Wedding Bells - WeddingsofToronto.com

EDITOR ROSEANNE DELA ROSA.
weddings
TORONTO
A GROOVY
KIND
OF LOVE
Shira Leuchter & Christopher Hanratty
May 23, 2010
Shira Leuchter and Christopher Hanratty threw a memorable
DIY celebration that totally reflected their love of the arts. “It
was important that the day represented us as a couple. We did
this by handcrafting everything we could such as our celebratory flags and stationery, displaying items from our past (including family photographs) and sourcing local and ethical food
and flowers,” Shira explains. The day began with a beautiful
ceremony followed by a fun reception—both of which took
place at Toronto’s Berkeley Church. To show off their quirky
personalities, Shira and Christopher decorated their venue with
whimsical spring garden items à la Shakespeare’s A Midsummer
Night’s Dream. “We wanted the room to feel magical and fun,”
Shira recalls with a smile. “So we surrounded our room with
decor elements like mushrooms, snails, birds and fresh blooms.”
Shira and Christopher also hired a live band to keep guests on
their feet. “For our first dance, our band suggested one of their
original songs called ‘I Do,’” the pair recall. “It was quite the experience as our guests sang
to us while we danced—
TO SEE A CONTINUATION OF SHIRA
AND CHRISTOPHER’S CUTE AND
there’s nothing like being
QUIRKY CELEBRATION PLEASE VISIT
WEDDINGBELLS.CA/INTHISISSUE.
serenaded by 100 of your
friends and family!”
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spring & summer 2011 | weddingbells.ca
Clockwise from top Guests
were treated to personalized
straws; The duo thanked their
guests by decorating the napkins
with petite banners that said
“we love you”; Shira incorporated
her childhood into the day with
her old yet well-kept baby shoe.
DETAILS
FAVOURITE DETAIL “For me, it was the pocket square that Shira
embroidered with Raymond Carver’s poem ‘Hummingbird.’
And the poem banner that we strung up, with lines from ‘I Like
You,’ which we read during our ceremony,” Christopher shares.
“I loved all the small details that made our day unique to us—
especially the flags. I think our guests had fun with them
throughout the night,” Shira says.
FLOWERS Coriander Girl, coriandergirl.com. Fresh blooms
helped enhance the garden theme. Flowers were scattered
throughout the room in small and large arrangements.
GOWN Monique Lhuillier from Dina Alonzi Bridal, dinaalonzi
bridal.com . “The staff here were helpful and fun, and the sample
sale selection and prices are perfect for a bride who is looking
for a high-quality dress on a smaller budget,” Shira explains.
HONEYMOON The pair continued their celebration with a trip
to France. “We spent five days in Paris,” the two recall. “Then we
rented a car and drove to the south of France, where we stayed
in an apartment in Hyères and visited the picturesque towns
throughout the area—it was an amazing adventure.”
Clockwise from top Celebratory words like “yahoo” were sewn
into the flags; Mary Beaty from Weddings of Toronto officiated
the ceremony; Shira and Christopher had custom bird cake toppers
by Ann Wood; Alison Westlake from Coriander Girl pulled together
a beautiful arrangement of flowers in shades of white, red and purple.
Clockwise from left Bundles of flowers
adorned every table; All the place cards were
handwritten by Shira; Heart-shaped glasses
showed off the duo’s fun sense of humour.
PHOTOGRAPHY SARAH TACOMA/SARAHTACOMA.CA.
weddingbells.ca | spring & summer 2011
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