Are you ready for a sweet love story? This adorable duo met one summer when they started working at Bum Rogers Crabhouse in Seaside Park. With immediate chemistry, it didn’t take long for the two to begin dating. Fast forward in their relationship. Christine and William enjoyed a delicious hamburger at Frankie’s in Point Pleasant on a summer night with an evening walk on the beach to light a Chinese lantern to cap off the night. To their dismay, the wind pushed the side of the lantern into the flame and burnt a huge hole into the lantern, but they let go of the lantern anyway and before it reached the water, it miraculously flew up into the air and they watched it disappear into the night’s sky. Christine wouldn’t share what she wished for as they headed back towards the beach entrance and it was then, William stopped and got down on one knee to propose. With a love for the beach and being by the water, it was only fitting the couple held their wedding at Clarks Landing Yacht Club. Lucky for us, Heyn Photography was behind the lens capturing all the details on camera and you can see all the pretty below. Spoiler alert: the bride looks just like a real life mermaid in her Martina Liana wedding gown!

From Heyn Photography…There was no better way of celebrating the beginning of spring than with Christine and Billy’s wedding at Clarks Landing Yacht Club! After such a long winter, a day filled with sunshine was the perfect backdrop for these two beach lovers. Christine and Billy first met while working together at Bum Rodgers Crabhouse in Seaside Park, and Billy proposed on the beach in Seaside Park. They wanted their special day to be elegant, sophisticated, and of course, a bit beachy! We started our day with Christine at her parent’s beach house in Seaside Park which set the theme of the day perfectly. The house is decorated like a typical New Jersey shore house so there were seashells and starfish and all other beachy elements all over the house. This gave us plenty to work with in implementing the day’s theme into our photos. Billy was busy next door getting ready for the big day in the couple’s home. Christine had a huge smile on her face all through the prep and was filled with calm excitement. A big thing that the couple has in common is their laid back, go with the flow attitude which we love! After taking some stunning portraits Christine and Billy shared their first look. Christine opened two sliding doors to reveal her gorgeous bridal self, Billy was left speechless. Then we were off to Monmouth University. The hidden gem of the school is their library, with a grand staircase and white columns the architecture radiates elegance! We absolutely love the way the white backgrounds paired with the pastel purple of Christine’s bouquet and the bridesmaid’s dresses. Looking like royalty Christine and Billy rocked their portraits and we were even able to capture a bit of the elusive cherry blossom blooms. Since Billy and Christine were such big fans of the beach we couldn’t resist taking some shots in the sand at their venue, Clarks Landing Yacht Club. These were some of our favorite images from the day, so intimate and romantic. Clarks Landing then provided an incredible ceremony for the couple; Christine and Billy said their I do’s overlooking the glistening Manasquan River. After the sweet ceremony, the guests headed down to the River Room for cocktail hour and we nabbed Billy and Christine for a quick sunset shot on the dock. The light illuminating our newlyweds was really magical. The couple threw an incredible party with lots of fun, dancing, and laughter. Guests enjoyed the beach theme throughout the reception with mermaids scattered about and a gorgeous beach themed cake. We were so honored to be a part of Christine and Billy’s day and wish them years and years of love, health, and happiness!

Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?
Our love for the beach drove our theme to be a beach/mermaid. We are a very laid back couple and this theme seemed to encompass how we wanted everyone to feel on our day: relaxed, happy, and love. Mermaids symbolize love. We decided on purple and gold colors since we were married in the spring. During our ceremony, we included a sand ceremony. We used purple and gold sand. This symbolized that we were now one and no matter how hard we tried to separate the sand by color, we would never truly be separated.

Let’s talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.
I did not want to look too different from my everyday look. I enjoy wearing items that sparkle and detailed pieces of jewelry or clothing. I feel the detail gives it more dimension and character. I decided to keep my hair down. I had it curled and loosely pulled back some strands. I decided on a Swarovski Crystal head band. I wore my grandmother’s studded earrings with diamond jackets. I also wore a Swarovski Crystal necklace and bracelet. For shoes, I knew I was going to regret wearing heels for hours so I went with scandals. They were Badly Mischka scandals that were covered in rhinestones. For my dress, which took me many trips to various wedding dress stores, was a Martina Liana. As soon as I tried it on, I knew this was the dress I wanted marry my husband in. It felt very natural on me. It contained was extravagant and classic. It had low back with beaded lace. There were swirls of dramatic, diamante-beaded lace which adorned this low-back tulle over matte-side lustre satin for a unique silhouette. The bodice boasts a sexy, low-cut neckline with thin lace straps and continues to the low back. A very long lace train sweeps down from the back and finishes in a classic lace hemline for added drama. The back of this open back wedding dress features delicately placed illusion lace and is embellished with classic Diamante beading. This low back column wedding dress zips up under crystal buttons.

Let’s talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?
Since we live at the beach and were getting married on the water, we decided to have a beach/mermaid theme. I have always loved mermaids and thought they were delicate beautiful creatures. We were married during the spring so we decided on a purple and gold color theme. My mother and I painted and decorated the table numbers with gold glitter and seashells. My mother designed and created chair ties that consisted of gold and purple chiffon. We also decorated mermaids with seashells and placed some seated ones on wooden blocks. We painted a Love sign white and decorated it with various seashells. My mother and I bought glass cylinders and yummy floating candles. At the bottom of the glass cylinders, we placed marbles and seashells. Then we filled it with water and placed the yummy candles in each one. These were placed across the sweetheart table. My mother and I used sand dollars as escort cards. Each sand dollar had personalized ribbons (our names with a heart) that attached a purple paper where the guests names and table numbers were typed. My mother created a flower wall where pictures could be taken. The flower wall consisted of white and purple paper flowers. My mother built a wooden structure and attached the flowers along the perimeter.

What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?
I had a purple and white cascading bouquet. The bridesmaids had purple and pink bouquets. The groomsmen had purple-pink roses and my husband had a white rose with a purple orchid. We also had an arrangement at the champagne table and two large arrangements at the alter which were later displayed along the sides of the sweetheart table. We had purple chiffon and bunches of baby’s breath wrapped along the stairs’ railings. We also had purple and pink rose petals along the aisle I walked down during the ceremony. We decided to have rose petals placed on each table as well. Overall, the pastel coloring of the flowers allowed for a delicate accent.

Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?
At the end of the night we gave our guests a pork roll egg and cheese sandwich, zeppoles, and salt water taffy as favors. Each bag had a sticker that stated Christine and William with our wedding date. Our favorite part of our wedding was completing the sand ceremony in front of all of our loved ones. We combined purple and gold sand into a personalized glass container with our names and wedding date on it. We also loved sitting at the sweetheart table during dinner and taking the time to look around the room. It was an amazing feeling to realize that all these people came to see our get married. We wanted to take it all in before the night was over.

Event Venue: Clarks Landing Yatch Club / Photographer: Heyn Photography / Cinema and Video: Live Picture Studios / DJ: SCE Entertainment / Cake Designer: Bovella’s Pastry Shoppe / Floral Designer: Purple Iris Flower Shop / Transportation: Long Branch Trolley Company / Wedding Gown Designer: Martina Liana / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Jewelry: Earth Treasures / Bridesmaid Dresses: Bill Levkoff / Groomsman Attire: Men’s Wearhouse / Makeup Artist: Reel Style Bridal / Invitation Designer: Minted