A breathtaking Naples wedding, pretty pastel hues and devastatingly gorgeous images captured by Luminaire Foto… if this isn’t the PERFECT way to start a Thursday morning, then I don’t know what is. Add to all of those pretty, pretty ingredients a bride and groom who seriously could.not.be.cuter and one uber-stunning ceremony and, well.  We’re head over heels, totally smitten and seriously obsessed with every.last.detail.  See so much more right here.

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From the Bride… From the start, Dave and I knew that we wanted our wedding to be a celebration of our lives together before all our closest family and friends. We wanted a more intimate celebration, so a destination wedding to Naples, Florida, was a perfect location for us. Being from Michigan but living in Alabama at the time, we flew to Naples to check out La Playa Beach and Golf Resort and immediately knew it was the perfect place for us. Hiring Hilary from RSVParties was truly one of the best decisions we made. She helped us bring our vision to life. We knew we wanted our wedding to be simple and romantic with a touch of modern. It was important to us to be surrounded by the people we love, so we made the decision early on to ask my matron of honor’s twin sister to be our pastor — I have considered both of them family for most of our lives. We felt so blessed to be married by someone who knew and loved us.

Tropical storm Debby had just departed the state of Florida by the time our day had finally arrived, and we were left with the most beautiful weather for our ceremony. We could not have been luckier to have such perfect weather after the storm left. During cocktail hour, our guests enjoyed passed hors d’oeuvres and wine while watching the sun set on the beach before heading into the reception. As our guests raved about the food, enjoyed the photo booth and danced the night away, I knew it was going to be a memorable night for both us and our guests. It was truly the perfect day, one we will never forget.

Wedding Photography: Luminaire Foto / Wedding Venue: La Playa Beach & Golf Resort in Naples, Florida / Event Planning: Hilary Feldman of RSVParties Inc. / Floral Design: Botanicals on the Gulf / Wedding Invitations: DM Paper Designs / Entertainment: Stereophonic DJs / Wedding Dress: Jane Wang / Bride’s Shoes: Giuseppe Zanotti / Bridesmaid + Flower Girl Bags: Wedding Chicks / Hair + Makeup: Salon Tease

Luminaire Foto and Botanicals On The Gulf are members of our Little Black Book, Love what you see? Take a look at their portfolios.

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Florida has a wedding style all its own. It’s a little bit preppy, a lot-a bit glam all infused with a beach ambiance that we could spend the rest of our days staring at and be total happy campers. Although it could be the lack of sunny Vitamin D in Boston that gets us foaming at the mouth the second a Floridian affair crosses our path, we have a feeling it’s more about the the sheer beauty of KT Merry’s photographs. She has a way of capturing the most beautiful of details along with the sweetest of moments all in one perfect package. See more of this Naples affair right here.

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From the Bride… When a wedding planner begins to plan HER wedding, she finds it’s not as easy as one would think. This bride has been an integral part of over 300 weddings and observed each and every detail with the hope of creating the perfect day for her own. That day was Saturday, October 22, 2011, in Naples, Florida. The vision was black tie with a twist! She and her fiancé wanted the guests formal, but playful, and they carried that idea through from the seersucker-inspired wedding invitations that read ‘colorful bowties requested’ to the custom linen bags that were delivered to each guest’s hotel room that said, ‘HOORAY’ and included a customized map of Naples hotels, restaurants, shopping, and the event sites drawn by her mother. This colorful “garden party” theme continued with the bridal party’s attire. The groom wore blue and white seersucker and a navy bow tie with Kelly green dots, the bride wore a blue pinky ring given to her by the groom the first Christmas after they met, her bouquet was surrounded by lace and buttons from her mother and grandmother’s wedding dresses, and the groomsmen wore navy suits with Kelly green and pink striped bow ties and pink pocket squares. The bridesmaids were in vibrant pink gowns with turquoise earrings, which were a wonderful find from a street vendor in New York.

