I could not have been more thrilled to be a part of Nicole and Jonathan’s wedding at Pepperrell Cove! They were planning long-distance (from Florida), and I had never been to this gorgeous venue before, so there were some logistics to work out, but in the end their day could not have been more perfect. They were looking for a spot with great food, and now that I’ve been to the View at Pepperrell Cove, I can attest to the deliciousness!

Nicole and Jonathan were so fun to be around on their wedding day. Just a really relaxed vibe throughout, they were there to have a great time and enjoy their guests and I’m so happy that they had the day they planned for and dreamed about.

Since Nicole has a background in design, I am not surprised at how beautiful everything was - all the stationary and signage she did herself.

I’ve asked the couple questions about their story and the wedding day, and Nicole’s answers are throughout in italics.

How did you meet your partner and/or get engaged?

We met on the second day of college while we were eating lunch on campus with a few other people in our theatre program. Nicole said some sort of SpongeBob joke and Jonathan started laughing his trademark laugh, and Nicole immediately knew he was the one. By the end of the semester we started dating, and then 8 years later, Jonathan proposed while we were on a cruise looking at the sunset off of our balcony!

What were your goals for your wedding day? (ie, what was your vision, what did you care about most?)

We are laid back and fun people, so we wanted our wedding to reflect that in every way. We didn’t want a glitzy hotel ballroom or somewhere so grand that didn’t feel like us. We also are not the most traditional of people, so we didn’t want to all of the typical wedding traditions and have us whisked away for something that we didn’t care about. We wanted to be able to spend as much time as possible with our friends and family, and not rush anything so that we could fully absorb it all and remember and enjoy every moment. We are still surprised that we actually achieved that - the secrets were in not having a wedding party, doing first look and family photos before the ceremony, only having 75 people, being present for cocktail hour, having a sweetheart table for dinner so that we could have time to ourselves and observe this incredible day, and ultimately, having a venue and vendors that understood our needs and over-delivered in every capacity.

What is one suggestion you have for other couples who are planning their weddings?

Ultimately, do whatever it is that YOU want to do. Parents or other influential family members are going to have a million suggestions or things that they want you to include. But on your wedding day they are going to be so happy that they’re not going to miss that thing that you did not choose to include.

Another thing - less is more. Spend time, research, and money on the things that matter most. If you go nuts on little tiny details, that leaves more room for things to go wrong or not to your expectation, and in all honesty, most guests are not even going to notice. Everyone is going to have a great time no matter what.

Such great advice!

Keep scrolling for so much more from this southern Maine wedding at Pepperrell Cove!

blue and white wedding details for a seaside maine wedding

What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?

It sounds like a cliche, but every single moment that whole day was incredibly special. From sitting outside having our morning coffee and savoring the calm, to sitting in a chair getting my hair done and watching my nieces coloring, showing Jonathan all the details of my dress after we first saw each other, hearing the guests file into the venue while we were hidden before the ceremony, eating lobster rolls and hugging our friends and family during cocktail hour, sitting back and looking around at everyone enjoying the food, wine, and good company of others during the reception, busting out some long awaited dance moves with our friends that we haven’t seen in years, and ultimately throwing the best party we could have imagined.

However, the icing on the cake was the most unexpected piece - the absolute incredible sunset that we couldn’t deny for some sunset hour photos. Originally we didn’t know if sunset pictures would interrupt the flow by taking us away for a few minutes, but some of our best photos of us were during that time - and most people didn’t even realize we left!

groom getting ready putting on tie and cufflinks

photos of wedding couple on the roof of york beach residence club

bride getting ready at york beach residence club

wedding photos on the dock at kittery point

After seeing the first five photos, we were amazed. We couldn’t wait for the next installment! A few days later, we saw the Facebook album go up of 50+ photos and put it up on the TV so we could really look at them. For every single photo, we just kept saying ‘Wow’. We really could not believe how good these photos were. They captured small moments and details that we didn’t even know that happened. We saw the best possible versions of ourselves and guests. We can truly relive every single moment of our wedding day for the rest of our lives! We could not have made a better decision than to go with you.

bride and groom photos on the docks in front of the view at pepperrell cove in kittery maine

ceremony details at the view at pepperrell cove

How did you choose your wedding venue?

