When it comes to New England weddings, classic and nautical go together like peanut butter and jelly. Case in point: this stunning yacht club wedding in shades of navy, gold and white. From the Bride and Groom’s compass motif carried throughout all the design elements to the classic tented reception to the beautiful florals from Hana Floral Design, every detail of this Greenwich wedding is absolute perfection. See it all from First Mate Photo and Love + Brain Films in The Vault!
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From The Bride…Mine and David’s wedding took place in Greenwich, CT on a beautiful August day. We knew from the day we started planning that we wanted our wedding to be on the water on a summer night. Our first obstacle was finding a venue that had a large enough area for a tent but one that also embodied the nautical beauty we were searching for. We knew we wanted the reception to be outside so our guests could really get a ‘summer night on the ocean’ feel. Our wedding’s theme was classic nautical with navy, gold and white colors and the symbol of a compass on our logo. We both had a very big attachment with the ocean and the Long Island Sound. David proposed to me on a dock in Rye, NY on the Sound along the same coast that Riverside is on. The first time I actually saw Riverside Yacht Club was on a wedding post on Style Me Pretty. It encompassed everything I was looking for in a venue and I knew at that moment that that was where I wanted to have our reception. When we visited, Riverside did not disappoint and we were sold! It had the special connection to our engagement and was beyond beautiful. The inside of the yacht club had the classic nautical feel we were looking for and the view of the Sound was beyond words. Behind the club was a large patch of grass surrounded by lush flowers that set the perfect stage for our tent!
As a lover of weddings and party design myself, the rest of the planning was fun for me! I design signage for weddings and parties and could not wait to start planning my own special day! Every detail was important to us. From the colors of the napkins, to the signage and special decor, to the music being played, every little thing had a special place in mine and David’s hearts. Even our vendors were specially picked. Our florist, Yumiko from Hana Floral Design, is a good friend of my sister-in-law Sarah Crawford, who is a blogger and party planner herself. One of Yumiko’s first weddings as a florist was Sara’s and David’s brothers wedding. Yumiko made my exact vision come to life. I knew I wanted all white lush flowers with dark green leaves to complement the white and the arrangements came out gorgeous. I had also made a special request to have my favorite flowers, peonies, in all of the ladies bouquets and although peonies are not in season in August, Yumiko made it happen! Our invitation and signage designer was also specially picked. Cheree for Cheree Berry Paper is my sister in law Lauren’s good friend from college. Cheree Berry designs were exactly what we were looking for in a stationery set. They had a classic look with a modern flare and they worked with me to help create my vision. As an artists myself, this was probably the most fun part of planning! Our photographer, First Mate Photo, had shot my good friends wedding in Cape Cod and I was absolutely blown away with the look and feeling of he photos. Each photo was like its own piece of art. We had our engagement photos shot with First Mate in Marblehead MA, where Davids parents and older brothers grew up. We were so happy with the pictures we knew we needed to have our wedding day shot by them as well. Our menu’s and programs were designed by Michelle Hickey from Elegance & Enchantment who is sisters with my very close college friend.
Our wedding day started at The Church of the Resurrection where our ceremony would take place. It was important for us to be married at that church because it was in David’s hometown and was the church where his older brother was married. The grandness and beauty of the church made for an unbelievable setting for our special vows that we wrote ourselves and for a unforgettable performance from my brother and childhood best friend who sang and played Hallelujah by Rufus Wainwright.
Once at Riverside for the reception, we really got to see our vision come to life. Our cocktail hour was held in the ballroom which was adorned with our engagement photos and our parents wedding photos. We had special love quotes framed and gold compass’s laid on the tables. Our tent was set a few feet from the Long Island Sound and was filled with the music from our amazing band The Rainbow Room Orchestra from the Hank Lane collection. David and I danced to “XO” by John Mayer for our first dance.
Coming from Italian decent, my father spoke in our native tongue for his speech and then danced with me to our song “It’s Not Unusual” by Tom Jones. Our maid of honor and best man gave incredible speeches that had everyone laughing and crying from start to finish. And after an amazing night on the dance floor my new husband had one more surprise for me. Throughout the whole day my maid of honor was passing me little notes David had written me, each one hinting at a special surprise he had in store for me. David gave a wonderful speech thanking all of our friends and family and at the end broke out into song, singing me one of our favorite songs, “6 Months” By Hey Monday. I had made a CD for David when we first started dating with that song on it and he included the lyrics during his proposal to me when he was down on one knee. And to cap off the magical night he had our band playing the song while he sang. It was a moment I will never forget for the rest of my life!
Photography: First Mate Photography Co. | Cinematography: Love + Brain Films | Floral Design: Hana Floral Design | Wedding Dress: Junko Yoshioka | Cake: Lulu Cake Boutique | Invitations: Cheree Berry Paper | Ceremony Venue: Church Of The Resurrection | Reception Venue: Riverside Yacht Club | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Monique Lhuillier | Makeup: Benefit Cosmetics | Band: Hank Lane Music | Groomsmen Attire: Men's Wearhouse | Bridal Boutique: Saks Fifth Avenue | Event Planning +Design: La Luna By Sierra | Flower Girl Dress + Ring Bearer Attire: J.Crew | Menus + Programs: Elegance & Enchantment
