Elope in Tallahassee

Elope in Tallahassee

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

If you’re in the process of planning your wedding, I’m sure you’ve thought, “OMG! We should just elope in Tallahassee!!”

Whether wedding planning is making your nuts, you want to keep your ceremony sweet and simple and just the two of you, your on a tight budget, you need to get married asap for this that or the other….we got your back! We love helping couples elope in Tallahassee!!

An elopement can be planned or done on short notice. It can be elaborate or simple. You can invite a few friends or none. At the end of the day, whether you are having a big fancy wedding or you’ve decided to elope, all that really matters is that you and your beloved are happy.

How to Elope in Tallahassee

How exciting, you’ve decide to ditch the big wedding plans and elope in the Florida Capitol City!!! We’ve officiated tons of elopements and want to share a few tips on how to put your elopement plans together.

  1. Pick a date and commit to it
  2. Budget- how much can you spend will determine whether you can hire a professional photographer, get a little cake, drive off in a limo, or simply just get married!
  3. Hire us as your officiant  😛
  4. Decide on the location. There are so many beautiful places to elope in Tallahassee;  a park, your favorite restaurant, the steps of the Florida Capitol, FSU stadium, your home, the beach, or someplace else.
  5. Guests or no guests? Decide if you want it to be a beautiful intimate ceremony shared with you and your beloved or if you’d like to have your parents or best friend with you.

We’ve officiated elopements where the couple has splurged on a high-end photographer, limo ride to the location, and champagne toast. We’ve also officiated elopement ceremonies where the couple is wearing jeans and flip flops. There’s no wrong way to elope in Tallahassee. You can keep is super sweet and simple or add a little extras to it.

If you want to elope in Tallahassee check out our Waverly Pond Special….it’s a super special price for weddings held at the beautiful Waverly Pond Park. Of course, if you have special spot you’d like to elope just let us know and we can officiate your ceremony there– wedding officiant prices vary depending on the type, date/time, and location  Contact us today for an exact price quote.

Here are a few pictures of  of couples we’ve help elope in Tallahassee

 

Types of Wedding Ceremonies

Types of Wedding Ceremonies

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

Your wedding ceremony is personal! It’s the time where you stand in front of your family and friends and vow to be with someone for the rest of your life– a very special and personal moment. So why wouldn’t there be different types of wedding ceremonies?

Kelly and Daniel had fun with their wedding....and we did too! Photo by Black and Hue Photography.

Ring exchange during a Cape San Blas wedding ceremony. Photo by Black & Hue Photography.

When we started officiating weddings in 2001 our goal was to provide all couples with a way to celebrate their love. We when we say, “Let us celebrate your love with the wedding ceremony of your dreams!” and we mean it. Whether you simply want a Notary Public to legalize your marriage license, have recently been divorced, are an interfaith couple, same-sex, young, or old we are more than happy to work with you on your wedding ceremony.

These are the most common types of wedding ceremonies:

  • Civil or secular– there will be no mention of God in any form and no blessing will be given. Added readings can range from humorous to romantic to philosophical. Ceremony will include wording about family, love, commitment, and values shared by the couple.
  • Spiritual- this is broad because spiritual can mean different things for different people. Some people are spiritual in nature, in leaders or teachers, or ancestors. Some couples chose to have a spiritual ceremony  to share variations of their faiths like Christian and Jewish.  A spiritual ceremony would typically be for those who follow Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Shinto, Zoroastrianism or Sikhism. Spiritual ceremonies are neat because they can be written to fit your spiritual following. Some couples will have mentions of God and blessings included in their spiritual ceremony and other’s do not.
  • Interfaith or intercultural- this is when a couple from two difference religious gets married. One time I officiated a wedding that included Christian bible readings, a reading from the Velveteen Rabbit, and a Jewish glass breaking at the end of the ceremony. Interfaith weddings can sometimes take a little bit of research to figure out the best way to blend the traditions, but end up wonderful because both families are happy.
  • Religious- you can have a religious wedding and not be married in a church. Religious wedding ceremonies can be performed anywhere that makes you happy- a park, beach, venue, garden, or one’s home. Although we are not affiliated with a church we are happy to officiate a religious wedding ceremonies. Only a Catholic priest can perform a Catholic mass and discuss Catholic married life wedding ceremony.
  • Vow renewal- the couple is already married and is having a celebratory vow renewal. We love vow renewals. Vow renewals can be planned, a anniversary surprised, or super of the moment.
  • Commitment ceremony-this is not a legally binding marriage. Sometimes couples request to commitment ceremony as a way to pledge their love to one another.

All of these ceremonies can be adjusted to fit your personal wedding ceremony preferences. For example adding a unity sand ceremony, include a hand fasting, or have your favorite poem read. Your wedding ceremony should be exactly as you want. When planning your wedding ceremony you’ll get a lot of feedback from others. Some will be helpful and others not. Remember it’s your wedding ceremony so do what makes you happy.

