Emily Driscoll and Garret Overlock’s love story started somewhat unconventionally. After initially meeting each other through a mutual friend during a trip to El Salvador, the two ended up becoming roommates in New York City for six months—he was waiting for a roommate to move to the city; she for her new apartment to be ready. The roomies really hit it off though, and during a weekend in Nantucket, right before Emily was scheduled to move out, they finally kissed.
Two years later, Emily and Garret were having dinner with a close group of friends when right before dessert, he pulled the ultimate surprise and proposed to her right then and there. “He hadn’t told anyone so everyone at the table exploded with excitement,” she remembers. “The restaurant immediately brought out Champagne and a bunch of other drinks to help us celebrate.”
Even though the bride had grown up summering in Martha’s Vineyard, they ultimately decided to tie the knot in Nantucket, where Garret’s family frequently vacationed as well. “We really wanted it to be a fun summer weekend for everyone,” explains Emily. “We are both super active and love the ocean, so Nantucket was the perfect spot for us.”
For her wedding dress, Emily, owner of clothing company Driscoll, knew she wanted something classic, but with a twist. She ended up finding a dress by Mira Zwillinger, and made a couple of adjustments to it to truly make it her own. “I took out the lining of the top when I had my first fitting,” she says. “We then added some extra small pieces of lace to make sure you couldn’t see anything that wasn’t meant to be seen!” As for her accessories, she kept things simple but meaningful. “I wore my godmother’s diamond earrings and a simple gold Cartier love bracelet that Garret gave me on the day of our wedding,” she adds. Like many modern brides these days, Emily decided she wanted her bridesmaids to wear white. “I designed and made their dresses in a white silk crepe with a streamlined silhouette, which I think went well with the style of my dress and the difference in material added a nice contrast.”
When the wedding weekend arrived, the couple kicked off the festivities with a relaxed barbecue at Garret’s parent’s house and a tennis tournament, complete with trophies for the winners. “We had the rehearsal right after the tennis tournament Friday afternoon, so we all went in our tennis whites and could then relax the rest of the afternoon before going to the dinner,” Emily says. All of the wedding events were held in Sconset, which was perfect, since all of their guests stayed in the area, too. “It was fun having everyone hanging out all weekend and being able to walk everywhere,” remembers the bride.
On the big day, Emily and Garret got married at the Sconset Union Chapel. “It’s small but so beautiful. It also holds significance because Garret was baptized there and his grandfather is buried there,” explains Emily. Since the chapel could only hold 180 people and the couple had 300 guests, the initial plan was to have the extra guests stand outside or sit on benches on the lawn. “It ended up raining on our wedding day and so it happened that our ceremony became the first to ever be live streamed from the chapel!” Emily explains. “We had all of the overflow go to the tennis club in Scoset and set up a big screen and served cocktails.”
After the ceremony, Mr. and Mrs. Overlock and their guests enjoyed cocktails and a seated dinner, while the bride’s father, her two sisters, and the groom’s brother all gave heartwarming wedding toasts. When it was time to dance, the couple chose “Like I’m Gonna Lose You” by Meghan Trainor and John Legend for their very first spin as husband and wife. Surrounded by friends and family, the two continued dancing well into the night. (It’s no wonder the bride had to arrange a quick change into another dress, which she also designed herself.) “My favorite part of the night was being lifted up by Garret’s friends and dancing to ‘Dancing on My Own’ by Robyn,” she says. “By the time the reception was over, we moved to another section of the beach club and had a DJ and more food—we were able to keep the party going, which was exactly what we wanted.”
