Christine & Josh's Wine-Themed Wedding 6.14.13

"Our Wedding was...unforgettable and hands down, the best day of our lives". 

- Christine & Josh Sheller

What Made This Celebration Unique?

The newlyweds love wine, so they decided to go with a wine theme for their wedding. They chose merlot-colored dresses for the bridesmaids, made place card holders out of corks, created centerpieces using wine bottles, corks and real grapes for guests to enjoy.  Their cake was decorated with purple grapes and a wine glass, and they put together a wine cork board with pictures from each year that they were dating. Christine received an 'S' made out of corks as a gift for her shower, so she decided to put that out by the place cards. They displayed pictures of parents and grandparents at their weddings next to the card box and 'guest book'- 5 wine bottles (with labels removed) that guests signed with silver markers for the couple to enjoy on their 1st-5th anniversaries (if the wine lasts that long)! 

Venue-  RiverCrest Golf Club & Preserve, Phoenixville, PA

"Our ideal venue had to have FOUR things: big bridal suite, beautiful outdoor ceremony setting, beautiful INDOOR ceremony setting (in case it rained!), and a ballroom that was spacious with at least two bartenders. We looked at several venues, but all of them were flawed in at least one area and we were not okay with just settling for that!

RiverCrest exceeded all of our expectations when we first toured the venue. It had more than enough room in the bridal suite, which was perfect, knowing that we were going to bring stylists and a makeup artist on site and that they'd have lots of room to work! The pool ceremony location was breathtaking and unique--I don't think many brides could say they got married around a pool area with a luscious waterfall in the background! If it were to rain on the wedding day, Plan B (ceremony under the terrace) and Plan C (the Roberts Room) were equally beautiful places to have a ceremony.  We felt totally comfortable knowing that if it were to rain, the ceremony would still be gorgeous. Finally, the ballroom was very roomy and could easily accommodate a head table for 16 people. The tables could fit anywhere from 8-12 people so we could ensure that our guests weren't too squished. We also found out that there would be two bar locations during the reception, which we knew was perfect so that our guests wouldn't have to wait in long lines for beverages!"

Destination: Honeymoon- Punta Cana

Christine & Josh flew to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic and stayed at The Excellence Resort. They feel that it was incredible--they were treated like royalty the entire week! It was all-inclusive, so they only had to pay for tips and a horseback riding excursion. It's adults only and about 90% of guests at the time were honeymooners, so it was fun to meet people that also got married on the same day/weekend! There were 10 restaurants to choose from, mini-golf and tennis courts on site, a wildlife preserve with flamingos and parrots to see, large pools to relax in, a private beach, and a stunning view! The food was great at each restaurant, the beverages were delightful and the service was phenomenal. There was nightly entertainment at the theater that never disappointed. Their favorite activity was the two-hour horseback ride on the beach and into the countryside. Boogie boarding in the warm waves and snorkeling were close seconds!

ADVICE TO HONEYMOONERS:

1. Tip the bartenders and they'll be sure to remember your drinks all week and make them strong!

2. Get an oceanview room--it's definitely worth it!

3. Bring sunblock! One bottle of lotion was selling for $30-$40!

4. When you make your reservation, put it under the groom's last name. The staff was calling Christine & Josh "Mr. & Mrs. Palladino" (her maiden name) all week.  They thought it was funny and didn't correct anyone!

Advice for Future Brides & Grooms-
The bride's advice would be to relax on the wedding day and know that everything will fall into place.

Favorite Wedding Moment-

Christine has two favorite wedding moments: The first was when she saw Josh for the first time during the "First Reveal" photo shoot. The second favorite moment was the ceremony itself. Josh was giggling the whole time and it kept making her laugh (he insisted that the bridal party was making funny faces). It calmed her nerves to be up there with him and the reverend even made a joke about it to the guests. It made for a fun, lighthearted ceremony.

Some of Christine & Josh's Favorite Wedding Day Photos- 

Vendor Information-

Christine & Josh adored their vendors and are happy to share information.

Officiant- Reverend Philip Sciscione, based out of Manayunk

Photographers- Married couple, Tom and Holly Fuller, based out of Chester County

DJ- Gerry "The Dancing DJ" Kudach, 610-209-2161

Congratulations again, Christine & Josh!

By the way...

Want to check out some great wedding tunes? Check out this post, which is updated often!

Putting together bathroom baskets? Click here for great tips and inspiration! 

Are you (or your wedding party members) in a wedding party and not quite sure what to do next? Check out this post  to get prepped and rock it! 

Have you thought about what you'll do with your dress after the big day? This post has some great ideas!

Check out the most popular posts along the sidebar (scroll up!), including Weddings Across the Board- a series devoted to the cultural & traditional awesomeness that goes into wedding celebrations around the world- with coordinating Pinterest boards.

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