Old-Fashioned Seaside Wedding in Kennebunkport, Maine

Growing up, Katherine Morse spent her summers in Kennebunkport, Maine; gracious happy days of lobster bakes, flip-flops, and toasting s’mores by the sea. Katherine and her fiancé, Lonnie Morris, wanted their wedding and reception, on July 9th, 2005, to have all of the fun and cherished elements of those summer days.

The rehearsal dinner was a fabulous, old fashioned lobster bake Friday night at the Laudholm Farm Barn, part of the gorgeous Victorian seaside home and estate that would also be the reception location. The ceremony, at St. Ann’s Episcopal church could not have been more beautiful. The church’s outdoor chapel stands right on a cliff, with the Atlantic ocean as a backdrop, and the weather was picture-perfect, clear and warm.

You would imagine that Katherine, who owns The Flat of the Hill, a wonderfully hip and elegant gift shop in Beacon Hill, would incorporate lots of beautiful, fun elements into her reception. That certainly was the case. In the huge tent on Laudholm Farm’s estate, the colors of choice were pink and green, with thousands of lush peonies everywhere; polka dots and stripes, starfish and sand dollars. Each chair was festooned on the back with a starfish; the “placecards” were handwritten sand dollars.

To celebrate the joining of their names, Morse & Morris, Katherine and Lonnie got a beautiful custom monogrammed “M” which graced their cake; and baskets of “m&m”s reinforced the happi-m-ness of the occasion. Guests couldn’t help but kick off their fancy shoes and help themselves to flip flops from baskets provided, whether for dancing to the jazzy beat of the Red Hot Feet Warmers, or to wander out to a fire pit for a toasted s’more.

Close to midnight, as Katherine and Lonnie emerged from the reception tent to leave, their friends and family were all lined up, holding sparklers, to bid them godspeed. As the guests left too, clutching their farewell boxes of Goldenrod salt water taffy, they were wrapped in the glow of a stunning wedding, a perfect summer night.