A Sunset Sail Into Forever

Bride Dominique Gibson shares how she and husband Casey met, became engaged and had a beautiful sunset–sailing wedding with the help of SunQuest Beach Weddings. Dominique shares the most special moments of their wedding day and provides some insights to couples who are in the wedding planning process.

Casey and I met in college and were in the same friend group for about a year. We started hanging out more and more just the two of us and decided to go to a sorority–date function together. We started dating a few months later. After graduation, we both got jobs in Huntsville, Alabama. Casey got a job helping build the new FBI headquarters and I got a job as a radar engineer. We got engaged on November 27, 2021, at an apple orchard in Huntsville, Alabama.

When I said yes to my wedding dress, the bridal shop, The Something Blue Shoppe, had a pianist play the wedding march, which was a special touch. With the help of Urban Altered, we had the detachable sleeves of my wedding dress custom designed and specially made.

Our ceremony was on May 6, 2023, at Resurrection Catholic Church in Miramar Beach, Florida, where Father Guido had his sweet dog, Grace, as his helper while he spoke. Grace brought the book of readings to and from the altar.

Our reception was on board the Solaris Yacht, which we rented through SunQuest Beach Weddings. We chose a boat for our reception because we both grew up in the Panhandle on the water.

The staff of the boat set up and took down all the decor without us having to lift a finger. The wedding planner with SunQuest Beach Weddings helped every step of the way, and I never had a question go unanswered. The photographer captured every single moment in the most beautiful way possible.

We had our first dance on the top deck and then we read private vows to each other right after. The best part was that the reception ended with the most amazing sunset we’ve ever seen.

As a special touch, we included our two dogs, Astro and Ryder, and of course they were featured as our signature drinks at our wedding. My mom had my bouquet wrap made from her wedding dress and I made each of my bridesmaids bouquets wraps from the lace of my own wedding dress.

We left the day after our wedding for our honeymoon to spend two weeks in Greece. We visited Athens, Mykonos and Santorini.

Some advice I would give to couples planning a wedding is to let go of the small things when planning. The day is all about your actual marriage, and there will be things that don’t go perfectly according to plan. The process is more enjoyable the less you stress.

Photographer: Jessica Winkler Photography

Venue: SunQuest Cruises — Solaris Yacht

Wedding planner: SunQuest Beach Weddings

Bridal shop: The Something Blue Shoppe

Dress: Essence of Australia

Alterations and custom sleeves: Urban Altered

Shoes: Badgley Mischka

Hair and makeup: Myah Glam Co.

Spray tan: Envy Airbrush Tanning