Bea Cardenas & John McMonagle
Basilica of St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral and Smack Mellon
June 5, 2010
W hen Bea Cardenas, 34, and John McMonagle, 31, met at the Maritime Hotel for their first date, Bea, a publicist for Bumble and bumble, wrote John off as too clean-cut. (He works in finance and showed up in a crisp white button-down.) But then “we started talking, and everything clicked,” she says. “We liked all the same music, and we’re both obsessed with Wes Anderson.” Two years later, John surprised Bea with a sidewalk proposal. In homage to their favorite director, the couple arranged a Royal Tenenbaums–themed photo shoot for the wedding party. The ceremony took place at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral several months later, complete with a children’s choir, and was followed by a reception at Dumbo’s Smack Mellon, where the Tenenbaums photos resurfaced as a decorative motif. “I wanted the wedding to have an eclectic feel,” says Bea. “I don’t like anything too neat or too done.”
The Details:
Dress: Oscar de la Renta
Tux: Bhambi’s Custom Tailors
Music: D.J. Pierce Jackson
Cake: Cheryl Kleinman Cakes
Planner: Soraya Weddings & Celebrations
Bea Cardenas & John McMonagle “I believe we are singing to “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)’ by Beyoncé here. D.J. Pierce Jackson had our exact sensibility in music: a mix of great pop songs and indie rock. Our friends love a good dance party. They ate it up!” Photos by Angelica Glass Photography