July 5, 2014
Ceremony: St. Elizabeth Church
Reception: The Beach Plum Inn
Bostonians Sheila Pallotta and Matt Dellelo were introduced by a mutual friend. After a few months of dating, they went on their first vacation together. They chose Martha’s Vineyard, and just kept coming back. “We love the scenery, activities, food, and relaxing atmosphere,” Sheila says. It was the ideal setting for their wedding. “The vibe we were going for was elegant but casual, which is exactly what the Vineyard has to offer.” Plus, they wanted to make it a destination weekend for their family and friends, “but not so far from Boston that it would make planning difficult.”
Sheila did most of the planning herself, and hired a day-of coordinator to help pull it all together. The rehearsal dinner, reception, and Sunday brunch were in Menemsha. The ceremony was at St. Elizabeth Church, on the opposite end of the Island in Edgartown, so the couple arranged for buses to transport guests back and forth.
They set up lawn games of bocce and cornhole for the cocktail hour. (The groomsmen ensured they were good to go, having tried the games out earlier when they were getting ready.) Sheila and Matt made their own cornhole set in the wedding colors of gray and white, with apropos Vineyard themes: whales, as a nod to the Island’s whaling history, and sharks in honor of the iconic Jaws movies, which were filmed on Martha’s Vineyard. Matt and Sheila also designed the logo for the gift bags and beer koozies they gave to their guests. “The bag also contained stamped postcards, in lieu of a guest book,” with the hope that guests would send them back to the couple, Sheila says, “when we got back from the honeymoon.”
The celebration was truly a family affair. Sheila’s aunt Cindy made the flower arrangements, and her cousin Jenna made the cake. Sheila's brothers, Neil and Eric, her dad Jerry, and Jerry's friends serenaded Sheila with Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” the song Jerry had sung to Sheila’s mother Linda at their wedding. “They all had on crazy outfits,” Sheila laughs, “many of them from my parents’ wedding thirty-four years ago!” Sheila’s sister Jill surprised the couple with paper wish-lanterns to light at the end of the evening. “It was magical,” Sheila says, “such a beautiful spot to let them go over the ocean.”
Details
Photographer: Pizzuti Photography
Day-Of Coordinator: Julie Hatt
Rehearsal: Home Port Restaurant
Ceremony Music: Peter Boak + Nicole Fichera
Reception Music: The Sultans
Gifts: Vineyard Vines
Favors: Chilmark Chocolates
Transportation: Martha's Vineyard Sightseeing
