Perennial Weddings‘ design for this beautiful destination wedding focused on highlighting Costa Rica’s natural beauty. For the ceremony, that meant putting large garland on the Matopalo tree. For the reception, that meant natural wood tables with minimalist florals in shades of ivory, peach and green. See how it all came together, courtesy of Sylvia Guardia, in The Vault!

From Perennial WeddingsUnder the shade of a huge Matapalo tree, 46 friends and family members gathered for the wedding of Devon and Alex. Not rain, snow or flight delays could keep this group away from this destination wedding. Married on March 19, 2016 at Pangas Beach Club in Tamarindo, Costa Rica. They wanted to keep it sweet and simple; from design, to dinner, to the flow of the day (and week).

The design elements were simple and focused on the Matopalo tree and the large Guanacaste wood tables at the beach club. Devon wanted “rustic elegance” to run throughout the design. To keep it light we used soft colors, with lots of foliage, and hints of gold. Because we wanted the tree to be a focal point, we hung a large garland on the tree and used this as their backdrop for the ceremony. For the reception we wanted the natural wood tables to stand out, so the design we came up with was lace runners, gradients of white, green foliage in varying shades and gold mini pineapples. The “vases” were little ice cream dishes, which I spray painted white. Devon even mentioned one of her favorite moments to be “…after we sat down for down dinner. The sun had just set. I looked around at the beautiful perfectly set tables, all lit up by dozens of little votives, highlighting the smiling faces of our loved ones. It was a perfect vision that I will cherish forever.”

My favorite detail of the entire design were the place settings…how perfectly imperfect (or “rustically elegant”) they were. A grey napkin wrapped in twine, a leaf with guests’ names written in gold, and a piece of foliage or a flower tucked in. I think this summed up the wedding and the couple. In the couples quirks and silliness, they were lovely alone, but perfect together.

Photography: Sylvia Guardia | Floral Design: Colette's Flowers | Wedding Dress: Watters Fabienne | Hair + Makeup: Diego Alfaro | DJ: Music 4 You Events | Band: Fabio Avelino dos Santos | Venue: Pangas | Event Styling, Coordination + Design: Perennial Weddings | Rentals: Eventos Artesanos