Tell us a little about yourselves!
We met 7 years ago through our friend Ben (the friend who officiated our ceremony!). Max is from Scotland, and Hope is from the US, so we dated long distance for a few years before living together in the UK and now living in Boston. Hope is a wedding photographer as well, and Max works with her during the summers when he’s not focusing on his PhD studies.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
We got married in Hope’s mother’s backyard in Woods Hole, on Cape Cod. It’s where Hope grew up, and just around the corner from the backyard where we met in 2015. Our day was captured by Emily Boudreau Photography.
How many guests did you have?
15.
Tell us about your outfits.
Hope found the two piece from Reformation just a few days before the wedding — she had been looking for something simple and summery, but it was hard to find something that fit the tone of the day. No matter what, she knew she wanted to wear linen and be barefoot.
Max found a beautiful linen suit fromJ.Crew, also about a week before the wedding.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
So here’s the situation: we were planning our larger wedding reception in Scotland for June 2022, but realized we would need to sign the papers and make it official well before that so that Max could apply for his Green Card. Once we heard that Max’s parents could come to the US (at the time, COVID restrictions meant that people from the UK couldn’t enter the US, so they spent 2 weeks in Croatia before flying to the US), we planned the little backyard wedding in about a month.
Since we were already planning a larger, more “traditional” wedding, we wanted this day to feel easy and relaxed and intentional. We got ready together with friends, and celebrated with champagne and music in the backyard. It was perfect!
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
It wasn’t so much about the details as it was about who was involved. The wedding was very much a team effort with our friends and families — one of Hope’s best friends (who has experience in floral design) made the little floral backdrop in the ivy; Hope’s siblings helped create the charcuterie boards for the reception; our friend and officiant, Ben, brought oysters for everyone from the Outer Cape.
Any tips for couples getting married, particularly during the pandemic?
The best advice I have for couples planning a wedding is this: instead of asking yourself, “what do I want my wedding to be like?” Ask yourself, “How would I want to spend the most perfect day?”
We asked ourselves that many times while we were imagining our day, and it was a guiding light — for us, our “perfect day” is being with friends, drinking Negronis, eating oysters, and swimming in the sea. So that’s what we did!
Photographer : Emily Boudreau Photography @emilyboudreauphoto | Ceremony + Reception Location : Private residence, Cape Cod followed by dinner at Water Street Kitchen @waterstreetkitchen | Celebrant : Friend of couple | Ceremony Space : Florals and ivy by best friend of the Bride |
Wedding Bouquet : Botanique Cape Cod @botaniquecapecod | Dress : Reformation @reformation | Veil : Etsy @etsy | Linen Suit : J.Crew @jcrew | Engagement Ring : Laura Preshong
@laurapreshong | Groom’s Shoes : Charles Tyrwhitt @charlestyrwhitt | Bride’s Swimwear : Andie Swim @andieswim | Groom’s Swimwear : Speedo @speedo