Sky - Beach Bride

Boho, Birds, & Beach – An Engagement Shoot

By Chie

This is what happens when a fine looking couple gets their engagement shoot during bird season. A once in a lifetime shot for a once in a lifetime moment. We also love the boho vibe they’re giving out because it goes so well with the beach setting. It felt like it was such a comfortable, light, and fun shoot. Despite this being an engagement feature, Alyx, our bride, gave us awesome answers with regards to her wedding day so it would be a waste to not let you guys read it. But really, you’ll certainly enjoy this post as much as we did. Congratulations Alyx and Coner!

And is it just me or does this month feels like a season of alliteration.

Bride:

What is your story as a couple, how did you meet & fall in love?

Our story began in 2005, the year we attended our junior prom together, which is still a favorite memory of ours.While throughout high school we were always friends, after graduation we went out separate ways. Coner went off to Oregon to find his own path and I remained in California to follow through with my dreams. Years later the two of us ran into each other at a place where a lot of locals like to gather in our hometown and our friendship quickly picked up where it had left off and that friendship soon blossomed into a love we now share. We definitely have got the best of both worlds, with our strong friendship as well as our love for one another.

What makes the two of you a perfect match?

I would have to say our matching hair. No! Just kidding!! It’s actually pretty simple really, opposites attract and that is exactly what we are. Coner is very laid back and easy going. While I am what Coner likes to call a “spazz”. His laid back attitude helps me to keep at least one foot on the floor, and my high energy and need for humor brings us many moments of laughter into our home. He is the yin to my yang.

How did he (or you) propose?

Oh this is my favorite story to tell! While we were on vacation in the beautiful Kona, Hawaii we decided it would be fun to take a day trip around the entire island. We stopped everywhere, ate everything and over indulged in way to much Kona coffee. It was the perfect day. After hours and hours of driving (and a few naps for me) we came upon a sign that read Akaka Falls. Now I had seen this gorgeous waterfall previously in a book and really wanted to visit it, but had no idea the location, so as I am bouncing up and down in my seat just to make sure Coner had also seen the sign, I looked over at him and he said “SURPRISE!!” I was thrilled as we walked through the lush forest, and took in all the beauty that surrounded us. Then it came into view, the beautiful and breathtaking falls, that I got to look at for MAYBE 30 seconds. At the point Coner steered me further away to see what was around the corner. Well there was nothing there so we made our way back to the waterfall and this time my breath was taken away by the vision on Coner getting on one knee and asking me to be his wife. Obviously I said yes!

How long was the planning process? Did you think it was enough time?

We had a 16 month engagement, and I would say that it was the perfect amount of time. I had the time to look into the hundereds of local vendors, research all options, and put together all of the DIY projects I wanted to.

What was the best advice you received when you were planning your wedding?

I received so much great advice throughout the planning process, but the advice that sticks out the most is when people told me to make sure I enjoyed my engagement, because it only happens once.

What tips & tricks (can we use “hacks”?) can you share future brides that you yourself have learned during and after your wedding?

Two words: weddings wire! Between the website as well as the mobile app it made it so simple to plan out our wedding day. With budgeting tools, checklists and timelines I had a planner right at my fingertips.

What were some challenges you faced planning your wedding & what would you have done differently to avoid them?

This is a tough question to answer. I think the biggest challenge in the part of planning was just every day life. The months we were engaged the two of us were dealt some pretty bad cards. Between the loss of a few very important family members, new jobs, and the ups and downs of everyday life, there were some days (weeks even) when I just felt like enough was enough. I didn’t need a wedding, I wanted my marriage and I was sick of putting so much into just one day. It was times like these that Coners laid back attitude gave me a reality check and I was able to understand that not everything needs to reflect on our one day. Life is always going to go on, people and things may make you way to mad, and there will be tears. The challenges we faced were not avoidable but I now know that I shouldn’t have feared how it was going to affect our wedding, because it made our one day that much more special.

What inspired your wedding décor? Why did you choose the things that you did?

I am a fan of all things natural and simple. Our decor was inspired by what we see on a daily basis which is the nature that surrounds us. We agreed on things that made us both feel great.

What was the wedding budget?

We set our wedding budget at $10,000. Not including our honeymoon.

Where did you save the most money?

We live in a place that is very popular for destination weddings, so that makes venues VERY expensive. Instead of getting married in the more “popular” areas we drove 15 minutes south and saved thousands on our venue.

