Wedding Crashing: An Exotic Island Luau
Why stop at the lower 48 states when it comes to wedding crashing? That’s what we asked ourselves before virtually hopping on a plane. The destination? Maui. The reason? Sean & Jenn’s fabulous island wedding. Meet the happy couple:
The ceremony and the luau that followed (fun, right?!) were held on August 1st at The Old Lahaina Luau in picturesque Maui. Sean and Jenn planned their entire wedding remotely from their Pennsylvania home (they never set eyes on the location until they arrived for their big day). But of course it was breathtaking (it’s paradise, people) and they were super excited to get their destination wedding started.
Jenn snagged her dress at Marriage Couture while the bridesmaids wore adorable bright blue sun dresses snagged at J Crew on sale. Score! They looked unbelievably perfect with the sea and the sky, and their white daisy bouquets were accented by festive Hawaiian leis.
And the groom and his groomsmen weren’t too shabby either. Sean donned an ivory linen suit from Bachrach while the groomsmen wore white linen shirts from the Gap with light colored dockers. And they all looked especially dapper thanks to the addition of Maile leis, which are typically worn by the groom in a traditional Hawaiian ceremony.
Jenn also wore a gorgeous bridal lei (which Sean gently placed over her head during the traditional Hawaiian ceremony). The bride and groom stood in a white orchid circle of love, another beautiful and memorable Hawaiian tradition.
The officiant even blew a conch shell as they shared their first kiss as husband and wife.
After their ceremony, Sean and Jenn invited all 33 guests to an exotic luau complete with a pig roast and a fantastic hula show. You may wonder how we go about blending in at such an intimate affair…
… well we’re just sneaky I guess. Just kidding, we mentioned this was a virtual wedding crashing, so they actually sent us these Hawaiian pics to share. We did attend their reception here in the states though (for all of their family members who couldn’t make it to Hawaii) since Sean is actually my step cousin. Thanks Sean and Jenn for letting us share your special day!
And we got to snap some pretty pics at their stateside reception in Pennsylvania in person. Of course the reception was just as sweet as their exotic Hawaiian ceremony and luau. There was a brief cocktail hour complete with a slide show of their Hawaiian nuptials and an exotic fruit and cheese table with birds of paradise and orchids (to serve as an oh-so-sweet reminder of Maui). Then we moved to the ballroom where the table settings consisted of sophisticated slipcovered ivory chairs and some of the coolest centerpieces that we’ve ever seen.
A mixture of blue hydrangeas, yellow orchids, white roses, and green berries were clustered in short square vases for a tasteful and sophisticated floral arrangement with a splash of exoticism (thanks to those stunning orchids).
Words cannot describe how delicious the almond vanilla wedding cake was. I’m not usually über excited about wedding cakes but this stuff was the bees knees. And the exotic green orchids were the perfect reminder of Sean and Jenn’s amazing Hawaiian nuptials.
We hope you’ve enjoyed our latest wedding crashing excursion in paradise. And congrats again to Sean and Jenn! Oh and if any of you have fall weddings on the agenda, you might want to look around for us, you never know where we’ll pop up…
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That makes so much more sense! :) Thanks for explaining.
Ben (and anyone else with hives),
I can assure you that we were ecstatic to have Sherry and John at our wedding! These two are so much fun. I’m sure anyone would be happy for them to crash.
Sherry & John,
Hi!! Thanks again for coming. Sean and I are officially YHL addicts. It’s so exciting to see our wedding here!
Love,
Jenn
Love it! I got married in Maui, too! It’s so fabulous there–as you know. We also had our “reception” at the Old Lahaina Luau and one back at home.
Best decision ever!
This post brings back SO MANY memories for me. We were married in 2002 in Maui and had our after-wedding celebration at the Old Lahaina Luau. Just like Sean & Jenn (my sister and her husband’s name, incidentally) we planned from our home in Pennsylvania, sight unseen.
Thanks for these pics and a stroll down memory lane.
Very cool! We just got back from Maui last week!
I love the wedding pics and especially the orchids, just beautiful. We also married in Hawaii in 2004 – on Tunnels Beach in Kauai without ever having been to Hawaii. We had an awesome coordinator whose husband happened to be a commercial photog. so I really could not have planned it better!
Who knew so many people got married in paradise? We’re quadruple jealous! Thanks so much for virtually crashing this wedding with us. Aren’t walks down memory lane fun?
xo,
Sherry
This looks awesome! I am actually considering having a destination wedding with a stateside reception as well. I am just not sure how to pull it off… I know this post is from a long time ago, but I am wondering if the bride wore her wedding dress again to the reception? Also, did they have a first dance, toasts, etc. again at the reception? I think that would be nice but am not sure if it would be a little strange to get all dolled up and do all of that all over again–any input is appreciated!
Hey Jenny,
Yup the bride wore her wedding dress again to the reception (it still looked lovely of course) and they did in fact have a first dance and some toasts again at the reception since a lot more friends and family attended the reception and loved seeing those wedding rituals (since they missed the amazing Hawaiian celebration). Hope it helps!
xoxo,
Sherry