Are you considering the Florida Gulf Coast for your beach wedding? Our area is the perfect place for your destination wedding.

Whether you are searching for beaches, caterers, wedding friendly resorts, vendors, cool wedding favors or just trying to find different beach wedding ideas, I will help guide you.

In addition to getting married on Siesta Key beach 15 years ago, my handsome husband Mark and I have shot hundreds of beach weddings.  We are ready to share first hand experiences with you!

Call me time for free advise at: 941/315-3456

Rainy Beach Wedding Portrait

~ Leslie Harris-Senac, Film maker / Owner of Visions Unlimited Video Productions, Inc. in Sarasota, FL 34231

At Visions Unlimited, we produce more than Wedding Videos. We also produce Engagement Announcement Videos that you can Email to friends and family, post to your facebook page, and mail as “Save The Date” DVDs.

This type of Love Story Tribute Video can be shown at your Rehearsal Dinner Party, during cocktail hour on a loop so that it will play over an over again, or on a large Projection Screen during your reception between salad and the main course. We can incorporate engagement photos taken by your photographer too.

The possibilities are endless. Please reply with some ideas of your own. Some of my best creative ideas come from people like YOU!

~by Leslie Harris Senac, Filmmaker/Owner of Visions Unlimited Video Productions in Sarasota, FL

Leslie Harris-Senac with Camera on Siesta Key BeachLongboat Key coupleBride and Groom

The wedding vows are verbal articulations of the bride and groom’s feelings for one another, ‘for better or for worse.” Physically making the vow can be as simple as “Will you marry me?” & “I will”. Traditional rituals can be traced back so far that the actual meaning becomes marred, even within research. An example of a traditional Pagan wedding ritual vow is as follows:

As Long as Love Shall Last
“Do you now commit to each other to love, honour, respect each other, to communicate with each other, to look to your own emotional health so that you can relate in a healthy way, and provide a healthy home for children if you choose to have them; to be a support and comfort for your partner in times of sickness and health, as long as love shall last?”
Mary A. Axford – Pagan Wedding Ritual

Couples often go into great detail when making their wedding vows before the actual ceremony. This can take many forms, and depends on the individual couple. Sometimes the couple use traditional vows that have been written by another person. And sometimes the happy couple decides to write their own personal vows for one another.

It’s a wonderfully romantic idea for you to write your own wedding vows. In fact, this is becoming an increasing popular phenomenon. However, it is not as easy as it may seem.  Even the most expressive and creative person can find it hard to express exactly what they are trying to communicate to their lover. Remember, these words will not only mean more to your lover than any before, but they will also be articulated in the most public of scenarios.  The pressure is on!  But never fear, as help is at hand.

Rev. Georgeann Butler, and her husband Rich, create customized ceremonies for weddings, vow renewals, baby blessings, commitment ceremonies and other celebrations. They love working with couples to make their wedding dreams come true. Rich is also a Minister. They love working with couples to make sure their ceremony reflects their love, commitment and personalities. This makes your wedding ceremony heartfelt, unique and fun.

If you find that you are struggling to get the wording absolutely perfect there are many specialists readily available to guide you.  It is a good idea to make sure your notary or clergy understand your wishes before committing yourself to them – and when you do, the chances are that you will be guaranteed word perfect result that will express all of your hearts desire, and more.
Happy writing!

~ by Leslie Harris-Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions in Sarasota, FL with excerpt from allweddingideas.com.

Gasparilal Inn Wedding Ceremony

Brides are choosing centerpieces that are in the same color tones, but of different sizes.  This gives the reception tables a more interesting look and a less “coordinated” feel. Keep in mind that huge center pieces can be hard for guests to talk around, when sitting at the table. (It also can be a challenge for your wedding videographer to get shots of your guests when they are behind large flower arrangements.) Unique vase fillers include glass marbles, sea glass, acrylic ice, colored water, flowers and leaves, beads, and fresh fruits such as lemons and limes.

Rose Petals remain the most popular confetti. Also, flowering vines or individually cut flowers are placed directly onto table linens.  Reception chairs are decorated with either tulle, fabric overlays, floral swags and/or ribbons.  Other popular decorating items include Chinese lanterns, garlands and balloons.