What was the biggest expense?

Our cinematographer was the most pricey, but also the most worth it.

How many guests were invited in your wedding and what was the final guest count?

We invited 107 and our final count was 101.

How did you narrow down your list?

We invited people that had made a differences in both of our lives. None of that Aunt Sally’s brothers cousins daughter stuff. We were straight forward and invited the people we truly wanted there.

What songs did you use during the ceremony?

During our ceremony my cousin Maddy played Con te Partiro on her violin while we all walked down the isle, and our Dj played Amos Lee: Sweetpea for the processional.

Where did you go on your honeymoon?

Kona of course!

What are you most excited about for the future?

To live each chapter of our lives together.

Do you have advice for couples still in the planning process?

Make every moment count, and don’t become so overwhelmed in planning your wedding that you forget what the ultimate purpose is, marriage, not a wedding

What would you say, the overall story for this album?

A love story that is always smiling. We love to smile, we love to laugh, and we love to share that with those we are surrounded by.

What inspired the wedding day outfits?

Light and comfortable. We are in a beachtown after all. The more comfy and casual the better.

What was your favorite part of the day?

Kissing my husband any time I wanted.

What were the highlights from the ceremony & reception?

There was so much love and laughter!!

Vendor

Photographer: Alison D Photography

#goingboaen from the Wedding.

It’s officially official, I am now mrs. Boaen! So much love, laughter, and emotion. This morning we had a huge hiccup (missed our plane ✈️) but we are now on our way to Kona. Thank you friends and family, coner and I are so blessed to have each and everyone of you!

A photo posted by Alyx Boaen

Shells, Stars and Sand

By Chie

Sometimes, beach weddings are only classified into that category because of the venue and nothing else. So it’s nice to see a wedding like this that has embraced other elements, such as shells and starfishes, that is known to represent the beach. The decor, the entourage accessories (i.e ring bearer’s pillow) and specially, the cake are adorned with accents that matched the entire wedding. We also loved the pink and blue color theme and the groom’s cake shaped like a helicopter (in honor of his military background). Congratulations to our bride and groom!

Bride:

What do you think is the overall story for this album?

“Love is patient, love is kind.” I know everyone likes this verse, but I have a good story. We wanted a picture of our wedding rings in the spine of Groom’s deceased mother’s bible (her most prized possession) that with the right shadow, creates a heart. I wanted the rings to be in Songs of Solomon, but since it was in Spanish, we couldn’t find it. Heather flipped to this verse in 1 Corinthians and Groom’s mom had highlighted this verse. Furthermore, I am very impatient and it took me becoming patient before the Lord blessed me with Groom. He also had a nasty previous marriage and his patience and faith got him through it.

What inspired the wedding day outfits?

Groom is active military as are his groomsmen so we were able to save some money by them wearing their uniforms. I originally wanted sleeves, but my mom said try some strapless. So I decided I liked the sweetheart neckline. I always have liked lace and never wanted anything over the top–I didn’t want to be a robot on my wedding day. I found my dress on the first day after trying on about 10 dresses. My mom, sister, and best friend were with me and my mom’s expression sold me on my dress. It helped that it didn’t need much alterations! Since two of my bridesmaids were with me, they tried on dresses and agreed on the same dress. They all liked the idea of short dresses and loved the coral. It helps that it’s a dress they can hopefully wear again.

What was your favorite part of the day?

Having all our loved ones together and seeing their love, support, and joy

Was there any Do It Yourself (DIY) projects? If so, can you describe them in detail?

Oh yes, my sister and best friend helped quite a bit so when I say “I”, I meant “we”.

I made a guestbook on Shutterfly with only a couple pages for guests to sign and the rest were pictures and stories of how our relationship evolved. I kept a journal since before I knew Jorge so I revisited what I wrote at the time.
I made a 3 layer ribbon to go around the invitations and sealed it with a sand dollar
I made a vase with sand and seashells for the sparklers and my sister made the bow. Also made a similar vase for Groom’s mom’s remembrance candle.
I added matching ribbons and seashells to the baskets we used for programs, wish lanterns, and candle lighters as well as the “Sparkler Send-Off” chalkboard
I made the flower girl baskets and ring bearer pillows. After seeing many images on Etsy, I decided I could buy very basic stuff at Hobby Lobby and spice it up. Saved money and I was able to incorporate the same ribbon and seashells.
We got custom labels for chapstick to use in our favors and glued mini starfishes to the back of the “Thank You” tags
I am most proud of the Broquets we made after seeing this idea on Pinterest. We ordered personalized steins for the groomsmen (Groom served with all his groomsmen in Germany (except his brother-in-law) and stuffed a bunch of wooden dowels in them with mini liquor bottles, gum, advil, candy, beef jerky, cologne, and cigars taped/glued on. We put these in personalized backpacks with built in coolers with a flask and cans of coke.

