Photos by Stephanie Lanni Photography
When an Industry Insider Gets Married
Rory and I met in 2019 on the dating app Hinge. Our first date was the classic ice cream on a hot summer night. We laughed about the fact that my ice cream cone melted all over me because we couldn't stop talking. After that date we knew we wanted to spend more time together. As our relationship progressed, we knew someday we would marry. We got engaged on Aug. 25th, 2022, in one of our favorite places… Lake Placid!
It was a beautiful summer day and Rory even thought of including our dog in the proposal. One of the first questions Rory asked me after he proposed was "So, where are we getting married?" At that time, I hadn't put much thought into it. As we began planning and researching venues it became clear that we wanted to get married near one of our other favorite places… The beach!
One of our friends suggested looking into the St. Petersburg Beach area in Florida and one resort in particular… The Bellwether.
The hotel had recently been renovated to give it more of a Boutiquey - Miami vibe. We fell in love with the idea of having all our friends and family stay right at the same resort and making it a whole weekend celebration. The thought of planning a wedding that far away (I live in Saratoga and work at Lily Saratoga) was overwhelming at first but the more I researched and found vendors, the more confident I became that we would have our dream wedding.
When we finally met our vendors in person, we realized we made all the right choices. We wanted to stay true to the tropical vibe, so our florals were white orchids, anthuriums and green palms. Our wedding weekend started with the rehearsal dinner followed by the welcome party which was right at the beach bar.
Live music, a perfect sunset and drinks were flowing. Saturday, the big day went off without a hitch. I had my Lily Saratoga ladies there to help me, my mom and my bridesmaids got ready and even helped bustle my gown when it was reception time. The ceremony was held on the beach, followed by cocktail hour and reception on the 10th floor overlooking the white sand beach and the Gulf of Mexico.
Our wedding was a dream come true… Our vision was met and it's a day and weekend we want to relive over and over again.
Advice from the bride
for planning a
destination wedding...
Planning a destination wedding is not as overwhelming as you think. Try to not let it get the best of you and have fun with it!
The venue has a list of suggested vendors. I knew I wanted the best of the best so I went through everyone's website and social media to find who would be the best fit for us and booked early!
• special touches •
Welcome Party:
Bongo's Beach Bar at The Bellwether
Rory and I were close with our grandparents who have passed. We wanted to make them part of our day by placing a photo of each of them with a single white rose on a chair for the ceremony.
My best friend Justin was our officiant.
We also had "D" napkins placed at each setting at our head table, we were able to keep them as not only a keepsake but to have for future parties or holidays at our home.
My stepfather is a huge cigar aficiando so we had a cigar rolling station set up during cocktail hour by Breezin' Entertainment. The cigars were a big hit!
We wanted to make sure our dog was included in the wedding so we had her face on the cocktail napkins.