An increasingly popular trend is the candy buffet or confection bar.  This consists of a variety of candies or treats placed in varied sizes of glass containers and grouped on a table.  Pretty silver spoons or scoops in each container allows guests to fill small boxes or bags as take-home favors.

Bolts of economical tulle fabric are typically combined with lots of white lights and/or floral garlands for draping between pews and decorating banisters and reception table tops.

Candles always a popular choice for your wedding reception centerpieces, lend a romantic feel to any room, and provide more light for your photographer and videographers.  Choices include pillars, tea lights, tapers and floaters.  Since some facilities do not allow candles, alternatives include faux tea light candles, LED lights, and fiber optic lights. The more light the better!

Head tables are replaced with a small table for just the bride and groom.  Many couples plan weekend weddings that start on Friday and go for the entire weekend.  Dove releases and add drama and excitement to the event.

Today’s couples most often pay for their own weddings and make their own decisions about what they want for their wedding day.  Using a budget calculator allows them to allocate their money and prioritize wants and needs.  You want to enjoy a wedding that is uniquely yours, and one that displays your own sense of style and personal taste. Personal touches appear throughout the entire wedding & reception. They can be found in attire, favors, decorations, stationary, photography, themes, flowers, gifts, and wedding locations.

Wedding Favors

Although completely optional, couples now opt for more unusual, useful, and personalized favors to thank their guests for coming.  In many cases, the favors do double-duty as place-card holders, table decorations, and even centerpiece arrangements where larger favors are grouped together in the center of the reception tables.

Favors can be ready-made items, although currently less popular, or hand-made and embellished with ribbon and accents that coordinate with the wedding theme or color scheme.  This is definitely an area of weddings that has gone DIY in recent months.

Wedding Cakes

Cakes decorated with handmade icing flowers, sugar shells/starfish and delicate dots and scrollwork remain popular.  Couples are choosing wedding cakes that fit with the location, theme and season of their wedding.  You can have a one-of-a-kind, custom-made cake.  Four to five layers is the average size for a wedding of 150-200 people.

Buttercream or smooth fondant frostings are most common. Popular cake flavors include Key Lime Cheese Cake, chocolate, carrot, spice and “white” although some couples are choosing non-traditional flavors such as gingerbread, espresso and hazelnut.  Flowers, sculptures, and large monogrammed letters are replacing the traditional bride and groom cake top.

~ by Leslie Harris-Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions in Sarasota with excerpt from: Your Wedding Company

1. With this ring…
A green wedding begins where any engagement does: with a ring. Don’t start off on a sour note. The beautiful alternatives to “blood diamonds” (those that are mined in war zones and fund conflicts) include:

• vintage rings, whether a family heirloom or an antique find (you can even have old gold melted down and refashioned)
• lab-created diamonds (greenKarat‘s are set in recycled gold too)
• diamonds mined in peaceful Canada or Australia, like those from Brilliant Earth, Cred Jewelery, or Leber Jewelry’s Earthwise line
• diamonds certified as “conflict-free” under the Kimberley Process, an ongoing effort to reform diamond mining in Africa (ask your jeweler the questions in Amnesty International’s buyer’s guide)
• one-of-a-kind wooden bands

2. Location, location, location
Your choice of venue sets the tone for your wedding day-and accounts for a big chunk of the money you’ll be laying out. Spend it wisely! Consider:

• choosing a setting that’s convenient to the most guests to minimize travel impacts
• having the ceremony and the reception at the same place, or providing ecofriendly transportation between them
• picking a unique local spot-like the beach, an art gallery, nonprofit space, organic restaurant or farm, green hotel, Selby Botanical Gardens, or green-roofed building.
• an outdoor setting that will infuse the whole event with a natural sensibility (and require less decorating too!)
• arriving at the ceremony in a horse-drawn carriage, cycle rickshaw, or hybrid car
• offsetting your guests’ travel (or asking them to do it as your wedding gift)

3. Please join us…
Your wedding invitation is the first impression guests will get of your green wedding. Look for:

• recycled, handmade, or plantable papers processed chlorine-free and printed with vegetable- or soy-based inks
• tree-free paper made out of hemp, banana stalks, bamboo, kenaf, or organic cotton
• a printer who will use paper with a high percentage of post-consumer recycled content
• papers that aren’t metallic or plastic-coated, characteristics that make them hard to recycle
• opportunities to reduce paper use, like sending a postcard (instead of multi-enveloped notes) for your save-the-date, or using online invitations and a wedding blog to let people know about the bachelor/ette parties, rehearsal dinner, and gift registry

In your invitations, let guests know about the ecofriendly hotel and transportation options in your area, whether it’s hybrid rental cars or directions to the ceremony on public transportation. And don’t forget to pick up some extra green paper products for your guest book, place cards, and thank-you notes. (You will be writing thank-yous, won’t you?)

