Daphne and Keefo were spending a weekend in Maine with her family when the couple decided to head for a dip in the ocean. “Before he went in he asked me to hold his phone, his wallet, and ‘this,’” she remembers. “He held out the ring, got down on one knee and proposed. It was overcast so we had the beach to ourselves.” When they returned to Daphne’s family’s house, everyone waiting there knew what had just happened. “We were welcomed back with many eager faces and lots of champagne.”
For most of her life, Daphne had spent every summer on Prouts Neck, a tiny peninsula in southern Maine. It was no surprise then that once engaged, the couple never really considered getting married anywhere else. “It’s a really special, tight-knit community and a beautiful spot,” she explains. “There are very few hotels in the area, so eighteen different families from the community lent us their homes to house guests.” Close family friends also offered to hold Daphne and Keefo’s wedding reception in their backyard, which overlooks the beach. With such a gorgeous setting secured, the couple hired florist Stephanie Pilk from Snug Harbor Farms and planner Craig Williams of Churchill Events and worked on showing off the natural beauty of the peninsula. “The rehearsal dinner featured grasses and topiaries (Keefo’s mother’s vision!), while at the reception we had gray farm tables with greenery and a mix of pale pink and white flowers,” the bride explains. “Keefo and I collected small rocks from the beach to use as place cards, and I personally wrote every guest’s name on them.”
With the date set for late September, Daphne started the dress search at New York’s Mark Ingram Atelier, a bridal favorite. She knew she wanted something feminine and ethereal, and thankfully the first dress her stylist brought her, an Oscar de la Renta design, ended up being the one she chose. “The flowers on it are a combination of beading, stitching, and paint—no appliqué!” she says. To match the pale blush lining of the dress, Daphne wore a pink satin Stuart Weitzman sandals, paired with her mother’s earrings and a veil borrowed from her best friend.
As for Keefo, Daphne admits the whole process of choosing his navy Suit Supply suit took around 10 minutes. “He looks handsome in everything, so it was easy for him,” she says. Bridesmaids, meanwhile, had only one styling directive: to choose a long or tea length dress. “Despite the lack of direction, everything came together so beautifully,” she adds.
The day of their wedding, guests gathered at a small wooden church that dates back to 1890. “The interior feels like the inside of a ship,” Daphne explains. The couple wanted the ceremony to feel personal, so they asked a cousin to co-officiate. “It was fun, lighthearted, and touching,” she adds. “We drove away from the church in a golf cart adorned with multi-colored balloons.”
Cocktails overlooking the sunset followed, and later guests were ushered into the tent, where the band, the Hudson Project, played a short set before dinner. “Everyone was chanting ‘one more song!’ Before they’d even sat down, so we knew we were in for a fun night,” Daphne says. Family and close friends delivered toasts, while guests enjoyed a surf and turf meal that included lollipop lamb chops and halibut. For their first dance, the newlyweds chose “Walk of Life” by the Dire Straits, and stayed on the dance floor for the rest of the evening, which meant they never even got a chance to try their funfetti wedding cake!
After the reception ended, guests headed over to the Black Point Inn next door to keep the party going. But even when that winded down, the celebration was far from over. “We had an after-after party of about 20 people standing around singing along as our friend played the piano late into the night,” she adds. As for whisking off to a honeymoon the next day, the couple had actually already done that pre-wedding. “We were moving and switching jobs so we knew it was the best opportunity,” Daphne explains. “We went to South Africa to Cape Town and on safari; it was the most incredible trip. But we did sneak away for a few days to Bermuda to unwind after the weekend, too.”
