Celebrating shared traditions

August 23 2009 :: Liuna Station, Hamilton

Photography by In Bloom Photography
Story by TheWeddingRing.ca

Julia Horel and Craig O’Brien met in February 2004 while going to separate universities but coming together through mutual friends. They exchanged email addresses and after one message lead to another, they were dating. Julia and Craig spent time together whenever they could, but their relationship had its challenges, from hectic school schedules to their three-year long distance relationship that went on until Craig and Julia moved to Vancouver together while she was in grad school. They felt they’d been apart long enough.

Once they had the chance to experience what life and love was like while living in the same city, Julia and Craig knew they wanted to be together forever. “When we were long distance, we were very much in love,” says Craig, “but living where we could see each other every day really convinced me we could do this for the rest of our lives.”

They’d sometimes get to spend a whole week together while they were dating long distance, but for Julia, the time was always too short. “When Craig said he would move to Vancouver for a year with me… I knew he was willing to do anything for me,” she says.

Julia says Craig’s moral standards and personality inspire her to be a better person. “He’s loyal to the people he loves and is a true-blue friend,” says Julia. “We have the best conversations about anything we can think of. He also has a quirky sense of humour and is adorably geeky.”

On February 29, 2008 (a leap year), Craig took Julia out for dinner. Afterward, at their Vancouver home, Craig got down on one knee and asked her to marry him. “It was very simple and sweet,” says Julia. “He chose February 29 because it’s the rarest day on the calendar, ‘as rare as true love’.”

We asked Craig what he loved most about Julia. Craig said that Julia has a passion and zest for life. “When she wants something, she really goes for it. She’s exciting, has a wonderful sense of humour, and is generally made of awesome.”

After five years together, Julia and Craig exchanged their vows. The ceremony was held at 3:30 pm on August 23, 2009, in the main lobby of Hamilton’s Liuna Station. They chose Liuna Station because of its beauty and the fact that the price tag fit within their budget. “The architecture and décor are great as they are, without needing much additional decoration….” Plus, the fact that the first X-Men movie was filmed there just added even more of a cool factor.

Julia’s sister, Michelle Horel, was the maid of honour, and her friend, Laura Martin, was a bridesmaid. Craig’s brother, Tim O’Brien, was the best man, and his high school friends, Adam McIntyre and Mark Slater, were groomsmen.

The wedding colours were royal blue and silver, chosen because they’re Julia’s favourite colours. “We wanted things to have a clean, fresh aesthetic,” says Julia, who chose to accent her white dress with a royal blue sash and blue shoes to “really make it pop.” In fact, Julia ordered her blue strappy sandals (from Zappos.ca) before she even chose her dress. She just knew she wanted the blue shoes.

Julia found her dress at The Dress Room in Toronto. In total, Julia proudly admits she paid just over $600 for everything - her dress, sash, veil, undergarments, shoes and jewellery. Her secret? The dress was actually a Mori Lee bridesmaid dress with an Alfred Angelo sash added. She also borrowed her mother’s pearls.

Craig and his groomsmen were dressed to impress with rented tuxes from Freeman Formals in Toronto.

Flowers, corsages and boutonnières, made by Tailored Bow in Kitchener, were artificial silk, which Julia says will make great souvenirs since they’ll last forever. 

Since Julia is Jewish and Craig is Catholic, the couple planned an interfaith ceremony to honour their respective religions. “We wanted to show our family and friends how proud we are to be bridging our differences and focusing on our shared values,” says Julia. Among other traditions, they had a reading in Hebrew as well as one from the New Testament.

Julia and Craig also adapted some of the Jewish traditions to suit their personalities, like the ketubah, which is a Jewish wedding contract that is also a piece of art for their home following the wedding. It was written in both Hebrew and English and designed by Julia’s best friend Andrew Wilmot. “…It emphasizes our shared beliefs and the fact that we will create a household that respects our differences and celebrates our shared traditions. It’s displayed in the home as a visual reminder of our vows and responsibilities toward one another,” says Julia.

Julia’s parents walked her down the aisle to meet her groom under the chuppah – the Jewish wedding canopy where the couple, officiant, and their witnesses stand under during the ceremony. “It represents the home that the bride and groom will be creating with their marriage,” explains Julia.

Craig also did the traditional breaking of the glass at the end of their ceremony, which has a number of supposed meanings. The one that Julia and Craig chose to represent was, “that like the breaking of a glass, the marriage is irrevocable.”

Julia and Craig say they wanted their ceremony and reception in the same place because guests were travelling from out of town, which was part of why they chose Liuna Station for both. Even the photos were done in and around the station, allowing for a relaxed and easy flowing day. Their photographer, Carolyn Pongracz, of In Bloom Photography, says that the skies threatened to rain throughout Julia and Craig’s wedding day, but they managed to get plenty of outdoor photos just before the rain started as they were heading back indoors.

Julia and Craig say that Carolyn wasn’t just a photographer, but a lifesaver as she helped the guys with their boutonnières, Julia tie her sash, and Laura pin her dress. “She was so unobtrusive that we hardly noticed her during the ceremony and reception, except to see her get down on the floor or up on a chair to get the best angles,” say Julia and Craig.

Liuna Station’s in-house catering offered Italian cuisine and customizable menus, which for Julia and Craig, included passed hors d’oeuvres during the cocktail hour, antipasto, prime rib with roasted potatoes and vegetables, crêpes with ice cream and berries, a midnight buffet with pizza and sweets, coffee and tea, and an open bar.

To continue the interfaith aspects throughout the reception, Julia and Craig had Julia’s mother say a short Hebrew blessing before the meal, and Craig’s aunt say a Catholic grace.

The cake was made by Julia’s close friend, Stephanie Hetherington, who made it look like a wrapped gift – so much so that several guests actually thought it was a gift. The cake was chocolate with a mint buttercream icing.

In lieu of favours, Julia and Craig made a donation to the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Research at Mount Sinai Hospital.

The reception was fun and involved all of their guests. They had an interactive kissing game that had guests completing song lyrics, a full-group traditional Jewish horah dance, and a DJ from GIGS Entertainment who played as many requests as he could.

The horah dance is a traditional celebration dance. In it, everyone holds hands and dances in a circle, moving faster as the music speeds up. Because Liuna Station was smaller, Julia and Craig ended up with lots of circles around each other.

Julia and Craig say that they really enjoyed their wedding day and are happy that it reflected their story and their love for one another.