“If you let someone go and they return, then it is meant to be.” This is a saying that Kendra and Elysia believe defines their relationship.
They met in middle school, became best friends after high school, and eventually dated for two years, before breaking up in 2010. Kendra reflects, “I honestly think we were just young at the time and we both needed to grow.” Four years passed when Elysia sent Kendra a message on Facebook. The message simply said, “You still have that scarf I see.” It was a scarf Kendra bought when she and Elysia were together. Kendra responded, albeit hesitantly, but it was a correspondence that put their decade-long friendship back on track.
Eventually, their rekindled friendship blossomed into another relationship, and Elysia proposed on March 8, 2019, during a romantic dinner.
They immediately headed to Pinterest to plan their dream wedding. They knew they wanted to have a destination wedding with a tropical climate, natural beauty, and tons of flowers. They had over 6000 fresh flowers to be exact. While the florals were breathtaking, and their wedding fashion was on point, their most meaningful wedding accessory came in the form of a small pendant. Elysia lost her sister due to complications from COVID-19, and Kendra gave her a pendant with her sister’s photo as a personal gift during their first touch. It was a significant reminder of the true importance of weddings and marriage- the opportunity to celebrate and live your life to the fullest with the people you love the most.
See all of the details from Kendra and Elysia’s destination wedding, which was featured in our Winter 2021 magazine, below.
- Couple: Kendra Weldon and Elysia Cuyler
- Occupations: Social worker and Sheriff
- Wedding date: October 9, 2020
- Wedding location: Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
Quick Facts
- Bridesmaids and groomsmen gifts:Kendra’s Bridesmaids gifts- Black robes, Black fur slippers, Black pj short sets, Black and gold clutch, Hangers with their names, date, and title, Pandora bracelet with charm, Alex and Ani bracelet. Elysia’s Groomettes gifts- Black tie, White dress shirts
- Gifts for one another: Kendra to Elysia: pendant with Elysia’s late sister photo, who recently died from COVID19 and quote: “Always by your side”
- Elysia to Kendra: pandora bracelet with heart charms
- Ceremony entrance song: ‘Fall for you’ by Leela James
- First dance song: ‘Heat’ by Chris Brown. First dance, was choreographed dance (highly recommend, if you like to be different)
Wedding Style
Kendra’s- I visited over 30 stores and tried on over 100 dresses, crazy right lol
Elysia- the experience was easy, as she is a SIMPLE person, and knew what she wanted. I went with her, cause I wanted to make sure her color suit was similar to my dress.
Most Memorable Moment
I knew before being engaged that I wanted a destination wedding. I had somehow found this venue called “Kukua” and was in love with it. We ended up having our wedding at “Kukua, which is in Punta Cana Dominican Republic. I lived on Pinterest while planning our wedding. I knew I wanted flowers and lots of them. Our wedding planner said we had over 6000 flowers and yes, all of them were real. I changed our wedding colors 7 times lol. We finally decided to go with black, white, ivory, and blush pink. We had a gazebo for our wedding cake and it was beyond beautiful. We even had a memory table with photos of us, without the years that we been together, it was a big hit. I wanted us to have a wedding that was unique, elegant, and EXTRA lol. Every time I saw something on Pinterest that caused my mouth to dropped, I would say to myself, “oh I got to have this.”
What is the best wedding advice you can give to engaged couples?
1. Planning a wedding requires a lot of your time, ESPECIALLY during COVID. I definitely am happy that we had a “COVID WEDDING.” It is imperative to have a good support system, folks you can talk to, lend a hand when needed, and bounce ideas off of.
2. Do not be discouraged. Take breaks when needed. Start early and do not wait until the last minute to do things. Always think positive thoughts.
3. Sometimes you may encounter people who aren’t truly happy for you, but they don’t matter. There are twice as many people that are rooting for you. Always do what makes your partner and you happy.
4. BE PRESENT IN EACH MOMENT! Enjoy every last second. Your wedding goes by soooo fast! The day of your wedding will literally fly by!
5. Keep notes and write everything DOWN. Organize, organize, organize! There are so many small details that are easily forgotten.
6. Many people say “everything will not always go as planned, but your day will be perfect!” I have to say our wedding day went as planned, it was perfect, amazing, our guests were happy, we started on time, and our wedding was everything I dreamed of and more.
7. Understand that people do exactly what they want to do.
you cannot expect you out of people. Just because you’re someone who always gives and support others, do not expect that from others.
Don’t let it upset you.
8. You don’t have to break the bank if you don’t have it.
9. Remember to eat & breathe the morning of.
10. Lastly, remember what the big picture is and that is you are marrying your soulmate, the one whom you want to do forever with daily.
Vendors
- Wedding Photographer: Photo Cine Art
- Wedding Venue: Kukua Punta Cana
- Wedding Videographer: Dominicanca Photo & Video
- Hair and Makeup: Pippa Valette
- Rings: Gold & Diamond Source Clearwater, FL
- Headpiece and earrings: Elena’s Bridal accessories, Brooklyn New York
- Kendra’s shoes: Badgley Mischka
- Elysia shoes: Aldo shoes; Bespolco Tazzio
- Stationery: Pro Wedding Invites
- Suit: Bespolco Tazzio
- Kukua wedding planner and decoration: Rachel and Mayte Mari- Wedding by Mayte Mari
- Destination Wedding Specialist: Carol, Barefoot Bridal
- Headpiece and earrings: Elena’s Bridal Accessories
- Robe: Kaftan and Brides
- Cake: Cake Studio Bavaro
- Wedding Officiant: Alejandro Angulo
- Bridesmaids dresses: Amazon Honey Qiao
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