I have the incredible honor and joy of photographing so many beautiful wedding days, but something about Kate-Lynn and Kevin’s big day at the Art Factory in New Jersey stays with me, even to this day - I don’t think there is a week that goes by when I don’t think back on their wedding. Maybe it was all of the thought they put into making their wedding day FUN. Maybe it was all of the best kind of chaos that happened on their day. Maybe it was how Kate-Lynn treated me like a co-conspirator in her ongoing quest for exciting adventure. No matter what it was, it’s a memory that always brings the biggest smile to my face, knowing that I got to enjoy such an incredible day alongside such incredible people.

THE COUPLE

How to describe Kate-Lynn and Kevin? There are so many fun adjectives, it’s hard to pick just one. They are full of life, and always down for a trip or a party. They’re intelligent and warm; constantly ready to smile, and generous with their time and spirits. There are no walls up with them - when they are in front of you, they are wholly themselves; what you see is incredibly, beautifully, honestly what you get. Spending time with them feels like spending time with the human version of the party popper emoji. They’re excited, and exciting; they are the most enjoyable tidal wave to get caught up in.

THE VENUE

Art Factory Studios in Paterson, NJ, is a large warehouse venue. It has served as a backdrop for movies (we specifically took photos in front of the draped lights on Kate-Lynn and Kevin’s wedding day because they were featured in Steven Spielberg’s 2021 West Side Story), and is essentially a clean slate for you to craft your wedding day experience on. While many venues boast great outdoor options for photos, the Art Factory boasts wonderful photo options both outdoors AND indoors, which is an incredible strength for a venue. For the most part, the options inside are well-lit and spacious, which most indoor-centric venues aren’t always necessarily able to accommodate.

The Art Factory also lets you pick and choose which rooms you will use on your wedding day; as I mentioned before, it’s a BIG venue, so having a good wedding planner help out on your wedding day here is key, to not only help with your own coordination, but also the coordination of vendors and guests (forever thankful we had the Katie O team with us on this day; they made everything work so seamlessly!).

THE DETAILS

“Vibrant” seemed to be the theme of Kate-Lynn and Kevin’s wedding - vibrant in hues of color, and vibrant in living life. The details at their wedding were unlike anything I’ve ever seen at a wedding, and weren’t restricted simply to aesthetics; the idea of vibrancy spilled over into everything the couple put together. Here’s a non-exhaustive (!) list of all of the amazingness that was encapsulated in the details of their Art Factory Studios wedding day:

Kate-Lynn’s tiger theme for her bridesmaids getting ready attire
The colorful ribbons that served as a backdrop in the wedding suite
An audio guestbook with a hamburger phone
Drink decals and a neon sign that spelled out “K2T2” - a nod to the fact that Kate-Lynn and Kevin have always had the same initials
A cocktail hour cake decorated to look like a Pound Puppy
Burgundy and dusty rose florals to compliment the wedding party’s dark green outfits
2 lounge areas set up during the reception: one, a replica of their Cornell college dorm rooms; the other, a replica of their NYC apartment. These lounges were perfection, with the dorm room fridge being filled with ramen, and the apartment table featuring pretzels with mustard
An inflatable bride and groom, perfectly positioned to greet guests as they walked into the reception room
A magician, who casually walked around the cocktail hour,
The most excited flower man I’ve ever seen walking down the aisle during the ceremony
Hangover cake at the reception exit, with wristbands granting entry to the afterparty

This day was pure FUN, from beginning to end, from every big detail to every minor one.

THE RECEPTION

Kate-Lynn and Kevin’s reception felt like a fever dream. Everywhere I looked, anywhere I looked, things were happening. They entered into the reception amongst sparkler machines. Guests enjoyed the themed lounges. Touchdown, the Cornell mascot, was introduced onto the dancefloor (yes, they actually had the Cornell mascot join their reception). A fire breather offered a performance after toasts. A stuffed tiger was passed from guest to guest while they all danced and drank the themed signature cocktails. Towards the end of the night, an 8-foot tall robot joined the party, and passed off his CO2 gun to Kate-Lynn to keep it all going. This wedding oozed joy, playfulness, and celebration in every possible way.

I recently updated my home page to note the following:

“I believe that your wedding day should feel like chaos in the best way. Like jumping in the ball pit at Chuck E. Cheese. Like screaming for your favorite boyband at the mall in 1997. Like fireworks at the annual town carnival. Like a litter of puppies yipping just because you walked through the door.

Like pure, excited, childlike joy.”

Kate-Lynn and Kevin inspired this. Their love and their wedding set my creative heart ablaze, and I’ll never be able to thank them properly for that - it’s been carrying me forward in such a wonderful way since their big day in 2022. So, K2T2, just know that that paragraph on my website was borne out of your wonderfulness. You inspire so much around you that you probably don’t even realize. What a gift to the universe you are.

FROM THE COUPLE

“Erica and her Sweet Alice Team are incredible. After our initial consultation, we just knew we needed Erica as our photographer. As we went back and forth with venues and dates, we kept emailing her immediately before booking anything as we just felt she would be the glue to our day. And she did not disappoint! Prior to the big day, Erica was so organized, responsive and communicative. She guided us through the process, and made every decision so easy.

Erica also made the entire day so seamless. She brings this amazing energy to the day. She is the ultimate hype person, making not only us as the couple feel special, but every person in the bridal party and beyond feel the same way. She nailed every shot we wanted. And she also worked with us to make sure we didn't waste any time as she just wanted us to enjoy every minute we could to be with our guests.

Erica and her team made us feel so comfortable throughout the whole process and day. We trusted, and were confident she would capture it all. And she did not disappoint. We are still so overjoyed and absolutely blown away by all the moments, both structured and candid, that she captured. The pictures are beautiful and joyful and absolutely perfectly captured. We are so grateful for the memories. She is one of the most hard-working, professional, and most caring people we have ever met. And be pleasantly surprised, she will become a true friend after it all is done. We couldn't recommend her enough!”