4. The final fling
Plan bachelor and bachelorette parties that will keep the green theme going:

• Stay local (and spend more time with your friends, and less dealing with travel stress).
• Offset your trip if you choose a “destination” party.
• Travel by train (and start the party early in the bar car).
• Indulge in organic wine tasting or an organic spa treatment.
• Take a class and learn to make your own wedding flowers or jewelry.
• Do something low-impact and outdoorsy like a camping, surfing, sailing, kayaking, or fishing trip.

5. Here comes the bride…
…in a gorgeous hemp-silk gown. When it comes to outfitting the bridal party, green options abound. You can:

• go vintage (and update your look as necessary with tailoring and modern shoes and accessories)
• pick clothes made from hemp, bamboo, and organic cotton or silk–or find a dressmaker who will make a one-of-a-kind item out of these sustainable fabrics (men’s suits and shirts come in organic cotton or wool too)
• borrow an elegant gown from a stylish friend
• buy something you’ll wear again (and let your bridesmaids do the same)
• accessorize with a unique recycled purse and/or jewelry
• use vegetable dyes on your shoes (or go barefoot for a beach wedding)
• accentuate natural beauty with all-natural makeup
• donate the dresses to charity after the event

6. Set the stage
Add beauty and style to your wedding décor, naturally. Here’s how:

• opt for organic flowers
• find a florist who’s diligent about recycling packaging and will source locally raised flowers
• have bridesmaids carry matching purses or silk bouquets instead of cut flowers
• decorate with branches, dried grasses, grains, greens, berries, or live plants (potted or dried arrangements can double as favors)
• choose beeswax or soy-based candles over those made with paraffin, a petroleum byproduct
• arrange to have decorations moved from the ceremony to the reception (if you opt for separate sites)
• use leaves or other natural objects as place cards
• throw biodegradable confetti or organic rose petals instead of releasing butterflies. Butterfly releases at the beach can be very sad when they hit the sand or encounter heavy wind without a plant to land on.
• donate the flowers to a hospital or rest home at the end of the day

7. Eat, drink, and be merry
Showcase green gustatory pleasures (and spoil your guests) by basing your menu around local, organic, and seasonal foods. Don’t forget the organic wine, beer, and spirits, and the free-trade, shade-grown coffee and tea! Some tips:

• Ask the venue’s preferred caterers and bakers if they can do your event organically.
• Find a local organic restaurant that does off-site catering.
• If your wedding won’t be complete without a specific type of food, get married when it’s in season.
• Find a caterer you trust to pick the best seasonal selections (since you may not be able to taste those exact items ahead of time).
• Consider vegetarian selections and seek out cruelty-free meats and wild, rather than farmed, fish.
• Make sure the venue offers comprehensive recycling facilities, and ideally composting too.
• Have your cake decorated with organically grown flowers or other natural materials instead of plastic toppers.
• Rent real glassware, dishware, and linens instead of using disposables.
• Go for a chic eclectic look by mixing and matching thrift-store plates and dishes (and donating them back when you’re done).
• Use biodegradable utensils and dishes made out of cornstarch, potatoes, wheat, or sugar cane-if your venue can compost them.
• Make arrangements to donate leftover food to a local food bank or homeless shelter.

8. Lasting memories
Whether you prefer film or digital photographs, look for a photographer who will do digital proofs to save paper and chemicals. Avoid single-use cameras, but ask friends with digi-cams to share their photos with all the guests online in a freeFlickr group or Snapfish group room you set up for your wedding.

