Immediately following their engagement, Kimberly Gruber and David Greenburg set a summer wedding date based on the availability of both a location they loved and a particular band they wanted to perform at their reception. “As soon as Dave popped the question, we called to check for open dates and booked them!” says Kim. The celebrated venue was a majestic château that offered 40 acres of remarkable grounds and a luxurious interior that boasted a formal music room, a well appointed library, and an impressive octagon-shaped ballroom that the couple chose for their reception. “I had never seen anything like it,” describes the bride of the uniquely shaped area.

While Kim and her mother planned the majority of the celebration, David took the time to offer his opinion on the details that were most important to him for the big day. “I am a person with a very positive outlook and like to make sure everyone around me is having a great time,” explains the groom. “It was important this was reflected in the wedding.” The mother-daughter duo set out to create an elegant evening filled with fun details, beginning with a color palette of vivid pinks and greens that were reflective of Kim’s bubbly personality. “I wanted bright summery colors,” asserts Kim of the hues. The bride was also mindful of an important element while planning: “Don’t lose sight of what the wedding is about – if everything isn’t perfect, it’s not the end of the world. As long as you are happily married, that is all that matters.”

The traditional Jewish ceremony began with a special ketubah signing witnessed only by the couple’s closest friends and relatives. Assemblies of wrought-iron stands wound with greenery lined the ceremony aisle, while a chuppah made of arching branches and woven clusters of pink roses and green hydrangea blossoms set the stage for the vow exchange. Escorted by both her parents per religious custom, Kim wore a beautiful two-piece lace gown designed by Atelier Aimée that complemented her romantic white floral bouquet of gardenias, roses, and stephanotis.

Once the ceremony concluded with the ritual “breaking of the glass,” guests were led inside the château to enjoy an elaborate cocktail hour. Family portraits were displayed on tables and mantels within the estate along with gorgeous arrangements of flowers. “We really wanted it to feel like it was ‘our’ house for the night,” says Kim. Guests were surprised and delighted to find exquisite food stations and intricate ice luges as they mingled freely throughout the château, admiring the high ceilings, grand doorways, and gleaming wood-paneled floors of the elaborate space.

Reception tables were covered in shimmery ivory overlays and bedecked with 15-foot gold stands that held mixtures of orchids, roses, lilies, and hydrangeas. Kim’s aunt handmade the menu cards that sat alongside beautiful silk napkins tied with gold and crystal fasteners. “My aunt is creatively talented and she really added a personal touch to all the small details of the wedding,” says the bride. The grand ballroom offered tall glass panels framed in rich drapery, towering pillars, and marble filigree details that lined the dome-like structure. The couple made their grand entrance to “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas and headed straight to the dance floor where they were quickly surrounded by loved ones. “Every time I hear that song, I still think of that amazing moment,” shares the bride. David agrees. “Everyone was on their feet, the crowd went crazy… it was the perfect start to the party and the intensity lasted all night.”

After dancing to work up an appetite, guests chose between a red onion-crusted filet of beef or sautéed striped bass. Fun on the dance floor continued between meal courses, including a hilarious display on the part of the groom. “The men in my family have this dance that we do, which basically looks like we are trying to push something down to the ground for the entire length of the song,” explains David. “Halfway through the night, my dad, my brother, and I got to it. The whole crowd surrounded us in a circle trying to imitate the movements and cheering us on… it was an amazing scene!” The humor didn’t end there, as the couple planned for a karaoke after-party to fulfill the bride’s passion for singing. “I don’t claim to be any good, however!” she claims. The couple attributes a lot of the success of their celebration to the live band whose availability they checked before setting a wedding date. “It seemed like no one sat down unless they were eating, which was exactly how we wanted it,” the groom proudly affirms. “The event was perfect in every respect.”