Дизайнер Каролайн Ирвин и инвестор Сэмсон Месгхена обменялись клятвами в Нью-Йорке: от прогулки на яхте до вечеринки в Rainbow Room

Designer Caroline Irvin and investor Samson Mesghena first met when they kept crossing paths at the gym—the Equinox in New York’s Flatiron neighborhood, to be exact. She had been out of college for a few years; he had recently graduated from business school. After months of seeing each other in passing, Samson finally made his move in December of 2019, when he walked over and introduced himself. “I was immediately charmed by his ease, his humor, and kindness,” Caroline remembers. A few weeks later, he called and asked her to meet him for a drink. She didn’t need convincing. After dating for nearly five years, they got engaged on a Saturday in November of 2024. Samson told Caroline that they were going to the Gagosian Gallery to see a Peter Doig show she’d been wanting to visit. “He told me to get dressed as we would be having brunch afterwards,” she remembers. “It sounded like a perfect Saturday!” But, heading west toward 10th Avenue, she realized they’d driven right past the gallery. “Before I could question our course, there they were: a captain and crew, crisp in their whites, standing at attention beside a sailboat moored on the Hudson,” Caroline recalls. They set off on an afternoon sail, complete with a picnic lunch. As they approached the harbor, with the Manhattan skyline behind them and the sun hitting the Statue of Liberty, Samson got down on one knee. That evening, they celebrated over dinner with both of their families. Less than two years later, they were married in New York City—where they met, built their life together, and where both of their families are rooted. “There was never really a question of doing it anywhere else,” Caroline admits. The planning process started almost immediately after the engagement. “From the beginning, I wanted the weekend to feel elegant and thoughtful, with a sense of understated glamour woven through every detail,” Caroline explains. Naturally, that began with the invitation suite. The couple worked with Fête’s in-house design team, looking to 19th-century calling cards for inspiration and pairing classic typography with Spencerian calligraphy by Mona McCormack. “Working with Jung Lee and her team at Fête was one of the best decisions we made,” Caroline says. “Jung understood the atmosphere we were hoping to create very early on and carried that vision through every part of the weekend with such creativity, calm, and grace.” “While the vows themselves are serious, we always wanted the weekend to feel joyful and celebratory,” Samson says. Planning was bittersweet at times, as they had both lost a beloved parent: Samson’s father and Caroline’s mother. “More than anything, we kept returning to what the weekend was truly about: family, gratitude, and celebrating with the people we love most.” The wedding weekend began with the rehearsal dinner at Le Bernardin, one of the couple’s favorite restaurants in the city. “The food is extraordinary, and it felt very meaningful to welcome our guests into a place we’ve loved and returned to over the years,” Caroline says. For the first evening, the bride chose an Oscar de la Renta column dress with an off-the-shoulder neckline covered in mother-of-pearl and crystal blossoms. She accessorized with a three-strand diamond rivière necklace and canary diamond drop earrings sourced by Lauren at Verstolo, as well as her mother’s engagement ring and emerald eternity wedding band. Steven Rice styled her hair in a soft side-swept wave, evoking the 1950s, while Natalie Livingston kept the makeup warm with sun-kissed skin and a smoky eye. “Steven and Natalie were such an important part of the weekend,” Caroline says. “And we had a wonderful creative rhythm together from beginning to end.” The next day, on the morning of the wedding, the bride and bridesmaids got ready together at the Lotte New York Palace, while Samson and his groomsmen had a gentleman’s lunch and got dressed at the couple’s apartment in Flatiron. The bride wore a dress by One/Of. She and the brand’s founder, Patricia Voto, were already in each other’s creative orbit, as Caroline worked at the design house while finishing her coursework at Parsons. “One afternoon, after visiting a bridal boutique for inspiration, I brought in photos of a lace gown to get Patricia’s thoughts,” Caroline says. “Somewhere in the middle of talking through the designs, the conversation shifted, and it became clear that of course we should design the gown together.” Caroline drew inspiration from the imagery of Degas’s ballerinas and the cinematic photography of Peter