Gothic-Inspired Halloween Wedding | Amber and Pete’s Howe Island Ceremony & Wedding Reception at the Secret Garden Inn, Kingston

If you could travel in time with your partner, would you visit the past or the future?.

“I’d want to go to Victorian Europe! Definitely would not want to see the future. That seems depressing.”- Amber

Since it’s nearly Halloween, how about a Halloween Wedding blog?

Now, just because you decide to have your wedding on Halloween doesn’t mean you need to dress up like a ghoul, or involve any aspects of horror.

In fact, it could mean that you’re just into all things goth and vintage, and you want to wear a black dress and a red cape and—

Oops, I’m giving it all away before I’ve properly introduced the story!

Let’s start from the beginning.

Amber and Pete are two cool kids in love. They are young, but their love is mature, like the kind you cultivate after years being together and weathering all sorts of shite.

They wanted to get married on Halloween, and asked if I could photograph it, and of course I said YES!

Amber loves all things Victorian and vintage, so this date seemed appropriate.

The plan was to have a ceremony at Amber’s parents’ house on Howe Island (which is the only one of the three islands near Kingston I hadn’t photographed a wedding at yet, so I was absolutely dying to take the ferry over!), and then hop into town and have dinner at the Secret Garden Inn, the newest and hottest-in-town airBnB.

Everything about those wedding plans seemed to scream QUIRKY LOVE! Why? Because we love quirky stuff, we love weddings that showcase a unique and personal vision, whether it’s a living room ceremony, or a limo ride to Waterloo, or what have you.

We’re there for all that quirky stuff. Not the princess bride stuff so much.

Yeah, that’s us.

If given the choice between a Barbie and trucks, we would have picked the Rubik’s cube 😜 (Although I lie… I did used to adore my neighbour’s Barbie doll when I was a child living in communist bulgaria. That doll seemed to have perfect craftsmanship, perfect construction, and she was bubbly with pink and blue eyeshadow! Wow! The Commie-era barbie knock-offs were hollow with sparse hair that would fall out at the slightest touch, so can you see why I was so mesmerised?)

Wow, that went off on a tangent quick.

Let’s get back to our story.

Amber and Pete’s Halloweed Wedding started off with a quick bite to eat at the Howe Island house. There were delicious spreads of cheeses and drinks, and people mingled. Amber gave out beautiful hand-crafted wedding gifts to each of her closest folks. They were pieced of wood she’s painted herself, with stunning imagery. Can you guess the theme of the imagery? Halloween, of course!

After this, we walked a short trip to the adjacent field outside, where the ceremony was to be held.

The arbour was a hand-crafted wrought-iron creation resembling a tomb. (Spooky or what?)

Amber looked STUNNING in her black gown and scarlett velvet cape. Pete was dashing in a matching dark ensemble - a black shirt and pants, and a burgundy tie.

After the ceremony, we did a few family photos right there at the arbour, and tucked in among the trees.

Once the family photos were out of the way, we hung back with the couple so we could get photographs of the two of them. These are some of my favourite photographs of all time.

We wanted to capture the cape in all its glory, so Amber would lift it up with her arm, then drop her arm quickly, leaving the cape floating in mid-air for a split second. I would grab the photograph at just that moment, freezing it in flight. The effect was beautiful.

Together with her makeup and hair, this look was out of this world. It was truly breathtaking.

When the photos were finished, we all headed to the ferry, to go for dinner.

The Secret Garden Inn was still very new at that time, and they were just opening up a second location. I was blown away by the details inside. Amber told me she loved how it was renovated and decorated with vintage details, rather than making the entire place modern, as is the trend nowadays.

She particularly loved the main staircase, and we had talked about taking a photograph of the couple on that staircase, and then editing it in a vintage sepia tone. (Sepia is not to be overused. Sometimes amateur photographers - me included - try out sepia here and there to mix things up, and typically this fails big time. But for this particular photograph, Amber was specifically searching for a vintage look and feel. And sepia delivers just that.

The family sat down for a meal together, and I took my seat among them (have I mentioned how thankful I am to do what I do? To be able to share meals with folks who are celebrating with their loved ones is a special kind of privilege for sure). The food was delicious, and we all smiled as the chef explained the creations to us.

And then it was time to cut the cake.

You wouldn’t expect this cake to have been white, I hope. It’s Halloween, after all. So naturally, the cake was black. And delicious.

I took a few more photos, and then at about 7pm I left the family to enjoy the rest of their evening together.

It was such a wonderful day, a beautifully unique way to celebrate this marriage, on Halloween, with a great bunch of people to support Amber and Pete. It wasn’t a BIG crowd, but it was definitely a good crowd 😊

I loved it so much that I actually didn’t know how to blog about it (which is why I waited nearly a year, I suppose). I was worried that my words wouldn’t do it justice. In the end, I just thought - what the heck, I’ll let you enjoy the photographs, and hardly anyone ever reads this text anyway, right? haha.

So, if you’ve read this far, I congratulate you, and I thank you.

If you have read this far, please leave me a comment, so that I can know you. And thank you personally 😜

Amazing Vendors who contributed to make this wedding beautiful:

Cake: @amyscakecompany
Flowers: @lspdesigns

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