Friends, Armand + Josh’s Detroit museum wedding is just the sweetest thing ever and a very beautiful reminder that if you stick to making decisions that represent YOU as a couple, you truly can’t go wrong. From a super stylish, mismatched wedding party to green and gold wedding decor, each decision was made with purpose. What’s more, we can totally feel the warmth and energy in Hallie Kohler‘s photos of their industrial-modern ceremony at La Dolce Vita and MOCAD reception, as if we were there ourselves.
A + J wanted to take their 120 loved ones on a little tour of Detroit, highlighting places guests had never been and all the places they love to explore. They both work in entertainment so creating a really killer atmosphere was key!
Armand tells it, There were so many memorable moments from this day including my younger brother and Josh’s younger sister marrying us, jamming to Mariah Carey on the way to the ceremony, and tying Josh’s bowtie, but we both agreed what took the cake was when Josh and I were looking at each other from opposite ends of the aisle, after watching all our best friends in our wedding party walk down one-by-one. The gates closed and left just Josh and I there together.
One of Josh’s best friends, Kalin of Sweetwater Floral, dreamt up their floral arrangements. She recommended Hallie Kohler behind the lens, and they knew they had their dream team!
Everyone in their wedding party had been friends with them for 10+ years. There was no question as to who would be by their sides on the big day. When it came to fashion, they gave each of their girls a color and told them to run with it. Armand says, We didn’t want the girls in a uniform and wanted their unique style to shine while feeling their absolute best. We wanted the guys to bring the look together and make it complete, so we had them rent suits from The Black Tux and we got them ties from The Tie Bar (three bowties and four traditional ties).
When we were taking sunset photos in Detroit, random people were congratulating us and honking their horns in excitement. It was so heartwarming to see people showing love for a same sex couple on their wedding day. Shows how far we have come.
Going into wedding planning, they knew they didn’t want a traditional venue—so they started to take note of any venue around town that might be a little unconventional, and maybe could help them keep costs down. They knew they could soften an industrial space with a rough exterior with the lighting and décor.
Naturally they were pretty pleased with how Adeline Rose Events and Sweetwater Floral decked out the Museum of Contemporary Art!
We knew MOCAD was THE place after we both smiled immediately after walking into the room and could immediately see our guest there having fun. This venue also had the luxury of providing 2 event assistants (and there is nothing like a little extra help). We picked the ceremony spot because it truly felt like a secret garden. La Dolce Vita is a great Italian restaurant in the “non-trendy” part of Detroit with the most gorgeous patio—complete with a wall covered with greens. We had so many of our guests say, “I’ve lived in Metro Detroit for x number of years and never knew this existed.”
A friend designed their bar signs, Josh’s mom was behind the calligraphy for their wedding, and the museum came with two event assistants which helped them stay near their budget of $25K. But another great budget tip they had was to have slightly different décor from the head table to the rest of the tables—such as more greenery on the head table, more lights on the other tables, chiavari chairs at the head table, folded chairs for the rest, and gold beaded chargers at their table while the other guests had solid gold chargers. It kept the look cohesive while saving a huge chunk of the budget!
So, so many sweet moments in these photos!
Be sure to pop by our Insta today for a little video by our couple, Armand + Josh. Congratulations, you two!
Photography: Hallie Kohler / Ceremony Venue: La Dolce Vita / Reception Venue: Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit (MOCAD) / Planning: Adeline Rose Events / Floral Design: Sweetwater Floral / Cake: Love & Buttercream / Catering: Wandering Gourmet Catering / Rentals: Event Source / DJ: DJ Bangers & Joey Radio / Signage: Made by Friend / Groomsmen: The Black Tux & The Tie Bar
