1. Real Weddings

Lee & Jeff: A Weekend Wedding in Eastsound, WA

When Jeff was a 5-year-old boy spending the summer on Orcas Island with his family, as he did each year, he built himself a little bench and set it on

When Jeff was a 5-year-old boy spending the summer on Orcas Island with his family, as he did each year, he built himself a little bench and set it on a point overlooking the water near his family's cabin. Decades later, back on Orcas Island with not only his family but the family of his girlfriend, Jeff took some time to sturdy his bench. Then he walked his girlfriend out to the point, sat on the bench with her, and presented her with a diamond ring and a marriage proposal. The Bride Lee Caruso, 32, an artist The Groom Jeff Minton, 28, a photographer The Date July 7 Lee jokes that it was about time Jeff popped the question. We had dated for four years -- too long, according to my mom. And we had vacationed on Orcas with our families the year before with no wedding proposal happening, so I wasn't expecting it this time, either. Deciding where to set the wedding was a challenge. My family is from Chicago, Jeff's is from San Francisco, and we were living in L.A., Lee reports. But we kept coming back to, 'Oh, I really wish we could be married on Orcas.' When they finally decided to have a destination wedding in the place that meant so much to both of them, Lee says, It took a bit of convincing to get my parents to accept that I was not going to be married at the Four Seasons in Chicago. But they love Orcas Island too. The bride and groom chose the Rosario Resort, which was once a private dream house built by a local shipping magnate when his doctor gave him one year to live. Luckily, the magnate's doctor was wrong, and he lived a long life at the stunning estate built on Cascade Bay.

The Formalwear
The cocktail hour, which Lee says she was determined not to miss, was on a big wooden porch, near the tent where the reception was held. The classical guitarist who had played during the ceremony switched to a flamenco theme during cocktails and dinner. Dinner was entrees of salmon, mushroom risotto, or filet. There was gazpacho with scallops, and pretty salads accented in the same hot colors as the flowers. The couple's first dance was to song called Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars, a Brazilian song that the guitarist played. A friend who is a disc jockey at a Los Angeles club played dance music and the couple's friends took turns spinning tunes. The party was supposed to end at midnight, says Lee, but when we left for our room at 2 a.m., our friends were still partying.
The ceremony on the point was a spiritual, rather than religious, one, performed by a Unitarian minister. The couple wrote their own wedding vows. After the ceremony, the photographer lined up all the guests and the wedding party for one gigantic group photo, taken right on the point. Lee and Jeff were so thrilled with the resulting image that they used it on their thank-you cards.
The Reception Decor
Planning the wedding involved lots of long-distance research but they got help from the staff at Rosario Resort. Lee found her wedding gown, a Vera Wang strapless dress, in her hometown of Los Angeles, prompting Jeff to scrap his plans to rent a tuxedo. He said, 'If you are buying a Vera Wang gown, I'm buying an Armani tuxedo,' says Lee. And he looked great.
Lee and Jeff cut a chocolate cake with raspberry filling, frosted with buttercream and covered in fondant.
Because Lee is an artist and Jeff is a photographer, the couple had strong aesthetic opinions about their celebration. Lee asked the florist to use lots of hot colors -- reds, pinks, and oranges -- in the flowers for the bridal party and on the tables. She also requested an ice sculpture that looked like a simple wedding cake. I wanted big, shiny blocks of ice stacked on top of each other and lit with tea light candles, explains Lee. I thought this would be a great place for the bridesmaids to put their bouquets. The request for simplicity stymied the ice sculptor, and in the end the chef constructed the piece himself.
The couple's first dance was to song called Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars, a Brazilian song that the guitarist played. A friend who is a disc jockey at a Los Angeles club played dance music and the couple's friends took turns spinning tunes. The party was supposed to end at midnight, says Lee, but when we left for our room at 2 a.m., our friends were still partying.
The Reception Decor