What were the highlights from the ceremony and reception?

There was a rainbow for our ceremony and it had been raining the whole day prior plus the morning of our wedding

Was there a theme for the ceremony and reception?

We wanted a romantic beach theme

What part of the ceremony did you and your groom find the most memorable?

We both found the anticipation of me walking down the aisle most memorable as well as the end with the wish lanterns because things finally slowed down and we could take more in

Vendors

Photographer: Limelight Photography
Makeup Artist: Beautiful You Makeup & Hair Services
Event Planner: Confetti Events
Dress Store: David’s Bridal
Ceremony Location: Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort
Event Venue: Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort
Caterer: Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort
Floral Designer: Iza’s Flowers
Cake Designer: sweets by the bay
Paper Props: wedding paper divas

Catching Some Waves – Engagement Shoot

By Chie

This photo shoot embodies our couple’s shared passion towards surfing. And you could see that from how comfortable they are surrounded by the waves and the sand. This engagement setting truly is perfect for the two of them. Look how calm and collected they are, it’s as if we’re just candidly witnessing a normal day for our sweet couple.

What would you say, the overall story for this album?

Courtney knew Ryan would not be excited about having photos taken, so the idea was to incorporate something he loved to do. Both raised on the Outer Banks of NC, Ryan is an avid surfer. We decided to mesh their beach engagement session with Ryan’s love for surfing – and Courtney’s love for watching Ryan surf.

What inspired the wedding day outfits?

Courtney selected two outfits she felt emphasized their laid back approach to life here on the Outer Banks – and something that would compliment the beach scenery. The final outfit, bathing suits, was to tie in the surfing aspect of the session – an activity they spend a lot of time doing.

What was your favorite part of the day?

My favorite part was the very end, when Courtney & Ryan jumped in the ocean to finish off their session! It was a very windy day, resulting in huge waves. I loved how they went right in, the waves crashing around them!

Vendors

Photographer: Courtney Hathaway Photography

JoAnn & Glenn – Love is Patient

By Chie

Everything about this couple just shows the world that patience reaps great rewards. At first, they didn’t want to get married but time proved how much they truly love each other that they knew they can’t live without the love of their lives, so marriage suddenly became something that they both knew was perfect for them. After their engagement, they spent two years planning their wedding. The length of their planning period not only gave them less stress but also, since they booked everything way ahead, they were able to cut some costs. It was easy for them to do that because they were set on having their wedding day on their anniversary date. Smart move I must say!

Congratulations JoAnn & Glenn! And advanced best wishes to you two as well!

Our couple is getting married on December 6 of this year.

What is your story as a couple, how did you meet & fall in love?

Glenn and I will have been together 14 yrs the day we get married Dec 6, 2014. Glenn works as the manager of the caricature artists and draws himself at Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure in Orlando Florida. I met Glenn through a co-worker of his. When we first met we both didn’t want to get married but as time has gone on and the more we loved each other day by day, Glenn said he could not picture his life without me in it. I took him away for his birthday as a surprise and he ended up with a bigger surprise for me while walking down the beach at sunset, he dropped to one knee, told me how much he loved me and asked me if I would be his wife. Through my tears of surprise and happiness, I answered “YES!!”

What makes the two of you a perfect match?

We love and respect one another. We took our relationship slow but I wouldn’t have it any other way. We really know everything about each other. We always communicate, even if it’s something we don’t really want to talk about. We’re not perfect, but we both know how important it is to talk to one another and be careful with your words. This is were respecting one another comes in to play.

What was the best advice you received when you were planning your wedding?

Don’t rush in to it. Glenn and I have been engaged for 2 yrs. We wanted to plan and have the perfect wedding for us.

What tips & tricks (can we use “hacks”?) can you share future brides that you yourself have learned during and after your wedding?

