Southern Weddings

Wedding crashers couldn’t help but join in on the fun at Tiffany + Maurice’s fantasy wedding in Naples, Florida.  Tiffany went with the flow and even took a picture with one of them!  Tiffany + Maurice made family a priority from the start.   Maurice’s daughter presented Tiffany a card on Mother’s Day that included the words “Will you marry me?”  The couple even chose an orange themed wedding, their official family color. Maurice helped Tiffany look for a wedding dress for months before the couple finally found the perfect one at {Group USA} less than a month before the wedding.  Other wedding details: Photography by {SB Childs Photography}.  Venue, catering and wedding cake by: {Naples Grande Resort}. Reception flowers by { Elite Bridal Consulting & Events}.  Planning by Kyne Lee Willis and Camille D. Blunt of Elite Bridal Consulting and Events. Bridesmaid dresses by Macy’s De Laru Collection. 

How did the two of you meet? We met at work.
Describe the proposal: Maurice actually proposed on Mother’s Day. My family had come to town and both our families joined for a beautiful dinner out. At the end of the dinner my (soon-to-be) stepdaughter handed me a card. I read the card and at the end was written “Will you marry me?” I looked at her, and she handed me the box with an unbelievably beautiful ring inside. I really appreciated his attempt to involve her in the proposal. It symbolized the union she and I would have.
Why do you love your husband? I love my husband’s strength & youthful spirit. There is something regal about him so we all call him the king.
What attracted me to my wife was: She is beautiful, but the reason I was attracted to Tiffany is different than why I wanted to make her my wife. I knew she must be my queen because she is all about me. That means she makes me a better person by inspiring me to focus on my strengths and where I have holes she fills them with all of her strengths and talents. She really completes me.
A date we went on that we’ll always remember: We have a tradition of going out dancing until our feet can’t take any more. Then we find an all night pizza joint. We started the tradition in Miami.
The weather on our wedding day was: Perfect! It was a sunny day but not too hot for our guests waiting for us to appear on the beach.
What was the design inspiration for your wedding? The color orange really was the inspiration. It is our official family color. We all look good in orange and it makes me feel so sunny. I must give credit to our wonderful wedding planner Kyna Willis of Elite Bridal Consulting. I told her we love orange and she did the rest. Everything was so beautiful and I wouldn’t have changed a thing!
Favorite design element of your big day: From the flowers on the arch at the beach, the flowers in my hair, the programs on our guests chairs, the cake topper and logo on the floor to the personalized table tents, every design element was spectacular. Perfection!
Tell us about finding your wedding dress: Finding my wedding dress was pretty dramatic. We, and yes I do mean we, (Maurice and I) shopped for months trying to find a gown. Finally with less than a month to the big day we found one we both loved. I was so happy to have him as my shopping partner.
Describe your wedding flowers: My bouquet had orange inspired colors and had beautiful calla lillies and orchids.
Describe your wedding cake: The wedding cake was very simplistic and classic adorned with orchids and topped with our monogram G cake-topper.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: We entered our reception with a first dance to remember and danced the night away with our guests, but our favorite part of the wedding was the very special ceremony. We were married by two of our closest friends (ordained especially for us), shared beautiful and unique vows and had a sand blending ceremony to involve our children in the union. At the end of the ceremony we asked each guest to join us at the ocean’s edge and bring the stone we left on each seat. At the water’s edge we asked that they cast their stone in the ocean and make a special wish for our new life together.
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome while planning your wedding? We hosted a destination wedding and had to import every detail… even the wedding planner wasn’t local. We chose a beautiful resort {The Naples Grand of Naples, Florida} and had never laid eyes on it until we arrived a few days before the wedding! The photographers were flown in as the band and DJ. All of the local services had to be handled remotely by our planner who had no history with the vendors. Though I’m sure that was a challenge, she never let me see her sweat. All I know is that each choice was perfect, and we had a great day.
Were there any special family traditions you included in the wedding? What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Maurice says he will never forget how uninhibited I was on the dance floor. The story going around is that I got on the floor on all fours at some point when Beyonce’s “Get me Bodied” was played. Every time he hears that song he starts laughing. Mine was a very special moment we had toward the end of the reception as we danced to “As” by Stevie Wonder. We agreed that not matter what challenges we face in our life together we would think back to that time on the dance floor and how much love and joy filled our hearts in that very moment.
Funniest moment? One of our guests, Richie (serious attorney), and my sister Jessica (also a serious attorney) had a Michael Jackson dance off. It was hilarious. Equally as funny was the fact that we had three sets of wedding crashers. The DJ was so good that people came from all over the hotel to join our party. We thought it was so funny that we let them stay and enjoy the fun…I even took a picture with one of them!
Hardest decision you made in planning? Choosing a wedding planner from out of town versus choosing someone local. In the end we made the best decision. Kyna was better than anyone we could have chosen native to Naples. I would use her again regardless of where my event would be held.
The most unexpected event on our wedding day was: The wedding crashers!
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Fun, Loving and Perfect!
Did you write your own vows? If so, what was your favorite phrase/verse/or line? We searched for the perfect vows, and my favorite part was when we promised to give all that we are to continue to strengthen the bond we created that day.
What advice would you give to someone planning their wedding? This being my second wedding I would say hire a planner whose judgment you trust and let them do the work. You will be relaxed on your wedding day and able to really take in and remember the details. I genuinely felt no stress.
Any DIY items? I created the altar flower arrangements and shipped them to the wedding location and sewed the flowers on my daughter’s sundresses.

Congratulations to Tiffany + Maurice.  We wish you a lifetime of love and happiness!