Peach

Kyle and Kristie went with soft colors for their big day at the beach — coral, peach, tan, and white. It was laidback but romantic; something these two wanted to have on the happiest day of their lives. Their tables adorned with floral centerpieces that screamed love and class. Their wedding cake that was shaped to look like a sandcastle was on point with the beach-theme. Speaking of things on point — Kristie’s mermaid wedding dress was perfect. She was stunning on it. So gorgeous and radiant, she looked like a legitimate siren. Cheers to love and life! Congratulations, K&K!

The Wedding:

We knew that we wanted to do something different and loved the idea of having a beach wedding. Long Beach Island is our favorite place in the world. We adore the small town vibe and laid-back beach lifestyle, so it only made sense to celebrate the happiest day of our lives with everyone we love in the place we love the most! Our wedding ceremony took place on the 9th street beach while the reception was held at The Stateroom in Ship Bottom, NJ.

We Are A Perfect Match:

Kyle and I dated long distance for four years. We may have only been 17 when we started dating and went off to two different universities, but we knew that what we had been worth it. We are each other’s best friends, biggest supporters, and have been crazy about each other from the day we met.

The Proposal:

We were dating for just over seven years when Kyle proposed. He told me we were headed to Villanova for a recruiting event for work. When we arrived, we walked through campus and stopped at the “whispering arches.” Kyle got down on one knee and proposed. To my surprise, Kyle had strategically placed our family and friends all around the campus and revealed them as we walked through the campus. It was incredible and so special! It meant so much to have our closest family and friends there with us to celebrate.

The Outfit Inspiration:

My Paloma Blanca wedding dress was from Kleinfeld Bridal. It was light, beautiful, and perfect for the beach! I knew it was the one from the minute I tried it on. My amazing bridal consultant Allison found the dress for me based on what I told her I was looking for. My bridesmaids wore four different style Watters and Watters dresses from Always a Bridesmaid Boutique. I wanted to make sure all of my bridesmaids were comfortable and felt amazing in their dresses, which is why we went with different styles in the same color. We chose tan suits for Kyle and his groomsmen as we felt it would match perfectly with the coral bridesmaids gowns.

The Planning Process:

We planned and saved for just over two years. I think it was the perfect amount of time because we were able to enjoy being engaged without feeling rushed to plan the wedding.

The Best Advice We Received:

My best friend told me to make sure that we take a minute and look around during our reception so we can “take it all in.” The night goes by so quickly; I was so happy that we took a moment to ourselves to appreciate everything.

Tips & Tricks for Future Brides:

Instead of renting expensive centerpieces or decorations, see if you can get what you need from craft stores first. We started doing this as soon as we booked our venue, two years prior to the wedding date, so we were able to get a lot of the items we need during off-season sales.

The Challenges We Faced:

To eliminate the guesswork as to what we could afford, we put together a preliminary budget based on what we thought things would cost. As we booked our vendors and made wedding purchases, we kept spreadsheets of actual costs and due dates to ensure our saving was on track to avoid any issues.

The Wedding Décor Inspiration:

We wanted to use soft colors for our beach themed wedding. We decided on coral, peach, tan and white. Our florist did a fantastic job designing our bouquets, ceremony flowers, and centerpieces by choosing flowers based on our color scheme. We didn’t want all of our centerpieces to be exactly alike, so we chose five different styles of centerpieces. Some were floral arrangements while we used hurricane vases and various style lanterns for others. I loved how the different centerpieces turned out!

Money Matters:

• We save money on flowers. For our ceremony, we had mason jars of flowers hanging on shepherds hooks. After the ceremony, these were reused for some of our centerpieces. Although we did have some, we saved a lot by choosing not to have all of our centerpieces use large floral arrangements.
• The venue was a big expense, but it was well worth it. The food was outrageous, and everyone was happy with their dinner choice!

The Guest List:

We invited 210 guests, and our final headcount was 165.

The Songs:

For our ceremony, we had a string trio.

• They played: Processional – Canon in D
• Brides Entrance – A Thousand Years
• Recessional – La Rejouissance

What Awaits Us:

There are so many things we are excited about for the future! We’re looking forward to traveling, buying our first home, and eventually raising a family together.

Planning Advice For Couples:

Make sure you give yourselves enough time to enjoy being engaged. Planning should be fun and exciting! Before you know it, you will be at your wedding having the time of your life!

Favorite Part of the Day:

My absolute favorite wedding day moment is a tie between our first look and being announced as husband and wife. I will never forget the look on Kyle’s face when he saw me in my wedding dress for the first time. Prior to seeing each other, I was feeling a little anxious, but all the nerves turned into pure excitement as soon as we saw each other! When Reverend Brian announced us as husband and wife, it was almost surreal. After nine and a half years together, we were officially Mr. & Mrs. Kyle Raventos! Dancing the night away at the reception with everyone we love was another favorite part of our day! We had the time of our lives! Our family and friends mean the world to us; it was amazing to have all of them with us to celebrate the biggest day of our lives at our favorite place in the world!

Most Memorable Moments:

Our officiant did a beautiful job putting together our ceremony. He told the story of how Kyle and I met, and also how he proposed, which got some laughs and cheers. Being announced as husband and wife was the most memorable part of the ceremony, though!

VENDORS

Photographer: Popography
Dress Boutique: Kleinfeld
Ceremony location: 9th Street Beach, Ship Bottom, NJ
Reception Location: The Stateroom 
Cake: Carlo’s Bakery 
Caterer: Taste
Favours: Country Kettle Fudge 
DJ: E-squared
Ceremony Music: String Elegance 
Hair & Makeup: Chic Blowout Bar
Flowers: Lily in the Valley Florist
Stationery: Wedding Paper Divas
Transportation: Long Branch Trolley
Videographer & Photo booth: Enchanted Celebrations 
Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Always a Bridesmaid Boutique