Preparations began at 4 a.m. May 10 with 20 people toiling nine hours straight at New York City's posh Metropolitan Club to assemble an 18-ft.-high chuppa from white dogwood branches. As they cleared out, designer Shoshanna Lonstein, 27, joined her eight bridesmaids to have their makeup done while listening to a mix tape one of them had made. Says boutique owner Charlotte Ronson: "We kept the nerves down for her big day."

Come 7 p.m., Lonstein was a portrait of old Hollywood glamor as she walked down the aisle in a champagne gown by Reem Acra, a 30-carat diamond necklace from Graff jewelers at her throat. But as Lonstein exchanged vows with investment analyst Joshua Gruss, 29, the vibrant personality that once captivated Jerry Seinfeld poked through. "She was laughing and crying, which really sums her up," says one of the 200 guests (who included Tobey Maguire, bridesmaid Jennifer Meyer's boyfriend). "Shoshanna is a combination of feminine and elegant, but always with a sense of humor."

And always with an eye to detail. Lonstein selected two bouquets (lilies for the photos, roses for the ceremony) and Gruss's two wedding rings, one gold, the other platinum. (He chose her plain band and diamond eternity ring.) Only her honeymoon was left to chance. With Gruss on active duty in the Coast Guard reserves, the pair couldn't slip away. For that night, though, "it was so beautiful," says Ronson. "It was just a fairy tale."