The ceremony took place in a beautiful garden overlooking the Gulf of Mexico in the Port Royal neighborhood of Naples. After the guests were seated, the bride and her father were introduced by a choir soloist who sang “At Last.”  All the bride and groom’s friends and family found this to be a fitting song choice! They were married by her father’s college roommate, an Episcopal priest in Los Angeles who was once a writer for the hit show “M*A*S*H,” hence the comedy involved when exchanging their vows. After the ceremony, the guests enjoyed cocktails and hors d’oeuvres while playing croquet with sets monogrammed with the bride and groom’s initials as they watched the sun set over the gulf. The tabletops contained antique tins filled with hot pink flowers similar to those carried by the bridesmaids.

The wedding party and guests were then transported by trolley to Café Lurcat, where the couple had their first date, a beautiful two story Mediterranean style building located on Fifth Avenue. As the guests entered, they were shown the seating chart, which was written on a large antique mirror, and ushered upstairs.  Soft blue lights cascaded over the hand-painted, domed ceiling, lush blue silk linens covered the tables, and thousands of candles and soft white florals placed in traditional silver and modern acrylic vases covered the tabletops. While enjoying dinner, an electric strings trio flown in from Philadelphia played, then a red velvet cake covered in white fondant cabbage roses was cut, and a special cake was presented to the bride’s father, who was also celebrating his 65th birthday. The guests were then asked to move downstairs for dancing. As they arrived, they were greeted by a cigar roller, whose presence was a gift from the bride to the groom. He loves a good cigar! The room was filled with amber light, imported crystal chandeliers, white and gold lounge furniture and a ten piece Motown band, who entertained the guests until they could dance no longer! It had all the elements of a modern day “Great Gatsby.”  It was the perfect day! 

Wedding Photography: KT Merry Photography / Ceremony: Cutlass Cove Beach Club in Naples, Florida / Reception: Cafe Lurcat in Naples, Florida / Wedding Planning: Betsy Tucker (The Bride) / Floral + Event Design: 50 Fifty Floral Art (239-649-3200) / Event Coordination: Lucia Paul Design / Cinematography: Utopia Video Productions / Wedding Cake: Ella’s Cakes / Band: CTO High Voltage / Chairs + Cocktail Lounge Furniture: Niche Event Rentals / Reception Furniture + Linens: Nuage Designs / Lighting: Bay Stage Lighting / Wedding Dress: Oscar de la Renta

KT Merry Photography is a member of our Little Black Book, Love what you see? Take a look at their portfolios.

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It doesn’t get much more romantic than a picnic on the beach and for this darling Naples duo, a sandy spot next to the Atlantic was the PERFECT locale to celebrate their engagement.  Yep, armed with just a picnic basket and cozy blanket, these two cuties spent the day snuggling and laughing over their favorite red wine and some yummy cheese.  And after a day spent soaking in these gorgeous images captured by Set Free Photography, you’ll be making seaside plans with your honey ASAP.  Click here for more.

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From Stacy of Set Free Photography… Tara and Tyler celebrated their engagement with a casual beach photo shoot that simply involved a love they share: the love of red wine. The set-up was complete with cheese, a baguette and a beach breeze that added a bit of movement to Tara’s hair, allowing me to truly capture a typical day at the beach for Tara and Tyler. In between bites of cheese and sips of wine, this couple of four years snuggled and whispered to one another like two people that just fell in love last week! They actually had a brief chance encounter back in 2005, when Tara was still in high school and Tyler was in college. They met through Tara’s cousin who, being a good and protective cousin, refused to give away Tara’s phone number, despite Tyler’s persistence. Time went by, and Tyler never forgot Tara. It’s a good thing that fate sometimes gives second chances — they met again three years later when Tyler unknowing walked into Tara’s workplace, and the rest is history.

Photography: Set Free Photography / Location: Delnor-Wiggins Pass Florida State Park in Naples, Florida