labor of love

Happy Labor Day, peeps!

My dear friend Angela married her dear love Josh on Saturday! The beautiful wedding was at a 1800s farmhouse in Setauket, NY, on Long Island.

I met Angela almost exactly four years ago (how the hell did that happen?!), when we were both freshly hired to work at Lori McLean’s Jewelry Shop in NYC. We were coworkers for two years before I moved to Taiwan, and always just sort of got each other. It’s no surprise why. We were both kids in the gritty, vibrant, community-driven Village of the late eighties, early nineties. We’re real with each other and share a sort of old-soul understanding that ascends anything that can be verbally explained. So, when I got the Save the Date, I was thrilled that I didn’t have to miss Homegirl’s wedding!

Angela kicked off her own kick-ass jewelry business, Gemstone Gypsy, and left the Shop around the time that I returned to it, in May. And all the Shopkids were there!: Fellow NYC Native, Tama (pictured below, who was in my fourth grade class!!!), was my LIRR buddy, and my bestie theatre buddy Adam (of Georgia trip fame) officiated the ceremony!

Angela wore a beautiful dress, designed by a friend, that was just the lightest shade of pink, with slightly more rich color at the bottom. Gorgeous. And, please, do yourselves a favor and check out her Insta for a shot of her wedding jewelry. If I look at it again, I might turn green forever. 😀

In Angela’s sister’s speech, she emphasized that family is everything to Angela. Everything. All of her buds know this. I’ve done a lot of research on weddings for the shop and the one thing that most featured brides say on ze blogs is how important and memorable it is to have your wedding be about you, with your own special touches. Angela and Josh’s wedding was simple but opulent. Every detail was executed with utmost care and thought, and every piece, down to the Gemstone Gypsy, Bedouin-chic rug oasis and the tiny initials on either side of their Chuppah, was special and told a part of their story.

And, remember how I mentioned family? Well I think they succeeded in throwing a gorgeous wedding brimming with love and celebrating the family that they’ve just begun, all of their own.

When I left for Taiwan, Angela and Adam got all my friends together to pitch in for a ring that Angela designed for me as a going away present. It is a huge bezel-set Ethiopian opal, in 14k with a sterling band. In keeping with Angela’s #showmeyourrings steez, here’s what my hands looked like for the wedding.

Congratulations to the happy couple, Angela and Josh! I feel so special to have been a part of your day. And, really, it’s not a wedding without a goofy pic (or eight).