The Bride Wore Schiaparelli, Ines Di Santo, and Dior by John Galliano for Her Romantic Garden Wedding in Paris

The couple worked with Angie Amzallag, Joanna Ascher, and Lisa Cohen at Social Studio Events to plan the weekend. “They immediately understood our vision,” Nicole says. “They brought such a fresh, creative approach that helped us build a day that felt original and totally our own.”

Nicole took a similar approach when it came to choosing looks for her wedding wardrobe. “What I wore was deeply personal,” she says. “Coming from a background in fashion, I had a clear vision of what I wanted—and I was lucky to have a good friend, stylist Eric McNeal, be by both my and Joe’s side to help bring it to life. Every look we chose told a story and held meaning.”

For the Friday night welcome party, the couple hosted a cruise on the Seine, where the dress code called for “summer cocktail.” To this, the bride wore an archival John Galliano for Christian Dior knit dress, sourced from Happy Isles in New York. “I’ve always admired that era of Galliano’s work—the detail, the romance,” Nicole says. “I paired it with my mom’s beaded purse from her own wedding day, Jimmy Choo sandals, and jewelry by Parisian designer Sylvia Toledano.”

Even though Nicole had a clear vision of what she wanted, finding her wedding dress wasn’t as easy as she’d hoped. After visiting several bridal salons in New York and feeling overwhelmed by the process, she went to Mark Ingram. “Supporting a Black-owned bridal atelier was important to me, and working with Mark and his incredible team made the experience even more meaningful,” she explains. “When they brought out the Isolde gown by Ines Di Santo, I knew instantly it was the one. It felt timeless, regal, and graceful.”

Nicole also wanted to incorporate a bit of home into her wedding day, so she had her veil custom-made by a seamstress in her hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina. It was cathedral length and lined with French Chantilly lace that she hand-selected. She also tied a handkerchief that belonged to her late grandmother around her bouquet. “I suppose that was my ‘something old,’” Nicole says. “But more than anything, it was a way to keep her close and feel her presence with me on a day I know she would’ve loved.”

On Saturday, the day began bright and early, with the bride and groom getting ready at Château Voltaire in separate suites. “We decided not to do a first look because I wanted everyone to experience the moment Joe saw me in my dress,” Nicole remembers. “Instead, I did a first look with my dad. I gave him a note and a photo of me dressed as a bride for Halloween when I was about three years old—a little reminder of how far we’ve come, and that I’ll always be his little girl.”

The ceremony began at 1 p.m. at the Maison de l’Amérique Latine. Guests entered through a private, grand stone courtyard and made their way through a Parisian townhome that opened into the museum’s gardens—a hidden sanctuary tucked away in the heart of Saint-Germain.

The garden was already lush and green, so the couple chose floral arrangements that felt natural and effortless—loose, airy, and unstructured. The romantic color palette of soft oranges, peach, coral, and green blended beautifully, and the blooms and foliage were designed to look as if they had grown naturally from the lawn.

The ceremony started with Joe walking out to our string quartet’s rendition of “Best Part” by Daniel Caesar and H.E.R.—soon followed by some of their immediate family members, the man of honor and best man, and Nicole’s grandmother. “She’s a self-proclaimed flower enthusiast with an incredible green thumb,” Nicole says. “And the perfect choice to be our flower girl.” The bride walked down the aisle with her dad to a custom arrangement of Pachelbel’s “Canon in D”—a nod to her mother, who walked down the aisle to the same song.

For the main part of the ceremony, the couple also kept things close to home. “When I asked one of my closest friends, Joe Holder, if he’d ever officiated a wedding, he said no—but that he’d be honored to officiate ours,” the groom says. “That’s just who Joe is: someone who always shows up with thoughtfulness and heart. We met playing football at the University of Pennsylvania, and he’s been a constant source of support and motivation ever since. Sharing our vows with him by our side is a memory we’ll always cherish.”

Before the couple exchanged their vows, the bride’s grandfather said a prayer over them—a meaningful moment that set the tone for what came next. “Joe and I wrote our own vows and challenged each other to be fully open, even in front of all our guests,” Nicole remembers. “It ended up being my favorite part of the day; by the time we finished, there wasn’t a dry eye in sight.”

“The moment I saw Nicole walk down the aisle, I was completely overwhelmed with emotion,” Joe adds. “I cried, of course, but once we were at the altar, I never broke eye contact with her—it grounded me, made me feel calm, and allowed me to be fully present. Standing there, delivering my vows to Nicole, was the purest expression of vulnerability and love—a moment I’ll carry with me forever.”

After being presented as husband and wife, they walked back down the aisle to “Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You)” by UGK and went straight into a Champagne tower celebration. They spent the next few hours in the garden with their guests, enjoying wine and canapés. As the afternoon wrapped up, everyone headed off to relax, explore the city, or change for the evening festivities.

There was a throughline to how Nicole and her stylist approached each look that she wore that was visible in her choice of post-ceremony dress. “I wanted the silhouette of my after-wedding dress to mirror the structure and elegance of my ceremony gown,” Nicole explains. “I’ve always been drawn to Schiaparelli, and during a trip to Paris, I visited their Place Vendôme boutique, where I found the most stunning ivory evening gown. It shared the same corseted shape only in an ivory hue, like a sister to the first dress.” She had it tailored in New York by Claudia Diaz to get the fit just right and wore it with sculptural Schiaparelli earrings and gold Gianvito Rossi heels, then later changed into lower vintage navy and gold Chanel heels for dancing. “With such a bold look, I knew the glam had to match,” Nicole says. “So I let my hair down from the bridal bun and went for a slicked-back, high party ponytail that became a prop for me to dance with all night.”

Around 7 p.m., guests reconvened at Laurent, an upscale French restaurant that looks like a pink château from the outside. Inside, they were welcomed by a display of white flowers—lilies, roses, hydrangeas, and orchids—before heading out to the terrace for spritzes. After heartfelt speeches from the father of the bride, the man of honor, and best man, the newlyweds shared their first dance to Stevie Wonder’s “Knocks Me Off My Feet.” The bride also danced with her father to “Carolina in My Mind” by James Taylor—“a song that always reminds me of home,” she says.

The dining room then transformed into our personal club, Les Browns After Dark—inspired by Le Bristol After Dark—complete with a neon sign on the DJ booth and Kodak cameras for guests to capture the night. For the after-party, Nicole wanted to wear something completely different—bold, fun, a little wild—so she chose a red rhinestone corseted mini dress by Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini, the perfect way to close out the night.

Once the bride had changed into her final look, the newlyweds and their guests danced past midnight, refueling with mini club sandwiches and more of Laurent’s iconic French fries. “At one point, I jumped into the DJ booth to play some of my favorite party tracks—lots of Nicki Minaj and ‘Fe!n’ by Travis Scott,” Nicole recalls. “I’ve always said I have the most fun friends, and that night, they fully proved me right. For those who could keep up, the after-party continued at the club L’Arc where we danced until sunrise.”