Blog— Weddings — Rhode Island — 2019 —
Quidnessett Country Club Wedding
Josh & Jill
St Robert Bellarmine Parish & Quidnessett Country Club
June 1st, 2019
As a wedding photographer, I've often found engagement sessions can be one of the best ways to get to know your couples before they say "I do" and last November, on a beautiful fall afternoon, I learned everything I needed to know about Josh and Jill when they wasted no time getting in the middle of a busy road for a photograph I had in mind. And they stayed there for take after take until we got it just right.
Because of that shoot, I knew how fun these two are and that was on full display on their wedding day at St. Robert Bellarmine Parish and Quidnessett Country Club back in June.
Josh and Jill had a beautiful, nearly stress-free day full of great little moments that showed off their amazing family dynamic and even better relationship.
And it didn't hurt that nearly every location that we went to proved to somehow be more beautiful than the last.
This was a day where, despite a ton of sunshine and heat, things couldn't have been much cooler.
Bridal Prep
My coverage of Josh and Jill's wedding day started with an abbreviated bridal prep session at Jill's parent's house. I say abbreviated because the bride-to-be was fully dressed and practically ready to go when I walked in.
Nevertheless, we made the most of the time we had as I shot a few candids of her putting the final touches on her look for the day and we took some time to grab bridal portraits and shots of her with each of her bridesmaids.
I love when there's time to relax before a wedding ceremony and Josh and JIll's planning gave us plenty. That made the ride to the chapel much easier than I'm used to and I could tell the bride-to-be appreciated the lack of worry about making it to the church on schedule.
The Wedding Ceremony
Speaking of the church, I'm a big fan of St. Robert Ballarmine Parish in Johnston. While I hadn't been there in quite some time as my last wedding in the building was in late 2017, it was nice to be at a familiar building that I knew would be beautiful inside.
And, as I've said countless times on this blog, I always find it great when a religious couple chooses a beautiful church to get married in as I think it enhances the spiritual nature of their day.
Josh & Jill's ceremony was exactly what I thought it would be: a classic Catholic mass with timeless traditions and beautiful moments between the bride and groom.
If I had to pick my favorite moment from Josh and Jill's ceremony, it would be the unique twist they put on the classic unity candle concept.
The two chose to use a unity cross to symbolize the way in which they were coming together as husband and wife. Josh held an outer cross symbol and Jill an inner design before they both joined the pieces together and while it's not often you see contemporary AND religious spins put on a wedding staple, I thought it was fitting for this day and this couple.
Bride & Groom Portraits
Following Josh and Jill's wedding, we reached my personal favorite part of their wedding day as the pair gave me more time than I usually ever get for bride and groom portraits thanks to a funky break in their schedule before the start of cocktail hour.
We started with a few photos outside of their church and decided to take a detour on our way to Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown by stopping at Roger Williams Park and I'm glad we did as the weather provided us some nice cloud cover and made for some of my favorite photos of the entire day as Josh and Jill walked along the hillside near the Temple of Music.
As excited as I was to grab these formals of Josh and Jill at Roger Williams Park, I really couldn't wait to get to Quidnessett as it's one of my favorite venues to shoot at and after an eventful time with the newlywed's friends and family members, we snapped a couple more bride and groom portraits before heading inside.
I didn't know it at the time but, apparently, Quidnessett Country Club recently underwent a pretty thorough renovation of their wedding ballrooms.
I've got to say, I absolutely LOVED the new look and am so glad I was one of the first photographers to shoot a wedding in the venue as it is absolutely beautiful.
The new look of the facility really made Josh and Jill's details pop. Not they needed the help, of course, as this pair has a great eye for the little things that make a wedding special. (Up to, and including, amazing cupcakes!)
I could tell by the way Josh and Jill interacted with their guests that their reception was going to be a lot of fun and they didn't disappoint.
The pair were welcomed into the room with a rousing ovation and really tugged at the heartstrings of their friends and family during their first dance--set to "Yours" by Russell Dickerson -- as they welcomed their young daughter onto the dance floor for a truly touching and beautiful moment that made more than one person in attendance a bit misty eyed.
Following that first dance, Josh and Jill sat down for two great toasts from their maid of honor and best man and a lovely dinner. After dinner, the program for the night really kicked into gear, however, as the bride and groom took full advantage of their cupcake/cake table and both had really sweet dances with their father and mother, respectively.
I especially loved Josh's dance with his mom as she tried her best but failed to keep her emotions in check, one of my favorite things to see at a wedding, period.
With parent dances over, Josh and Jill wasted no time in getting on the dance floor and thanks to their DJ, Ramu and the Crew, the party was rocking all night long.
As I got ready to leave Quidnessett Country Club, I couldn't help but feel like Josh and Jill's wedding day was one of the most complete I've shot this year for sure. Maybe it's just because of how much fun we packed into the time we had together but I was exhausted just thinking about everything we captured.
This was a wedding day full of laughter, love and plenty of beautiful family moments and I'm just glad I was along to document it all.
So congratulations Josh and Jill on a great wedding day. I hope it was everything you ever dreamed of and more.
-Paul J. Spetrini
Tags: Church Weddings, St. Robert Bellarmine Parish, Roger Williams Park, Quidnessett Country Club, Rhode Island Weddings, Johnston, Cranston, North Kingstown, Paul J. Spetrini Photography
The Vendor List:
Photographer: Paul J. Spetrini, Paul J. Spetrini Photography; Bride's Hair: Yvonne Conti, owner of The Gallery Salon; Bride's Dress: David’s Bridal; Groom's Suit: Men’s Wearhouse; Florist: Garden Hills; Ceremony Location: St Robert Bellarmine Parish, Johnston, Rhode Island; Reception Location: Quidnessett Country Club, North Kingstown, Rhode Island; Officiant: Father Richard Narciso; DJ: Ramu and the Crew; Cupcakes/cake topper: Erms Cupcakes.
