It
was an honor travel to the Outer Banks of North Carolina to be a part of
Elizabeth and Rick's wedding. There is so much to say about this destination
wedding and since we were there for the entire week, we will have to break it up
in segments.
The House - The Wild Horse venue is located 5 miles up the
beach from the town of Corolla on 20 acres of undeveloped oceanfront. This 23
room estate is only accessible by 4 wheel drive vehicles and guests literally
have to drive on the sand. Yep, this was a bit challenging and ...nope...there
are no pictures of our vehicle getting stuck!
The
Beach - White sand, sun and fun. Many guests made a vacation out of the trip
traveling from Portugal, Great Britain, Virginia, Massachusetts and Florida just
to name a few.
Corolla Wild Horses - For more than 400 years, the
small and sturdy Corolla Wild Horses have run free on the Currituck Outer Banks.
These beautiful Spanish mustangs roam the dunes and beaches. They were truly
fascinating to watch.
The sky - Mark ventured out several nights to
capture the Milky Way since we don't get to see this galaxy very often living
with city lights.
The Rehearsal - Kerri with "The Proper Setting" was
selected as the wedding coordinator.
http://www.thepropersetting.com/ She did a great
job with the whole event. Kerri conducted the ceremony run through with was easy
breezy and then on dinner. The rehearsal and wedding was catered by Kelly's.
http://kellysrestaurant.com/catering The couple
celebrated with 80 guests dining on crab, shrimp and clams. Very
yummy.
All
the Girls in Blue - Elizabeth asked two very special people to be her
attendants; Jamie as her maid of honor and Monica as her bridesmaid. However,
she had 10 very close friends that she wanted to include. Elizabeth came up with
a creative idea asking each of them to come dressed in blue... and they were her
"something blue".
The
wedding - Overlooking the ocean on a clear, bright, lovely, mild...yet very
windy day Elizabeth and Rick exchanged their vows in front of about 150 of their
family and friends. Elizabeth made it down the aisle with her dad wearing her
cathedral veil and then with one big gust it was blown away. Nothing rattled
this bride. Heck, the veil was so unimportant at that moment! A lovely ceremony
was conducted by Dr. Dave http://outerbanksseasideceremonies.com/
The
reception - Dorothy with Bells and Whistles http://www.bellsandwhistlesobx.com/ created
a light, airy and simply beautiful reception. Dorothy and her
staff transformed the two tents and a covered pool into a lovely space. Orb
lights under the clear pool covering, white flowers with touches of bling
decorated every table and corner of the reception. Guest danced the night away,
look pictures in the modified J. Mark Photography live photo booth, ate
cake, visited a cookie bar, listened to heartwarming toasts, and ended the night
with an incredible traditional Portuguese soup; I believe it was called
Caldo verde.
The Couple - Elizabeth looked stunning in
her flowing wedding gown. She worked with her mom to create a wonderful event.
The challenges of planning a destination destination wedding were massive, but
the detailed planning paid off with a flawless event. We had to smile when
she said, this is the best wedding I have ever attended... and it was mine!
Elizabeth is a clinical psychologist. Rick's is from the lovely southwestern
European country of Portugal. Mark and I had so much fun getting to know Rick's
friends and family. Rick owns his own business in northern Virginia. He buys
and renovates homes. The couple will be traveling to St. Thomas and Portugal for their
honeymoon.
Beach Session - Since we had Elizabeth and Rick captive for the entire week, we
decided to take a "fun" photo session on the beach. It was a blast. Enjoy.
