Mexico Destination Wedding

We don’t quite know how she does it, but whenever we see images from Alea Lovely, they look straight out of a dream. This day-after shoot from a destination wedding in Mexico is no exception — from the bride’s gauzy gown to the groom’s all-white attire, this couple popped straight out of our daydreams and into our inbox!

From the bride, Lynette: We had a wedding for our families about one month before our wedding in Tulum, Mexico, and we wanted to make sure our Mexico wedding was just perfect and personal for us- everything we had pictured for our wedding day. So, this in itself was a bit of a unique situation, since for the last 6 months or so prior to mid September, we had been planning two weddings, one three day, 350 person multicultural wedding and one destination wedding. We figured that since our families got the wedding of their dreams, that we were fully entitled to the wedding of our dreams! Ever since Omar and I were engaged, we had envisioned an intimate wedding at a private estate situated on the beach with our closest friends. I wanted to find a location that was easy to access from the US (so that our friends would go) and actually made a list of descriptive adjectives we had in mind when we set out to find the perfect venue. We made a list entitiled “Vibe we are going for: beach, outdoors, romantic, floral, chic, spiritual, hippy, exotic, laid-back, fun, playful, party, Zen”.

It was really important for me to choose a place that definitely had abundant natural beauty and spiritual energy, and then Tulum popped up in my online searches. It was the perfect location because we were getting married in 2012 (for those of you who know about Mayan Prophecy and the upcoming “shift in consciousness”). The name of the house we rented was Casa Chic. Loved the place because it was rustic and natural but modern and glam all at the same time.

I found a reputable wedding planner in the area, Leanne Marie Weddings, who had a lovely local assistant, Maju, and a network of vendors and contacts in the Riviera Maya. We couldn’t have done without these ladies, the vendors and services they all brought together was outstanding! I was so concerned that the Tulum wedding would fall to the sidelines because we were so focused on the traditional family wedding, so I just had to trust that everything was going to come together. It was amazing to see it play out perfectly!

My dress was flowy and light -a stark contrast to my stunning, albeit heavily beaded and just plain HEAVY dress from the family wedding. I had a lot of fun picking out statement accessories for a simple canvas. I felt lucky that I got to meet many great women at bridal stores with lots of style because they connected me with a lot of designers and ideas for inspiration. It felt special to top off my look with my mom’s diamond and pearl earrings. I just felt like a goddess that day, which is exactly how I wanted to feel on my wedding day! When Omar saw me for the first time in my gown and finished look he said, “This is exactly how I pictured you to look on our wedding day”.

A Bold Berry-Colored Vallejo Wedding

View all images from this wedding in the gallery

One of my favorite moments was a surprise guitar serenade to “Maps” by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs on the beach during Omar’s vows, accompanied by my dear friend Amanda McAllister, an opera singer in LA. There was also fire dancer and drum show and then we finished off our first dance with fireworks!

We were surrounded by 20 of our dearest friends, who have come into our lives over the last 10 years of our “dating” relationship, many of whom were special to us before we even met. It felt incredible to have everyone there, having a blast, dancing, eating amazing food, enjoying the stunning ocean, the sound of the waves, great music, celebrating our love, and enjoying the present moment. And Alea Lovely was there to capture it all!

In our busy adult lives its rare that large groups of friends get the space and opportunity to be able to share experiences like this with each other (weddings are the perfect time for this) it was the perfect week and the rest of my life with the one I love will always be a Honeymoon!

Wedding Location: Tulum, Mexico / Wedding Photographer: Alea Lovely / Ceremony Venue: Hechizo / Reception Venue: Casa Chic / Wedding Planning and Design: LM Weddings / Decor: Floreria Jardin & Artevelas / Wedding Dress: Saja / Hair Accessory: Claire Pettibone / Bride’s Belt: Ranjana Khan / Shoes: Paris by Debra Moreland / Hair and Makeup: MVP Hair and Makeup / Music: BOLE / DJ: Mood Events / Videographer: Cinematic Riveria Maya