Tim and Sarah hosted a colorful destination wedding overlooking the ocean in Sayulita, Mexico. The pair met while living in Brooklyn, but both are Michigan natives. He’s a chef, and she’s a documentary filmmaker – they fell in love over great food, good drinks and a few early relationship beach vacations. A few years later, Time designed Sarah a vintage inspired engagement ring and their destination wedding was on!
Sarah shared with us their story. “From the beginning, we were drawn to the idea of a destination wedding in a warm, outdoor locale and wanted to plan an extended week-long affair as a way to maximize time with our closest family and friends who were scattered in Michigan, California and New York.”
“We had a vision of a non-traditional wedding experience centered around great food and drinks and wanted a fun Mexican fiesta vibe rather than something romantic or elegant. Having suffered through so many below-average wedding celebrations in non-descript banquet rooms throughout the country, we focused on finding a large Villa where we could hold the main event. So we began our search for a place that could accommodate a large group of us (relatively speaking for a destination wedding – 65), but wanted to steer clear of a resort driven, “all-inclusive” type of town. Through some exhaustive research and our collective love of tequila and fish tacos, we decided on the bohemian Pacific coast beach enclave of Sayulita, Mexico. We went down on a research trip to finalize all the details a few months before the actual event, and fell in l-o-v-e with the slightly scruffy, but very charming town, as well as the beautiful rental Villas.”
“We designed our own non-traditional, non-religious ceremony, which we wrote ourselves, and parts were performed by a few close friends and family members. A good friend performed a song to kick things off and guests witnessed us exchange our hand written vows through tears and sniffles. A Mariachi band led us down the hill from the ceremony to the lower-lawn for cocktail hour where guests were offered signature mango and hibiscus margaritas.”
“We selected Mar Weddings to coordinate our wedding events, which included a Welcome Party, Rehearsal Dinner, Beach Party and the actual Wedding. Gaby and Memo very quickly assessed our needs and had invaluable knowledge of the location and local vendors. They were a great help coordinating the plans and details via email leading up to the wedding week, and spent the entire week on-site making sure our vision and expectations were met down to the smallest detail. They also introduced us to Pepé and Estella of Turquoise catering which exceeded our expectations in terms of food for the Welcome Party and Wedding reception, something that was very important to us with Tim being a chef.”
“As the sun set, a family-style dinner, composed of multiple courses of small bites, was served on two long tables adorned with colorful table runners that were expertly sewn and smuggled into Mexico by the bride’s mother. The citrus color themed tablescape included vases of various sizes, shapes, and materials, filled with a range of simple flowers that didn’t dominate the scene. We made printed menus and hand stamped (by the groom, no less!) place cards that were set into fresh limes. Mar Weddings built a canopy structure over the tables and decorated it with strings of lights and papel de china, capturing a fun, casual, eclectic vibe exactly as we wanted.”
“There was not only a full moon that night but a super moon! The party got into full swing with dancing and silly Mexican costumes (another brilliant idea from Mar Weddings) that got our guests into the party mood. One of Tim’s special requests was to have a piñata, which we unveiled in time for the kids to enjoy. The dancing and drinking continued until midnight tacos sated the wobbly revelers, and the party was moved to the beach with a bonfire and moon lit dip in the Pacific for the boys. An epic celebration of love and family and friends was over and our guests unanimously declared our Mexican fiesta week as the best wedding ever.”
Congratulations to the newlyweds!
Destination Wedding Photographer: Joann Arruda Photography
Wedding Vendors: Event Planner: Marweddings, Wedding Venue: Villa del Oso, Bride’s Dress: Custom made by Momo Soho, Bride’s Shoes: Seychelles, Groom’s Suit: J Crew, Tie: Hugo Boss, Groom’s Shoes: Hush Puppies, Rings: Custom design by Elleven, Invitations: Lion in the Sun, Paper supplies & stamps for DIY items: Paper Source, Welcome Party Site: Casa Vela, Rehearsal Dinner Site: Don Pedro’s, Caterer: Turquoise, Mariachi Band: Mariachi Azteca, Flowers: Iris Design
