A Classic Wedding at Congress Hall in Cape May

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

Soeurette & Matt spent just over a year planning for exactly what their wedding turned out to be: a celebration of coming together with family & friends in a convenient to get around beachside location that is significant to both of their families. The design was classic, elegant, and followed a traditional blue and white color scheme. Bridesmaids and the couple’s mothers wore any style blue or floral blue dress they liked (as approved by the bride), to echo the blues of the ocean. “We did not want a full "nautical theme" as we went for a more sophisticated and elegant approach to our wedding, but we did have a few elements that were influenced by the beach and our love for the ocean,” said Souerette.

Keep scrolling to see all of the beautiful photos by Magi Fisher. Shannon Wellington Weddings planned every detail, A Garden Party LLC created all of the amazing florals and Sea Isle Films filmed this special day at Congress Hall. You can see all the images in the full gallery.

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

Soeurette & Matt planned for many traditional family elements with their own twist. All of the graphic design for invitations, ceremony cards, and custom drink sign were designed by Souerette and printed on fine cotton paper with Thermographic print. Soeurette’s grandparents on her father's side are from the UK, so as a nod to them and family history, she chose British designers for both her wedding gown by Savannah Miller and after-party dress by Self Portrait. The ceremony incorporated a reading by Ernest Hemingway from "A Farewell to Arms," one of Matt's favorite books. Soeurette walked down the aisle to a family favorite hymn, Be Thou My Vision. The ceremony cards, designed by Souerette, featured a tribute to her aunt who passed away suddenly only a few months before the wedding. They also included one of their favorite writings, "A Marriage," written by Mark Twain to his wife shortly before their marriage.

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

The cocktail hour was decorated by A Garden Party LLC with all blue and white china as flower pot holders and a personal touch from a collection of Souerette’s blue & white Couleur Nature Design linens that came from France. Instead of full colorful tablecloths during the reception, the space echoed the cocktail hour linens with the same blue and white print as table runners over white Italian linens that were covered in candles instead of flowers. The dinner was European style, meaning all of the courses were served prior to many hours of dancing!

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

From Souerette:

“Our invitation addressing and escort cards were written by the same calligrapher, Honor Canon, who did a beautiful job with navy Spencarian style. The escort cards were on El's Paper (from Maine) with tiny mussel shells watercolored on the top of each one. Once guests found way to our long rectangular tables, they were seated by custom and handwritten by name mussel shell place cards that came from Savannah, Georgia. Each seat had a custom watercolor menu made by Lauren Quesada and the signature Congress Hall China. After an intimate candlelit dinner with a local green salad and a choice of halibut or filet, our band (which felt more like a concert at times) had everyone up dancing the night away to a playlist customized by the bride and groom. The playlist was almost entirely classics with a mix of Motown, lots of Bruce Springsteen, Classic Rock, and a bit of 90's/early 2000's. Our first dance was to High Tide or Low Tide by Bob Marley, a sweet reggae song we both adore. We entered the reception to "Got to Give It Up" by Marvin Gaye. The reception & cocktail hour felt almost like we moved certain parts of our apartment into Congress Hall! We are all about different shades of blue mixed with white, candles, and great music, which is exactly what our reception had.

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

“Overall, the wedding had incredible, optimistic, and loving energy throughout the entire weekend. Everyone was dancing, smiling, and just so clearly happy to be together once again. We could not have been luckier with beautiful August feeling weather and everyone was able to enjoy the beach and even got some surfing in over the wedding weekend. It may sound cliche, but to us (thanks to our families and incredible vendors/photographer/planner), it was truly the most memorable and best weekend of our lives.”

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

Soeurette’s advice for future brides:

“Be communicative with your partner, with your vendors, and with your family. Also, go for the wedding you always dreamed of! Do not hold back on ideas or dreams. Set monthly goals and a timeline a year out with benchmarks for where you hope to be in terms of planning goals each month. I loved using Martha Stewart Weddings blog for advice and Brides also had some great articles for tips. I was also a weather freak and bought the Farmer's Almanac almost a year out to help predict the weather.. but I am not sure I would recommend this as it drove me a bit crazy!

Make sure you plan date nights and time alone together in the weeks leading up to your wedding. It is so important to have time to express worries, stress, etc. and just be sure you are on the same page in terms of planning.

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding

I'm convinced the couple's love sets a tone for a wedding, so be your best and feel your best. The more you dance, smile, laugh and enjoy yourself, the more your party will follow! At least this is how it went at ours... maybe it was because of all the Martinis… but either way it was just a very happy time for all!”

A Stylish Congress Hall, Cape May Wedding