Inside Kate Brien and David Kitz’s Tulum Wedding

We worked with the incredibly talented Happy Menocal to design our crest and invitation suite. I love the fun weekend guide to Tulum, mapping out the wedding festivities including welcome margaritas, yoga with Kyle Miller, and our pre-wedding fiesta. David and I awaiting the guests at our pre-wedding fiesta at our favorite restaurant in Tulum, Él Tabano. I wore an Oscar de la Renta caftan and a Céline clutch. Mariachis greeted the guests as they entered the fiesta. Our wedding planners, Bash Please, totally transformed the restaurant to the point that we hardly recognized the space. Dinner menus consisting of Chaya and Black Bean Salad, Caramel and Tomato Shrimp and of course, Tacos, were hand written and placed on each table alongside festive floral arrangements and table runners. A special moment surrounded by friends during David’s sister’s speech. She ended by stating that what binds the two of us together is kindness. My Valentino dress hanging in our hotel room as I was getting ready. I will never love a dress more. My sister and best friend zipping me into my dress before the ceremony. David was so nervous to get ready without me, as normally I’d be the one to make sure his collar was straight and everything was in place. But of course, he looked perfect. I loved how David’s simple boutonniere made of an orange bougainvillea brought out the faint pinstripe in his Façonnable linen suit. David picked out vintage pocketknives for each of the men in our wedding party that he gave to them before the ceremony. Taking a moment to myself before walking down the aisle. Butterflies. We were so lucky to have our favorite florist, Moon Canyon, come out to Tulum for the wedding. Kristen Caissie created a delicate bouquet made of bougainvillea, chrysanthemums, butter marigolds, roses, tuberose, anthurium, ranunculus, and rice flower with hints of tropical greens. Inside of the bouquet I carried a heart-shaped locket, which held a photograph of my mother, as I wanted her to walk down the aisle with me. My sister had carried this locket down the aisle at her wedding, and she lent it to me as my something borrowed. The wedding started at 4:00 p.m., so we decided to greet guests with coconuts as opposed to cocktails to help hydrate before the long night ahead. Each guest was given a sea grass pouch filled with dried chamomile and rose petals to throw at us as we walked up the aisle, taking our first steps as husband and wife. My brother-in-law, Alejandro, walking my niece and nephew, Francesca and Luca, down the aisle. I love the proud look on my dad’s face as he walked me down the aisle. Of course, all I could see was David. David watching me walk down the aisle, as his best man, Kevin, played the guitar in the background. We stood under an arch made of palm fronds, surrounded by jungle greenery. Our officiant and friend, Jason, was hilarious. I was either laughing or crying throughout the entire ceremony. A few of our friends watching the ceremony, feeling the love. The kiss! Walking up the aisle as our friends and family showered us with love, cheers, and dried flowers. One kiss just wasn’t enough! Our first moment alone as husband and wife. I’m pretty sure I was crying. The dinner was held inside of a thatched-roof palapa. Long tables were placed close together, and both dinner and wine were served family style, to give that intimate dinner-party feel. We worked with our florist to create rustic centerpieces that looked more gathered than arranged—featuring wooden bowls filled with tropical greens, aloe vera, and local fruits and flowers. Friends and family greeting us as we entered the reception. So much love. We opted for simple, rustic place settings with fringed napkins and teak flatware. Happy Menocal painted our menus, which consisted of watermelon salad with edible flowers, grouper al pastor, short rib in pre-Hispanic sauce, grilled vegetables and roasted potatoes, and tres leches cake for dessert. After beautiful speeches from our friends and family, David and I had planned on making a final toast to all of our guests. Instead, David stole the mic and made an impromptu toast to me. It was my favorite moment of the weekend, and there was not a dry eye in the place. During our first dance to The Zombies’s “This Will Be Our Year.” Our DJ, Austin Peters, was so amazing—he kept us dancing for nearly seven hours. The best part was that David and I didn’t leave each other’s side all night long.