Kauai, Hawaii's St. Regis Princeville Resort offers enough amentities to tempt most jet setters. Namely, a 5,000-square-foot infinity pool, an 11,000-square-foot spa (think taro-clay wraps and maile-oil massages), the Jean-Georges Vongerichten restaurant, Kauai Grill and a perfectly protected beach, ideal for young families. It is truly an island paradise.
When it came time for Kevin and Valerie to plan their destination wedding, the St. Regis Princeville Resort was tops on their list. The bride says, "We wanted our wedding to showcase what was important to us, mostly through our venue location. Kevin and I are a laid-back couple and we enjoy spending quality time with our family and friends. We also wanted to get married in a place that was special to us and that was Hawaii. Hawaii was where we took our first vacation together and also where Kevin proposed. We specifically chose Kauai because Kevin and I fell in love with its natural, lush, and relaxing atmosphere. Our wedding was a huge family vacation for everyone!"
Because our wedding was going to be at the St. Regis overlooking Hanalei Bay, there was already a sense of grandness and luxury. Kevin and I didn't want to highlight that, but wanted a more personal touch so we added a lot of DIY elements and kept the d
"Kevin and I have been together since our junior year in high school and to acknowledge that I took my necklace that I wore to prom and added it to my handmade veil. I took apart the necklace and sewed them in piece by piece. When I was zipped up into my wedding dress and saw myself in the mirror I felt like I was in a dream- all that time invested in planning came down to this moment. The anticipation, thrill, nerves, excitement...and everything was hitting me all at once!"
"When our processional song started and I heard the cue for my entry I think my heart stopped (in a good way). I walked out with my parents, saw all our family and friends, the breathtaking view, and most importantly, Kevin was there waiting for me. Standing together under the beautiful orchid garlands at Kamani Cove was a dream come true for us. We were finally getting married after so many years!"
"To try and tie in our wedding theme, "tropical garden," we handmade our favors that were filled with tea bags. Kevin and I also made our guests place cards, moss-covered foam balls with our guests photos printed out as Polaroids. In terms of flowers, I wanted everything to look lush and smell amazing so I selected peonies, roses, and gardenias."
Our signature cocktails were coconut mango mojitos and elderflower soda for our guests to enjoy!
"I have three pieces of advice for brides in the planning process," Valerie says. "First, when it comes to planning, do not procrastinate. I was engaged for three years and it passed in the blink of an eye! Secondly, don't get hung up on the small stuff. I had spent quite a bit of time on my send-off notes that were attached to the rose satchel bags and confetti rings. Sad to say half of our guests were still clutching the satchels at the end of our ceremony wondering what to do with them. The third point that I cannot stress enough is to savor your wedding day. When you invest so much time into planning just one single day you deserve to enjoy and remember it. Even though I have foggy memories of our wedding day, I am extremely grateful for our photographers and videographers that helped us capture our day!"
"Kevin and I wanted a little bit of a magical feel so we sealed our wedding with a wish lantern send off. We originally wanted to let them go in the ocean, but because it is illegal to do that in Kauai we set them in the infinity pool that overlooked the mountains. To add that personal touch, our guests wrote their own wishes on each lantern before sending them off."
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