After they’d been courting three years—a few of them lengthy distance between New York and Washington, DC—Ruben Marinbach determined to suggest to Rebecca Winship on a milestone trip. “It was my 30th birthday, and we took a trip to Jackson Hole, Wyoming with a bunch of our best friends,” says Rebecca. On the birthday itself, the group have been posing for a couple of images in entrance of the Teton Mountains when Ruben bought down on one knee.
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It was within the shadow of one other mountain vary, the Pitons of St. Lucia, that the couple (who at the moment are primarily based within the Miami-West Palm Beach space of Florida) have been married this previous May. Given their various backgrounds—Ruben grew up in Long Island, New York, whereas Rebecca was born in Germany, raised in California, and has household in England—a vacation spot marriage ceremony made sense. Plus, as Rebecca says: “We needed one thing that was actually private, type of cinematic, extra intentional. We cherished the thought of a full expertise for our company and ourselves.” Ahead, they explain how they plotted their intimate Caribbean celebration at a private villa for 47 guests, from finding a way around ‘island time’ to bringing Romanian touches into the celebration and a organizing a catamaran party under the stars.
Look past the resorts
Though Ruben and Rebecca briefly thought of marrying someplace in Europe, every had grown up near the ocean, and that mutual connection to the water pushed them to start out wanting within the Caribbean, which might even be extra accessible to their Florida dwelling. “We knew we wanted something different, something that felt unique to us,” the bride explains. Eschewing the thought of a paint-by-numbers seashore resort, they as a substitute targeted their web searches on cool houses and villas within the islands through websites like VRBO and Airbnb. When they got here throughout the La Belle Hélène, they immediately fell in love. “We knew right away that this was it, so we booked it sight unseen,” she says.
What made La Belle Hélène so particular? The former dwelling of a British aristocrat, the non-public property provides ten bedrooms, a non-public workers, its personal boat mooring and jetty, a pool and seashore bar, and extra. It had European architectural thrives the couple cherished, like stately columns, a large veranda, scrolling ironwork, and a sublime shade palette of cream, taupe, and a fairly jade inexperienced. “We loved the idea of bringing together my European heritage with a tropical setting,” says Rebecca, for whom the grand garden with its view of the Pitons sealed the deal. “I’m a very visual person, and I could see our wedding coming to life there,” she says.
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Work with locals
Once the couple have been involved with the villa, they discovered that the property supervisor, Febornia William, additionally labored as a marriage planner—and can be their native planner for the occasion. A few months after reserving the house, they visited St. Lucia to see it in particular person and meet with potential native distributors, all of whom the property supervisor knew personally, or had labored with beforehand, and may vouch for. “We loved that in terms of a villa versus a resort, you can directly support the local economy and the community of St. Lucia.” Rebecca says. “Meeting all the vendors in person was honestly a dream. One of my favorite parts of the whole experience was working closely with these people.”
Their flowers, by TLC Events, have been all domestically grown—save for some cala lilies, as a result of Rebecca cherished the search for her bouquet—whereas the musicians included an area string ensemble led by violinist Michael Fletcher, and DJ Romanus from Soul Bliss Entertainment. For meals, the couple labored with an area chef, Fabian Vigee, on a Caribbean menu that provided steak and in fact a great deal of fish, for dishes like mahi mahi en papillote, Caribbean shrimp kebabs, and spiny lobster bisque. “I’m the foodie in the relationship, so I was very involved in helping to decide the food options, cuisine varieties and how everything was served,” says Ruben. The groom helped develop three customized cocktails for the marriage, like a St. Lucia-style Old-Fashioned with banana liqueur and a Piton Punch with the native, beloved Chairman’s Reserve rum.