Sandbridge Beach Elopement with Romantic Picnic

weddingelopement

Apr 24

Sandbridge Beach Elopement | Jackie & Dominic

Sandbridge Beach Wedding Photographers

Jackie & Dominic’s Sandbridge Beach elopement was intimate, romantic and so very ‘them.’ They incorporated a champagne picnic with macarons and charcuterie, shared a first dance on the beach, and collected sand from the very spot where they said, ‘I do!’ Oh, and they found a way for their beloved cat to ‘attend’ their ceremony.

Dominic says he met Jackie on their first day of Japanese class at the University of Rochester in 2013. He remembers that Jackie sat at the very front of the room and asked way too many questions for it being only the first day of class. He found out later she also arrived to class three hours early "just in case she couldn't find it," which honestly, he found kind of endearing.

Jackie has no recollection of meeting Dominic in Japanese class. Jackie remembers meeting Dominic almost three months later when she turned around one day in her political science lecture and asked, "Hey, aren't you the guy from my Japanese class?" He was, in fact, the guy from her Japanese class. Only a couple of months after that, they began dating.

I love how many special touches the two of them incorporated into their day. Virginia Beach itself is special because that is where they’ve been celebrating their dating anniversaries. Their cat, Basil, couldn’t join them, so they placed a photo on a tongue depressor and poked it into the sand so their furbaby could oversee the picnic. For the picnic, they enjoyed a charcuterie board and heart-shaped macarons (because Jackie’s grandma really wanted to make sure they’d have a meal at their wedding!) Their wine glasses were her grandmother’s.

Even though the couple is waiting until April 2022 for their big celebration, they still shared a first dance on the beach to ‘I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You.’ The 21 Pilots’ cover of thesong has had special meaning to the couple since the very beginning of their seven years together.

They ended their day by collecting sand into little glass jars with cork tops. Jackie’s family enjoys a tradition of collecting soil/rocks from special locations they visit. When Jackie lived in Japan, she always picked up a bit of soil to share with her family when she visited an important location, like Hiroshima. To keep up the tradition, the couple bottled up a tiny bit of sand to share with immediate family members who couldn’t be with them on their wedding day.

Their sweet day was as emotional as it was beautiful. Jackie went through about three tissues during the vows alone. Dominic shed a single tear, but Jackie swears that lone drop was the equivalent to a whole box of Kleenex.

Enjoy a few (OK, a ton) of my favorite images from Jackie & Dom’s Sandbridge Beach elopement!