When we begin working with a new couple, we encourage them to have a wedding ceremony will reflect reflects their personalities, family traditions, spiritual, religious, or non-religious beliefs. We guide them through the different types of wedding ceremonies and are always open to new ideas.

Celtic Hand Fasting ceremony picture by Megan Pitts

Celtic Hand Fasting ceremony picture by Megan Pitts

A Look Back at our 2015 Wedding Ceremonies

A Look Back at our 2015 Wedding Ceremonies

by Charmaine Doumanian News

From all of us at A Beautiful Wedding In Florida we wish you very Happy Holiday season!

Looking back at 2015 it’s been a wonderful year. Starting with changes a major change in the Florida wedding industry in January when same sex marriages were legalized in Florida. We’ve added new packages and services to our business and have had the pleasure and privilege to perform a number of wedding and vow renewal ceremonies throughout the Tampa Bay area and Tallahassee areas.  We’ve met so many wonderful couples, their family and friends from near and far away places.

Our first wedding of 2015 was with Anthony and Ashley on Pass A Grille Beach on New Year’s Day. They travelled from Ohio to Florida. They were married on the beach with a fun simple wedding ceremony.

January 1, 2015 Anthony and Ashley

January 1, 2015 Officiating Anthony and Ashley’s wedding ceremony on Pass-a-grille beach in St. Petersburg Florida

On February 7th  Charmaine performed her first same sex marriage for Qaadir and Sam. They had been together for over 14 years and were delighted when Florida legalized same sex marriages.

Simply want your marriage license notarized? We can do that! Call us to make an appointment.

Qaadir and Sam happily legally married after 14 years together!

In 2015, we celebrated a number of vow renewal ceremonies. Many of them surprises.  Jim surprised his wife, Eria, with a 20 year vow renewal ceremony on Sand Key Park on February 13th.

Jim

Jim and Eria’s vow renewal ceremony.

Chris surprised his wife, Lisa, with a 25 year vow renewal on St Pete Peach on June 6.

Chris and Lisa at their vow renewal ceremony in St Petersburg Florida

Chris and Lisa at their vow renewal ceremony in St Petersburg Florida

Florida is such a great place to travel to with so many beaches, parks, and venues. Couples from all over choose to come to Florida and elope. Ken and Solveiga travelled from Norway and were married at Sand Key Park in May.

Our recently added bamboo arbor was provided for many of our beach weddings and backyard ceremonies. Some couples chose to simply keep it with the white fabric others chose to decorate.

Our

Our bamboo arbor is available for rental in the Clearwater/Tampa area, as well as, Tallahassee areas. 

We also now provide Florida Marriage License by Mail service. Saving couples time and not have to go to the courthouse when they arrive in Florida to get their marriage license.

Florida

You wedding is your day. We encourage you to enjoy the ceremony process. We have fun with our couples and they have fun with us. We like to have your ceremony be stress free, but have the atmosphere and style that you envision for your wedding.

Santa celebrating 4th of July joined Jocelyn and Tito for a fun wedding picture. Picture by C. R. Newman Photography

Santa celebrating 4th of July joined Jocelyn and Tito for a fun wedding picture. Picture by C. R. Newman Photography

Looking forward to 2016. Contact A Beautiful Wedding In Florida Palm Harbor, Tallahassee for all of your wedding needs.

University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee

University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves Music

I love all things wedding; especially wedding ceremonies. I also love Florida State University. So when Ryan and Danielle asked me to officiate their University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee overlooking the Florida State University stadium, I was SUPER excited!!!

Ryan and Danielle are a great couple and were so much fun to work with. We decided to incorporate their fun young loving personalities into their wedding ceremony.  Danielle and Ryan both graduated from FSU so they were really excited to have a University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee.

Legally married and SO excited!

Legally married and SO excited!

The reception was held inside the University Center Club and the ceremony was outside on the patio. The ceremony chairs were placed so guests looked out onto the Tallahassee skyline and behind them was the football field. It was a really neat way to incorporate their love for FSU and Tallahassee into the wedding and ceremony.

View of the FSU football field

View of the FSU football field

Guests view during Ryan and Danielle's University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee

Guests view during Ryan and Danielle’s University Center Club Wedding Ceremony Tallahassee

Danielle’s Dad walked her down the aisle. Being that their wedding was Mother’s Day, May 10, I started the ceremony started off with a welcome then a surprise thank you to their Mom’s. They presented them each with a rose and both Mom’s were so surprised and touched! The ceremony continued on with a little story about Danielle and Ryan’s love and adventure in life which I segwayed into a unity beer ceremony. I had seen the unity beer ceremony online but had never had a couple want to do so I was really excited that Ryan and Danielle wanted to incorporate this into their ceremony. While backpacking through Europe they had a drink where with half Sprite and half beer so this is what we did for their unity beer ceremony.

