Fifteen Great Ideas

• By Arielle Winnik
• Published Winter 2008

(Photo: Clockwise from top left, Karen Wise, Dave Robbins, Jamie Watts, Courtesy of Hudson Yards)

(Photo: Courtesy of Marc Jacobs)

10. Slip into something more comfortable.
Why stop with just one dress? Cut the cake and then change into Dress No. 2. “Quite a few brides switch gowns,” says Mark Ingram of Mark Ingram Bridal Atelier. “The second one is always easier to dance in (dress, $3,900 at Marc Jacobs; 212-242-2207; marcjacobs.com).”

11. Skip the cake.
You won’t invoke the wrath of the wedding tradition gods if you opt for something you like better as a passed or plated dessert. “For a couple who loves chocolate and lemon, I did mini-trios in each flavor,” says caterer Mary Cleaver of The Cleaver Co. (212-741-9174; cleaverco.com). At one laid-back wedding, “a couple asked six of their closest relatives and friends to bake pies to serve instead of wedding cake,” says planner Kostman. “We set the pies on glass cylinders filled with the corresponding fruits.” Or, you can order pies yourself from Bubby's—15 pies for 100 guests should do it ($29 each; 212-219-0666; bubbys.com).

12. Get them to the dance floor...
D.J. Choimatic claims these songs do the trick: Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough”; Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”; The Esquires’ “Get On Up.”... and keep them there. Hand out sugar-buzzed treats on the dance floor. “We do bite-size ice cream cones or hot fudge sundaes with Guinness-stout ice cream in shot glasses,” says Robb Garceau of a Hudson Yards Catering (from $3 per person; 212-488-1500; hycnyc.com). Event planner Leslie Russell, of Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events, passes around sweet cocktails like mini-Oreo martinis (prices vary; 212-807-0568; marceybrownstein.com marceybrownstein.com