Catherine Gremillion, a senior account executive for MOTHER Denim, was in a Hamptons house with her future-husband’s roommate, who mentioned that they were moving to her neighborhood in the East Village. Catherine invited them for a rooftop dinner and immediately called dibs on the tall blonde, Nick Thoele. “We spent the whole night talking, drinking wine, and counting planes. Our first date was two weeks later at The Met, and a few days after that, we had our first dinner date at Osteria Morini, which is where we celebrated our rehearsal dinner with our family, wedding party, and out of town guests,” Catherine says. After four-and-a-half years of dating, Nick popped the question in Washington Square Park.
Even though Catherine and Nick are both from the south, their whole lives are in New York, so they decided that the Big Apple was the ideal place to celebrate their love. “I grew up on a farm, and my mom was a florist, so I wanted a garden feel, but we also wanted a venue that reminded everyone they were in New York,” the bride explains. The River Café was the perfect combination. To help plan the wedding, they hired Cathleen Holloway of Holloway Events.
Catherine wanted to walk down the aisle in an elegant gown with sleeves. “I’ve been shopping for my wedding dress since I was five years old, and luckily, my taste has changed over the years from the most bedazzled dress to something a little more understated,” she says. Her sister actually sent her a picture of her Monique Lhuillier dress before she even saw it in person—and it ended up being the first dress she tried on. To perfect the look, they ended up adding a foot to the train and veil for a truly customized look.
The groom based his look off of a red carpet outfit. “I always thought I would wear a midnight blue tux. Then I saw a photo of someone wearing a deep green tux during awards season, and I liked the look. Once Cat quickly approved, I decided to go for it. I had never seen a tux jacket that color and liked knowing it would be unique,” Nick says of his custom Michael Andrews ensemble.
On May 25th, the bride walked down the aisle of Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral with her father. “Ever since I was a little girl, my older sisters and I would play wedding. I always dreamed of walking down the center aisle of a gorgeous church with a veil draped over my face and my dad by side. It was a dream come true,” Catherine says.
After becoming husband and wife, everyone crossed a bridge to the reception, where a live jazz trio played during cocktail hour on the terrace—lots of Frank Sinatra. Waiters greeted thirsty guests with spicy margaritas and French 75s—a nod to the couple’s home states of Texas and Louisiana. Once the drinks were well sipped, the seated portion of the evening began, as the couple had their first dance to “Coming Home” by Leon Bridges, followed by the father-daughter and mother-son dances.
The four-course dinner ended with a classic Milk Bar birthday cake with vanilla icing. For the past six years, Catherine and Nick have celebrated his birthday with that cake; even if they weren’t in the city, they’d find a way to have it shipped—so it was an easy choice for their wedding cake. “Plus, his birthday was four days later, and they don’t ship to Mexico, so I kept the tradition alive, and we celebrated a little early,” she says.
After the reception, guests headed back to Manhattan to dance the night away at The Fleur Room in Chelsea. Catherine made a quick change into an emerald, sequin Retrofête dress for the after-party, keeping her green theme alive until the early hours.
