casual - 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

Summer Lovin’ – Engagement Shoot

By Chie

The love story of our featured couple today is one of the sweetest one I’ve heard and trust me, I’ve read a lot of romance novels. I love their transition from friends, best friends, to soon-to-be Mr & Mrs.
Danny Zuko (Travolta) and Sandy Olsson (Newton-John) of Grease, the people they were trying to portray in their engagement shoot, has nothing on how in love our couple is. I even think Savanna and Neil are better dressed than them. The only thing they have similar with the movie loveteam is that they both fell in love with each other on the beach. Cute! So without further ado, here are the pictures from their engagement. Enjoy the bride-to-be’s stories too! Congratulations (advanced) Savanna and Neil!

Bride:

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

As scandalous as it may sound Neil was dating my roommate in college when we met. No, nothing you would see on 90210. He was dating my roommate, I had a boyfriend and he immediately was place in the “friend-zone!” My hometown boyfriend and I didn’t make it very far into the semester and neither did they. Neil and I were both finance majors and had a lot of classes together so we naturally started becoming really close friends. He got me a job at the restaurant he worked at, we became study buddies and eventually discovered that we were and are both beach bums at heart. For about six months, we were really good friends. We dated other people
and even played wing (wo)man for each other from time to time in class and on the beach. On the beach, Clearwater beach, is really where we started to fall in love. We had these great conversations; we discussed the past, the future, our goals, dreams and deepest desires. We started to form business plans together, we were heading “Straight to the Top!” It was clear that we would be a part of each other’s lives for a very long time.

The turning point in our relationship happened one night when my best friend from childhood came to visit me at school. We were all out together when she pulled me into the bathroom to grill me on this guy she always heard me talking about, was hanging out every time she came to visit and was going out of his way then and there to make sure we had a good time. That night she opened not only my eyes but she opened his. I found out later that she was having similar conversations with Neil when I wasn’t around! By the end of the night Neil and I looked at each other a different way and we haven’t looked back since!

What makes the two of you a perfect match?

This question makes me laugh, because I don’t think there is such a thing as a perfect match. We work at it! Relationships are not always fairytales; they can be messy at times. Neil and I have been together for over six years now. We committed a long time ago to be open communicators and to be open to growing and changing together. We decided that we would be friends and partners as well as lovers in life.

How did he (or you) propose?

Around November 2012 Neil and I started discussing taking a trip between Christmas and New Years. Ideally, Neil wanted to go snowboarding in Colorado. However after I incurred a football-season “war wound” that dream became neigh unrealistic… Typical Savvy! Neil and I decided on Northern California to experience Wine Country, the San Francisco Bay and the Redwood Forest.
We left for Cali on December 26 and landed in San Francisco around 10:30pm local time (3:30am EST). After an hour drive to Napa, Neil informed me that I needed to be ready to leave the hotel the next morning for the first festivity by 6:00am. Yes, the first day of our romantic get away. This guy.Soaring, more like floating over Napa, I was entranced… More like crazy inquisitive! The poor pilot, poor Neil really I grilled the pilot about everything from steering the balloon, to crash landing, to starting a vineyard. Amazing! After about twenty minutes in flight Neil started acting odd. He was trying to snuggle and distract me from learning everything possible about ballooning in Napa. I was 100% clueless! When Neil flipped me toward him and got on one knee in the basket, I was dumbfounded and confused – “what was he doing?” Then it happened, his voice cracked and that’s when I knew. I finally understood what was happening. Neil asked me to be his partner in life. And I said yes! After landing it became apparent that I was the only person who didn’t have a clue what was happening! Thank you Neil for making that moment so special!

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

We have been engaged since December 27th 2012 and our wedding date is March, 28th 2015. We have had plenty of time for planning. We chose to purchase a home last year and then focus on the wedding. Really there was only so much planning we could do the first year, there is only so far out vendors will let you book out. It gave us a lot of time to really research what it was we wanted out of wedding, it also gave us a lot time to enjoy the planning process.

