Congrats Alison & Grant - all the way from the UK!

I know I've said it many times before but I love hearing from past brides. Alison sent me this note and a few of her photos from her wedding (thanks Megan Biggs!).

Apologies that this has taken some time to send but Grant and I would like to say a HUGE Thank You to you and Stuart for helping us tie the knot last November.

When communicating purely via email sometimes it can be a little bit testing but from the reviews on your website I felt assured that we had chosen the correct way to tie the knot.

I didn't expect to be sea sick on my 1st cruise especially as people told me I wouldn't feel the ship move but on the day of the wedding I amazingly felt great .. Well that was until we were told that the ship couldn't dock as it normally did but instead it would be berthed and we would be transported to the shore via lifeboat vessels ... Oh my word my heart went into full blown overdrive .....

However, on reaching the exit with my parents to see my handsome lad standing there waiting for me I knew that I could overcome this .. And I did :-)

Due to the delay it was a bit rushed but your husband Scott talked us through the whole process. Gave us a history lesson on route to Lindquist Beach and then it was like "whoa - this place is stunning"

Then the nerves started again when I was left in the car on my own for a short time until you arrived to welcome me and chat ...... I almost burst into tears at the sight of my bouquet it was stunning, and will be permanently ingrained in my memory.

It's funny to hear someone else who really doesn't know us to talk about our history together like we were best of friends as that's how it felt when Scott was conducting the ceremony .. But I knew that this was just PERFECT :-) and exactly what we wanted, just the two of us and my parents.  Yes it would have been nice to have other family there but it wouldn't have been the same and it wouldn't have been us as we are a private couple and like to do things our way.

Lindquist Beach is just stunning, there are no other words that can describe it and the ceremony was exactly us .. And we cannot recommend you, Scott, Megan (photographer) and St Thomas or Lindquist Beach enough ........ Truly AMAZING :-)

Sailing away....

Island Sweet Stuff

Isn't that cake amazing? Created by the talented Island Sweet Stuff team.

Even though it's a boat and not a plane, it reminds me to tell you I'm taking off tomorrow! The timing could not be any worse, but my big brother has decided to get married!! Unfortunately, it's HIGH SEASON around here, but I simply could no miss my big brothers wedding (pigs are flying! hell is freezing over!). It's an event I won't be able to believe unless I see it with my own eyes!

I will be working while I'm away - the laptop and I will be the best of travel buddies and my phone will never leave my hand. I have my staff in place here to make sure all the weddings will go off without a hitch.

I'm really excited to attend a wedding that I am not in charge of! It's going to be a new experience for me and I'm going to do my best to enjoy it as a guest and not critique everything. That may be hard for me! Wish me luck!

The Ultimate Cruise Ship Wedding!

There are a million and one different ways to have a cruise ship wedding. Often times it is just the bride & groom coming off the ship, leaving friends & family at home. Sometimes it is 100 of the bride & grooms closest friends & family joining them in the week long celebration. For those that have guests, we often hear two different opinions on the reception. Some couples choose to have the reception back on the ship, often making arrangements at the higher end restaurants that the ships have...or even reserving the nightclub on their ship for a few hours. But other times, we have couples that want to have a true island experience, get their guests off the ship and show them an amazing time. And this is why we created the Ultimate Cruise Ship Wedding Package! The name is lame, sorry, I couldn't think of anything better....and it really does describe the package! Absolutely everything you need is included in this package...photography, transportation for you & guests, open bar, delicious lunch, live music, DJ, centerpieces....and more! Check out the Ultimate Cruise Ship Wedding Experience here.

Our wedding on Monday wasn't exactly this package, but it did help to inspire the creation of this package. We often do these type of events for cruise ship weddings, but this is the first package we've created specifically for this type of event. Since Monday's wedding was very similar, I took a lot of photos that I'll share here. I'll also point out what would be considered an "upgrade".

First, with the package you have your choice of a garden ceremony or pool ceremony. Here is a picture of Monday's wedding ceremony in the garden:

Upgrades to the package: Chair ties ($2 each) and flowers for the aisle chairs (pricing varies), crystals hanging from the large palm ($200)

You also have your choice of the pool deck for the ceremony which has views of the harbor (and if your ship is in Havensight, you'll be able to see your ship!).

(Photo by Elisha Orin)




One of the best things about Villa Botanica is the covered reception area. We did have a small rain shower (lasted less than 5 minutes) at our wedding on Monday and nothing (and nobody) got wet! Here are a few pictures of the set up:

Upgrades: Flowers (the package includes shell, glass vase & candle centerpieces, with the option of lanterns for no additional charge - pricing on centerpiece upgrades vary), chair covers & ties ($4.50 per chair). Included in the package is table linens & napkins.

And a few special touches added by our bride....luggage tags to direct guests to their table...

And adorable little silver sailboat to hold their name cards

The package does include a wedding cake

But I think our bride had a sweet tooth - she also ordered these adorable miniature fudge cakes for each guest...

She had these adorable shell ring holder and flower girl "basket"...

And of course, the package includes a bouquet & boutonniere, but you do have the option of adding additional flowers for the bridal party:

But you know what the best "upgrade" or "add-on" is?? The Caribbean Dancers!! These are always such a big hit - weddings guests love it. It's so unique and so Caribbean. I wish I had known about them for my own wedding, I would had them in a heartbeat!

Nothing better than a limbo at a reception! I'm not kidding, it gets the crowd moving!

A maid & her flowers...

The florist and I have recently developed a three tier price for maids flowers. The pricing starts at $30, then $55 and then $75. I know this will create a lot of questions about the differences so what better way to highlight it than a blog post!?

A $30 price point is going to be just a small gathering of flowers, probably 5 or 6 blooms, a little greenery and some ribbon tied neatly around the middle. It won't look like a traditional maids bouquet but almost as if she had just picked some flowers. Here is a photo of 2 $30 small gatherings next to a brides bouquet:

The $75 price is what we consider a "standard" maids bouquet. Nice full bouquet but smaller than the brides bouquet.

The $55 price is what I call a "happy medium" - this bouquet looks like a traditional bouquet but is smaller than the standard bouquet but fuller than the smaller gathering.

Now bridal bouquets start at $110 but you can always request a maids bouquet instead of a bridal bouquet as well.

Hope this was helpful!

Wine Box Ceremony

I'm sure everyone knows what the unity candle is and many of you know about the sand ceremony (a unity candle for the beach in essence) but I don't know if everyone is as familiar with the wine ceremony? This is where the bride & groom box up a bottle of wine with love letters to each other. They say that on the 50th anniversary they can open up the box and enjoy the wine while they read the love letters to each other....but that if they hit a rough patch along the way, they can open up the box, drink the wine and be reminded as to why they fell in love and were married in the first place. I always thought this was a sweet idea but for a destination wedding, it can be tricky getting that box of wine home. It's something that could easily be done without incorporating it into the ceremony as well - something the two of you could do at home once you return.

I was reminded of the wine ceremony when I got an email from UnCommon Goods - I love that store! They have some great wedding gifts and this awesome Anniversary Wine Box.

How cute is this? It's customizable with your initials and wedding date and holds three bottles of wine, to be enjoyed on specific anniversaries (they have 1st, 3rd and 5th anniversaries labeled on the example but I think we can aim higher than that, no??). I think this makes an amazing gift to give to a couple getting married but it's also a lovely gift for you to give each other, especially with the love notes tucked inside!