Liz & Mark – Arenas del Mar, Reception

Here are some more goodies from Liz and Mark’s wedding at Arenas del Mar. We held the reception at the open-aired restaurant at the beach so we used a pallete of white, blues and a touch of yellow with a subtle hint of seashells.

The runners were custom-made and we were thrilled when we found this luxe taffeta with blue striping. With a bit of sheen and texture, it added a lovely dimension to the table and really ‘popped’ against the crisp, white tablecloth. We wanted to create a tablescape that was fresh, clean and crisp. Using a variety of different small vases and condiment holders, even toothpick holders (we purchased all the vases from a kitchen supply store!) with varying shapes (including shells), the idea was to riff on the theme of white china. By repurposing these table items, an element of surprise was created.

We had the menus play ‘double duty’ as seating cards. The starfish motif we used on the fan tags made an appearance on the menu to keep a sense of cohension.

Blue glass votive holders and blue & white paper lanterns complete the look.

For the bride and groom’s chairs, we made garlands of hydrangeas and orchids with ribbons in the wedding colours,mimicking the ribboning used in the ceremony decor.

The dessert buffet was the highlight of the night! Apothecary jars filled with seashells, scattered starfish, bowls filled with candies with yellow goodie bags ready for the filling and petit fours with starfish designs united to create a feast for the eyes and mouths! Antique cake stands mixed in with modern wine glasses created levels and the glass reflected the soft candle light.

But the piece de resistance was the ice cream wedding cake. Yes, an ice cream cake in the middle of the rainforest at the beach. It was the one thing the groom had requested. Being we’re in Costa Rica, there isn’t a DQ around and the closes frozen yogurt shop that made cakes was in Jaco, almost two hours away. Luckily, our amazing cake maker in the area was up the challenge. Amazingly, the cake was frozen so hard, Liz and Mark had to really work at cutting it! So yes, anything is possible with us, even an ice cream cake at the beach!