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bride and groom kissing at sunset after their Jekyll Island wedding ceremony

Oct 23 2020

Jekyll Island Wedding – Crane Cottage

Blog, St Simons & Jekyll Island Weddings

The Cocktails & Details® team loved working with Sarah and Chris to design their Jekyll Island wedding at Crane Cottage.

Sarah freely admits that she had picked the wedding venue before Chris proposed. After all, ‘we had been together five years,’ she joked. The holdup was realistically because Chris designed the ring and took great pains to source the main stone ethically.

ethically sourced stone in bride's ring designed by her groom

This environmentally conscious couple picked Crane Cottage for its historic architecture, natural beauty and because everything could happen in the same location. They wanted to have the feel of an epic house party.

bride and groom marrying in front of Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island Georgia

Here Comes The Bride!

Sarah spent the morning with her bridal party relaxing, having some fun together, and getting ready. Her wedding gown was a smooth satin organza creation with clean lines and a sweetheart neckline. A shoulder-length lace applique veil and cascading European hand tied bridal bouquet completed her elegant look.

bride and bridal party having some fun in the room at Crane Cottage

bride wearing a satin organza gown with shoulder length lace veil carrying a loose European bridal bouquet

The stunning bridal bouquet included garden roses, white ranunculus, Sahara roses, white lisianthus, and long, loose natural greenery tied with French wired ribbon.

loose European style bridal bouquet in white and cream with locally sourced greenery

Thank You For Your Service

Chris, who is currently serving in the military, wore his dress uniform as did several members of his wedding party. He was actually deployed during the wedding planning and only returned home a week before the wedding.

The guys dressed and relaxed, with sabers at the ready, for the ceremony to begin.

groom and his groomsmen in dress military uniforms at Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

groom in his military dress uniform before seeing his bride

Wanting to infuse a little personality into his wedding day, Chris had a custom tuxedo shirt created. A huge Star Wars fan, this custom shirt had the sleeves removed and a bold Star Wars print fabric added in its place. The collar, front panel, and cuff were all business with the sleeves hidden away until he removed his jacket.

groom wearing a custom made Star Wars tuxedo shirt

With This Ring

Outside, the ceremony preparations were in place. Our team utilized the rich, topiary hedgerow to frame the wedding ceremony. White roses accented the center portion of the hedge with white garden chairs, creating an extra-wide aisle.

outdoor wedding ceremony at Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

With their wedding party already in place, Sarah, escorted by her father, made her entrance to her favorite song Lady May by Tyler Childers. To say that Chris was blown away by the first glimpse of his beautiful bride might be an understatement.

bride being escorted down the aisle by her father at Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

groom seeing his bride for the first time as she walks down the aisle at Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

stunned groom as he sees is beautiful bride at their wedding ceremony at Crane Cottage

Officiated by the bride’s grandmother, the touching wedding ceremony ended with a traditional arch of crossed sabers as the newlyweds made their departure.

groom crying during his wedding ceremony at Crane Cottage, Jekyll Island Georgia

crossed sabers waiting for approach of the bride and groom at Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

bride and groom under crossed sabers after their Jekyll Island wedding

Cocktails & Details®

The elegant outdoor reception was created along the parameter of the Crane Cottages courtyard. The expansive covered walkways allowed for placement of long banquet tables paired with rustic wrought iron chairs. Crisp white linens draped the tables, which overflowed with local greenery and clusters of candles. Gold metallic risers added a shimmer, brought height to the table design, and allowed for a lush overhead cascade of greenery.

long white reception tables with lush greenery in the courtyard at Crane Cottage Jekyll Island

long wedding reception tables with gold risers and local Georgia greenery

The courtyard’s iron gate and an overhead chandelier made the perfect focal point to frame Sarah and Chris’ sweetheart table, incorporating design elements from the other tablescapes.

sweetheart table in front of iron gat in the courtyard at Crane Cottage Jekyll Island

The newly married couple made their grand entrance from the balcony above the courtyard. Following their entrance, wedding guests enjoyed a plated dinner service with a coffee and dessert bar placed in the courtyard center.

bride and groom waving from the balcony of Crane Cottage on Jekyll Island

In traditional military fashion, the couple opened the first bottle of Champagne using a military saber. Several toasts followed this by the Father of the Bride, Maid of Honor, and Best Man.

Military groom assisting his new bride in opening a champagne bottle with a saber

Death Of A Bachelor

After dinner, the couple and their guests made their way indoors for a night of dancing. Sarah and Chris opened the dance floor with their first dance to Death of a Bachelor by Panic! at the Disco.

This indeed was the epic house party the newlyweds dreamed about, with the dance floor remaining full throughout the evening. The night also included an impromptu choreographed dance number by Sarah and a few friends. Sarah and Chris closed the evening with a last dance to What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong.