Romantic Costa Rica Wedding at Reserva Conchal Beach Club

Abby Capalbo
May 14, 2014
Categories: Casual, Romantic, The Blog

From the second I laid eyes on this stunner of a wedding, I knew I was going to be in love. Like, the obsessed kind of love. Where I pick apart each and every layer and find myself falling harder and harder. It started with the Happy Menocal invitations and then every detail after planned by Fournineteen Weddings continued to take my breath away. So it goes with out saying that this gallery from Margaux Gamble? It’s beyond.

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From Fournineteen Weddings…From the moment I first met Adriana, I knew that this wedding was going to be a stunner. She had a very clear vision of what she wanted, and with her awesome style and keen eye for lovely details (plus the love that just radiated from both of them), I knew it wold be a really special day. Adriana is Costa Rican, and of course, she wanted to get married in her country. Adriana & Eric chose a lovely beachfront venue, so that the wedding would be a destination wedding for Costa Rican guests as well, making everyone feel the relaxed vibe that beach weddings offer. One of the most important things for the couple was to have a laid back, romantic affair, and have their guests feel involved with every part of the celebration. The setting, the decor, and the beautiful ocean front ceremony were just the beginning… I will say no more, and let Adriana tell you the rest!

From the Bride…Eric and I met and live in New York, but wanted to have our wedding at the beach in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Costa Rica is my home country and we had spent several New Year’s in Guanacaste before we got engaged, so the place had a special meaning to us as a couple. We knew this would be the perfect spot to have our wedding; not only a gorgeous setting; but a laid-back and truly enjoyable place to be.

We wanted to focus our special day on making our guests feel welcome and involved in the event. The guests were greeted with fresh coconut water served in coconuts as they entered the venue. Also, during the ceremony we gave them wands with bells and ribbons for them to wave during the first kiss.

After the dinner and speeches, we took everyone to the beach to light sky lanterns. We had so much fun watching the lanterns fly into the sky, narrowly avoiding trees and the guests themselves. I was happy to see everyone laughing, interacting with each other, and truly being part of the celebration. Afterwards, the guests were given giant sparklers and lined themselves up in two long rows facing each other. The sparklers were lit, creating a sparkling bridge for my husband and I to duck under as we made our way to the dance floor for our first dance.

The sky lanterns and sparklers set the tone for a spontaneous and memorable night. The other highlights included the groomsmen changing into matching swimwear, dancing around the party, and then jumping into the pool like synchronized swimmers. This was not to be outdone by my friend Gio who performed an outrageous strip tease to a Lady Gaga song after catching the garter.

Design and Details: Happy Menocal designed our invitation, watercolor fonts and wedding crest. Our crest has a macaw, orchids and coffee plants symbolizing Costa Rica (my home country) and a coyote, chili peppers and a yucca flower symbolizing New Mexico (Eric’s home state). We used the macaw and coyote as a theme throughout the wedding. In addition to the invitations, it was included on our save the dates, thank-you notes, cake toppers, and on special foam hats that we wore during the party.

Other details were harder to find in the small town where we had the wedding, so almost every detail, except for the beautiful flowers and lighting, was a DIY project. I bought mismatched colored glasses at the flea market for the flowers, made the linen runners, and designed the “Love Boat” photo booth, the various signs, wooden accent boxes, and the seating chart frame, I also bought straws, umbrellas, and pom-poms on Etsy. My dad designed the structure surrounding the dance floor and my mom made the cake.

The day of the wedding was such an unforgettable day because Eric was the person standing at the end of the aisle (and he looked so cute!). On top of that, the event was truly my dream wedding full of personalized details, yummy desserts and beautiful flowers. Lastly, I like to believe our guests knew what an essential component they had been to the event as they joined us on the dance floor until late into the night…