Any time an inquiry for the Metropolitan Building appears in my inbox, I do a little happy dance and cross my fingers that I’m available.
It is a playground for photographers, sometimes literally. The building hosts intimate weddings, editorial shoots, music videos, and enough strange artifacts to make it feel like a Victorian mansion assembled from the private collection of a prop master gone gloriously mad. Every room offers another answer to the question, “Wait, what is that doing here?”
I love all of it.
But venues are scenery. People make the story, and my excitement only grew as I got to know Hans and Scott.
Hans carries enough enthusiasm to affect the atmospheric pressure around him, and he brought that energy to an East-meets-West celebration that ran through the design, the food, and every part of the evening. Claire Letourneau of WedWell somehow kept all of those moving pieces feeling easy.
And then there were the surprises.
Chinese dragons opened the celebration. Hans secretly learned a song in Mandarin, then hid the lyrics beneath the guests’ dinner plates so the entire room could join him in serenading Scott.
That alone would have made the night unforgettable. But the moments I remember most were quieter: two people so overwhelmed by their love for each other that sometimes all they could do was laugh, hold on, and burst into tears.
After all these years, I sometimes overuse the word “amazing.”
But come on.
Look at these two.
Planning: WedWell
Officiant: Sharon Simon
Catering: bonbite
Flowers: Gatherings Floral Design
DJ: Lindsey
Stylist: Styles on B
Tea Ceremony: Tea Drunk