Lindbergh. “The Degas reference was about the spirit of tulle, specifically the way it catches the light, its movement, and the fleeting quality he captured so beautifully in paint,” she explains. “I wanted to contrast that softness and couture sensibility with the raw energy of New York, creating something deeply romantic but also modern and alive.” The final design featured an open-back halter bodice in blush Chantilly lace, hand-appliquéd with organic lace motifs. A dramatic skirt composed of 16 layers of blush tulle fell from the drop waist, while an architectural tulle bow cascaded into a sweeping train. In place of a traditional veil, the bride wore a bespoke Chantilly lace eyepiece, a modern interpretation of the classic bridal accessory, and white Manolo mules. Her hair was styled into a low, slightly undone chignon. “I wanted it to feel romantic and like a tousled Gibson tuck,” she notes. Samson, meanwhile, wore a black Tom Ford tuxedo with cufflinks made from twenty-one-carat Ethiopian gold, each cast in the form of a lion wearing a crown and bearing a flag. “The lion is a symbol of sovereignty and strength in Ethiopian history,” Caroline explains. The ceremony was held at St. James Episcopal Church on the Upper East Side, where they are members of the congregation. Caroline was escorted there by her father. “We had such a sweet moment just the two of us!” Caroline remembers. “I think we were both quite nervous.” “Seeing Caroline as she walked down the aisle with the people we love on either side of us is something I will carry for the rest of my life,” Samson adds. Reverend Marisa Fuentes officiated the ceremony. “My overwhelming feeling during the service was just one of pure gratitude,” Caroline says. “True love is such a rare thing to find, and realizing that our paths were fated to cross and lead us to that altar made me feel very lucky.” After exchanging their vows, the newlyweds stepped out onto Madison Avenue, where a vintage Rolls-Royce was waiting to take them to the Rainbow Room for their reception. Guests piled onto double-decker buses for the short trip to 30 Rockefeller Plaza. During cocktail hour, an Ethiopian jazz quartet played while guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres, caviar, and champagne, and took in the skyline from the balcony. At dinner, the father of the bride opened the toasts. “He stood without a single note and delivered the most incredible toast in wedding history,” Samson remembers. “He quoted Victor Hugo—a passage from Les Misérables in which Hugo meditates on the transformative power of love. Caroline’s grandfather, Donald Irvin, was an esteemed minister, and it showed. Her dad really brought the room to a standstill.” Caroline’s sisters, who were co-maids of honor, spoke next. “Having them beside me that day, and hearing them speak about a lifetime of memories together was almost more than I could take,” Caroline admits. “I was not entirely composed.” The tablescapes were inspired by late 19th-century French textile books, with deep crimson florals inspired by antique silk velvets and jacquards. “I chose deep crimson as the central note and used it throughout the florals and tablescapes to bring warmth and intimacy to the grandeur of the Rainbow Room,” Caroline explains. Towering candelabras and tall taper candles balanced the romance with a more modern sensibility. After dinner, everyone flooded back to the dance floor and stayed there. For the late-night festivities, Caroline kept on the embellished halter bodice and paired it with a playful white bubble skirt, cinched at the waist with a black velvet bow. Steven then transformed her hair into a voluminous, 1960s-inspired half-up style. “A black-and-gold Chanel bow introduced an element of wit,” the bride explains. “We complemented that with statement gold Chanel drop earrings and black leather Saint Laurent Babylon flats. It was an homage to Brigitte Bardot’s effortless chic rewritten for the energy of Studio 54—and perfect for the dance floor!” The bride says the Rainbow Room was the perfect setting for the glamorous, high-energy evening she envisioned. “From the rotating disco ball, the panoramic skyline, and the band in full swing, it was the perfect setting,” Caroline says. “We danced to disco and classic pop before transitioning to the Célon Lounge, where DJ Beat Breaker kept the party going late into the night, fueled by a late-night delivery of Shake Shack.” The next morning, the newlyweds chartered a boat on the Hudson for family and friends, who had traveled from around the world to be with them—hangovers and all—bringing the weekend full circle on the very river where their engagement had begun.