Nikki and Chris’ classic downtown St. Pete wedding featured elegant a white and gold color palette, greenery-filled centerpieces, timeless long-sleeve wedding dress, and multiple dessert tables with luxurious lace linens.

“I would describe our wedding theme as classic, traditional, and elegant. We kept our theme to a very neutral palette and more simple with our main colors being white and gold,” the bride explained. “I did have my bridesmaids in a dark slate grey that still followed a neutral palette. These colors also complemented the reception space perfectly!”

MORE: GOLD WEDDING INSPIRATION

With a majority of their 150 guests attending from out-of-town, the bride and groom chose to wed in bustling downtown St. Pete.

“I was born and raised in Belleair, so after I graduated from the University of Florida, Chris and I moved back to the area, and we currently live in Largo. We always loved downtown St. Pete and with more than half of our guests coming from out of town, we knew they would fall in love with the area too!”

After touring only two wedding venues, Nikki and Chris immediately selected The Birchwood for its sophisticated ballroom and views of the water.

“[After touring] The Birchwood, it was an immediate ‘when you know, you know’ reaction. It’s such a classic gem in downtown!” the bride gushed. “The ballroom’s glam and elegant aesthetic, with hints of vintage and modern décor, matched our wedding theme perfectly.”

There was nothing but rave reviews from the couple when it came to their Birchwood experience.

“The staff and the entire team were so welcoming and friendly. They were absolutely amazing throughout the entire wedding planning process,” Nikki beamed. “Their service was outstanding and made the entire wedding weekend enjoyable for us, from setting up a breakfast buffet by our hotel rooms to helping coordinate an after-party at Canopy.”

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After selecting her wedding venue, Nikki looked to Marry Me Tampa Bay for reception and portrait inspiration.

“Once we chose The Birchwood, I searched on Marry Me Tampa Bay for other weddings that also had our reception venue or used both our reception and ceremony venue. This helped me gather ideas on different room layout options and also to see what other couples chose for décor,” the bride shared. “I was also curious to see where Birchwood couples would have their portraits taken because there are so many backdrops to use in St. Pete (parks, waterfront, murals, etc)!”

With a large guest list and multiple questions about wedding planning, the couple hired Parties A La Carte to create their dream wedding day.

“We didn’t even know where to start when it came to wedding planning, especially trying to coordinate a larger wedding. We probably even asked ourselves at one point if a planner was even necessary (and it was!). I wanted to find someone who was extremely organized, paid attention to details, would introduce us to great vendors, and would really tailor our wedding day to make it unique to us,” the bride shared. “When I first met with Jessica she understood our vision right away and had already begun offering suggestions and playing off of some ideas I had. Their attention to detail was unmatched. They introduced me to ideas and options that I didn’t know were even possible! Now I can’t imagine our wedding day without all the little details that really pulled everything together. Even more importantly, on the actual wedding day, they took care of everything, and Chris and I were truly able to enjoy the day!

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Complementing their classic and elegant theme, Nikki and Chris selected white flowers and greenery with design guidance from Bruce Wayne Florals.

“Bruce Wayne was recommended by our planner and is also a preferred Birchwood vendor. As our wedding theme was evolving, I had an idea of how I wanted the florals to look but was having a difficult time finding supporting examples. This wasn’t an issue at all for them, and I knew I was in great hands,” the bride beamed. “I wanted all of the florals to be white, but I also wanted to incorporate lots of greenery. The greenery idea kept advancing as the planning went on. It started as just being added to the bouquets and centerpieces, and we also decided to have it extend across the bridal party feasting tables. Then we added cascading greenery to the ballroom entrance, as well as over by the dessert tables, and made that space more of a statement wall. We decided that we wanted these tall gold stands for our centerpieces, which they were kind enough to order for us! They really went above and beyond to make our décor complete.”

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Tradition is an important aspect of a wedding day, and Nikki’s family added some personal touches to add to her memories.

