Start Slideshow View Grid Start Slideshow 47

The Bride Wore Lein to Her Intimate Wedding at Public Hotel

By Shayna Seid | Photography by 

Love + Wolves Co.

Elisabeth Mersier, interior and event designer and owner of firm LizouNYC, and Karim Kamareddine met boarding an airplane to New York at Boston Logan Airport. “We both received an upgrade and ended up sitting next to each other and talked throughout the flight,” she says. Throughout the years, they would briefly connect. However, after her father passed away from an illness, they would talk on the phone for hours, and he made her laugh, when it seemed impossible. 

She visited him in Boston for a Labor Day, and they started dating. After nearly three years together, he proposed on her 28th birthday in Strawberry Field in Central Park, while on a picnic—an activity that became a tradition throughout their relationship.

Since they were living in downtown Manhattan at the time of the proposal, they wanted a modern venue that resembled their relationship. The newly opened Public Hotel was a perfect location for their winter wedding, with a young aesthetic and sweeping views of the city.

For their intimate ceremony, Elisabeth always knew she wanted something slightly untraditional and more modern. She found Lein on Instagram and scheduled an appointment with designer and fellow Parsons alum, Meredith Stoecklein. “Since I was getting married in the winter, she showed me a sample of a short dress with covered buttons and three-quarter sleeves and offered to make it custom with a heavier, more wintery, fabric,” the bride explains. For a “something blue,” they embroidered the wedding date in light blue thread inside the dress, and to complete the look, Elisabeth wore a custom veiled headband by Jane Taylor London.

The groom looked handsome in a custom, dark blue tuxedo and bespoke shirt from Thom Sweeney. And on the day-of, he put on Cartier cufflinks that he’d been gifted by his fiancé for Christmas a few days prior.

The two entered their ceremony space together to Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good.” Their officiant, Monique, spoke English and French for a bilingual service, to make sure both of their families felt included. “I think one of the most emotional moments was when she asked both my uncle and Karim’s dad if they agreed to let go of their respective children—a Lebanese tradition that we had included into the ceremony to make it more personal,” Elisabeth says. The couple then exchanged their own personal vows.

“A funny moment is when Monique surprised me and asked me if I wanted to take Karim as my husband in French,” Elisabeth explains. “I was prepared to say ‘I do,’ and with all the emotions, I had forgotten the right way to respond in French, so I responded in English with a tone that sounded like I was asking a question.” Once the two were married, their party of 40 sat down at two imperial tables for dinner.

Florals trailed down in frog ceramics and Juniper metal vases, while candles in varying heights lit the space. “I worked alongside with the florist to make sure the flowers would bring pops of colors, such as burgundy hellebore—my father’s favorite!” the bride says. And at each place was a personalized, bronze travel tag for everyone. 

At the end of the meal, the newlyweds got up to “September” by Earth, Wine & Fire and cut their vegan almond cake with matcha icing and raspberry by Lael Cakes. They had even brought an engraved Christofle cake knife just for the occasion.

For the after-party, Elisabeth changed into a mini dress from Galvan London, and then, everyone headed up to The Roof bar to dance the night away with champagne.