Molly and Matt's festive Clearwater Beach wedding featured a classic winter event centered around family and love during the holiday season. With Christmas just a week away, the soiree was adorned with burgundy and blush flowers surrounded by greenery to bring out the season's joy.
“Our wedding was romantic and classic, and I always envisioned beautiful flowers and candles as decor,” the bride shared. “We loved having high and low burgundy and blush floral centerpieces with greenery and candles at the reception tables. We both love Christmas and wanted to incorporate the holiday, so we had a Christmas tree set up during our cocktail hour. Guests wrote messages on ornaments for our first Christmas tree as a married couple.”
To ensure that she hired the area's most reputable vendors, Molly reached out to Marry Me Tampa for recommendations and insight.
“We used Marry Me Tampa Bay during our wedding planning which was so helpful!” the bride beamed. ‘When we were unsure of which vendors to choose from, the website was there to help provide their preferred vendors. Marry Me Tampa Bay helped us find my hair and makeup stylist, Michele Renee The Studio, our invitations and stationery, A&P Designs, and our wedding rentals, Gabro Event Services. They were also quick in responding to my Instagram messages when I had questions about vendors, and they also would follow up to see how our wedding planning was coming along.”
The Palm Harbor natives wanted to show their 170 loved ones their love for Tampa Bay and selected Clearwater Beach as the perfect setting. As a top year-round destination, the newly built Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach was the perfect winter location to host their event on its stunning grounds, next to the soothing, crystal-clear Gulf and stunning white sand beaches.
“We wanted a beautiful location that all of our friends and family could enjoy and that offered hotel rooms for guests to make a long weekend out of our wedding, as well as an area that offered many things for our guests to do,” the bride explained. “The location is absolutely beautiful; however, it was the staff that makes this location amazing. From the first to the Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach, we were treated like family. The whole weekend was amazing, from dining in their restaurant, Ocean Hai, to relaxing by the pool to dancing our wedding night away. Our wedding day was the best day of our lives, and we know that we are forever thankful to have found Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach to help make our day so special.”
To set the tone for the wedding, the bride envisioned a classic invitation suite that incorporated the season and color palette through special details and embellishments.
“Our inspiration for our wedding invitations was for a classic and elegant look that tied in our colors,” the bride explained. “I loved that A&P Designs was a small business from our hometown area. Plus, the owner, Alicia, was responsive and helpful when offering ideas. We loved the invitations so much that we also used her for our wedding day paper products!”
Molly and Matt added romantic touches to their modern ballroom wedding with lavish all-white draping and monogrammed dance floor, which took center stage during the reception.
“Gabro Event Services helped transform our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception space. We utilized their pipe and draping, flower wall, neon sign, and chiavari chairs for the ceremony and reception. We also used their customized white dance floor, charger plates, and gold utensils for the reception,” the bride detailed. “They helped enhance our ambiance by helping create a romantic, classic vibe. I highly recommend using them, especially their pipe and draping, as they transformed our ceremony and reception space.”
The bride turned to the experts of Michele Renee The Studio to make her feel beautiful with a classic wedding day look and an updo bun.
“I am not someone who wears a ton of makeup, so my inspiration was to still look natural but with some glam added,” the bride explained. “Michele Renee The Studio was perfect for this look! They made sure that I loved my hair and makeup at my trial, and all of my bridal party felt beautiful that day because of their work!”
December will always hold a special place in the couple's heart with being their engagement and wedding month. Family played a large part in their celebration, with all of their siblings part of their wedding party and their nephews and nieces taking on the roles of ring bearers and flower girls. From their vows and their unity ceremony to their neon sign with a message of love, the couple showcased their commitment to each other in front of their 170 guests.
“There are many memorable moments from our wedding day that we will cherish forever; however, there is one moment that stands out for us. Almost five years ago, when we first started dating, Matt wrote me a letter expressing his feelings and love for me. We shared this letter with our officiant, and he asked if he could hold on to it,” the bride revealed. “During our ceremony, we let our officiant create our vows, and he took the letter Matt wrote to me and created our vows with the words Matt wrote to me.”
What was your wedding invitation inspiration?
Our inspiration for our wedding invitations was for a classic and elegant look that tied in our colors.
