Kim and Anthony said ‘I do' under the sweeping branches of massive banyan trees for their elegant downtown St. Petersburg wedding. The springtime soiree featured a clean and simple look with a modern city background.
“We wanted our design to be classic and timeless, so it would be something we could look back on in years to come and still love,” the bride shared. “My bridesmaid's dresses were champagne, and my white florals had greenery surrounding them. I wanted a clean and simplistic look and loved the idea of white florals, linens, and other décor complementing my dress.”
As the St. Petersburg bride planned her March celebration, she searched for a wedding planner with whom she connected with and would keep her on task.
“We looked for a planner we could relate to on a personal level and wanted someone who took the initiative, responded to us quickly, and handled the small details,” Kim explained. “We chose Wilder Mind Events because Delaney understood our vision. She did an amazing job as a day-of coordinator and helped us find all our vendors leading up to the wedding. She made the entire process stress-free and is now a good friend of ours.”
Naturally capturing the memories of the day was important to the couple, who looked for a wedding photographer with a photo-journalistic style.
“We wanted someone who made us feel comfortable and allowed us to be ourselves and have fun during our engagement and wedding photo shoots,” Kim shared. “We reviewed Amber McWhorter Photography‘s work on Instagram and loved how natural her photos looked. Amber didn't over-edit pictures and captured all of the perfect moments, from silly to serious. Her photos are clean, clear, and bright, and we were in love with our engagement and wedding day photos. Amber was efficient and timely in getting our photos back to us.”
The bride shared that she spent years dreaming of her downtown St. Pete wedding and selected J&S Media to preserve the sights and sounds of the big day.
“We wanted the video to document our day from beginning to end and tell a story as we experienced it as the bride and groom. We loved that J&S Media captured each part of our day equally, from getting ready, the ceremony, and speeches to dancing at the reception and our send-off,” the bride beamed. “We watched videos they produced for past weddings, and we liked how they meshed the voice-overs of the officiant and speeches with the background music. After receiving the first draft of the video, we realized there were a few moments we wanted J&S to add or change. They made these edits quickly and fulfilled all of our requests. We replay the video every week, and it brings us both to tears every time. We are so excited to watch the video on our one-year anniversary and share our cake while reliving the best day of our lives.”
Incorporating their faith was a priority for the couple, as they vowed to love one another in front of their 175 guests.
“Our home church pastor centered our ceremony around our faith, and we opted not to read our vows but had our pastor speak about our love story and our favorite things about each other. Our pastor's speech perfectly captured our personalities and our ‘when we met' story,” the bride beamed. “We wanted the ceremony to reflect our Christian faith, so we had a family friend build a large wooden cross for the backdrop of the ceremony since it wasn't in a church, and our good friend, who is an opera singer, performed Ave Maria while we took Communion before exchanging rings.”
Looking back, reflecting on their special day while it was happening was one of the couple's most memorable moments.
“During the reception, Anthony and I walked up to the second-floor balcony to have a moment with each other, away from the crowd, to observe all of the hard work we put into planning the wedding. We got to watch our loved ones dance and celebrate,” Kim reminisced.
“We loved that J&S Media captured each part of our day equally, from getting ready, the ceremony, and speeches to dancing at the reception and our send-off. We replay the video every week, and it brings us both to tears every time. We are so excited to watch the video on our one-year anniversary and share our cake while reliving the best day of our lives.”
-The Bride
What did you look for in a wedding videographer?
We wanted the video to document our day from beginning to end and tell a story as we experienced it as the bride and groom.
We loved that J&S Media captured each part of our day equally, from getting ready, the ceremony, and speeches to dancing at the reception and our send-off. We watched videos they produced for past weddings, and we liked how they meshed the voice-overs of the officiant and speeches with the background music. J&S made their own music selections, and they were perfect. They chose songs we had never heard of, and now these songs feel like they were written and designed just for us as a couple.
After receiving the first draft of the video, we realized there were a few moments we wanted J&S to add or change. They made these edits quickly and fulfilled all of our requests. We replay the video every week, and it brings us both to tears every time. We are so excited to watch the video on our one-year anniversary and share our cake while reliving the best day of our lives.
The Proposal:
Anthony proposed on an island in Bunces Pass during a boat day with my parents. He knew that I loved to be on the water and spend time with my parents. His friend Dylan helped sneak the ring onto the boat, and once we docked, Anthony asked to go for a walk over to the private side of the island.
Once we were away from the crowd, he got down on one knee and popped the question while my parents took pictures. He also planned to have my grandparents waiting at my parents' condo, who were there to surprise us when we returned home.
What did you look for in a wedding planner?
We looked for a planner we could relate to on a personal level and wanted someone who took the initiative, responded to us quickly, and handled the small details. We chose Wilder Mind Events because Delaney understood our vision. She did an amazing job as a day-of coordinator and helped us find all our vendors leading up to the wedding. She made the entire process stress-free and is now a good friend of ours.
What did you look for in a wedding photographer?
We wanted someone who made us feel comfortable and allowed us to be ourselves and have fun during our engagement and wedding photo shoots.
We reviewed Amber McWhorter Photography‘s work on Instagram and loved how natural her photos looked. Amber didn't over-edit pictures and captured all of the perfect moments, from silly to serious. Her photos are clean, clear, and bright, and we were in love with our engagement and wedding day photos. Amber was efficient and timely in getting our photos back to us.
Where did you host your bachelorette party?
Asheville, North Carolina. I chose Asheville because I wanted to get away from the Florida heat for a bit. Asheville had great nightlife and beautiful mountain views. We made a day trip to the Biltmore Estate and winery, barhopped at local breweries, and stayed at an Airbnb close to downtown that had a hot tub, billiards tables, fire pit, and other cozy/fun activities.
Where did you spend your honeymoon?
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. We wanted a tropical, relaxing honeymoon at an upscale all-inclusive resort. We stayed at Grand Velas resort; it had amazing restaurants, service, and beautiful ocean views.
How would you describe your theme/wedding design inspiration?
Modern, elegant, and romantic with whites/neutrals. We wanted our design to be classic and timeless, something we could look back on in years to come and still love.
What were your colors?
My bridesmaid's dresses were champagne, and my white florals had greenery surrounding them. I wanted a clean and simplistic look and loved the idea of white florals, linens, and other décor complementing my dress.
What was your wedding menu inspiration?
One of our favorite parts of wedding planning was our tasting with Olympia Catering leading up to the event. We customized our menu and swapped out a coffee bar with a palate cleanser, lemon sorbet, served in between the salads and entrees. The lemon sorbet was a huge hit with our guests
Our menu had options for all of our guests, and we chose grouper to reflect Florida. We also had a filet, chicken, and vegetarian option. We were very impressed with every appetizer and entree.
What was your wedding cake inspiration?
I wanted the cake to be all white and simple to match the decor and design of our wedding. We went with a three-tier cake, which included real cascading orchids to compliment the orchids in my bouquet.
We picked up a cake-testing to-go box from Tampa Bay Cake Company, allowing us to try four different flavors in our home. They made the process super easy, and we also loved the gold cake stand we rented from them.
What advice would you give to other Tampa Bay couples?
Choose a venue that is significant to you; we live 10 minutes from our venue and were able to visit and check out the layout/floorplan frequently. Find vendors through your wedding planner or friends. Friday weddings are cost-effective. A GOBO projector is a very nice touch for indoor receptions. We highly recommend hiring videographers to capture the day.
