Julia and Eli’s story began when they were just 17, working as overnight camp counselors at Camp Rotary. What started as a friendship continued throughout high school and into college, eventually shaping some of the biggest decisions of their lives.
Although they initially attended different universities, Eli ultimately transferred to the University of Delaware so the two could finish college together. Years later, he enlisted Julia’s mom to help pull off an elaborate proposal disguised as a family lunch in Narragansett, Rhode Island. The surprise ended overlooking the ocean, where Eli asked Julia to marry him.
It was fitting, then, that the Atlantic would become the backdrop for another defining moment in their story. For their wedding photographed by Photos by Annalee and hosted at Misselwood Estate, Julia and Eli paired the property’s natural coastal beauty with a tropical-inspired floral palette by Meredith McCarthy Floral Design, thoughtful details, and a celebration centered above all else on the people they love.
A wedding morning filled with coastal character
The contrasting getting-ready spaces at Misselwood Estate created two distinct settings for the beginning of the day.
Julia prepared in a bright and airy bridal suite, while Eli and the groomsmen gathered in a wood-paneled library. The difference between the two spaces brought its own visual interest to the wedding morning, moving from soft natural light and bridal details to the richer, more traditional character of the library.
Both offered a beautiful introduction to the estate before the celebration moved outside toward the water.
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Tropical wedding flowers by the Atlantic
Rather than relying on a traditional coastal palette, Julia and Eli introduced color through tropical-inspired wedding flowers in shades of green, pink, and mauve.
The richer tones offered an unexpected contrast to the blues, grays, and natural textures of the Atlantic coastline. Against the historic estate and oceanfront setting, the florals felt vibrant without overpowering the landscape.
The result offered a different interpretation of an oceanfront wedding: romantic and connected to the coast, but without relying on overtly nautical details.
Waterfront portraits along the rocky coastline
Some of the day’s most striking portraits took Julia and Eli beyond the manicured estate and directly toward the water.
The rocky coastline created a beautifully raw backdrop, with the Atlantic stretching behind them. Against that landscape, the polished wedding fashion and colorful floral design took on an almost editorial quality.
The portraits also connected the wedding back to another important moment in their story. Just as Eli had proposed overlooking the ocean in Narragansett, the water once again became part of the setting as they began married life together.
An oceanfront celebration at Misselwood Estate
With its sweeping views of the Atlantic, Misselwood Estate didn’t require the couple to manufacture a sense of place.
Instead, the wedding design worked alongside the property’s natural surroundings. The tropical-inspired palette brought warmth and color to the coastal landscape while allowing the ocean to remain one of the celebration’s most memorable visual elements.
That balance between intentional design and natural beauty carried throughout the day. Nothing needed to compete with the setting; the details simply gave it a point of view that felt distinctly Julia and Eli.
A tented reception designed around togetherness
The celebration continued beneath a tent, where the reception shifted the focus from the dramatic oceanfront setting to the people gathered inside.
Thoughtful details and emotional moments filled the evening, but the atmosphere remained joyful and people-centered rather than overly formal. For a couple whose relationship began with friendship at 17 and grew through so many different chapters of life, that sense of connection felt especially fitting.
The tented setting also allowed the wedding’s colorful floral story to continue into the reception, carrying the greens, pinks, and mauves from the surrounding celebration into a warm and inviting space for dinner and dancing.
A love story that grew up alongside them
Julia and Eli didn’t meet at the perfect time or through some elaborate twist of fate. They met at 17 while working at summer camp and simply continued choosing to be part of each other’s lives.
Their friendship stretched from high school into college. Eli transferred schools so they could finish that chapter together. Years later, a carefully orchestrated family lunch became an oceanfront proposal, and eventually, another stretch of coastline became the place where they celebrated their marriage. That history gave their Misselwood Estate wedding an emotional foundation that no design detail could manufacture.
Surrounded by the Atlantic, tropical-inspired florals, and the family and friends who had watched their story unfold, Julia and Eli created a wedding that felt intentional without losing its ease – beautifully designed, genuinely joyful, and centered on what had mattered to them from the beginning: being together.