I loved that A&P Designs was a small business from our hometown area. Plus, the owner, Alicia, was responsive and helpful when offering ideas. We loved the invitations so much that we also used her for our wedding day paper products!
What were your wedding hair and makeup inspiration?
“I am not someone who wears a ton of makeup, so my inspiration was to still look natural but with some glam added.
Michele Renee The Studio was perfect for this look! They made sure that I loved my hair and makeup at my trial, and all of my bridal party felt beautiful that day because of their work!
How did you incorporate your personalities into the wedding?
Our unity ceremony included our cord of three strands that we braided, symbolizing the relationship between Matt, God, and myself. During our cocktail hour, we had a neon sign stating, “I Love You More,” which is a phrase that we have said to each other over our years together.
The Proposal:
Our proposal took place on December 23rd (clearly, we have a thing for big moments happening in December!). I am a nurse, and since I had to work Christmas Day that year, Matt decided he wanted to take me out for an early Christmas dinner that evening. He made reservations at Sea-Guini's at Opal Sands, and we had the most delicious dinner.
While we were on our way to dinner, Matt told me that our friends were doing a staycation at Opal Sands and mentioned meeting up with them after dinner. Once we were done with dessert, Matt said our friends were upstairs in their room and asked if I wanted to go see them for a drink. When we got to the door, I knocked several times on the door, and nobody answered. After the third knock, Matt took a room key out of his pocket, and when he opened the door, there were rose petals and candles throughout the room.
As we walked into the room, “Will You Marry Me?” was spelled out in rose petals on the bed. Matt got down on one knee, and the rest is history! Afterward, we went back downstairs, where my family was waiting for us in the bar. We spent the rest of the night sharing the special moment with our loved ones. It was a night we will both remember for the rest of our lives!
Where did you spend your honeymoon?
Cabo San Lucas. Since our honeymoon was in January, we wanted to be able to go somewhere it was still warm that both of us have not been to yet, which is what made us choose Cabo. We had the best week relaxing by the pool and the beach!
Where did you host your bachelorette party?
I went to Nashville for my bachelorette, which I chose because I have never been. I am a sucker for live music, so I wanted a laid-back atmosphere with some of the best live music. This was such a fun trip and one that my girlfriends and I still talk about to this day.
How would you describe your theme/wedding design inspiration?
Romantic and classic. I always envisioned beautiful flowers and candles as decor. We loved having high and low floral centerpieces with candles surrounding our guests' tables at the reception. Since our wedding was the week before Christmas, and we both love Christmas time, we wanted to incorporate Christmas. We had a Christmas tree set up during our cocktail hour, and guests were able to write messages on ornaments for our first Christmas tree as a married couple.
What were your colors?
Burgundy, blush, and greenery.
What did you look for in a wedding venue?
We wanted a beautiful location that all of our friends and family could enjoy and that offered hotel rooms for guests to make a long weekend out of our wedding, as well as an area that offered many things for our guests to do.
The location is absolutely beautiful; however, it was the staff that makes this location amazing. From the first to the Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach, we were treated like family. The whole weekend was amazing, from dining in their restaurant, Ocean Hai, to relaxing by the pool to dancing our wedding night away. Our wedding day was the best day of our lives, and we know that we are forever thankful to have found Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach to help make our day so special.
How did your rentals enhance the ambiance of your wedding?
Gabro Event Services helped transform our ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception space. We utilized their pipe and draping, flower wall, neon sign, chiavari chairs for both the ceremony and reception, customized white dance floor, and even charger plates and gold utensils.
They helped enhance our ambiance by helping us create the romantic, classic vibe we were going for. I highly recommend using them, especially their pipe and draping, as it transformed our ceremony and reception space.
Which vendors really exceeded your expectations?
All of our vendors truly exceeded all of our expectations. I will never forget walking into our reception and seeing the gorgeous decor and floral arrangements. Our band kept the dance floor packed all night Our photographer is the best of the best. He not only made us feel like family, but he captured every special moment of our special day. Our videographer created a masterpiece for our special day! We really have the best video and pictures to forever remember our wedding day.
What advice would you give to other Tampa Bay couples?
Don't get too overwhelmed in the wedding planning process. Marry Me Tampa Bay offers so much expertise and advice, so be sure to utilize all the information they have to offer. This is such a fun time, and it should be an enjoyable process together!
