erin & keith | christ the king catholic church ceremony and tampa yacht & country club wedding reception | tampa wedding photographer

… insights from erin …

how would you describe your wedding to someone who was not there? what were some of your inspirations? how did you envision the wedding prior to your special day?

Romantic, emotional, beautiful and FUN! We wanted everyone to party the night away, which is why we opted for the late ceremony, and had a late reception. We did not have a seated dinner, instead lots of buffet and food stations all throughout the Tampa Yacht Club. People were greeted with a traditional Celtic bagpiper as they entered the Yacht Club. There was a beautiful piano bar outside, a bourbon bar in the Quarterdeck, and tons of food, gorgeous flowers and an awesome dance floor in the main ballroom. We had a signature cocktail called the Elserberry with Listel sparkling rose, and St. Germain. Our guests all donned fun light up beads on the dancefloor. I wanted lots of reds, rose gold, blush, and some greenery in our color scheme and Botanica and the Yacht Club made it all come to life. I am grateful that we got to see the reception and décor before the party, while we were doing our photos, because the night flew by when we actually arrived to the party. It was everything I could have dreamt of and more!

is there anything you wish you had done differently when planning your wedding?

Yes! I wish I had marked each of the RSVP cards with some kind of notation or way to track who they came from. We received a lot of blank RSVP’s with no way of knowing who they were from! It all worked out in the end, but that would have saved some time and detective work!

which vendor was most important to you when planning your wedding?

Hands down, hiring our Wedding Planner, Laura Walsh was the BEST decision! In the weeks leading up to our wedding, Laura coordinated with all of our vendors, created our timelines, gave me advice on a variety of topics, played intermediary when needed, and always made herself available to answer my questions, or give us direction. On the day of the event, she made everything seamless! I knew that I could sit back, relax and enjoy our wedding day because Laura was at the helm. Everything was executed to perfection, and I could NOT and would NOT have wanted to do all of that without her… we had close to 250 guests at our wedding, so it was no small feat.

what was your biggest wedding day savings?

We chose to have a small cake just for cutting and photos. Our reception was already so late, and we had a dessert bar featured as part of our reception. We just did a two-tier cake from Publix Greenwise, which was delicious and just enough. I was glad we didn’t spend more money on something most people didn’t eat anyway!

what was your biggest wedding day splurge?

We always intended on having Marissa do our photos, but I am glad we hired a videographer as well to capture some of the other special moments. I can’t wait to relive our day through our photos and video!

what was the best advice you received when planning your wedding?

Don’t sweat the small stuff! Everything will come together perfectly (and it did) so don’t get caught up in the tension, or little frustrating moments that may pop up throughout the process. Just smile, breathe deep and try to take it all in and ENJOY!! It will fly by before you know it…

was there anything encountered during wedding planning that was unexpected?

Absolutely… but you have to roll with the punches and try to enjoy every moment of the planning process. The big day will be here and gone before you know it! When I look back, I can’t believe it’s all over! I would give anything to go back and do it all again, it was a magical day! (Oh and we found a grasshopper in my dress when we got to the Church, right before I walked down the aisle. It was a riot. Turns out that Grasshoppers are a sign of good luck, good health and fertility… so I guess that’s a great thing to have hop a ride on my dress!!)

was there a moment during your wedding day that surprised you?

Yes! On the way to the Church, my Dad and I rode in the limo together (just the two of us.) I was already a bit anxious, so when the driver started taking another route, I was nervous! As I started to ask where he was going, we pulled off the side of the road on Bayshore. My Dad had me roll down the window only to realize he had planted special signs along the route to the Church. Each stop was a special moment we shared during our 18 years of living here in Tampa. Each sign had a baby photo and a special note. The last stop at the Church was a sign that read “Erin, tonight you become Mrs. Elser, but you will ALWAYS be Daddy’s little girl! xoxoxo” I was so blown away and touched. My Dad kept it secret from everyone else, I am so blessed to have a wonderful, thoughtful Father!

what was your favorite moment, or favorite part, of your wedding day?

Dancing with my husband to our first dance! Even though there were tons of people surrounding us, I felt like it was just the two of us in the room, dancing, smiling and making jokes to each other.

when you look back on your wedding day in 50 years, what do you think you’ll remember most?

My handsome husband, he is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me!

… how it all came together…