Designers Tanner Richie and Fletcher Kassel of Tanner Fletcher organized a wedding fair open to the public on April 10, the final day of New York Bridal Fashion Week. Held on the rooftop of Nine Orchard in the Lower East Side in partnership with Etsy, the event featured their new wedding collection and select vendors. The fair stemmed from the designers' own engagement and wedding planning experiences.
Tanner Richie and Fletcher Kassel, the duo behind Tanner Fletcher, hosted the event to connect with customers and Etsy sellers. Fletcher Kassel said, “Tanner and I are recently engaged and really went down this rabbit hole of planning a wedding.” The fair allowed attendees to browse pieces from their newly debuted weddings and events collection, inspired by an English countryside aesthetic with French antiques, evoking a secret garden wedding. Earlier that week, they presented the collection at St. Bartholomew Church on Park Avenue in a fairytale-themed show featuring florals, ruffles, fanciful suiting, and a ballet pas de deux between performers in pastel brocade jackets, as described by Kassel to Vogue. Pieces from that show were displayed at the fair. The event highlighted Etsy vendors, including jewelry designer David Watkins of RigbyLeighJewelry, who showcased bespoke pieces with Montana sapphires. “As a designer, I work incredibly hard to bring passion and individuality to all of my pieces,” Watkins said. Calligrapher Katie Rhee offered interactive engraving of luxurious gifts for wedding keepsakes. Kassel emphasized the fair's inclusivity, contrasting the industry's traditional elements. “We really wanted to make a kind of disruption in the industry,” he noted. The designers mingled with guests, introducing vendors and hinting at those they might use for their own wedding. The atmosphere was celebratory under the sun in the greenhouse-inspired space.
