Our Island Elopement
Hey, loves! My name is Jenn Cordell and this is the story of my now-husband (then fiancé) and I pulled off the impromptu wedding of our dreams.
Where should we start? How about on the couch in our living room discussing Charlie’s 25th birthday trip. About two weeks before we got on the boat to Useppa to celebrate Charlie, we were casually chatting about errands we needed to run before setting sail. All the usual things were on our list: snacks, drinks, new swimsuits, the whole nine.
To preface this next part: Charlie and I were engaged for a year before this story begins and we had already been bouncing around wedding plans but we weren’t married to any ideas.
While we were going through our trip list, we both stopped, looked at each other, and I really can’t remember which of us said “Why don’t we just get married on Useppa?” but that was the moment our epic elopement began.
Before I get into how we did this, I want to stress that there’s really no wrong way to elope. Yes, some family members and friends are going to feel jilted but this is about you and your partner, no one else.
So, let’s get into it!
Step 1: Find a Venue & Set the date
The scale of your elopement will determine how high up the priority list the venue is. If you’re planning to go to the courthouse like a couple of badasses, you’ve already nailed what most traditional brides spend MONTHS agonizing over.
For us, the venue was the easiest part. Charlie and I were already planning a trip to the stunning Useppa Island for his 25th birthday so we just folded the ceremony into our 4-day trip. The plan was already super low-key with just a few close friends joining us so we were able to keep our vibe just how we like it.
Befitting to our “devil may care, but I don’t” attitude about the whole thing, we didn’t even pick a spot on the island to hold the ceremony until the day before our ceremony. We arrived on the day of Charlie’s birthday and wanted to focus on that first. Our anniversary being two short days after Charlie’s birthday means I have my work cut out for me every August.
Enter stage left: Jacquie Galvin. I feel like she deserves her own blog on this topic. It’s difficult, to sum up, who Jacquie is to Charlie and me but in short, she’s our landlord/slightly older friend/mother of Charlie’s best friend who passed away…the list just goes on.
I had the sense that Jacquie was stressing a little more about the ceremony spot than we were (thankfully). She took a golf cart and her phone all around the island trying to find the perfect location for us to say our vows. And when I say she found it, that woman found it.
And when I say she found it, that woman found it.
The moral of this part of the story is: find yourself a Jacquie.
The cost of our ceremony spot was $0. Seriously.
Step 2: Pick your fit
Before you start thinking you have to buy a “real” wedding dress or tux/suit to rock on your special day, let me tell you that you can wear whatever you want. Remember this day is about you and your partner!
Personally, I chose a simple blush pink dress that I found on sale for $80 at Nordstrom. Charlie pulled from his own closet a chose a very dapper ocean blue Michael Khor suit he bought for the LLRM x Grace for Grant launch party
I feel obligated to mention a small hiccup with picking a dress off the rack only days before our wedding: tailoring. My dress just needed a little help in the bodice, removing excess fabric that bulked out the silhouette. I found a highly rated seamstress in Tampa to take in the bodice and sew in a snap to cover my cleave of wonders a little more. I’m not going to name the business only because I left a little unhappy but that was because of the time crunch and I’m not trying to skew opinions on a hardworking small business here.
Long story short: the snap placed at my cleavage pulled the fabric in the wrong way ultimately leaving a gap my dear friends had to safety pin shut right before I walked out the door. It didn’t turn out as perfect as I would have liked BUT it wasn’t the end of the world.
Side note ladies and gentlemen: You’re allowed to get dressed up again and take more pictures if you don’t love the original ones.
"The Pretty Stuff" Cost Breakdown
“The Pretty Stuff” Cost Breakdown
Jenn’s dress: $80 at Nordstrom
Tailoring: $50
Charlie’s suit: already in the closet
Charlie’s pocket square: $15 at Macy’s
Wedding flowers: free (they were picked on the island)
Charlie’s wedding band: $150 from GentlemansBands on Etsy
Jenn’s wedding band: $70 on Etsy
Step 3: Legal Stuff
Let’s talk about legal stuff here, at least for Florida marriages.
Remember:
Your state may have different requirements for the marriage license application
You have the get the marriage license before you tie the knot
Florida marriage licenses are valid for 60 days
Before we left on our trip, we made our way down to our local County Clerks’ office to fill out the paperwork (which wasn’t bad actually). At the time, our county wasn’t requiring appointments but I would definitely recommend checking before you go to avoid being turned away (hello personal experience).
Since we’re both Florida residents, we were required to present our State Issued IDs and write in our SSNs (you don’t need to have your SS card with you). The first part of the paperwork was on the computer and basically went over general identification questions, this took us both less than 10 minutes. After that, we sat for about 2 seconds before we were called to the counter to fill out some more official paperwork and oath that we weren’t brother and sister. No more than 25 minutes after arriving we were walking out with our marriage license both in awe of how easy that had just been.
