stacy & ali | powel crosley ceremony reception photography | sarasota wedding photographer

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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?

Vintage glamour with an ocean view? Ha ha. Finding the right words to describe our wedding day is difficult. Stacy always knew she wanted to get married outside, surrounded by the natural landscape and wildlife of the venue. She was also looking for a place that was unique and had character. The Powel Crosley met both of those criteria and was the foundation for much of our inspiration for the wedding. Once we settled on the wedding colors (coral and gold), everything else quickly fell into place. We didn’t have to add much to bring out the vintage in the wedding, because the Crosley did that all on its own. The beautiful white hydrangea and coral roses in gold vases with gold votives, in addition to the lighting and gold chiavri chairs, brought the glamour. And, last but not least, the beautiful sunset over Sarasota Bay gave us the incredible ocean view. Our wedding was just as we had envisioned, maybe even better!

which three vendors were most important to you when planning your wedding?

Another difficult question. Every vendor that we chose played a pivotal role in the planning process and execution of our day. But there were a few that helped put our vision into motion early on in the process.

Our officiant, Grace Felice, was a godsend. Not only did she help us to create a unique and memorable wedding ceremony, but she also gave us incredible recommendations for other vendors and truly held our hands every step of the way.

Our florist, Diane, from Elegant Designs Floral Art Studio, put together an incredible display of flowers for us and provided photos and helpful suggestions to create a floral spread that brought so much of the elegance and glamour to our day.

Our DJ, Fitz Otis, helped us put all of the details together to create a wedding ceremony and reception timeline that went off seamlessly. He made several adjustments to accommodate our requests for cultural dances, group photos, a “loca hora” and a pretty incredible glow stick sendoff.

what was your biggest wedding day savings?

We saved a lot of money on stationary and paper items. Instead of providing reception and RSVP cards with our invitations, we created a wedding website that provided our guests with all of the details and allowed them to RSVP for the wedding and rehearsal dinner online. We also printed all of our own ceremony programs, menu cards, signs and itineraries after purchasing the designs from Etsy at a low cost.

what was your biggest wedding day splurge?

The lighting! Who would’ve thought that you could spend a couple thousand dollars on lights? We fell in love with the look of the large chandelier over the loggia with cafe bulbs extending over the reception tables. We knew it would bring much of the glamour and romance that we had envisioned, so we just had to splurge a little bit for them both!

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

The best advice was actually the words that we had heard over and over again during the planning process: “Don’t forget to enjoy your wedding day!” After ten months of endless decision making and execution, we could not have been more happy that when our wedding day came, we just sat back, smiled and let it all happen the way it was meant to. Once our wedding day arrived, there was nothing that either of us could have done to alter it’s course, so we embraced that and made sure to enjoy our time with our bridal parties, our friends and family, and more importantly, each other.

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

After planning every minute of our wedding day down to the last, we didn’t think there was anything that could have surprised us. Stacy’s father passed away a couple of years ago and was the most important person missing from our wedding day. Stacy’s nieces pulled us aside during the final hours of the reception to tell us that they had a surprise for us. Stacy’s sister, Beth, had brought their father’s remaining ashes with her to the wedding. All of the members of the immediate family, including Ali, who never had the opportunity to meet Stacy’s father, snuck away from the reception for a few minutes, said a few heartfelt words (and shed some tears) for Dad and scattered his ashes into the sea. It was such an incredibly special moment for all of us.

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

It is so hard to pick one moment that stands out above everything else, but our first look was a special moment for us and one that we got to share just with one another. There is so much anxiety and fear building up to that moment when you first see the love of your life, all dressed up and ready to become your spouse. But once we saw one another, every ounce of that anxiety and fear dissipated. We smiled and we kissed and we practiced our first dance. And afterwards, we knew that no matter what happened, our wedding day was going to be one of the happiest and best days of our life.

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

How beautiful everything and everyone was, from the flowers and the cake to our bridal party, from the incredible sunset to the twinkle of the chandelier and everything in between. We’ve never seen so many of the people that we love, together in one place, smiling, laughing and truly enjoying every moment of the day. We wish that we could do it all over again!!

… how it all came together…

ceremony & reception | powel crosley estate

videographer | studio krp

catering | milan catering

event coordinator| sarasota wedding gallery

cake artist | cakes by ron

florist | elegant design floral art studio

band | goodley entertainment group

transportation| sarasota trolley

gown boutique | maggie sottero at bridal trousseau

bridesmaids’ dresses | allure bridal at lastrina girls bridal salon

men’s wear | colin’s tux shop