The Knox Wedding

Nicola and Ben | A wedding at The Knox in Merrickville, ON

It’s no secret that The Knox is one of my favourite wedding venues in the Ottawa area. Tucked away in Merrickville, the venue is actually an old church that has been restored by Michelle and Matt, the owners. With giant gothic windows and a spectacularly minimalist space, this venue is everything you could ever want for an intimate wedding. And not to mention, Michelle and Matt are two of the best humans I know.

When Nicola and Ben reached out to me and told me about their wedding day, I nearly fell over with excitement. Not only are they two of the world’s sweetest humans, they also had a vision that embodied everything I love about weddings. They wanted a stress-free, adventurous, emotion-filled day surrounded by their closest people. Can you get any better than that?! And their day ended up being exactly that. It was perfect.

fun fact:

Did you know I’m one of The Knox’s preferred vendors? It’s an honour being on their recommended list for photographers!

The Knox Wedding

The vendors involved in the day

A huge shoutout to the amazing vendors that helped make this day happen:

Photography: Lauren McCormick Photography

Venue: The Knox Wedding and Event Venue

Officiant: The Ceremony Company

Music: Duo D’Amore on Cello

Florals: DIY by the bride

The story of how Nicola and Ben met

In their own words:

“Honestly it kind of just happened! We are both involved in the Ottawa cycling community and we had a ton of mutual friends. We had been introduced by friends and gradually started going on rides together and spending more time together both on and off our bikes. Eventually the relationship just changed, and I (Nicola) was hesitant because I didn’t want to screw it up and lose my best friend. I remember talking to one of our mutual friends, telling him I was nervous, and him just saying to me ‘that boy is in love with you, go get him’. That was the best advice ever.”

How they got engaged

“We had been talking about it for a while and joking that buying a house together and committing to a 25 year mortgage was more daunting than the idea of getting married.

Ben and I went mountain biking Nov 1st, 2020 and before we started riding, it started raining. We agreed to still ride, but that if it started to downpour we would just turn around. We set out and were having a good time until this one long climb, he just rode away from me. Usually he is good at gauging my effort and riding at my level. He completely dropped me and left me to dig deep up the climb to try to keep up to him. I was wet from the rain and not super impressed that I was now having to ride alone.

When I got the top of the climb, he was there waiting for me and I was breathing heavy. He gave me a second to compose myself. Then he asked if I had caught my breath. When I said I had, he pulled a ring out from his pocket and got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I, of course, bawled and sat on the ground hugging him and said yes! We still had to ride back to the car and I was so shaky and excited on the way down the trail it was actually kind of scary to ride haha!”

First Look at the Merrickville Ruins

On the morning of their wedding day, I met up with Ben at the entrance of the Merrickville Ruins. For those who haven’t been, I would highly recommend checking it out. It’s a beautiful park full of history and character. Once Ben was in the right place for their first look, I then met up with Nicola to bring her over to where Ben was standing. It was an incredibly emotional first look. We then went on to take some couples photos in the area, since it was such a perfect location for it!

The Knox Wedding Ceremony

Nicola and Ben had such a beautiful and intimate ceremony that truly reflected who they were. Everything felt personalized and authentic to them as a couple. There were so many moments that left the entire room in tears, and left us all with the warm fuzzies.

I also want to draw attention to the beautiful florals on site. Nicola actually put together the florals herself! A bride extraordinaire. She had a vision for a very simplistic, minimal ceremony space that amplified the beauty of the venue. And I truly believe her florals did just that!

Couples Portraits

After their ceremony, Nicola and Ben enjoyed cocktail hour outside on the side lawn of the venue with their guests. They casually mingled with their family and friends while we also took portraits with different groupings of people they had requested. Once everyone left, we ended their photography coverage with some couples portraits inside The Knox, which ended up being some of my favourite photos of the day!

Ready to make this official and book me for your wedding day?

Since you’re here, you may also like these other wedding stories…

10 thoughts on “The Knox Wedding”

  1. That is not what I expected the interior of that building to look like! I love how modern & bright the space is while still preserving that cozy historic feel. Also – their first look is the sweetest! You captured the day so well.

  2. WOW!! I love old buildings and love when they are restored too. The Knox is so beautiful! I love all the details of this day and all the candid moments you captured!

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