Take things slow and do research. After we got engaged, I started going to Bridal shows and researching on the internet. I booked everything in 2012 so that I was locked into 2012 prices. This way we have time to save up for our big day and not start our marriage off in debt. We also are not taking our honeymoon right after the wedding also to save money for it. We’re taking it 3 months later which is also nice to give us something to look forward to after the wedding.

What are you most excited about for the future?

Being Mrs. Ferguson!! I know that might sound silly to some, but being we’ve been together as long as we have (14 yrs the day we get married) it’s a big deal to me.

What would you say, the overall story for this album?

We really wanted to revisit the time that we had together as a couple on the beach when Glenn asked me to marry him. We also wanted to do the engagement session at sunset because it is such a beautiful time of day and it was my favorite part of the day that day.

What was your favorite part of the day?

The Sunset, It was so gorgeous and full of color.

Here is some additional info the photographer shared with us regarding our bride’s wonderful dress.

I really wanted Joann to look and feel good for her engagement photos so I went out and personally picked out this gorgeous bright striped dress. I knew that she didn’t really own any clothes that were bright because we had a little talk about what kind of clothes she had and she told me that she only had clothes that were black, grey and white. She had recently lost some weight and I knew that she needed something that fit her better and showed off her new rocking body! She loved the dress and actually decided to keep it after the engagement session which really made me happy.

Vendors

Photographer: Alice Rose Photo
Makeup Artist: Marigold Scott On Location Hair & Makeup
Reception Venue: Daytona Beach Shores Beach House

Christa & Adam – Lavender Love

By Shang

Take a moment to marvel into today’s feature of Christa & Adam’s gorgeous lavender-filled ceremony. We always enjoy how lavender can give such a soft elegant touch to a rather simple & casual look. Christa & Adam are also huge Dave Matthews band fans, that was why they chose to incorporate as much of them into their wedding – from the sing-alongs & their favorite lyrics placed into frames on each table. Thank you Kirsten Smith for sharing these precious moments of such a wonderful couple. Enjoy!

What is your story as a couple, how did you meet & fall in love?

Adam and I are both teachers, he teaches fourth I teach third. I was hired as a long term sub at his school and was placed two classrooms down from him. What started out as friends quickly turned to more and it wasn’t long at all before we realized we were meant for each other.

What was the best advice you received when you were planning your wedding?

To stay calm and enjoy every minute of it 🙂

What makes the two of you a perfect match?

Every little thing 🙂 we are so similar in every aspect of life. It makes being in a relationship easy when you are with your best friend and agree on both the big and little things in life. We both love life, trying new things, exploring new places, spending time with our friends and family, concerts and music, kids, and spending time together.

What inspired your wedding decor? Why did you choose the things that you did?

Beachy, rustic, but relaxed and casual- not over the top… I liked simplicity, like the babies breath and hydrangeas we used everywhere! My mom and I would go out on weekends and just find pieces or decor that we loved and would find ways to incorporate it into our big day. We took inspiration from all of our other family members and friends and on the day of setting up we had 15 people there helping and it really was one big collaboration of creativity!

Do you have advice for couples still in the planning process?

ENJOY IT!! have fun with it, you will miss it when it’s gone. And take it one little thing at a time.

What were some challenges you faced planning your wedding & what would you have done differently to avoid them?

I can’t say there really were any challenges… We just dealt with or changed our plans for any little speed bumps along the way and didn’t get too caught up in everything being ‘perfect’- we just kept reminding ourselves what the day truly was about!

What was the wedding budget?

It’s hard to say an exact price but it was definitely a combined budget between Adam and I and our parents. We didn’t want to spend an outrageous amount of money on one day, we knew it could be special without doing that. If day it was under 20,000.

Where did you save the most money?

Flowers! Bought most in bulk and arranged them ourselves, found items and yard sales and re-created them into what we wanted, found my dress on sale, the boys clothes on sale, opted for a fun cocktail style dinner which was AMAZING because we didn’t waste two hours of the day sitting down and eating, we are as we celebrated and mingled! We shopped at places like IKEA and then take what we got there and make it our own, and our favors were thanks to Adam’s parents who own Otterbein’s Bakery– everyone got delicious cookies in a pretty little box we made out of kraft boxes, doilies and ribbons. I didn’t get caught up in expensive invitations since I knew they would just be thrown away eventually. We did an online RSVP which worked GREAT! And I found most of the paper products- programs, thank you tags etc online in a PDF format then just bought card stock and ran them off myself!

