Mercedes and Stewart Tie the Knot in Beachside Ceremony

(photos provided by Twist of Fate Imagery)

Mercedes and Stewart tied the knot at Sundial this fall in a perfect beachside ceremony and reception.

How did you meet?

We met in high school when we were both sixteen. We went to different high schools, but we had mutual friends and ended up dating after being friends for several months.

How did he propose?

Well, that is a funny question… He had a plan to propose on Leap Day, but I accidentally ruined the plans. I was opening our mail, which is something I always did, and found a bill to a jewelry store and I freaked out thinking that someone had stolen Stewart’s identity and bought some type of jewelry in his name. So he thought I would figure it out before Leap Day and ended up proposing to me that night on our way to dinner on a hill overlooking the city of Louisville.

Once you decided on Sundial, how did you choose where you wanted the ceremony and reception to be?

I had grown up always vacationing at Sanibel because my grandparents have a house on the island and we would always take our family photos at the Sundial. Once we decided we wanted a destination wedding we knew we wanted a beach wedding with a reception on the beach. After viewing pictures of Sundial’s beachfront for the ceremony and the resort’s private beach, Turtle’s Beach, for the reception we fell in love with it and knew we had to get married at Sundial.

What were some of your favorite wedding details? How did you come up with them?

I really wanted the ceremony to have a lot of greenery and white flowers, whereas I wanted the reception to be more lively and colorful with some tropical colors included. I actually found most of my inspiration for the wedding on Pinterest and I showed Dalia the florist (from Floral Symphony) pictures of what I loved, including the decorations and she made a sketch of what we both were wanting for the wedding.

What advice would you give future brides thinking about tying the knot at Sundial?

I would say that Sundial can help make any vision of yours come true for your big day. Ashley was such an awesome person to work with along the way and she helped make my dream wedding come true.

Wedding Vendors:

Wedding Dress: Milla Nova

Officiant: Stuart Scott

Entertainment: String Quartet – Vanderbilt Strings, DJ – Black Tie Entertainment

Photography/Videography: Photography – Twist of Fate Imagery, Videography – iheART Films

Florist/Decorations: Floral Symphony

Cake: Lady Cakes Bakery

Table & Chair Rentals: Taylor Rentals