A Warm and Colorful Wedding in Longboat Key with Saturated Florals and Custom Details
Zoë Hammonds and Nicolai Breinholdt first met at an international high school in London in 2015. The couple describes their first impression of each other as being “simple but boring” in the sense that they both thought the other was cute. For most of high school, they stayed in their own social circles, only having the occasional casual conversation when they’d see each other in class or at parties.
“That changed during senior year,” they say, “when our friend groups started to overlap. We began spending more time together, usually during late nights with friends that somehow turned into even longer conversations between the two of us. We laughed constantly, talked about everything, and slowly realized that what had started as a crush had become something much more serious. By the time we graduated, we were in love and committed to doing, or at least trying, long distance.”
An International Romance
Immediately, college put Zoë and Nico’s relationship to the test. Nico stayed in London to go to King’s College, while Zoë went to school at the University of Miami. Over the course of their international romance, the couple built their relationship through FaceTime calls, countdowns, and making the most of every visit.
“Then COVID made the distance even harder,” they add, “and we went nine months without seeing each other. It was one of the most difficult stretches of our relationship, but it also made us more certain of what we had. Instead of pulling us apart, the distance brought us closer. We learned how to communicate, how to be patient, and how to choose each other even when being physically together was not an option.”
Engaged in New York City
Nico proposed on their seventh anniversary. He and Zoë had dinner reservations at Jungsik in Tribeca, and he suggested a drink beforehand at the speakeasy at Fouquet’s. Zoë had noticed she had not received an anniversary gift, which felt a little suspicious, but she had no idea what he had planned. At the end of their first drink, Nico handed her a card. The final line read, “Let’s stay here tonight.”
“We went upstairs to a suite that had been transformed with flowers, balloons, candles, and photographs from our years together,” Zoë describes. “Outside the window, it had started to snow. Nico got down on one knee, and the proposal was exactly what I would have wanted: romantic, thoughtful, private, and personal to us.”
“We learned how to communicate, how to be patient, and how to choose each other even when being physically together was not an option.”
After the engagement, the couple’s closest friends knocked on the door with champagne to celebrate before dinner. They ended the night at Jungsik, where a chef Zoë knows helped make the evening even more special with extra courses and plenty of celebratory drinks.
Planning a Wedding with Saturated Florals and Custom Details
Wedding planning began with a clear division of responsibilities. Zoë had a lot of opinions; Nico had very few. He trusted her vision but cared deeply about three things: the food, beverages, and music
“We worked with Brittany and the team at BeWed,” the couple says, “and the process was a dream.”
As a very Type A bride, Zoë was honest about wanting to make decisions early, and Brittany knew how to keep everything moving while also knowing when to reel her in. Zoë created a detailed design deck that became the guide for the wedding. It started with a Pinterest board and an idea for a soft garden wedding filled with white hydrangeas. But the more she planned, the more she realized that white was not enough. She wanted color, and lots of it. The final vision became warm, layered, and full of personality, with prints, saturated florals, and custom details.
The Wedding Day at The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort
The wedding day itself is still difficult to for the bride and groom to put into words.
“The adrenaline was unreal,” they recall. “There were nerves, happy tears, laughter, relief, and pure joy. Having friends and family from around the world together in one place, after so much anticipation, made the day feel almost surreal.”
The reception took place under a sailcloth tent on the Great Lawn at The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort, right beside the Gulf. Coral, blush, butter yellow, peach, and pink made up a rich, saturated color palette inspired by sunset. The flowers were lush and garden-like, with dahlias, orchids, garden roses, hydrangeas, anthuriums, and other seasonal blooms spilling across the tables and installations.
Dinner was designed to feel just as colorful as the room—a purple endive salad was served, which played off the coral chargers, along with pink-tinted butter. Guests chose between steak and sea bass. The couple could not agree on one cake flavor, so they chose two—mango passionfruit and strawberries and cream—and alternated the slices so every other guest received a different one. A few hours later, a dessert table appeared with meringue tarts, crème brûlée, chocolate truffles, and more.
For the after-party, everyone moved indoors to a room transformed into a moody speakeasy-style club. Disco balls lined the ceiling, the lighting shifted, and the formal reception became a late-night party. At midnight, Wagyu sliders, chicken tenders, fries, and other comfort food came out, which was exactly what everyone needed.
“Of course, not everything went perfectly,” the couple shares. “A sprinkler went off during the reception. During the ceremony, we forgot to hold hands. And during each planned dip, Zoë threw her head back instead of kissing Nico. Those imperfect moments are some of the funniest memories now. They made the day feel like ours.”
Honeymoon Plans
Planning a wedding proved to be more than enough for the couple to manage, so they have not taken their official honeymoon yet. Two weeks before their wedding in Longboat Key, they organized a “friend moon” to North Eleuthera in the Bahamas with some of their closest friends.
“Our dream honeymoon is still ahead of us,” the newlyweds say. “A safari in the Serengeti to see the Great Migration, followed by a few quiet days in Mauritius or another nearby island. After a love story built across cities, countries, and years apart, it feels fitting that our next chapter will include another adventure.”
WEDDING TALENT
Location: The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort, Longboat Key, FL; Planner: Be Wed; Floral Design: Gather & Grace; Lighting & Rentals: Stella Rose Events; Linen: Nuage Designs; Cake: Julie Deffense; Wedding Dress: Pnina Tornai; Bridal Salon: Kleinfeld; Afterparty Dress: Eisen Stein; Hair: Acqua Aveda; Makeup: Give Me Glam; Groom's Attire: Enzo Custom; Groom's Watch: Rolex; Engagement Ring: Shahla Karimi; Invitations: Tuesday Grace Designs; Entertainment: Curate Entertainment; Cinematography: Storybook Films; Photography: Everence Photography