Even though we live in Florida now, most of our family and friends live in the New York area, so we wanted to get married somewhere in the northeast. After months of looking, my aunt - who lives in York, Maine, suggested The View because the restaurants on property were so good. After looking into it and having a few phone meetings, we booked The View at Pepperrell Cove, sight unseen (which was a very unusual thing for us to do). In every review and with those we talked to, everyone could not say enough about how great the food was. For us, good food is really important so we knew we didn’t have to worry about that. We finally went to go see it a few months later and we were amazed by the view, the venue itself, and the team, and could finally start to visualize everything come together.

We were just so happy and excited at every point of our wedding day. We were married by one of our best friends, and having them up there with us was very grounding. Before we got started with the ceremony, we took a moment to look around at everyone that we love that came to celebrate us, and that helped get us focused and and ready to fully be present in what we were about to do. When we were pronounced, the tears started and we were just so happy - we did it!

all the guests looking on as jonathan and nicole tie the knot at pepperrell cove

bride and groom laughing through wedding ceremony

happy couple walking back down aisle and then stop for a kiss

dinner reception room details at the view at pepperrell cove white and blue florals

I might have overdone it with so many details photos here at Pepperrell Cove, but it is such a beautiful space - the event coordinator and of course the amazing florist Brenda’s Bloomers, did such a fabulous job!

upstairs reception room details with fireplace and cafe lights pepperrell cove

Nicole and Jonathan made this really neat crossword puzzle all about them and their relationship for the guests to fill out during cocktail hour. I love unique ideas like this!

view of the water out reception room windows pepperrell cove

sunset on the water bride and groom on the docks at kittery point wedding

The looks on Nicole and Jonathan’s faces as we see the sun setting over the water!

sunset wedding photos at pepperrell cove

What did you like best when working with me?

We loved working with you!! You were so easy to work with, and really fit into our laid back and fun group of vendors that we chose. You seriously are an expert when it comes to wedding photography, and make everything effortless and uncomplicated. It was fun seeing you one minute in one spot and then turning around and seeing you somewhere else, but never seeing you actually move.

I think the best part was having you sneak us out of our dinner for sunset photos and returning us before anyone knew we were gone.

sunset wedding photos on the water kittery maine

No matter what photographer we would have chosen we would be hesitant. Like all people, we feel like we are so ridiculously unphotogenic, so we were cautious to spend any amount on a photographer. However, after seeing the photos on your website and instagram, they had the same look and feel as what we wanted - candid and casual moments.

When we woke up the morning after our wedding to see the first preview photos on instagram, we were speechless! Just by seeing those 5 photos, we knew we made the best decision, they were better that we could have dreamed of!

grandma and grandkids dancing at wedding

bride and groom first dance photos at pepperrell cove

Our first dance happened a little bit differently that typical, which was good. Because the venue was split between two floors, the ceremony, cocktail hour, and dancing were downstairs, and the reception dinner was upstairs. So we were with our guests the entire time and by the time that dinner was finished, guests were invited to go back downstairs for music and dancing. After a few songs, everyone made it downstairs, and we began our first dance and then into a combined dance with our parents. Originally, we didn’t feel like we needed to do a first dance because we never like being the center of attention, but we knew that our family would be specifically looking forward to it. It was nice having a moment together, but we definitely did feel all eyes on us!

The party was the best! We made sure to allow for at least two hours of fun dancing time into our schedule, and we’re really happy it worked out that way. Our DJ was incredible and had everyone out on the dance floor or at least part of the action, despite their age or taste in music. It was great to let loose and dance with our family and friends and see how much they had enjoyed the day. We were especially excited to see what the dance floor candid photos would look like!