bowls with a variety of different delicious things from their wide taste in cuisine.”

Now, this is one warm weather wedding idea we haven’t heard of, and we LOVE it: “Since it was a summer wedding, Sam and Justin both loved the idea of a ‘splash zone,'” Amy says. “We set up a kiddy pool with deck chairs for people to dip their toes in and cool off if they so pleased.”

Silly hats; serious picture. And that’s just the beginning…

“A magician that they had seen at a local magic show walked around, posed as a guest, doing close up magic tricks,” Amy shares. “Inside the main room, we had stations set up in each of the alcoves. You could play one of their favorite board games, choose a silly hat to wear for the night, make Play Dough statues, or leave a silly message on their audio guest book.”

“And of course, we had an Easter Egg hunt set up for guests to try and find throughout the night.”

“Having a great photographer was super helpful for making us feel comfortable and capturing the wedding’s vibe,” says the couple. “Lindsey “Lensy” Michelle was fantastic and seeing the way she beautifully captured our friends and family and the energy of the day was moving!”

“Some of the most memorable parts of the wedding were from little inexpensive touches,” Sam + Justin add, “like having automatic bubble blowers and blow up pool toys on the dance floor, and hiding eggs around the venue with little finger puppets inside.”

“A lot of our friends kept their egg treasures as mementos!”

“We were thrilled with how much our guests embraced the props.”

“Instead of formal tables, we set up multiple lounge groupings throughout the courtyard,” Amy explains of the reception’s setup. “High top tables with bar stools and a few low top tables with seats were also available for those who wanted a more stationary place to land.”

“We also worked with Upstate Jamboree to bring in a variety of upscale yard games to play in the courtyard.”

Love the idea of having games at your wedding reception? We have a post about the best + most fun wedding games!

“They loved the idea of having guest portraits done, but they didn’t resonate with the typical ‘fashion illustrations,'” Amy says of how the couple approached immortalizing their guests in take-home works of art. “Instead, we got illustrator Jordan Sondler to come out and do abstract portraits, complete with googly eyes.”

“Once the sun set, everyone headed in to the main room to watch their first dance as a married couple and kick off the dance floor,” says Amy of the portion of the evening when DJ Mariko took over. “Justin and Sam did a choreographed swing dance to Rubber Ducky, and ended it with throwing rubber ducks for guests to catch.”

Universal Light & Sound really brought the dance party to life with this sparky disco ball setup.

This whole thing has us feeling so young at heart!! Congratulations on your super fun + silly nontraditional day, Sam + Justin. What a brilliant version of breaking all the wedding rules. All the best to you both from GWS!