“I had completely forgotten to collect any items for my ‘something old, new, borrowed, blue.’ The day before our wedding day, my grandmother gave me a few heirlooms from her own wedding day that her mother (my great-grandmother) had hand-beaded and stitched. My sister also gave me a bouquet charm that she personalized to recognize my other set of grandparents who have passed. It meant so much to me to have these very personal family heirlooms with me on my wedding day,” the bride reminisced.

The Proposal:
Chris and I were in Iceland for a week-long trip; a trip we had dreamt about for a couple of years! Our last adventure was to visit the town of Vik, which is known for its picturesque waterfalls, lava rock caves, and the Reynisfjara black sand beach. When we reached the beach, Chris had suggested that we should walk to a more empty area and take some pictures. I did find it a little odd because Chris is never one to offer to take pictures. We walked towards the end of the beach, and Chris asked a random tourist if he could take a few photos of us. We climbed on top of these rock formations near the edge of the water, with a stunning horizon in the background, and after a few normal poses, Chris got down on one knee and proposed! The guy taking our photos had no clue this was coming (neither did I!) but he did a phenomenal job capturing our proposal.

What did you look for in a wedding planner?
We didn’t even know where to start when it came to wedding planning, especially trying to coordinate a larger wedding. We probably even asked ourselves at one point if a planner was even necessary (and it was!). I wanted to find someone who was extremely organized, paid attention to details, would introduce us to great vendors, and would really tailor our wedding day to make it unique to us.

Parties A La Carte was recommended to us by multiple family friends, and we knew they would do an outstanding job. When I first met with Jessica she understood our vision right away and had already begun offering suggestions and playing off of some ideas I had. Their attention to detail was unmatched. They introduced me to ideas and options that I didn’t know were even possible! Now I can’t imagine our wedding day without all the little details that really pulled everything together, like the gold flatware, white dance floor, and luxury linens. Even more importantly, on the actual wedding day, they took care of everything, and Chris and I were truly able to enjoy the day! I couldn’t have imagined our day without Parties A La Carte!

What was your bridesmaid dress style inspiration?
After I found my wedding dress, which was more on the modest side with a higher neckline, I knew I wanted my bridesmaids to be in unison and also have a high neckline. Comfort was another huge factor I wanted to keep in mind. It was going to be such a long day, and I wanted my girls to be as comfortable as possible in a formal dress. Since every girl would be in the same dress, I wanted to choose a silhouette that would be flattering on everyone. The high-halter neckline and A-line floor-length dress, that had a sash at the natural waistline, looked gorgeous on each girl! I loved the dark slate grey color because it stayed in the neutral palette and added a little more softness than choosing a black dress, yet still complemented the groomsmen’s black tuxes.

Bella Bridesmaids in Tampa was recommended to me by a few people when they heard I was looking for the perfect slate gray color (who knew there were so many grays!). I also knew Bellas would have high-quality dresses and superior designers to choose from. Their staff pulled every dress they carried in the specific silhouette and style I was looking for. They made the whole process so simple and really helped me narrow down my choices. Another bonus is that they have showrooms across the country, so my bridesmaids who live in different states were easily able to schedule an appointment with their local showroom. It made the whole ordering process so easy, and I didn’t have to worry about any consistency issues.

How would you describe your theme/wedding design inspiration?
Classic, traditional, and elegant. We kept our theme to a very neutral palette and more simple with our main colors being white and gold.

What were your colors?
White and gold. We wanted to keep it very classic, elegant, and timeless. Plus, I love gold everything! I did have my bridesmaids in a dark slate grey that still followed a neutral palette. These colors also complemented the reception space perfectly!

What did you look for in a wedding venue?
We knew pretty quickly we wanted our wedding to be in downtown St. Pete because we chose St. Mary Our Lady of Grace for our ceremony venue. We wanted to find a reception venue that already flowed with our wedding theme and that we wouldn’t have to worry about completely transforming the space to fit our needs.

