An Orange-and-White Intimate Beach Destination Wedding in Mexico

Nina and Jon first met over a Memorial Day weekend away with friends. For their May 15, 2010, nuptials, they ventured away once more -- to Mexico.

The intimate wedding, held at a resort in the fishing village of Zihuatanejo, exemplified the less-is-more aesthetic -- subtle tropical meets south-of-the-border feel.

Mara Zepeda of Neither Snow calligraphed the paper elements for the wedding, starting with the save-the-date, which also introduced the color palette. The folded cards were tied with orange-and-white baker's twine and stamped with the May date.

Calligraphy and baker's twine were also used for the invitation suite. The card was packaged in a muslin pouch silk screened with the wedding date and laced with twine.

In addition to the invitation, RSVP card, and envelope, Nina put a different Mexico postcard inside each of the pouches to add an element of the wedding's destination.

Nina's bouquet of local flowers was composed of mostly ivory blooms.

The maid of honor carried a more vibrant bouquet.

Nina's father, Joseph, escorted her down to the ceremony site.

Nina and her father made their way to the beach for the ceremony.

To complement the laid-back, beachy vibe of the wedding, benches were used for seating instead of chairs. Hurricane vases filled with sand, shells, and pillar candles anchored (and illuminated) the aisle.

The handle of the flower girl's basket was wrapped with orange ribbon and tied with bows that matched the bridal party's flowers.

Flower girl Mackenzie, Jon's goddaughter, wore a coral dress by crewcuts and dropped ivory rose petals down the sandy aisle.

Small envelopes were calligraphed with "happy tears" and stuffed with handkerchiefs embroidered with "N+J," made by Nina's mother, Anne.

The 55 guests received the handkerchiefs and a program printed by Kate's Paperie.

The barefoot couple walk back up the aisle as newlyweds.

Following the ceremony, Nina and Jon took portraits with photographer Kelly Brown from Kelly Melissa Photography. They were joined by Nina's sister, Laura, the maid of honor, and Jon's friend, Randy, the best man.

The ladies are in J.Crew, and the men are wearing Polo Ralph Lauren with Thomas Pink ties.

The couple kiss by the water of Playa La Ropa just as the sun set.

As soon as the ceremony ended, the Mariachi band struck up a tune and played through the cocktail hour.

The 80-degree weather and light ocean breezes allowed guests to enjoy the outdoor lounge areas.

Melon with bacon appetizers were passed.

The cocktail hour menu, inspired by the festive locale, included chicken tostaditas.

Calligraphed tags attached to small maracas provided guests with their table numbers.

To incorporate some Spanish touches, the calligraphed table cards had the number written out in Spanish alongside the numeral. Slit limes served as stands.

Vividly hued floral centerpieces topped round tables covered with white linens.

Printed menus and coral flowers were tucked into folded napkins at each table. Guests dined on warm goat cheese salad with pear dressing, yellow tomato gazpacho, and a coupling of mahi mahi and grilled black Angus tenderloin -- all prepared on site by The Tides Zihuatanejo.

DJ Luis Zuniga of Audio Concepto played throughout the reception. Nina and Jon chose Al Green's "Love and Happiness" for their first dance.

After the couple danced together as husband and wife, everyone enjoyed a fireworks display.