A beautiful wedding comes in so many shapes and sizes. It can be big and grandiose or, in this case, a sweet, understated whisper of a thing. And seaside Connecticut is probably the most perfect spot on the planet for this type of affair. It’s all quaint and charmy and is matched perfectly by everything from the lovely floral halo by Hana Floral Design to the elegance and ease in Justin & Mary’s photography that is so uniquely theirs. It’s their photography style stamp if you will and we eat it up by the spoonful. See so much more in the full gallery.
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From the Bride… To be entirely honest, I did not begin our wedding planning with a specific vision in mind! It’s funny, but I hadn’t thought about what my dream wedding would look like until I got engaged, so Dennis and I took a very spontaneous approach. We decided on Mystic Seaport for our location because Dennis treated me to a weekend trip there and I fell in love with the place. We both loved how scenic, romantic, and historic it was and we knew that if we just let its vintage East Coast aesthetic inspire us and lead us where it may, everything would fall into place. I did not want to be overwhelmed, so I decided to read just one wedding preparation book that my amazing maid of honor gave me and kept a single scrapbook to store ideas. When my maid of honor came out of the dressing room wearing her dress, I knew I had my wedding colors: royal blue, pale pink, and white. The only thing Dennis and I knew we wanted to do was our theme: movies! We met in a film class back in college, and he now works as a film director. Our love of film was what brought us together, and we paid homage to the great films we loved (including Back to the Future and Gremlins!) in many aspects of our ceremony and reception, from our processional music to our cupcakes.
Looking back, I’m so glad we chose Mystic Seaport because we were able to work with a group of such dedicated and professional coordinators and vendors. I especially loved how most of our vendors knew one another and were all excited to work together at our wedding. One of the memories of our wedding planning that I cherish is how it allowed us to meet new people and be inspired by their professionalism and vision towards their businesses. I tried to recreate this in New York City where we live and did the majority of our planning. I bought my dress from Saja and my veil from Bridal Veil Falls because they are exceptional boutiques with designers who truly care about the experience that the brides go through. Since I did not start out with a concrete image for my wedding, it was important that I surrounded myself with people whose vision I admired and trusted. Of course there were bumps and stressful times along the way, but our friends and family were always there to rescue us and cheer us on.
My favorite part of the wedding was showing our slide show at the reception! Dennis worked for weeks making an amazing slide show out of old film clips and photos of our friends and family, and it was hilarious! Everyone was having a blast watching it, and I just felt so fortunate being in that moment. What I think makes a wedding magical is how it brings together all the people you love at the same time in the same room, and the slide show was emblematic of how all of our lives were woven together over the years. Our wedding helped me see and appreciate all the amazing people in our lives and for that I am so grateful to my family, friends, and vendors!
Wedding Photography: Justin & Mary Photography / Ceremony: Greenmanville Church at Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Connecticut / Reception: Latitude 41 in Mystic, Connecticut / Wedding Coordination: Alyson Devaney of Coastal Gourmet / Floral Design: Hana Floral Design / Catering: Coastal Gourmet / DJ: Power Posse Productions / Wedding Dress: Saja / Veil: Bridal Veil Falls / Hair: Kanako Hair & Nail Salon / Makeup: Yuko Takahashi / Bridesmaid’s Dress: Joanna August (Dare Long Dress in Sapphire)