Vow Renewal: Jesely & Justin at the National Hotel, South Beach

I was so excited when Moriah from Peachy Keen Photography sent over this beautiful event for us to share with you. Our first vow renewal, at The National Hotel (one of our fave venues!), with gorgeous photography and a heart-warming story... what could be better than that?

From Moriah: "It's heartwarming to see a married couple still very much in love. Wanting to re-live their wedding day all over again, Justin and Jesely held their vow renewal ceremony at the National Hotel in South Beach, Miami, with all their family and friends present. Afterwards, they celebrated in a beautifully decorated reception room with dinner, drinks, and dancing. I loved the exotic details Jesely chose - starfish, peacock feathers, and vibrant orchids tied together the themes of this lovely occasion."

Jesely and Justin were married in 2000 on a typically overcast day in Seattle. They held the event at the Woodland Park Zoo's Rose Garden (with animal sounds throughout and ceremony and peacocks walking around during the reception), where they served a salmon and wine menu for their 50 guests. As Jesely tells us, "We were high school sweethearts in Miami, so decided to renew our 10th wedding anniversary vows there with 50 of our closest family and friends. South Beach was, and still is, one of our favorite places because of the beauty of the people, the incredible Art Deco architecture, mouth watering Latin food, and the turquoise waters of the beaches. We love finding any reason to throw a good party and our 10th wedding anniversary seemed like a good time to bring everyone together again. It was wonderful to be able to share our vow renewal with our two year old son, Otto Miguel."

"I love The National Hotel and the Art Deco that pours out of every corner of the hotel. The infinity pool is breathtaking and having cocktails brought to you poolside is pretty decadent. Exactly what we wanted for our guests. Every staff at the hotel was 'old-school' hospitable in accommodating our guests, from the door man to the cabana boys. Our event coordinator, Marlem Pujol, was professional and thought of every detail. Our cake, by Ana Paz Cakes, had the tropical simplicity I wanted with that unique key-lime flavor only found in South Florida. Dinner and cocktail hour was catered by the outstanding Chef at The National Hotel and they worked with us to bring the Caribbean menu (I am from the Dominican Republic) that we both wanted our guests to enjoy. My sister, Jazmin, who lives in South Florida was key in being our destination planner since she could check on vendors locally for me. Peachy Keen Photography captured every single moment of our event colorfully, classically and beautifully.

"We wanted to bring in a symbolic element from our wedding, so we added peacock flare. I adore orchids and went monochromatic with jaguar pink mokara orchids for our vow renewal. The combo of the vibrant pink and peacock colors was fabulous. We incorporated our son into the ceremony by giving him a starfish necklace to symbolize our family. Our cake was topped with three sugar starfish to represent the three of us in our family."

Our warmest thanks to Moriah for sending her lovely work to us, and to Jesely and Justin for sharing their thoughts on the day. Here's to another 10 years of happiness!

VENUE/VENDOR INFORMATION:

Venue, Catering & Coordination: The National Hotel | Photography: Peachy Keen Photography | Cake: Ana Paz Cakes

Peachy Keen Photography is a featured member of our Vendor Guide. All of our vendor guide members, including the featured members, are handpicked by us for the quality of their work, their creativity, and their ability to provide you with fabulous service for your wedding.

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