Can you share some tips or tricks that you learned along the way leading up to the wedding or after?

You don’t have to buy the most expensive items to make your day absolutely beautiful 🙂 And search for those PDF files, so cheap and easy!

Where did you go on your honeymoon?

We are leaving for Ocho Rios Jamaica in 4 days!

What are you most excited about for the future?

Being with Adam day in and day out, enjoying life together and (soon) growing our family!

How many guests were invited in your wedding and what was the final guest count? Was it difficult to narrow down your guest list?

142 and final count was 120. We wanted to invite everyone at our jobs and a lot more people that we care about, but people understand it’s so hard to do that and keep the number to a reasonable amount.

What songs did you use during the ceremony?

Oh my gosh, we love music! The poor DJ – we gave him a list of 97 songs to stick to. My cousin Kevin played his guitar during the ceremony. Our first dance was the Lumineers version of the talking heads song ‘This Must Be The Place’. We came out dancing and the whole bridal party joined us to Rusted Root ‘Send Me on My Way’. The bridal party came out to fun upbeat songs like Michael Franti’s ‘Say Hey’, James brown’ get up offa that thing, Diplo ‘Express Yourself’, Bubba Sparxx ‘Ms. New Booty’, and Unk’s ‘Walk It Out’. Our parents came out to sledgehammer and genius of love, and parent dances were Jack Johnson’s ‘I Got You and For Mine’, Paul Simon’s ‘Father and Daughter’. We ended the night with Dave Matthews band ‘So Right’

What would you say, the overall story for this album?

I’d say it was a wedding that we had fun planning, added a lot of personal touches to, and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the day! I also love how much all of our families and friends contributed and helped make what it was, from DIY days together, to my uncle and cousin doing the ceremony, to the Otterbein cookies, to the readings by our siblings. I also had my mom, my best friend, stand with my bridesmaids during the ceremony. Family is everything to us and I think that shows. We also were able to really bring together all of our friends over the last few months and seeing the bonds and friendships that formed is SO cool 🙂

What inspired the wedding day outfits?

The beach and my favorite color- blurple (blue and purple). Casual elegance.

What was your favorite part of the day?

Everything. Every last minute of the day. 🙂
(Sorry I really can’t pick!)

Was there any Do it Yourself (DIY) projects? If so, can you describe them in detail?

All of them!! Haha my mom and I as well as Adam’s mom and sister and my bridesmaids all got together and made pretty much everything. I really love the old 10 pane window we got, painted it with chalk paint and listed all of the tables assignments on it. It was really cool seeing all of the things we made and all of the little details come together!

What were the highlights from the ceremony & reception?

The ceremony was done by my Uncle Doug, which was very special. Adam and I wrote the ceremony ourselves, so the whole ceremony meant a lot. The readings were done by our siblings… Meg read an excerpt from the Velveteen Rabbit, Brady wrote a personal INCREDIBLE speech, and Perry read a marriage equality statement that we co-wrote. That was especially meaningful as it’s a subject that is very important to us and very close to our hearts. The music by Kevin and the sing-along was awesome! We had our moms combine soil from each of our hometowns that we can now plant a tree at our new home with- which we loved. We also wrote our own vows, which I highly recommend everyone do– it was the only part we were really nervous about but looking back it was definitely the highlight! The reception—- the whole thing!! The dancing, the entrance songs, the music, the open bar, the families coming together a one. We loved it all. We set out luminaries on the beach after which was just beautiful!

Was there a theme for the ceremony and reception?

We incorporated a lot of Dave Matthew’s band subtle touches. Our first conversation was me saying ‘So, I hear you’re a Dave fan too…’ And we are both huge DMB fans but didn’t want to over-do it. We had a sign the ring bearers held that said ‘Climb on Two by Two to be Sure These Days Continue…’ We had acoustic Dave songs played by Kevin, we found our favorite love lyrics and each table had a different lyric on it in these awesome little Ikea frames we found! And we also had Dreaming Tree wine bottles that we cut (interesting DIY) and cut out flowers in on a lot of the tables. I loved the subtle touches of Dave all throughout the day. Other than that, it was a lot of beachy rustic touches everywhere.

Vendors

Photographer: Kirsten Smith Photography