Fashion designer Jonathan Simkhai and publicist TJ Allers’s love story was a long time in the making. Twelve years ago, they saw each other from across the room at a party at the Maritime Hotel in New York City. “We were young and the timing didn’t quite work, but we never forgot each other,” says Jonathan. “A few years later, I was launching my label and he was the only fashion PR person I knew. I reached out to get his advice, which was also just an excuse to talk to him, sent him some sketches, and he got me my first write-up as a new designer.” A few more years went by, and when the timing felt right, they finally went on their first official date. “There was a lot of buildup to that moment,” says Jonathan. “But I fell in love with TJ that evening.”
Three years later, the two were packing up their New York apartment on a Friday night to prepare for a move across the country to Los Angeles. While they were in the air, Southern California was hit by a massive rainstorm that knocked out the power in the Hollywood Hills, including at their new home, where Jonathan was planning to propose to TJ upon arrival. “As you can imagine, I was having an internal panic attack because no power meant no Wi-Fi, no phone service, no lights, and no electricity to open our security gate for our friends, the caterer, or the florist,” says Jonathan. “Little did I know that our friend and real estate agent, Heather Shorr, had scaled the spiked electric security wall in the pouring rain to manually open the gate to let all those involved in the surprise into the house. For that, I owe her for life.”
As they pulled up to their new home, TJ noticed that there were cars in the driveway and light flickering inside the house. “He had the cutest confused smile on his face as we walked up the driveway, stepping over the roses our friends had scattered about,” remembers Jonathan. “We were greeted by the chef—who prepared an eight-course meal in the dark for the first time in his career!—with two glasses of Champagne. I then got on one knee and asked TJ to marry me. Much to my delight, he said ‘yes.’”
Initially, the two planned to have their wedding in Laguna Beach, California, in the fall of 2017. “We wanted to have an engagement party weekend at our summer house in the Hamptons for our New York friends, but when everyone from both coasts RSVPed yes to that, we threw all of the California plans to the wind and went into overdrive planning our East Coast wedding within six weeks,” says Jonathan.
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Everything from the ceremony to the after party took place at the couple’s house in Bridgehampton, and the aesthetic was kept very natural and but elegant. “Making sure our guests were comfortable and happy to party all night was our top priority,” says Jonathan. “There was also extra significance having the wedding in June because it’s Pride Month. As a gay couple, we felt the most heartfelt way for us to celebrate Pride was to give our vows of everlasting love and commitment.”
The couple enlisted Sarah Duke and Taylor Van Deusen of Duke + Van Deusen to plan and execute their vision. “They saved the day countless times,” says Jonathan. “After all that we went through together during those crazy six weeks, they became some of our dearest friends!”
With only a short time to lock in all the details for the wedding—and all while Jonathan was designing his Pre-Spring 2017 collection, the first from his new, West Coast studio—wedding attire was the last thing on Jonathan’s and TJ’s minds, despite the fact that they both work in fashion. “The Thursday before our wedding, we ran to Bergdorf Goodman and bought the first tuxes we tried on,” admits Jonathan. “TJ chose a Ralph Lauren Purple Label tuxedo made of a cool but subtle navy palm silk jacquard. I went with a black Tom Ford tuxedo with silk lapels, and we both wore Tom Ford bow ties. We are so indebted to Flormont Tailors, who dropped all of their other jobs to complete the alternations two days before our wedding.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the couple had a lot more fun choosing what their attendants would wear. All of the bridesmaids—17 in total—wore white Jonathan Simkhai dresses. “It was so stunning to see all of them walking down the aisle,” says Jonathan. “Each woman’s dress was chosen specifically for her to perfectly capture her personal style.”
Jonathan and TJ ended up shaking up the traditional wedding format and had their cocktail hour before the ceremony. They greeted guests and sipped Champagne while everyone enjoyed the raw bar, sushi table, and Persian kebab station. “Coyote and Crow, an amazing Southern band we first heard in Washington Square Park, played as we dipped in the house to put on our tuxedos,” says Jonathan.
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The two then walked down the aisle to a live performance by Sarah Jaffe. “TJ introduced me to her stunningly tender voice and powerful music years ago,” explains Jonathan. “We always wanted her to be a part of the ceremony and were so honored when she, her wife, and her violinist flew up from Dallas to perform her most touching song, ‘Ever Born Again.’” Because the couple wanted the ceremony to feel meaningful but without mentioning religion, they entrusted one of the most spiritual people they had come across in recent years to officiate the wedding. “His name is Brad Learmonth and he delivered a touching and heartfelt ceremony that was the perfect pace and style for us,” says Jonathan.
After a delicious dinner created by well-known Hamptons caterer Peter Ambrose, the party really got started. “In trying to avoid a lot of the traditional aspects to weddings, we didn’t plan a first dance, but the plan changed when our friend Caroline Vreeland took to the microphone and surprised everyone with the most incredible version of Etta James’s ‘At Last,’” says Jonathan. “Wrapped up in that moment, TJ and I embraced how special it was and began our first official dance together. The unplanned spontaneity of her performance was one of the craziest and dearest moments for us.” Then the dance floor transformed into a combination of what looked like an episode of American Bandstand mixed with MTV’s The Grind. “I don’t think a second went by the whole night that the dance floor wasn’t full!” remembers Jonathan. “Many of our friends said that they missed most of the dinner because they were never in their seats.”
Late night, a fast-food truck pulled up with hundreds of cheeseburgers and fries. “Also, the very kind Bridgehampton policemen and fire marshals paid steady visits to the house throughout the night, which we didn’t know about until the morning, thanks to our amazing wedding planners, Sarah and Taylor!” says Jonathan. “We closed the evening out listening to music and lighting biodegradable wish lanterns, most of which wound up on our neighbors’ lawns, but hey, the wishes were still made!”