9. ‘Tis better to give…
OK, OK, giving and receiving are both great! For your gift registry, consider:

• asking for gifts to charity instead of material goods
• registering with the I Do Foundation or another site that gives a percentage of gift purchases to your chosen cause
• registering with stores that offer local, fair-trade, handmade, organic, or other ecofriendly products like Branch, Gaiam,Greenfeet, GreenSage, Ten Thousand Villages,UncommonGoods, or VivaTerra.
• registering for outdoor gear or contributions to an ecofriendly honeymoon
• creating a custom wish list of ecofriendly items like a fresh-produce subscription from a local farm, organic gardening supplies, organic linens, park and museum passes, gift certificates to organic restaurants, and subscriptions to green publications or memberships in green causes

For your favors, give something your guests will really use and enjoy, not disposable plastic souvenirs. Some ideas:

• gourmet organic chocolates or another organic or local food item
• attractive bags of fresh or dried organic herbs
• seeds in a commemorative container
• reusable cloth tote bags
• a small plant from Selby Botanical Gardens
• natural soaps
• soy or beeswax candles
• a compact fluorescent lightbulb
• a downloadable playlist of your favorite songs
• a small charitable donation in each guest’s name
• place cards made of seeded paper that can be planted at home

For your helpful, loyal attendants, you’ll want to up the ante a little, perhaps with:

• gift baskets of organic skin-care products
• recycled jewelry, wallets, handbags, or drinking glasses
• selections of organic coffees, teas, and chocolates
• recycled paper journals and stationery
• great bottles of organic wine

10. How sweet it is…

Everyone enjoys breakfast for dinner on occasion. So why not dessert for brunch? A morning-after sweets soiree is the perfect way to say goodbye to departing guests AND reduce your event’s eco impact, as desserts make up the bulk of post-nuptial food waste. Just pack up leftovers from the night before (supplemented with new additions, if necessary) and set them out buffet-style for guests to munch on as they reminisce about the fun they had the night before (and gossip about anyone who might have enjoyed himself a little too much on the dance floor). Think about it: toasted breads and cakes, pastries with local fruit, toss in a few bottles of champagne and you’ve got a readymade party. If you don’t live in an area where wedding festivities extend past the main event, don’t fear. This idea works just as well when applied to the actual wedding day meal. What’s more, it’s a stellar way to feed a crowd on the cheap. Enlist the help of the amateur bakers in your family or friend circle, or talk to a local restaurant or bakeshop about low-cost catering options. Heavy hors d’oeuvres and seated dinners can cost anywhere from $25 to $75 per person for food alone; with a dessert buffet, you can save as much as 85% on the cost of food, especially if you keep things homemade. All you’ll need are quality ingredients, a few carafes of white wine, some coffee and tea and maybe a bottle of liquer, and you’re good to go.

Whether they’re the breakfast or dinner variety, hot foods take a lot of energy to stay fresh and appetizing. Chafing dishes require portable fuel sources, which are often made from petroleum , burn inefficiently, smell bad. And that’s not including the amount of electricity or gas it takes to cook the meal in the first place. Plus, all of those plates and service pieces have to be washed, either in a dishwasher, which consumes somewhere around 6 or 7 gallons of water per cycle, or by hand, which ends up flushing a whopping 20 gallons of water per load down the drain (really!). Desserts, on the other hand, require smaller plates, fewer utensils and virtually no maintenance, resulting in less cleanup and resource consumption overall. As an added bonus, you’ll also avoid the chicken-fish-steak conundrum that plagues caterers, brides and wedding planners!

These days, an increasing number of brides are forgoing formal affairs in favor of casual parties with comfort food and a lower-key vibe—and that’s no coincidence. With the economy in the tank, people want something manageable, something that seems appropriate for the current state of things. A dessert buffet has just the right mix of eclecticism and familiarity, AND it brings out the kid in everyone. Which is pretty sweet, too.

