Miami Wedding: Real Bride Dana wears ‘Luna Gold’

Dana & David

3.11.2022

Coconut Grove, Miami, FL (USA)

Couples story

David and I met in a volunteer group in Miami, shortly after I moved here out of grad school. We were friends for a few years before the timing was just right for things to turn romantic. Of course, I had a crush on him the entire time, but he was unavailable. I was struck by how romantic and sensitive he was, he’s one of the most beautiful people I’ve ever met. I’m a bit quirky, and brought the fun to the relationship early on. Within a few months of us getting serious, David actually moved to Amsterdam for a one-year grad program. The fact that we only fell more in love being apart for months at a time really sealed the deal for us.

Why did you choose to have your wedding in Southern Florida?

We have both completely fallen for the subtropical landscape and bright, sunny feel of Southern Florida. David is an avid gardener and environmentalist, and we both love the ocean. Our venue was a perfect combination of modern, chic style, with beautiful views of Biscayne Bay. The hotel is actually designed to look like a cruise ship! Coconut Grove is also a very lush neighbourhood of Miami, right on the water, and is a place close to both our hearts. We didn’t have to do much to dress up the venue. We added some bright colours and tropical florals and greenery, but preferred to just let the style of the hotel shine through elsewhere and do the work for us.

Where was your dress from?

My dress was from Shona Joy, an Australian designer. I was on a tight budget, and also didn’t envision a big gown for myself. I wanted something chic, sexy, and simple! Shona Joy has a lot of beautiful, really unique styles of dresses.

Why did you choose Luna Gold?

My shoes were the very first things I found that I knew I wanted to define my look. The inlaid mother of pearl was a perfect nod to our shared love of the ocean, and the location of the venue. They were also so different from anything else I had seen, and pretty affordable, so I basically made my entire look around them! I wore pearl and gold jewellery, and tried to match the colour of my dress to the off-white colour of the shoes, as well. The stars on the toes also felt very me, a little touch of something different. Because I wasn’t so set on a vision for a dress, I really wanted my shoes to be unique and special.

What was your favourite part of your wedding day?

My favourite thing about our day was that the ceremony and reception were actually during the day! We wanted to maximize the amount of time we spent with our family and friends as much as possible, and were able to extend the wedding events throughout the course of the day and evening. We had coffee at the ceremony, and then a lovely plated lunch in a beautiful room overlooking the Bay. I wanted our guests to be able to actually enjoy the view in the daylight, and the sunshine is one of my absolute favourite things about our home.

Any advice for future brides?

One of the biggest things I come back to when I reminisce about our wedding was how authentically us it was, and it almost provides me with this sense of relief that we really did it “right”. There are endless ways to design and program a wedding, and family and friends can pull you in different directions at times, but no matter what, prioritize what YOU want the day/night to be. With having our wedding during the day, and an after party at night, I sometimes felt like we were doing it wrong just because it was a little different. But, do your thing no matter what.

Do you have plans to re-wear your Freya Rose heels? And if so, how do you envision styling them?

I have not figured out how to style my shoes again! They’re honestly so much more chic than my everyday style. I would like to get them cleaned up a bit, and will for sure just keep them until another opportunity to wear them arises. We have a couple more family weddings coming up.

Testimonial

Freya Rose had the most responsive customer service. When I initially placed my order, the shoes I wanted were actually not available. But a few days later they emailed me that someone was returning the exact style and size I wanted, and they handled shipping those to me. I really appreciated that!

Photographer: @zulierego

Florals: @calmafloral

Venue: @mrchotels

Rentals: @unearthedrentals