Kathleen and Nick’s destination Tampa Heights wedding featured a traditional church ceremony followed by a bohemian-inspired reception set in a historic waterfront venue along the Hillsborough River. Neutral flora and wispy pampas grass were accented with warm wood tones, bright metallics, and modern black details, offering a chic twist on the evening.

“Our wedding theme was boho glam chic. We chose this style because we believed this would be perfect for our reception venue. We instantly felt this modern industrial vibe when walking into the space for the first time,” the bride shared. “Our colors were deep taupe, cloud dancer, burnished lilac, elderberry, and black accents. This went so well with the flowers selected by our florist!”

The North Carolina couple hosted their 200-guest event in their former hometown of Tampa, Florida. While planning from a distance, the bride came across a wedding highlight reel that gave her all the feels. After that moment, Kathleen knew it would be a dream come true to have the talented team at J&S Media capture their wedding day.

“I wanted everyone to really know our unique love story and how much joy we experienced on this day. J&S Media delivered exactly that. As I started to explore their website, I thought, ‘If we can get a videographer like them, we would be incredibly lucky,’” the bride beamed. “Jennifer was personable and authentic from the very start of our business relationship. We FaceTimed several times, and I personally loved how they came from Asian-American backgrounds similar to mine. The entire team made this day very special from start to finish, and I could not imagine any other outcome. Jennifer and Scott were an absolute joy to work with for 10+ hours; my favorite line was when Scott said ‘Best birthday gift to me ever!’ at the end of the night.”

While many of the details of the day were personalized to reflect the couple, they also focused on honoring their wedding party members. The results made for an unforgettable and truly unique reception entrance.

“At the reception, guests were greeted by an EPIC wedding party introduction filled with alien costumes, money guns, Star Wars lightsabers, and, most importantly, laughter,” Kathleen recalled. “We planned these introductions because we knew the diverse personalities that made up our bridal party would not disappoint the crowd.”

The entire celebration was filled with so many treasured memories that it would have been impossible for Kathleen to pick a single moment that stood out the most. Instead, the overall feeling from the day left a profound impact on her.

“The fact that our guests and wedding vendors and staff made it a point to go up to us and say, ‘This is literally the best wedding we’ve ever been a part of.’ There was so much love in the room,” the bride reminisced.

Where did you host your bachelorette party?
Tulum, Mexico with 12 girls, because nothing screams “boho glam chic” more than Tulum.

Where did you spend your honeymoon?
We spent two weeks in Hawaii! Throughout our relationship, when the honeymoon question would come up, we would always answer, “HAWAII!” Even though we had never been there before. It ended up being the vacation of a lifetime. We used our credit card points from the wedding planning to pay for all flights and hotels.

The Proposal:
Nick spent several months planning the engagement with my two sisters. My only ask of this engagement was for our families to be present that day, and this wish was granted. Our two families surprised me as soon as Nick went down on one knee to propose at The Ringling Museum in Sarasota.

How would you describe your theme/wedding design inspiration?
Our wedding theme was boho glam chic. We chose this style because we believed this would be perfect for our reception venue. We instantly felt this modern industrial vibe when walking into the space for the first time. We chose this style because we believed this would be perfect for our reception venue. We instantly felt this modern industrial vibe when walking into the space for the first time.

What were your colors?
Deep taupe, cloud dancer, burnished lilac, elderberry, and black accents. This went so well with the overall theme and flowers selected together with our florist!

Which vendors really exceeded your expectations?
Every single vendor exceeded our expectations. We enjoyed getting to know them personally and professionally during the entire planning process. My planner set us up for success, and I credit so much of our success and guests’ compliments to her.

Our videographers, Jennifer and Scott with J&S Media, were an absolute joy to work with for 10+ hours; my favorite line was when Scott said ‘Best birthday gift to me ever!’ at the end of the night. Our creative and passionate photographer traveled to the mountains of North Carolina to do our engagement shoot, regardless of the pouring rain. Our DJ was actually the greatest DJ of all time, and our guests will undoubtedly attest to this. We hosted a design planning meeting with our florist so that she could help make our vision into a reality. Armature Works Events were the most organized and personable team. They were always willing to help with any random wedding question that came their way. To wrap the night, our captains with Pirate Water Taxi hosted the ultimate after-party.

What advice would you give to other Tampa Bay couples?
Don’t lose sight of your core values and priorities for this day. Don’t lose sight of the purpose of this day, and that is to celebrate the love between you two. Lastly, stay on the dance floor.