Danielle and Tyler were married on September 28th, 2019. Each of them got ready separately and decided to wait until their ceremony to see each other. Their wedding ceremony took place at the Samuel Wilde Memorial Chapel at Evergreen Cemetery in Portland, Maine. The stone Gothic chapel has interior woodwork of cypress and stained glass windows, which provided a lovely unique location for the couple to exchange their wedding vows. After the ceremony, we utilized the chapel grounds for portraits. Meanwhile, everyone traveled to the wedding reception at the Saltwater Grille, which is a restaurant with waterfront views of Portland Harbor. After the wedding party was announced into the reception, Danielle and Tyler shared their first dance, surrounded by family and friends. The docks outside the Saltwater Grille were a perfect place for us to sneak out at sunset for more bride and groom portraits. Inside, everyone enjoyed dinner and dancing and Danielle and Tyler cut their wedding cake. The heartfelt speeches given by the Maid of Honor and Best Man produced both laughter and tears. After the toasts were the parent and grandparent dances, bouquet and garter toss. The rest of the evening, everyone danced the night away. It was truly a wonderful celebration of love and I’m honored that Danielle and Tyler chose me to capture such a special occasion.

I asked Danielle for more details:

How did you two meet?

Tyler and I actually met through the tinder app (yikes I know) but he also used to go to school with my cousins. We had our first date and hit it off immediately. Both of us realized pretty quickly that there was a connection there and we exclusively started dating shortly afterward.

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

We got engaged at the Saltwater Grille on September 9th 2017, the day after Tyler came back from Marine Corps boot camp. Both of our families were there and he was in his dress blue uniform. He made a speech at the beginning of dinner and got down on one knee at the end of it asking if I’d marry him. I was surprised (but also kind of knew it was coming) and said yes after very an initial unladylike response somewhat like Holy Smokes. Because of his job with the Marine’s, we actually had a courthouse wedding 9 days later, 2 hours before his flight to Camp Johnson for infantry training. There were plenty of times after that that I was pretty sure that my girlhood dreams of a princess wedding would never happen because we were “already married”.

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

Everything I envisioned for my wedding was exactly what we saw on the actual day. I have always been a princess and my visions aligned with that. From the cafe lighting and the ceiling drapery, to the sparkly bridesmaid dresses. Our colors were navy and gold to complement the colors of his Marine Corps uniform. My ideas were classic but also a bit glitzy glam, much like myself. I love things that sparkle.

What is your favorite moment of your wedding day?

My favorite moment of the wedding day would have to be hearing Tyler’s vows. They embodied everything we are together and I couldn’t believe he had found the words for it. Tyler says his favorite moment was seeing me walk down the aisle.

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

Our flowers were assembled by the florists from Maine Event Design and Decor. They included an array of white dahlias, hyacinths, roses, and gold sprayed eucalyptus. My gown was from Andrea’s bridal and was absolutely amazing. I look at it still and wish I could wear it again. It shimmered and made me feel like the most beautiful thing in the world. Our cake and cupcakes were the artistic design of Gayle Forte at Let Them Eat Cake in Kennebunk. I didn’t design any of it past picking the flavors. I simply told her that I love sparkles and glamour and she did the rest. The decor was done by Maine Event Design and Decor, envisioned by Robyn Allen, and they absolutely nailed everything I could have dreamed of. The coordinators at Saltwater Grille, Julia and Megan, were on top of everything and were there for anything else I could have needed. Without all the vendors, yourself included, this day could not have been what it was, which is absolutely perfect.