We only toured two venues, The Birchwood being the second, and it was an immediate “when you know, you know” reaction. It’s such a classic gem in downtown! The ballroom’s glam and elegant aesthetic, with hints of vintage and modern décor, matched our wedding theme perfectly. We knew that we wanted our florals and décor to highlight and showcase aspects of the ballroom instead of wanting to cover everything up. The ballroom provided a more intimate setting, yet could also fit all of our guests very comfortably. Plus, it has a large balcony so guests could enjoy a view of the bay during cocktail hour. The staff and entire team were so welcoming and friendly. They were absolutely amazing throughout the entire wedding planning process. Their service was outstanding and made the entire wedding weekend enjoyable for us, from setting up a breakfast buffet by our hotel rooms to helping coordinate an after-party at Canopy.

What was your wedding floral inspiration?
I knew I wanted all of the florals to be white, but I also wanted to incorporate lots of greenery. The greenery idea kept advancing as the planning went on. It started as just being added to the bouquets and centerpieces, and we also decided to have it extend across the bridal party feasting tables. Then we added cascading greenery to the ballroom entrance, as well as over by the dessert tables, and made that space more of a statement wall.

Bruce Wayne Florals was recommended by our planner and is also a preferred Birchwood vendor. As our wedding theme was evolving, I had an idea of how I wanted the florals to look but was having a difficult time finding supporting examples. This wasn’t an issue at all for them, and I knew I was in great hands. The proposal that was put together captured my ideas perfectly and really brought our vision together! We decided that we wanted these tall gold stands for our centerpieces, which they were kind enough to order for us! They really went above and beyond to make our décor complete.

How did your rentals enhance the ambiance of your wedding?
I wanted to keep our décor as simple as possible, so we had to be very particular in picking pieces that would really enhance our overall theme. We decided to upgrade from the standard choices and rented the gold flatware and gold-rimmed chargers for the table settings. Our planner also suggested that we could add a white dance floor. This was a perfect idea since the dance floor was in the center of the ballroom and a main focus throughout the night, so it helped that it was one of our main wedding colors! We were so thrilled with how these rentals from A Chair Affair helped elevate the room even more and greatly added to the overall look we were going for!

What did you look for in a wedding DJ?
My mom has planned smaller events in the past and knew that a great DJ can make or break a wedding reception. This was a really important part of our wedding day to us because, after a very long day, we wanted our guests to still be having fun! Finding a DJ who can get the party going and keep it going was a dealbreaker for us. We have been to a few weddings that had Grant Hemond & Associates and knew that they were very professional. Our DJ, Ben, was outstanding. He made sure to take into consideration the specific songs we wanted to hear, but also pick songs that would pertain to our vast age group of guests. He kept everyone dancing all night long!

What advice would you give to other Tampa Bay couples?
My advice to other couples, if your budget allows, would be to hire a wedding planner. Each couple prioritizes their vendors and I think, according to the size and scope of the particular wedding, a planner is a necessity. Chris and I actually enjoyed the wedding planning process and even more importantly, we were really able to enjoy our day! It was a huge relief that we didn’t need to worry about. Especially since there were a lot of logistics to work through because our ceremony and reception were at different venues.

Ceremony Venue: St. Mary Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church
Reception Venue and Caterer: The Birchwood *Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Venue 
Photographer: Photography by Avery
Planner: Parties A La Carte *Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Pro
Florist: Bruce Wayne Florals *Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Pro
Rentals: A Chair Affair Inc. *Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Pro
Cake: Sweet Divas
DJ: Grant Hemond & Associates – Ben*Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Pro
Officiant: Deacon John Schaefer
Invitations: URBANCoast
Dress Designer: Mikaella Bridal
Bridesmaid Dress Shop and Designer: Bella Bridesmaids, Watters *Marry Me Tampa Bay Preferred Wedding Pro
Hair & Makeup: Lasting Luxe
Linens: BBJ Linens
Photobooth: A Pic Above the Rest