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

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

I am completely OCD so the best thing I ever did was create a single spreadsheet that I could keep everything in. It has my budget, schedule, project list, shopping list, guest list, etc.It is so all encompassing that I have two other brides using my template.

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

Being that I am so OCD, I have struggled with letting the little, minuet details bother me. I have to continuously remind myself that people are going to remember how mine and Neil’s love made them feel and that they had a blast at the reception, they will not remember the paper towels in the restroom or the personalized napkins and matches at the bar.

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

We want to make sure the wedding feels distinctly Neil and Savanna and we want to make sure our story is told. We started with our colors, Wine and Champaign to incorporate his proposal. We chose to have the ceremony and reception at the Hilton Clearwater Beach, to bring it back to where it all started. Neil and I both have old souls and want to make sure our wedding incorporates vintage aspects while maintaining a timeless feel. We will be taking a musical journey throughout the evening starting with the 30s and 40s. Music is a very important part of mine and Neil’s lives so we wanted make sure the décor kept a vintage feel to help tie in this concept. We will be using our floral and aesthetic design to incorporate elements of a rustic Napa Valley. I am remaining a little
vague since we are still in the middle of the planning process.

What was the wedding budget?

$30,000

Where did you save the most money?

Even though I work in Finance, I am a pretty creative person! I have saved on the little things. I purchased our outfits for the engagement photos at thrift shops. The majority of the décor items were DIY projects that I completed with my bridesmaids. I also tracked coupons and sales. Since we have had two seasons to plan through I was able to purchase items when they went on clearance.

What was the biggest expense?

The venue; we are using the Hilton for our rehearsal dinner, ceremony and reception. It may be the biggest expense however it is one I am very comfortable with as a bride. The team at the Hilton has really been amazing throughout the planning process. The have been responsive, helpful and upfront every step of the way. I really could not have asked for a better experience.

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

Our guest list is currently at 138 guests. I’ll have to get back to you on the final number!

How did you narrow down your list?

We want to make sure the people we are inviting are a genuine part of our current life or journey. It is easy to get wrapped up in the politics at work or even within our families when it comes to who will make the guest list or not. It all comes down to there is a budget and anyone we invite needs to be a valuable part of our story.

Where did you go on your honeymoon?

We are going to the Sandals in Saint Lucia for 10 days!

What are you most excited about for the future?

I am excited to be the next, in a long line of Mother Effers! My Fiancés name is Neil Effer! I am looking forward to sharing eternity with my husband, partner and best friend

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

I am still in the process but I would say to just remember to not get too caught up in the wedding itself. There is also a marriage that goes along with the wedding. The wedding is one day and the marriage is a lifetime commitment and deserves just as much attention if not more.

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

For the engagement photos I wanted to keep with the vintage feel of our wedding. As I started to play with different scenes and ideas I started to get fixated on the Summer Nights’ scene from Grease. Neil and I really started out as a summer romance at the beach and I wanted to make sure these photos tied back to our story and the décor for the wedding.

Vendors

Photographer: Robin Reiss Photography
(Wedding) Reception Venue: Hilton Clearwater Beach Resort

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

Not Your Usual Beach Wedding

By Chie

Our feature today is not your usual beach wedding. We’re so used to white or yellow sand beaches that whenever we have an album that has dark black sand like this, it’s a definite standout. Another unusual detail is that our couple’s wedding venue can only be accessed by water transportation. Destination weddings are very common with having the beach setup, but the common beaches used for events like these are easily accessed by airplanes, so having a venue as intimate and private as this one in Newfoundland, Canada is noteworthy. All in all, it was a beautiful wedding set in an equally magnificent island. Congratulations Heather & Adrian.

