Spotlight: Reception at the JW Marriott Marco Island

Here’s a quick recipe for you:
Start with a talented wedding planner like CocoLuna Events.
Add an insanely creative floral artist like Tom Trovato.
Take a lush garden and add a fairytale spin. Mix well.
Place in a fabulous venue, like the Presidential Suite at the JW Marriott Marco Island.
Add a dash of gorgeous by Kakes by Karen.

What have you got?

One of our favorite reception designs, ever.

Wedding Planner & Designer: CocoLuna Events
Florist: Tom Trovato
Venue: JW Marriott Marco Island
Cake: Kakes by Karen
Entertainment: A DJ with Class

Taryn & Daniel

Chicago, Illinois has a lot to offer - it’s a beautiful metropolitan city with lots of sights to see.
What it doesn’t have?
Palm trees. Beaches. South Seas Island Resort…

It’s no mystery to us why Taryn & Daniel decided to leave Chicago and celebrate their love on the sandy shores of Captiva Island!

We loved capturing Taryn’s wedding day beside our friends at iHeart Films - it doesn’t get more talented or easy to work with!

Ah, Taryn’s other half: Daniel.
Dashingly handsome and so super nice, Daniel is Taryn’s perfect match!

Taryn and her father are very close, and she wanted to arrange a special First Glance with him - are we glad she did!

Sunset Cove at South Seas is a gorgeous place for a wedding ceremony - the copper arch provided by Floral Artistry helped to showcase the natural, organic feel of the beautiful view!

Floral Artistry did such a lovely job with Taryn’s bouquet - it was the perfect size and shape for her gown!

With certain design elements by Kelly McWilliams Celebrations, Weddings, & Parties and Floral Artistry, their vendor team made Taryn & Daniel’s reception dreams come true!

Taryn & Daniel offered a make-your-own-trail-mix bar at their wedding reception -
it was the perfect healthy alternative to a candy bar, and guests had so much fun mixing the ingredients in personalized bags!

With the formalities over, it was time to let None Other rock the reception!
None Other is one of our favorite bands to work with - check them out!

Congratulations Taryn & Daniel! MSP wishes you the very best!

Happy New Year to all!

Venue: South Seas Island Resort
Wedding Planner: Kelly McWilliams Celebrations, Weddings, & Parties
Florist: Floral Artistry
Video: iHeart Films
Band: None Other

MSP Travels: Wilmington, DE

Juliana & Pete live in Wilmington, Delaware (the very first state!)

J&P don’t really consider themselves “wedding people”. They would have been perfectly happy with a courthouse elopement, sans the big white dress and wedding party. Fortunately for us, J&P also come from large Italian families, and those families wanted the chance to celebrate the couple in a grand way… so J&P sweetly agreed to a simple wedding…

Enter: 190 guests, 6 bridesmaids, 6 groomsmen, and a billion reasons to smile.

Choice in bridesmaids and groomsmen? Nailed it.
Wedding style, big white dress included? Nailed that, too.
Meaningful, religious ceremony? Boom.
Tons of fun taking photos for MSP? Yaaaas!

For a couple that never dreamed of their big wedding, they succeeded in celebrating a personal, authentic, and love-filled day!

That dress, right? We’ll take a second and just let that beauty sink in…
Juliana got ready at the Westin Waterfront

Oh, did we forget to mention Juliana is drop-dead gorgeous?

We met Pete at the ceremony venue - St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church.
Fun fact: St Anthony’s hosts the second-largest Italian Festival in the country each June!

With the ceremony behind us, we headed to the Marian Coffin Gardens at the Gibraltar Estate

The riverfront area of Wilmington is a big draw for tourists and locals alike.
We returned to that neighborhood for the reception at The Chase Center.

Juliana & Pete are so lucky to be surrounded by so much love and adoration for them - but they deserve every bit of it! MSP wishes them the world!

Ceremony Venue: St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church
Getting Ready: The Westin Waterfront
Portraits: Marian Coffin Gardens at Gibraltar
Reception Venue: The Chase Center

Jennifer & Brent

We have the best clients, truly.

And we meet our couples all kinds of ways. Most are referred to us through our close-knit network of wedding partners or through exposure in publications and web-based searches. A few times a year, we're asked to photograph the wedding of a bride or groom that is already in our industry- and that is incredibly flattering.

Jennifer & Brent met while working together at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point in Bonita Springs. As a preferred vendor there, we met them while shooting another wedding. When it came time for their own special day, they knew who they wanted to ask to capture all the moments!

And boy, did we!

Jennifer and her ladies were well taken care of by the beauty team Jamie Lyn Cintron!

Jennifer paired her gorgeous gown with shoes by Badgley Mischka - you can never go wrong with their wedding styles!

We absolutely loved this moment, captured when Jennifer saw herself ready for the first time!

That view tho…

Style tip: Letting the ladies choose their own gowns gives such a dynamic, fun flair to bridal party portraits! They can choose the style that suits them best, in a range of colors that work together in just the right way. Nailed it!

Jennifer’s father couldn’t walk her down the aisle due to health reasons, but that didn’t stop her from honoring him. Her brother escorted her to the beginning of the aisle, she walked the length of it by herself, and ended the walk with a big hug from her dad - sitting front and center for the ceremony! We loooooved her thoughtful approach!

We loved what Jennifer, Brent, and their design team did with the Hyatt’s Royal Palm Courtyard!

With the formalities done, it was time to party! Entertainment was provided by A DJ with Class

This month marks the two-year anniversary for Jennifer & Brent, and we’ve loved revisiting their special day for this month’s blog!

Venue: Hyatt Regency Coconut Point
Beauty: Jamie Lyn Cintron
Shoes: Badgley Mischka
Entertainment: A DJ with Class