Katelyn and Warren's rustic boho Brandenton wedding featured a moody, muted color palette, greenery, and accents of tropical flora indicative of the Florida garden surroundings.
“I would describe our wedding as tropical boho charm, which was inspired by the tropical yet rustic Florida venue that is a secluded paradise in the middle of a fruit farm,” the bride shared. “We incorporated various shades of dusty rose, cabernet, gray, and navy blue. The lighter rose shades were romantic, and the deeper cabernet tones added warmth and depth.”
The St. Petersburg couple mixed it up when it came to traditional wedding elements, opting for a unique combination of music for the reception and an unconventional petal sprinkler for the ceremony.
“We didn't have kids at our wedding, so we had a flower dude instead that was a huge hit!” Katelyn beamed. “Having a saxophone player and DJ combo was also unique and a crowd pleaser.”
Katelyn selected a wedding photographer who could capture the most important elements while preserving the saturated colors and candid emotions as they unfolded.
“We wanted variety, creative use of lighting and angles, and a moody/romantic feel vs. light and airy. Amber McWhorter Photography‘s work checked all the boxes when comparing photographers and was within our budget. Her service was phenomenal!” the bride gushed. “Amber was extremely responsive and helpful when asking questions about our engagement shoot and wedding timeline. She worked very efficiently and made sure to capture every moment that was important to us on our big day. You can tell she is passionate about what she does and it shows in her photos.”
The bride and groom relied on Beneva Weddings to transform their rustic event space using greenery and tropical florals into a bohemian tropical setting for their 150 guests.
“Our priorities were creativity and staying within our budget. Beneva Weddings was one of the preferred vendors for our venue. They had beautiful photos of past floral designs and were very reasonably priced. Their service was fantastic!” Katelyn raved. “Beneva Weddings exceeded my expectations because it's hard to know what the flowers are going to actually look like when you put every piece together, but it turned out better than I could have imagined, and I was in love with my bouquet! They were happy to change things until we created the perfect combination of florals.”
Two private events stood out as favorite memories of the day, along with a showstopping introduction as the new Mr. and Mrs.
“Our first look and the trolley ride to the venue [were the most memorable moments]. Both were intimate moments with each other and with all of our best friends and siblings before we tied the knot,” the bride recalled. “Our grand entrance as Mr. and Mrs. Bucknam is also memorable because we walked out to one of our favorite songs by Rufus Du Sol and had dramatic cold sparks that got the guests pumped up for the party to follow.”
What did you look for in a wedding florist?
Our priorities were creativity and staying within our budget. Beneva Weddings was one of the preferred vendors for our venue.
Beneva Weddings exceeded my expectations because it's hard to know what the flowers are going to actually look like when you put every piece together, but it turned out better than I could have imagined, and I was in love with my bouquet! They were happy to change things until we created the perfect combination of florals.”
How would you describe your theme/wedding design inspiration?
Tropical boho charm, which was inspired by the tropical yet rustic Florida venue that is a secluded paradise in the middle of a fruit farm.
What were your colors?
We incorporated various shades of dusty rose, cabernet, gray, and navy blue. The lighter rose shades were romantic, and the deeper cabernet tones added warmth and depth.
The Proposal:
Warren surprised me with a sailboat cruise around the San Francisco Bay and proposed at sunset under the Golden Gate Bridge to Into the Mystic by Van Morrison, which became our first dance song.
What did you look for in a wedding photographer?
We wanted variety, creative use of lighting and angles, and a moody/romantic feel vs. light and airy.
Amber McWhorter Photography‘s work checked all the boxes when comparing photographers and was within our budget. Her service was phenomenal! She was extremely responsive and helpful when asking questions about our engagement shoot and wedding timeline. She worked very efficiently and made sure to capture every moment that was important to us on our big day. You can tell she is passionate about what she does and it shows in her photos.
Where did you spend your honeymoon?
Amalfi Coast and Lake Como, Italy. We had been to other parts of Italy before and fell in love with how beautiful and romantic it is. We also love the friendly people and delicious food and wine!
Where did you host your bachelorette party?
Tulum, Mexico. I wanted to go somewhere tropical and was attracted to the boho and house music vibes that were on brand with my wedding theme, and who doesn't love Mexican food and margaritas?!
How did you incorporate your personalities into the wedding?
We're huge music lovers, so we hired a sax player to play for cocktail hour and reception with our DJ for a tropical house vibe. We are also proud pup parents, so we named our signature cocktails after them which were Moose Juice and Sox on the Rocks.
Which vendors really exceeded your expectations?
Beneva Weddings exceeded my expectations because it's hard to know what the flowers are going to actually look like when you put every piece together, but it turned out better than I could have imagined, and I was in love with my bouquet!
What advice would you give to other Sarasota couples?
Just roll with whatever doesn't go perfectly on the day of and make sure you enjoy every moment because it goes by so fast!