Unity beer ceremony

Unity beer ceremony

Danielle's bridesmaids wore black dress with shoes that match the flowers they held.

Danielle’s bridesmaids wore black dress with shoes that match the flowers they held.

After the ceremony, guests went inside UCC to get out of the heat and family and bridal party went to take pictures outside the stadium.

Me with the newly weds!

Me getting an FSU picture with the newly weds!

I always encourage couples to have fun with their wedding ceremony and it makes me so happy when a couple like Danielle and Ryan truly do have fun and enjoy the ceremony.

Go Seminoles!!

Go Seminoles!!

 

Tallahassee Weddings on Valentine’s Day

Tallahassee Weddings on Valentine’s Day

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

On Valentine’s Day was a day for love in Tallahassee! I was a part of 2 lovely Tallahassee weddings on Valentine’s Day.

On Valentine’s Day morning I officiated Shawnteira and Randy’s wedding at A Country Rose florist shop. About 15 family and friends gathered in the back garden area of A Country Rose for a short and sweet wedding ceremony. Shawnteira wore a borrower wedding dress and held a beautiful light purple and white rose bouquet that A Country Rose had designed specially for her.

Three years ago, Tomeshia and Kimberly had contacted me about officiating a commitment ceremony. At the time same-sex marriage was not legal in Florida so they had thought a celebratory commitment ceremony was the way to go. They decided to hold-off on the ceremony and this Valentine’s Day I was able to officiate and legally marry them! It was truly an exciting moment. I officiated their ceremony and arranged to have a photographer present for pictures. A few family gathered with them and we held the ceremony under two trees in Cascade Park.

Finally able to get legally married in Florida!!! Photo by Bret Svenson

Finally able to get legally married in Florida!!! Photo by Bret Svenson

Officiaitng

Officiating Tomeshia and Kimberly’s Valentine’s Day wedding at Cascase Park in Tallahassee Florida. Photo by Bret Svenson

Both of these Tallahassee Weddings on Valentine’s Day were awesome AND the Tallahassee Democrat showed up! They wanted to do a feel good story about love on Valentine’s Day. To everyone’s surprise the following morning, our Tallahassee Weddings on Valentine’s Day story was featured on the FRONT page of the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper!! Hah! I was so excited I took a picture and text both couples and neither of them had seen it yet but were SOO thrilled!! Read the full article online here: http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/local/2015/02/14/valentines-day-special-day-marriage/23439195/

Tomeshia and Kimberly being interview by the Tallahassee Democrat

Tomeshia and Kimberly being interview by the Tallahassee Democrat

Tallahassee Valentines Day weddings made FRONT page news

Tallahassee Valentines Day weddings made FRONT page news

Inside look of the newspaper

Inside look of the newspaper

Ashley and Seth’s Wedding at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond in Tallahassee

Ashley and Seth’s Wedding at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond in Tallahassee

by Amanda Doumanian Reeves News

October 18th was a crazy day in Tallahassee because the Florida State Seminoles were playing Notre Dame in Tallahassee. For those of you that know what it’s like to live in a college football town you know this is a BIG deal. So about a month and half before October 18, 2014, I got a message from Ashley asking if there’s ANY WAY I would officiate her October 18th wedding at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond in Tallahassee, FL. The person she originally had asked to officiate her wedding just backed out on her so she was really hoping I would help her out. Fortunately, I was available and I don’t really like football so I was more than happy to officiate their wedding!

Ashley and Seth had wonderful wedding vendors working with them to create a beautiful wedding day. Nate Long with Amplify Entertainment was their DJ, Kate with A Piece of Cake Event Planning was their wedding planner, Piggy’s BBQ was the caterer, and Tallahassee Photo Booth.

Ashley and Seth hired me to serve as their rehearsal director so the day before the wedding I met everyone out at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond. It was a great rehearsal because Kate (their wedding planner) and I were able to work together to show everyone where and when to walk. We practiced a couple of times and everyone was ready.

On Ashley and Seth’s wedding day the weather was awesome!! The sun was shinning and there was low humidity. Ashley looked beautiful!! Her father walked her down the isle and she wore her veil over her face. They the isle was lined with shepherds hooks and hanging mason chairs filled with flowers. Ashley was very smart and after the ceremony Kate took all the flowers from the outside mason jars and brought them inside to use for the table centerpiece flowers! What a great idea!! Ashley and Seth were a super fun and easy going couple. Their love for each was so apparent and I wish them all the happiness!!

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Me with Ashley and Seth at their wedding at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond in Tallahassee

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What a perfect day for a wedding at The Retreat at Bradley’s Pond in Tallahassee