Photographer:

Heather and Adrian got married at Heather’s grandparents’ cabin – on a private island in Newfoundland, Canada. This island is only accessible by boat, but they had a full wedding shindig with 90 guests! Heather and Adrian planned a super day with lots of neat, gorgeous details using driftwood and natural elements, and with the help of their family built everything by hand. Adrian built the driftwood arch they got married under, and Heather’s mom and family built the benches and other details, and friends helped paint the signs, Heather’s friend made the cakes and together everyone helped to plan the wedding from away, with only a few days to actually make everything happen before the big day.

To top it all off, the following morning, Heather ‘took the plunge’ and jumped off the wharf in her wedding dress before heading back home.

Vendors

Photographer: Alex Stead Photos
Dress Designer: Mori Lee

Laid-Back Destination Wedding

By Chie

It’s fascinating how this lovely beach wedding in Cancun was a perfect mixture of laid-back and elegance. Like during the ceremony, if you look at one side you would see the groom and his groomsmen sporting very casual outfits then if you look over at the other, you’ll find the bride and her entourage wearing an elegant gown and fuchsia cocktail dresses. Add this up to how the sun was shining down on them accordingly. It looked like it wasn’t too hot for the guests to be uncomfortable but it was bright enough that it was a perfect day for a wedding. Congratulations Rachel and Gary!

Here is what our bride has to share with us…

How did he propose?

Gary and I had been together for almost nine years when he proposed. We had overcome five years of long distance while he played professional hockey and finally began to talk about marriage. We got engaged August 24th and it was the most exciting moment of my life. I knew it had to be happening soon because let’s face it- it had been almost nine years! As the summer was coming to a close, and Gary working nights, he had one more night off so I thought this has to be it! My parents invited us for a barbeque and I tried to decline for fear of ruining what I thought could be “the night” but Gary accepted the invitation and as disappointed I was, we went. We were getting ready to go and as I checked his pockets (no box) I started to get mad inside. I was thinking this was never going to happen! I let it go by the time we got to my parents and we were enjoying a glass of wine while supper was cooking when he took my hand. In front of my family in their kitchen, he got down on one knee and proposed. I was blown away. This moment was made equally as special because he chose to let my family in on my big surprise. My dad has been battling advanced prostate cancer for the past five years and his condition was beginning to progress quickly. Gary and I knew the likelihood of my dad being able to walk me down the aisle if we waited the year was slim.

Tell us about your wedding day

We decided to have a March wedding and the only way to it within six months was to do a destination wedding. We signed on to Destinationweddings.com and were assigned a wedding specialist named Susan. She researched resorts for us in various parts of Mexico based on our price point and criteria as well as flight packages for our selected dates. After much discussion we decided on the Barcelo Tucancun Beach Resort in Cancun, Mexico over spring break and it was fabulous!

The resort was absolutely breathtaking; the beach stretched for miles, the sun was gorgeous. The wedding day was magical and everything went so smoothly. The flowers were freshly delivered, the food was tastefully prepared and the service was phenomenal. I’ll never forget dancing for hours outside under the beautiful lighting and hearing the waves of the ocean.

There were many ups and downs with the wedding process but in the end we had 45 of our closest family and friends there to spend a week with us in Cancun and be a part of our special day. The intimate ceremony was on the terrace overlooking the ocean and the sun was shining. The beautiful thing about a destination wedding is that it can be as stress-free as you make it not to mention as cost effective as you need. The onsite coordinator does everything for you so that you and your guests can enjoy the day. Via email, we were given choices of food menu, hors d’oeuvres, linen, flowers ect. Many items were included in a package, and the rest we added on a la carte. It was so easy! We decided to look for a photographer locally and bring him/her to Mexico with us, which was probably our best decision. Taliah Leigh Photography documented our entire wedding week and the photos couldn’t have been better. I couldn’t have imagined a better day- it was truly a dream.

I loved waking up each morning and seeing family and friends at breakfast, at the beach or around the pool deck. We spent time with family who flew in from across Canada and had a nice time reconnecting. This was my last, most memorable vacation with my family.

Vendors

Photographer: Taliah Leigh Photography