A Boca Grande Destination Wedding Vol. 2 Get ready to the ceremony

Onto the wedding day!

 Yes, this sapphire engagement ring was pre royal wedding.

A blue hydrangea and white peony bouquet.  Isn't it lovely? I admit, I love peonies not quite open as much as I do in full bloom.

This is Southern Sweetie, Angela. You'd never guess she's a tough as nails attorney would you?  She's as sweet as she is beautiful. Could you just die over the veil?  I love it.

Let me introduce you to Joe.  Honestly, he's as fun as he looks on this fancy get around town vehicle and just loves his wife to death.  He made us smile constantly in the studio.

 Simple ceremony programs for this wedding.  A perfect fit.

 How darling is this church? This is what I love about Boca Grande.  Everything is just oh so charming.

 Beach town wedding perfection.  A starfish door "wreath" of carnations.

 Go ahead, say it, "awwwww" . Um, Impressions, you rock.

And this is when my tears came. Look at Angelas dad in the background (top left) with that huge smile.
More to come but, did you see vol 1?

How much does it cost to be a bridesmaid?

The average cost of being a bridesmaid is apparently about $1695. Something interesting I came across on twitter this morning. Its a bit scary, when you look at it this way. However, my thought is that your bridesmaids should be your absolute nearest and dearest to you. Would I be willing to write a check to one of my nearest and dearest for $1695? Yes I would. Its the most important day of her life (to date) and I know that being an honored part of it would mean a heck of alot more to both of us than $1695.

The reason I was inclined to write this post was because so many of our clients stressed how they were so concerned about how much they were asking of their maids. Put yourself in their shoes- wouldn't it be worth it to you?

Photo by Hilary Hopkins, and she is lovely if you didn't know. This image was our Scottish & British wedding from a few years back.  Want to see the kilts?

A Boca Grande Destination Wedding Vol. 1 Welcome Reception

Two incredibly sweet italians met and fell in love.  I fell in love with them too. And I fell in love with their destination wedding. If you haven't been to Boca Grande, then you just don't what you're missing!  It's the most quaint little island off of Florida's Gulf coast.  Although there are cars on the island, most people get around by foot, bike, or golf cart.  What to do? Beach it up, shop in little boutiques, watch the sunset, eat in the little town cafes, fish, and golf.  It's one of my favorite getaways and its perfect for a destination wedding.

 For the 1st day of the 3 day wedding celebration, we had a welcome party at Gasparilla Inn's Beach Club.  The welcome dinner was poolside and was the perfect location for a fun & laid back dinner.  There was cornhole on the beach and plenty of time to mix and mingle.

 If ever there is a perfect spot for paper lanterns- its at an evening poolside affair!

 Flip flops are pretty standard for island life.  And oh so cute in these orchard baskets.

 It took months to find this dhingy, and it was worth every moment.  We were sitting 20 feet from the Gulf of Mexico after all. Beers & sodas were ice cold and available with a quick grab.

After dinner, everyone moved to the south side of the beach club to the fire pit area for surprise dessert hour complete with a sundae bar and smores station. 

The bride, our Southern Sweetie Angela, made all the welcome bags, adorning each one with ribbon and a stamped label. We hosted a hospitality suite at the main resort, (Gasparilla Inn) the 1st 2 days of arrivals and guests were able to grab their bags and a refreshing drink after arriving to town.

Don't worry, lots more volumes to come.  This was a GREAT wedding.  Can't wait? You can get a head start and see more photos on Style Me Pretty. All the pretty pictures are by Impressions Photography.  We were lucky enough to have them for the entire celebration- which of course, I always recommend doing if you can.

Destination Wedding Invitations by a deux

Bespoke bridal paper.  Sounds pretty doesn't it?  These stationery suites are even more luscious than they sound.Stunning does not even come close to describing. I was fortunate enough to meet the owner and designer, Kelli Parker at a recent luxury wedding summit and was enamored with her style and passion for her craft.  Here are just a few images from her website below.  I would highly recommend that you browse her website to see all the loveliness she has created.

 When it comes to your wedding invitations, consider that this is the first insight into what your guests will be experiencing at your wedding celebration.  If you received one of these beauties from a deux bespoke bridal paper, what would your reaction be?

A Sophisticated Garden Beach Wedding on Captiva Island: Vol 4

If ever there was a wedding where the kids ruled- this was it! Aunt Emily & Uncle Caleb went all out for their nieces and nephews the entire weekend.

For the 1st night on the island, Emily & Caleb hosted a welcome Luau and surprised the kids with this huge pile of beach toys and games to keep at the beach house they were renting.

In the welcome bags, everyone received a "sweet treat".  The kids could take the ice cream poppers to the resorts pizza & ice cream parlor and exchange it for a real ice cream cone.

After the tropical luau dinner, complete with roasted pig, everyone came over to the firepit for smores.

The next day, it was off to watch the dolphins and sea turtles on a sunset cruise aboard Lady Chadwick.

All the kids received captains hats, direct from the captain himself.

And then there was the wedding... after dinner we unveiled a room we built just for the kids:
Video anyone?  A little Finding Nemo?

The quiet corner.  Complete with etch a sketch and mini library.

In another corner we had the arts and crafts table. Everything imaginable was on this table!

The wii station.  Luckiest kids on earth I tell ya.

On the sports wall we had indoor bowling and hoops!

Indoor bounce house. Are you kidding me right now? No, No I am not.  Even Emily & Caleb couldn't resist...

Sweet little note from the kids:

We're not done yet.  It's time for dessert again.  How about a build your own ice cream sundae bar?

Most kid friendly wedding award for sure; at least these kids thought so!
Want to review all 4 volumes of this beach garden (kid fun) wedding? Sail on in...

Destination wedding tip: If you're having multiple events, consider weekend coverage from your photographer and videographer.  Thank you Impressions photography and Luxe Films!