A Modern Chic Wedding At Studio 450 in New York, New York

Rachele Testa and Christian Schaefers met over 10 years ago while attending Manhattan College in Riverdale, New York. It was not love at first sight for the couple. They shared many mutual friends and would bump into each other at parties or around the Business School. They never truly knew one another or had any other feelings until Halloween 2006 when one of their mutual friends threw a Halloween bash.

Christian looked dapper as ever in a Phantom of the Opera costume and Rachele was a fierce kitty cat. The two locked eyes, that night, and he turned to her and said, "Hey girl, you look good tonight." Rachele saw him in a new light and the next day he called her to ask her out to lunch at Jakes Steak House. The two have been inseparable since.

After dating for six years, Christian proposed. Since the two were dating for so many years, Rachele had been imagining and anticipating her proposal forever! The two took a fabulous trip to Costa Rica for Thanksgiving in 2012 and Rachele for sure thought this was the trip. After the proposal did not happen on their vacation, she was totally bummed. Two days after the trip, Christian caught her off guard and proposed in their New York City apartment.

Rachele belonged to the Parish of St. Francis Xavier so she always knew it would be the place she would get married. For their reception, they had a specific vision in mind and wanted a raw loft space to fit their unique personalities. So, they choose Studio 450, in their hometown of Manhattan. The planning process was intense because they literally had to create the entire vibe and event aesthetic. They wanted to have a wedding that was modern yet chic, warm and romantic.

The wedding took place on Friday, June 13th. The weather was fickle with waves of rain and sunshine throughout the day. When Rachele left the hotel, on her way to St. Francis, the rain finally dissipated and everyone was smiling ear to ear as she arrived in a custom Angel Sanchez silk faille gown with embroidery from France. 

To add to the vision, Rachele held a cascading orchid bouquet mixed with peonies and English roses. Her father was starting to get very emotional asking her over and over if she was “Ready.” She turned to him and said, “Dad, I love you, and now are you ready?” Finally, gulping down their emotions, they proceeded down the long aisle.

Rachele never took her eyes off of Christian, as she walked toward him. The ceremony was traditional Catholic. During their first kiss, Christian picked his bride up, sweeping her off her feet. The guests went wild, cheering and clapping. As they exited, it was completely down pouring; the newlyweds just froze and looked back at all their family and friends.

After their photographer took photos of them, the couple proceeded to Studio 450 for their robust cocktail hour. They decorated the venue with various arrangements in large black vases with dogwood, blueberry and eremurus as well as mirrored vases with peony, jasmine, English roses, clematis, geranium, oregano and Queen Anne’s lace creating a very chic yet organic floral scape. The colors they chose were white, taupe, silver, grey and black.

Guests enjoyed a five-tier cake custom-filled with banana and strawberry buttercream. The couple’s first dance was to John Legend’s “All of Me” with the last 2 minutes being the Tiesto mix. This set the tone for the entire evening. The couple’s motto was, “CAN’T STOP, WON’T STOP.”

Rachele and Christian spent their honeymoon at The Gansevoort in Turks and Caicos and will be heading to Italy for part two in the fall.