After photographing Katherine and Patrick’s engagement session last year in York Harbor, Maine, I was very excited to return to York Harbor for their September 21st, 2019 wedding at The Dockside Restaurant. The Dockside Guest Quarters is a lovely Maine oceanfront B&B on the same property as the restaurant. Katherine and the other ladies in the wedding got ready there. You can see the rocky Maine coastline (their gorgeous ceremony backdrop) from the upstairs window. Katherine and Patrick had a beautiful coastal Maine wedding ceremony, officiated by one of my favorite local wedding officiants, Julie Draper. We took formal portraits outside on the lawn while guests enjoyed an outdoor cocktail hour nearby. Guests took their seats inside the Dockside and the wedding party was announced into the reception. Katherine and Patrick shared their first dance surrounded by their family and friends. After three heartfelt speeches with toasts, magnificent entrees of prime rib and haddock were served. We stepped outside for sunset portraits in the gazebo and on the dock, which is my favorite time to take photos at the venue. Once inside, the couple cut their wedding cake and Katherine tossed her bouquet before the dance floor opened up for the night for everyone to continue to celebrate into the evening.

Here’s my Q&A with Katherine:

How did you two meet?

One April weekend in 2016, Patrick and I were both out in Boston with different groups of friends. Towards the end of the night Patrick and his friends, and myself and my group of friends, both met up with a mutual friend of ours at the Red Lantern in Boston. Patrick and I were introduced to each other and chatted for the rest of the night. From there, the rest is history!

When and where did you get engaged? Tell us about the proposal.

On June 30, 2018 Pat and I were up at my family's shared lake house on Lake Winnipesaukee. After going for a long walk that morning (on one of the hottest days that summer) we headed back to the house to get ready to spend the day on the lake. When I went to my bedroom to get my things together for the day, I noticed something “extra” in my overnight bag. As I pulled the ring box out I looked over at Pat who was on one knee proposing. With my parents, sisters, aunt, uncle, cousins, grandparents and friends all up at the lake that weekend it was the most special way to celebrate our engagement with all of the people we loved!

How did you envision your wedding day? Tell us about your color palate, style and/or vision.

When we were in the early phases of planning our wedding one thing we knew for certain was that we wanted guests to experience the beautiful, coastal New England that we live in. What better place to represent the beauty of the New England coast than in York, Maine — the town I grew up in. The Dockside in York represented everything we wanted in our wedding — a relaxed, quintessential coastal venue with unparalleled beauty. We stayed true to the coastal backdrop with our colors and style. We chose navy as our primary color and added greenery and light colored flowers. All of our decor was inspired from the nautical setting from the lobster buoy place settings to the driftwood sailboat centerpieces (made from a local York vendor)!

What is your favorite moment of your wedding day?

Do I have to pick just one?! Everything about our wedding weekend was perfect. Our favorite part was being in the beautiful venue. The wedding was phenomenal, the Dockside made us feel like the most special bride and groom, and being with all of our friends and family was the best! It sounds cliche but every part of our wedding day was amazing.

Tell us about your flowers, your gown, your favors, your cake, etc.

Our flowers were phenomenal - they were the perfect style for our wedding! Our cake was made by a local baker. We kept the Maine and navy theme by having fresh blueberries at the border of each layer. Additionally, we chose an assortment of gourmet cupcakes for our guests to choose from. For our favors, we chose a family favorite, harbor sweets, for our guests. Finally, for my gown, (which I could not be happier with!) I worked with a seamstress to make custom changes so it was the gown of my dreams! And my gown wouldn’t be complete without good hair and makeup! Erika and Tara of Lady Luxe Beauty were AMAZING and made each of my bridesmaids and mom and myself look and feel like movie stars!