Tara and Chris are a pair of adventurous Canadians who love outdoor, active living. They originally planned for a mountain wedding, but venue problems had them looking elsewhere, which is how they ended up having a destination wedding in Maui, a favorite vacation spot for them. Surrounded by friends and family, they were married right on the beach and celebrated with an intimate long table reception overlooking the ocean. What an incredibly romantic wedding.
Tara + Chris | March 4, 2014 | Maui, Hawaii | Dress Listing: Lazaro, 3063
The Ceremony
Our ceremony was with very close friends and family on the lava rock of a beautiful bay at sunset. We had a traditional Hawaiian ceremony complete with exchanging of leis performed by a traditional Hawaiian Laki minister. It was a gorgeous day, a beautiful sunset and an amazing backdrop for our pictures. My husband and I decided to exchange our personal vows before the ceremony with a gift. We each wrote down everything we wanted to say and had our best man and maid of honour deliver them to each other while we were getting ready.
The Reception
After the ceremony, we held our reception at the Napili Kai resort, located on the same bay. Our guests began cocktail hour while we took pictures. We held an outdoor dinner overlooking the entire bay with a long table set up for everyone to interact with each other. Our colours were all picked to complement the beautiful sunset and we decorated with little Hawaiian touches.
Tara’s Dress Search
I tried on every dress in Calgary and some in Edmonton (a 3 hour drive!!!) I actually had a smaller budget in mind when I originally began looking for a dress, but tried the Lazaro 3063 on my very first bridal store visit because my maid of honour picked it out and set it in my room. I didn’t know the price when I put the dress on and I fell in love instantly! I just knew it was the dress until I saw the price tag. At the time, I couldn’t justify spending that much money on a dress I would only be wearing for a few short hours, although I have since come to understand how important that dress actually is. I continued trying on dresses for months, visiting countless stores and consignment shops, and looking online.
I never forgot how I felt in the Lazaro gown and compared every dress to that one. I found another dress that I sort of kind of liked but couldn’t bring myself to put down a deposit. My fiance finally told me that he didn’t care how much my dress cost, as long as I was happy. I don’t regret for one moment buying my dress. It made me feel like a princess and was the most amazingly gorgeous dress I have ever worn, and will likely ever wear.
How Tara Felt in Her Wedding Dress
Happy, excited and beautiful.
Why Tara Decided to Sell Her Wedding Dress
I chose to sell my dress because it is just too beautiful to sit in a closet. I’ve asked many of my girlfriends and family what they did with their gowns and besides the ones who trashed them (I could never do that to mine,) all of them are just sitting in a closet. This gown is beautiful and should be worn again to make another bride feel as amazing as I did on my wedding day.
