Lacey & Patrick
When it came time for Patrick Kearney, private chef and owner of Toque Private Chef Services, to propose to his girlfriend, Lacey Wood, assistant to the captain of the Krewe of Hermes, he decided that champagne and candles just weren’t going to cut it. Instead, Lacey came home one day to find a “ransom” note claiming that he had been kidnapped.
Throughout the day, she followed a trail of clues that led her to the Windsor Court Hotel, where she’d been instructed to check into a suite. There, she was told to report to dinner at the Grill Room under a reservation for “William B. My.”
But it wasn’t until the following morning that Patrick drove her to the Butterfly, leading her to the spot where they had their first kiss, and got down on his knee. He presented her with a ring he designed at Valobra Jewelry and Antiques, a blue-green antique cushion tourmaline framed in diamonds with three diamond-filled leaves on either side.
The couple wed in a small ceremony at a private location in the French Quarter on May 10, 2008. The bride wore a gown inspired by a Monique Lhuillier design but wanting to put a modern twist on it, she had it made with French lace that she found at Promenade Fabrics. Nancy Weller created her sheath gown with an empire waist, flaring to a bell-shaped skirt. The plunging V-neckline came to a slightly raised collar at the top. Satin ribbon was woven through the bodice and gathered in a hand-tied bow in the front of the gown with smaller bows along the train.
The bridesmaids wore the same hue of soft green but their chosen design of Vera Wang gown from Ballins. In keeping with the palate of lavender, pink and green, the bridal bouquet, created by Urban Earth, burst with peonies, tulips and green cymbidiums, while her bridesmaids opted for single pink peonies tied to their wrists with satin ribbon. As special gifts to her bridesmaids, Lacey gave each of them a pair of Dominique Giordano custom-designed earrings.
In their brief ceremony, Lacey and Patrick exchanged vows they had written themselves in front of close family and friends while the rest of the wedding guests mingled outside sipping mint juleps and champagne while listening to the New Orleans Jazz Vipers. Adding some subtle French Quarter flair, Lacey had arranged for a collection of street performers to present their acts nearby. The newly married bride and groom exited with fanfare and joined their guests in the fun.
When it was time to get the guests to the reception, the newlyweds hopped aboard a mini parade float, provided by Mardi Gras Productions, and with the Jazz Vipers, led a second-line to the Napoleon House. Lacey’s maid of honor, Alexa Pulitzer, who designed the wedding invitations, also provided custom-designed handkerchiefs for the guests to wave in the procession. Catering was provided by Kristen Essig whose offerings included passed hors d’oeuvres of three kinds of mini poor boys wrapped in newspaper and entrées of Roasted Drumfish Almandine, Crawfish Uggi (inspired by the Uglesich’s version) and Smoked Duck Gumbo. Another special treat for guests
was a private area where they could pose for photographer Zack Smith in unconventional portraits for the bride and groom to keep as mementos.
As the reception wound down, the Soul Rebels arrived and blew their boisterous horns inside the Napoleon House, rousing the crowd outside and down a few blocks to an after-party at Preservation Hall.
Fortune cookies, blinking heart rings and even temporary tattoos inked by tattoo artist Gary Tanner were all part of the late night at the hall.
The bride and groom honeymooned in South Africa for nearly three weeks.
“Our wedding turned out to be the best day of our lives,” says Lacey. “It was, for us, the perfect expression of our love for one another, our love for New Orleans and our love and appreciation for our family and friends.” •
Lacey and her mother, Karen Wood.
Lacey and Patrick and the Soul Rebels second-lined to the after party.
The bride and groom with Nicolas Zea, Frank Colonna, Jim Kearney, Chris Banas, Allen Frecker and Tony Volmer. The flower girl in front is Patrick’s niece Kayla Kearney.
The groom with bridesmaids Lacy Rabe, Alexa Pulitzer, Prisca Weems, Shawn Brennan, Emily Deschanel and Lynda Martin.