11. Happily ever after…
Begin your new life with a honeymoon that’s light on the Earth. Consider:

• going somewhere local (you’re going to be spending a lot of time in that hotel room anyway)
• engaging in ecotourism, which can be as rugged or luxurious as you want it to be (find listings that suit your style through Conservation International, National Geographic, Planeta.com, orResponsibleTravel.com)
• taking a trip that benefits an environmental group; perhaps boating in Florida’s Dry Tortugas, birding in Alaska, or walking the Italian Alps with Sierra Club Outings
• skipping the cruise and taking a relaxing,romantic train trip
• getting around at your destination by renting bikes or taking public transportation (the better to enjoy the sights instead of arguing about your spouse’s driving habits)
• staying in a family-run B&B or inn, a luxury teepee or yurt, or a green hotel that’s working to save resources and reduce waste
• offsetting your trip’s carbon dioxide emissions

~ by videographer, Leslie Harris-Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions in Sarasota, FL w/excerpts from the Sierra Club website

Anna Maria Island Green Wedding on the Beach

Sand Ceremony at The Colony on Longboat Key~Kids at weddings has been a huge “no no” during the past, however, the modern trend is to invite children to your wedding.

To combat the problems of tiny tot boredom during the reception and to allow parents to totally enjoy your shindig here are a few suggestions to keep the young ones occupied and happy:

• Hire a babysitter – most hotels have a baby sitting service or a kids club and you could probably pay an extra fee to have them entertain and supervise the little ones during your reception fiesta. Assign an older girl who knows the younger ones to assist.
• Seat children together at a special “kids table”- cover the tables with butchers paper and throw crayons in the middle.
• Give each child an activity pack including games and puzzles, bubbles, crayons, colouring books
• Consider hiring magic makers, clowns or puppet shows
• Ask the caterer to serve a kids meal consisting of Mac n’cheese, pizza’s, carrot sticks, etc.
• Give children jobs at the reception ie. getting messages in the Guest Book, passing around party favors, building a sand castle (after formal portraits are finished), handing out programs & blowing bubbles.
• Have your wedding planner set up a special Cinema Corner for young ones, with a TV, comfy pillows, stuffed animals, popcorn and juice. Show tiny-tot favourites: Finding Nemo, Shrek, The Lion King etc. Better yet, hire a videographer to create a custom video featuring family photos set to music. Kick it up a notch and include family stories with your home movies. Kids LOVE seeing themselves on TV, and this will be a treasured family heirloom for generations to come!

It may seem like a lot of additional effort, but this day is one to remember for the rest of your life, and if having children at the wedding means you can ensure your closest friends and family can be there also, its well worth it!

- by Leslie Harris-Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions, Inc., in Sarasota, Florida with excerpts from www.islandbrides.com

A good one is the Ritz-Carlton’s “Vow to Help Others” program, which enables couples celebrating their marriage at a Ritz-Carlton Hotel or Resort to donate five percent of the total food revenue from their wedding to a charity of their choice AND to The Ritz-Carlton’s “Community Footprints Fund.”

“A Vow To Help Others” is applicable to wedding events booked prior to December 31, 2009.

by Leslie Harris-Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions, Inc. of Sarasota

~Excerpts from WeddingWire.com

~Include children in a sand ceremony. If they are old enough, give each child a shell and at the appropriate time, all family members can each scoop a bit of sand and all together poor their sand into a communal shell. Usually a large conch shell will work well for this. Give the children smaller clam or scallop shells.

~Wheeling a baby in a decorated wagon should be done with care and by an older child that will watch the baby carefully. Put lots of lacy soft pillows to make it cozy. Assigning another older child or junior bridesmaid the job of following the wagon to make sure baby stays put and is safe. For a short distance, I’ve seen this done at the end of a processional. Careful though, baby might steal the show!

~A Dove Release during  your wedding ceremony adds special symbolic meaning. Generally, two birds are released representing the bride and groom an entering the journey of their new life together.  Add an extra dove to represent the unity of family. Watch as they are released and soar to the sky.  The doves will circle, join together and  fly home together.
CLICK HERE to view Dove Release during Wedding Ceremony on YouTube

~Another way to include your children in your wedding ceremony, is to presenting your child with a bracelet or necklace during the ceremony. Give some promises of continued support and love. This is a wonderful way to reassure children that they are an important part of the family. It’s a big day for them too, and they need to be honored in some special unique way. When captured on video, these moments will be treasured forever. Make sure to tell your videographer when you are planning on something unusual like this. We often need to place extra microphones to capture the words, or bring an extra camera to get a unique angle that features small children in the ceremony.

~by Leslie Harris Senac of Visions Unlimited Video Productions, Inc., of Sarasota