Now for the Officiant. In Florida, literally, anyone can marry you, it’s kind of ridiculous. In the end, we chose to have a close friend of Charlie’s officiate for us, and by the power vested in him by www.universallifechurch.com, Gabe was ordained in about 20 seconds for $0. I can’t make this shit up.
Before returning your marriage license, make sure to fill out the bottom and grab your officiant plus two witnesses for their signatures. It’s a good idea to keep everything in the envelope provided to you with the blank license so nothing gets lost (it sat in my purse the whole time).
We were told by our local County Clerk that they recommend the couple return the license in person rather than sending it with the officiant. This way you’ll avoid any snail mail hiccups and walk out with your official marriage certificate.
Side note: Ladies (or gents!), if you’re planning to change your name, you’ll need to visit your local Social Security office to initiate the process after you’ve returned your marriage license to the County Clerk. With the pandemic still going on, SS offices are not operating at full capacity so you may need to make an appointment. After the SS office, head over to the DMV for a driver’s license update (we all know IG saw it first though).
Step 4: Capture the moment
Ok, so you’re eloping? Excellent, love the untraditional route. BUT what does a traditional wedding have over an elopement? Time to find and book a photographer.
This is a biggie and to preface: it’s not always going to work out like this. Charlie and I were extremely blessed to have this connection.
Charlie’s “uncle”, really his dad’s lifelong best friend, is a professional photographer and videographer. That personal contact gave us the ultimate opportunity to capture our wedding day and luckily he was available to make the trip to Useppa.
If you can’t find a professional photographer in time, THAT’S OKAY! Some of my favorite footage of me walking down the “aisle” came from Jacquie’s iPhone. So, if you’re pressed for time and there’s no photographer in view, pick a friend or family member that has that natural knack for picture taking (their IG grid will probably help you decide) and give them guidance on what you want to be captured. I’m not knocking professional photographers here, but you’d be surprised at the quality of portrait mode when you really need it.
The total cost of our photography & videography: a 2 night's stay with us in the Halycon House on Useppa + an island t-shirt
Moments captured by Rob Mason Photography
Step 5: Check the vibe
You and your partner know best how you want to spend the day and celebrate your marriage. Setting the venue and vibe will shape your memories of the experience. Of course, compromise where you can (and want to), BUT don’t let the essence of what you envision get lost in other people’s ideas of “the perfect day”.
For me and Charlie, we were determined to have the least stressful wedding day possible. We just had a feeling that we were meant to get married like this and things would fall into place on their own schedule (like the ceremony spot). So when the “big day” rolled around, our little group hit the pool, had a few drinks, and I didn’t get back to the house until 2 pm to start getting ready.
Now, even though our plans were flexible and invariably off-beat, there were still a few personal traditions I wanted to keep. The most important tradition was the time I spent getting ready and soaking up the love we received from all of our friends. When we got back to the house, I immediately went upstairs to the gorgeous master bedroom we were staying in, slipped into the wedding robe that Charlie gifted to me, set up all my favorite Downton Abbey wedding episodes, and took my time.
The moments I spent getting ready truly made my whole wedding day complete. In those perfect hours leading up to the ceremony, I felt so loved by all of our sweet friends knocking on the door asking if I need anything. I was so pampered, with drinks being served, my jewelry polished, my hair done for me, all the things. Our friends went above and beyond to make our elopement the magical experience it turned out to be.
Step 6: Celebrate
The most important part of getting married, at least in my opinion, is commemorating the moment you and your partner made a binding covenant before God, friends, family, and nature. It’s a beautiful thing when the stars align and you find yourself in a moment that you can truly call “just right”. All the paths I’ve walked throughout my life led me to the moment I came down the aisle to Clair de Lune toward the love of my life. I will forever be changed by the time we spent on Useppa Island. It was so intoxicating that we couldn’t even leave on schedule. Charlie and I were literally packed, with our things on the dock ready to be loaded on the boat, and we both couldn’t make ourselves leave. So, the first few days of our 5-day honeymoon were spent lounging by the pool at the Collier Inn, sipping strawberry-mango (“strango” as Charlie calls it) daiquiris, in absolute and utter sunkissed happiness.
A Thank You Note to the Useppa Island Club
A special thanks to Ginny for the glorious words she spoke as we were blessed into the island. To Anthony for going above and beyond to make sure we were taken care of on our honeymoon. To Patrick for always keeping it light and getting us where we needed to be. To all on Useppa who made us feel welcome and at home, we endlessly thank you for your kindness.
Written by Jenn Zipperer Cordell
Jenn is a creative marketer, writer, artist, equestrian, and Chief Marketing Officer of Live Life's Rich Moments. She is based in Tampa, FL with her husband Charlie. They share four dogs Annie, Bear, Stella, and Watson; a cat Ziva; and a horse Indy.
