We are thrilled to share Alexis and Michael's St. Augustine Destination Wedding that has been featured on Destination Wedding Details. With the fresh and bright color palette, this wedding will leave you cheery and oh so excited for summer! See the full feature here. 

"Our wedding was a love letter to our wedding destination, St. Augustine, Florida, and a celebration of what is most important to us: creating lifelong memories with our families and closest friends. St. Augustine is our nation’s oldest city, and the seaside town is a true hidden gem."

Settled by Spanish admiral Pedro Menendez de Aviles in 1565, St. Augustine is known for Spanish colonial architecture, old world charm and beautiful beaches. Every summer, Lexi’s family would go on a two-day road trip down to spend time with her grandmother who lived in St. Augustine. It was an annual tradition every year since she was born. When Michael came with her to visit, it was the perfect setting for the romantic, tropical wedding we had envisioned. With its vibrant art and music scene, the college town seemed to be the ideal marriage of beauty, culture and fun.

We had tons of fun planning our wedding and laughed a lot along the way with Lexi’s family. We planned a full weekend itinerary beginning Thursday evening with an intimate dinner for our families by the beach. On Friday, our guests arrived, and we held our rehearsal dinner at O.C. White’s Seafood & Spirits in the Old City, in their outside courtyard under a vine-covered trellis strewn with lights, with live acoustic music playing. Then we treated our family and wedding party to a sunset boat ride on the Matanzas River, one of the highlights of the weekend. With the groom in a flamingo suit and a vintage 50s and 60s soundtrack, the boat ride allowed everyone to feel relaxed and on vacation. We then strolled down St. George’s cobblestone streets to Casa Maya for welcome drinks in their backyard bar for all our guests. On our wedding day, Lexi had all her bridesmaids over to our rental condo to get ready, and Michael dressed with his groomsmen at our host hotel, the Courtyard Marriott in St. Augustine Beach. We wanted all our guests to be able to spend some time in the Florida sun and sand during their stay.

We held a first look in the Old City, and then our wedding party met us for a walking pre-ceremony photo session all around the Lightner Museum and surrounding streets. It saved us time and stress – we definitely recommend! Our ceremony and reception were at The River House in St. Augustine, a non-profit senior center by day, the venue transforms into an elegant waterfront venue by evening: it was like our own private home for the night. Our ceremony and cocktail hour were held on their outdoor patio and private dock looking out over the river. The reception was held in their ballroom, where Purple Olive catered a delicious feast, Sweet Weddings delivered our dream dulce de leche wedding cake, our live band played late into the night – and Brooke Images captured every precious moment. All guests then met us at an after party at the Bar with No Name in the Old City, with views of the Castillo de San Marcos fort lit against the night sky. Finally, we wrapped up our wedding weekend with a rooftop brunch on Sunday at Salt Life Food Shack, then invited everyone to join us for a beach day.

Throughout the weekend, we shared our love for St. Augustine through our choice of tropical colors such as gold, orange, coral, green and teal, use of vintage Florida illustrations and postcards, and Floridian flowers and citrus fruits. We saw our destination choice and wedding weekend itinerary as a way to establish what is important to us, and to our marriage: we plan to build on Lexi’s family’s tradition and vacation with our children to St. Augustine every summer too. We even fantasize about retiring there! We feel deeply blessed and grateful to have been able to hold such a fun-filled weekend with our loved ones." - Alexis

Photography: Brooke Images 

Floral: Jade Violet Wedding Floral 

Day-of Coordination: Coastal Coordinating 

Venue: THE RIVER HOUSE 

Catering: PURPLE OLIVE 

Wedding Cake: Sweet Weddings 

Band: THE AFTER PARTY EXPERIENCE 

Ceremony Musicians: RIchard Stratton 

Officiant: PEGGY LAROCHE 

Rehearsal Venue: O.C. WHITE’S 

After Party Venue: NO NAME BAR 

Wedding Dress: Pronovias 

Bridesmaid Dresses: Kennedy Blue 

Submitted via: Matchology