New Jersey influencer, Ayzia James, wed David Ferro in an intimate vintage-themed micro wedding at the Osteria restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
A year apart in age, the now newlyweds orbited each other for four years during high school with overlapping friend groups because of clubs, and sports, and Ayzia’s neighbor dating David’s best friend; however, the lovers didn’t formally connect until a holiday party during the winter break of Ayzia’s freshman year of college.
“We instantly clicked and started dating,” Ayzia recalls. “Though we were never “friends” before we dated, I think the fact that we had friends in common helped establish familiarity and trust from day one.”
Following David’s surprise proposal along the Jersey City waterfront (one of their favorite spots to take in the views of NYC!), they started planning their dream wedding. Ayzia the bride took the lead as Wedding Planner with Wedding Coordination provided by Madeline Santiago of From Soup to Nutz.
All the details of their vintage micro wedding came to life with the help of their talented team comprised of local BIPOC and LGBTQ+ wedding vendors.
Amplifying local vendors and vendors of color is a passion for Ayzia. As a local New Jersey/Philly-based Influencer and Marketing Manager at Hamilton Jewelers, she had previously worked with 90% of their wedding vendors. The remaining 10% were found through local vendor recommendations.
As someone who supports local, female-owned, and Black-owned businesses both in my everyday life and through my blog and social media pages, it was really important to also support them on our big day.
– Ayzia James-Ferro
Their photographer, Jonathan Williams, is one of the many vendors the couple brought onto their wedding crew. And shockingly, this was his first-ever wedding photographed!
Ayzia shares, “…I knew I wanted my wedding photography to feel more organic and editorial than anything else so I took a leap of faith and hired him.”
Jonathan’s editorial documentary-style which he describes as having a “BTS feel” captured Ayzia and David’s wedding day exactly the way they imagined it. He photographed it so well that the Osteria in Philly signed him on to be one of their preferred photographers!
On working with Ayzia, Jonathan explains, “We are aligned in the fact that it’s important to both of us to support local, queer, and BIPOC entrepreneurs. I felt so honored to be part of their special day and I’m so proud of the work we did together for their wedding.”
Keep scrolling below for more on Ayzia and David’s love story and photos from their intimate vintage-themed micro wedding.
- Couple: Ayzia James and David Ferro
- Occupations: Marketing Manager and Entrepreneur
- Wedding date: October 21, 2023
- Wedding location: Osteria – Philadelphia, PA
Quick Facts:
- Bridesmaids and groomsmen gifts: I gifted my bridesmaids and MOH with pearl earrings from Hamilton Jewelers as well as Black satin pajamas, and Dave gifted his groomsmen and Best Men with monogrammed passport holders and custom notebooks. We both included handwritten cards for each member of the bridal party. We also wrote handwritten letters to each wedding guest.
- Gifts for one another: Dave and I decided to gift each other with our mini-moon weekend, since we are planning to go on our honeymoon for our one-year anniversary we wanted to spend time together away the weekend after the wedding just the two of us. We went to upstate NY and stayed at Scribner’s Catskill Lodge. We exchanged our private vows there during that weekend.
- Ceremony entrance song: Pachelbel’s “Canon in D” played by our violinist
- First dance song: “Kiss of Life” by Sade
The bride…
The dress…
Both Dave and I wanted to go with timeless, vintage-inspired looks and also match our wedding colors of black and white with gold accents. My dress was a semi-custom design made at Rebecca Schoneveld’s design studio. I loved being able to select the sleeves, neckline, and add a slit to my dress. She also focuses on making size-inclusive gowns which was important to me as a mid-size bride with curves.
What I really fell in love with was my gown’s fabric. It was an Italian silk with a white-on-white floral pattern. It was a subtle pattern but photographed beautifully.
The groom…
Dave opted for a white tux jacket and black pants. It also had a subtle vintage feel to it. I loved that we were both in white.
Their first look…
Tell us about the proposal:
Dave proposed at the Jersey City waterfront, one of our favorite places to go for a walk and take in views of the NYC skyline. His best friend, best friend’s girlfriend, and brother were waiting in the bushes. They ran out and surprised me after I said yes. They had champagne and flowers for us.
We celebrated with them for a few minutes before Dave took me to dinner just the two of us at Chickie’s in Jersey City. He also arranged for our families to meet us for brunch the next morning at Mathew’s Food and Drink in Jersey City. It was really special to have a couple of days where just our closest family and friends knew before announcing our engagement.
The wedding party…
Dainty details…
To the altar…
The ceremony…
Did you incorporate any culture into your wedding?
My mother and Dave’s mother both read poems during our ceremony. My mom read one from a Black author which was important to us to have that representation during the ceremony.
David and I were both raised Catholic, but have since become non-practicing. My grandparents who both passed away within a week of each other while we were wedding planning were both devout Catholics. It meant a lot to us to honor our family members, in attendance, abroad, or no longer with us by having a special reading from the bible and a prayer during the ceremony. We opted to use a local Black female Christian-based officiant to represent our faith and culture in the ceremony despite not having our wedding in a church.
Mr. & Mrs…
What is your best memory from your wedding?
Our officiant really took the time to get to know us as a couple and wrote little fun details about us as a couple, and the 13 years we had been dating into her script. It really made the audience, which was mostly very close friends and family, feel engaged throughout because they knew the exact moments she was referencing.
The reception…
The goal of our wedding was to feel as warm and intimate as it could, and this definitely went a long way in setting that tone for the evening. I really enjoyed the intimacy of the entire event.
– Ayzia James-Ferro
What is the best wedding advice you can give to engaged couples?
The best advice I can give is to take the time to make your wedding uniquely yours. I think especially today people get so caught up in what they see in magazines or on social media and try to replicate it. But then your wedding ends up feeling trendy and like other weddings. I think creating unique moments and using unique details that make it feel like you are what end up being the most rewarding. The best compliment I have gotten since our wedding from guests is that it felt “so us”.
We took a leap of faith planning a wedding for just 60 people, we weren’t sure if we would regret having a micro-wedding, but at the end of the day having just our very closest family and friends there ended up being the best part. It had the same feeling and intimacy of a birthday party but to celebrate our love and union. It was so special.
– Ayzia James-Ferro
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Vendors:
- Wedding Planner: The Bride
- Wedding Coordinator: Madeline Santiago of From Soup to Nutz
- Photographer: Jonathan Williams
- Bride’s Gown Designer: Rebecca Schoneveld
- Bridal Boutique: Rebecca Schoneveld Bridal’s Showroom in Irvington, NY
- Bride’s Shoes Designer: Jimmy Choo
- Earrings: H1912 vintage
- Veil Designer: Ofrenda
- Hair: Lua Recieli of Studio Copacabana
- Makeup: Jenna Apel
- Groom’s Tux Designer: The Black Tux
- Groom’s Shoes Designer: Del Toro
- Rings (wedding bands): Hamilton Jewelers
- Bridesmaids’ Dresses Designer: Birdy Grey
- Groomsmens’ Tuxes Designer: The Black Tux
- Florals: Marie Danielle Vil-Young of À Votre Service Events®
- Cake: New June Bakery
- Invitations: The Knot and Truly Engaging
- Calligraphy: Taylor Jones of TJ Calligraphy
- Rentals: Creamery Hill
- Lighting: Creamery Hill
- Entertainment – Ceremony: Alexandr Kislitsyn
- Content Creator: Lauren Listor of Laurel Creative
- Favors: Emily’s Bakeshop
- Getaway Car: Advanced Limousine
- Venue: Osteria – Philadelphia, PA
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