Date: 23.12.24

Location: New York City

There was something serendipitous about the way Melissa Levy Young and Jordan Levy Young met – a swipe, a spark, and a first date in the languid heat of a New York summer. Two and a half years later, in the depths of a Manhattan winter, they found themselves at City Hall, wrapped in the kind of love that makes even the coldest days feel warm.

Melissa, a stylist and photographer, and Jordan, an actor, had often spoken about marriage. It was not a matter of if, but when. The ‘when’ came quickly, last November, with the pair deciding that a wedding before the year’s end felt right. City Hall had one date left: December 23rd, at 2:30pm. Later, as the details settled in, Levy realised the synchronicity – 23rd Street, the time, the date. “My father passed away in 2023, and somehow, I feel like this was a sign that he was there and a confirmation that things were aligned”; each number forming a quiet constellation of meaning, a celestial reminder that her father was still with them.

With less than three weeks to weave together their day, they embraced the beauty of the spontaneous. Friends who happened to be in New York over the holidays gathered, and Jordan’s family arrived from Minneapolis, drawn into the quiet magic of the moment.

"The Chelsea Hotel, with its storied past and intoxicating air of creative abandon, became their sanctuary. They checked in for three nights, losing themselves in its rich history and warmth as snow dusted the city outside. Roman and Pablo, their two beloved dogs, roamed the halls like seasoned residents, a reminder that love, in its truest form, is a home you carry with you."

“It was such a perfect setting; we didn’t want to leave the hotel. The thought that so many creatives and artists lived in the building throughout the decades was also particularly of note. When we made the booking, Jordan was reading a play by Tennessee Williams who lived in the building. It all felt so right.”

For Melissa, planning their wedding felt like composing a love letter – each detail carefully chosen, each moment imbued with meaning. “As a stylist and photographer, it felt very akin to producing a shoot and was pretty straight forward,” she says. “I feel very lucky to be surrounded by friends who came together on the day to make it so special.” Among them were florists Krista Chiu and Fernando Kabigting, who created arrangements that spoke in different but complementary tones. Photographers Sophia Aerts and Saturn Veil, both dear friends, captured the day with an eye for the fleeting and the poetic.

"Dressed in a leopard print The Row coat and Khaite shoes for their City Hall nuptials, Levy was the picture of modern romance, accessorised with pearl earrings by Anna of Completed Works, a Filipino-English designer whose work she admires."

For the reception, she slipped into a design by her friend Ashlyn – a Yohji-trained visionary whose pieces carry an architectural grace, a quiet confidence. Jordan’s suit, also by Ashlyn, had a Comme des Garçons sensibility; structured yet fluid. He layered a Jil Sander overcoat paired with Raf Simons shoes, a harmony of classic and contemporary, much like their love. Their wedding bands, crafted by Patricia Von Muslin, held their own legacy – Von Muslin’s work is archived in The Met, as is Ashlyn’s. Hair was sculpted by Sabrina Szinay, inspired by a Prada runway moment, while makeup artist Rei Tajima played with delicate precision.

After City Hall – where the ceremony was brief, intimate, and unmistakably New York – they returned to The Chelsea. The Lobby Bar became their haven, effortlessly chic, steeped in history. It was a gathering of those closest to them, a celebration of love in its most authentic form. The night stretched on in hushed conversations and bursts of laughter, glasses raised to the present, to devotion, to the exquisite nature of being truly seen by another.

"Looking back, the pair described the day in three simple words: "Jordan and Mel." The essence of them, distilled."

When asked what she hoped resonated with their guests, Melissa answered without hesitation: "Embrace today and the now”. Because love, in its purest form, is not about spectacle or ceremony – it is about presence, about feeling the weight of a moment as it unfolds, knowing it will never happen quite this way again.

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