A Catlin Gardens Wedding with Lara and Daniel

I wasn’t at Catlin Gardens last year, but I’d been hearing stories about the gorgeous new hotel they had put on the grounds and the complete renovation of the gardens after hurricane flooding a year ago.  Everything was way beyond what I had expected!  The new hotel is not just a small hotel set behind a venue.  It is a gorgeous 3 story mansion erected as a grand entrance showpiece to even more enchanting grounds.  I felt like I was behind the scenes in a fairytale storybook all day.  Lara is a perfectionist who has an enormous love of lilacs.  And therefore, she actually picked her and Daniel’s wedding date to be the same week that lilacs normally come into bloom.  Of course, in that stubborn way that flowers, like children, will just ignore you and do their own thing on their own time, the lilacs bloomed early this year.  But when a perfectionist bride hires a perfectionist florist, like Flowers on the Porch, you are going to have lilacs at your wedding! Maryann of Flowers on the Porch actually froze the lilacs for Lara’s bouquet and then woke them back up in time for the wedding.  They never wilted or faded throughout this warm spring day and still looked fresh at the end of the evening.

Lara and Daniel put both beautiful and fun personal touches everywhere in their wedding.  Crossword puzzles on the fans for the ceremony guests, gladiola bulbs as guest favors, and their own handmade signs and bags of props for the photobooth were some of my favorites.  A big thanks to Melissa Surprise for sending this fun couple my way – she finally got to be a guest at a wedding for a change!

Ceremony and Reception at Catlin Gardens and Inn;  Ceremony by Elizabeth Phaire; Dress by Watters and Watters; Flowers by Flowers on the Porch; Music by A Perfect Blend