I was so excited when Arla and Kevin hired me to photograph their August 2nd, 2019 wedding at The Lucerne Inn in Dedham, Maine. The inn is one of the most beautiful wedding venues in Maine, both inside and out. The property has stunning views of Bald Mountain and Phillips Lake, which provide a gorgeous outdoor backdrop for a wedding ceremony. The venue also has a brick patio attached to the Main Inn, where a pre-lit wedding tent was set up for the occasion.

After getting ready in separate rooms at the inn, the couple shared their first look outside. It was a heartfelt moment to witness their tears of happiness as they saw each other for the first time in their wedding day attire. Soon after, Arla and Kevin’s wedding ceremony began at The Overlook, which is the outdoor area of the inn with a gazebo and a lawn overlooking Dedham Maine’s Bald Mountain. It was truly the perfect setting for family and friends to gather and celebrate this special day.

Arla and Kevin share more about this wonderful day below:

How did you two meet?

In Arla’s words:

We met at The University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida. Kevin had a pet Fennec Fox, cutest little thing with huge ears. One of our mutual friends would always talk about this fox, so naturally, I HAD to meet Ardi. I got to meet Ardi and, more importantly, Kevin. One month later at a Christmas party (2013) we meet again, sparks fly, and we have been together ever since.

Tell us about the proposal.

In Kevin’s words:

After 3.5 years of dating Arla, I decided to take our relationship to the next level. First, I asked for the blessing of Arla’s parents, beginning with her mom, Amy, whom I felt enjoyed my company almost as much as Arla. She was immediately excited and gave me that honor. I then took my time (2 more months) to work up the courage to ask Arla’s dad, Karl, for his blessing, which he also immediately gave, with a small talk about what marriage means to him and what he hopes for his daughter. Fast forward 6 months, Arla’s mom and aunt Lori were shopping with us at the Volusia mall in Arla’s hometown of Daytona Beach, and I casually took Arla inside a jewelry store and pointed at some cool engagement rings and asked Arla which she liked. Her smiling face glowed as she caught the hint. So we looked around a bit and went to Arla’s family jewelers. She gave me some good pointers on which styles she liked and we got her ring size.

Months passed as I worked to afford a ring and diamond. Suddenly, Amy asked if I would be willing to use Arla’s grandmother’s diamond for the engagement ring. I knew this would mean the world to Arla since her Nana passed away just a few months after we began dating over 4 years ago. We decided to add the stone to the ring that I hoped Arla would love.

The plan for the proposal itself was to have Arla’s family up in Maine, which is her favorite place in the world and where we ended up getting married. However, Amy had a recent back surgery with complications and was not able to make the flight, but she promised me that it would still be just as special, and she was not wrong. Aunt Lori and her husband Uncle Brett happened to be celebrating their wedding anniversary that summer and invited us to dinner. So, we dressed nicely and took photos on the dock before dinner. At this point, I sneakily put the box in my back pocket, began saying a few words during pictures (Uncle Brett was taking a video), and told her how much I loved her. Initially, she was wondering why the heck I was talking while we were taking pictures, and then said “what are you doing? What’s going on?” as I fell onto one knee and opened the box asking Arla to marry me and spend the rest of her life with me. Her hands went to her face and the tears of joy began pouring. She of course said “Yes!” and I put the ring on. She was so nervous she initially extended her right hand, but we got it straightened out in the end. Within minutes, we went back in the house, popped the champagne, and called our families. We then got to celebrate by going out to a fancy dinner to cap off the perfect evening.

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

We wanted our wedding day style to be classy, elegant, and timeless. Our color palette was ivory and blush with gold accents. The groomsmen wore navy tuxes and bridesmaids in deep berry.

What is your favorite moment of your wedding day?

Our favorite moment of our wedding day was the first dance. We took dance lessons but we didn’t tell anyone. It was fun to have a secret with which we could surprise our friends and families. We were nervous before the dance started but once the music started, we focused on each other and all the nerves faded away.

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

In Arla’s words:

My flowers were a mixture of roses, garden roses and hydrangeas in shades of white, cream, and blush. The bridesmaid bouquets, boutonnières, and corsages were made with the same flowers. My dress was a strapless slim A-line gown with a long train. It was ivory with lace and glass beaded embellishments. My veil was cathedral length and made of all tulle. The bridesmaids wore all different dresses in the same deep berry color, they all looked gorgeous and were able to express their own style. The groom and groomsmen wore navy tuxes with a deep berry pocket square to match the bridesmaids. The groomsmen also wore crazy socks. Anyone who knows Kevin knows how much he loves crazy socks so I had to include that on our wedding day. Our wedding cake was 3 tiered, covered in bright white frosting with blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries cascading down the side. It was just as delicious as it was gorgeous. The wedding favors were mini jars of blueberry jam. They also doubled as seating assignments; each jar had a tag with the guest’s name, table number, and our hashtags. Our centerpieces varied, some with gold lanterns and some with gold geometric vases. All of the centerpieces had pillar candles in tall glass vases and gold votives surrounded by eucalyptus branches with loose blush and ivory flowers.