A Morning Newport, Rhode Island Small Wedding at Rose Island // Kiersten + AJ
An intimate Newport wedding filled with family, a Rose Island ceremony, and plenty of time to explore.
“Audrey it has taken me so long to respond because I don’t even have words for how much you meant to us! Even besides the amazing photography that we’re going to cherish forever, just your presence made the day so much fun & also so calming! I’m such an anxious person & even I have literally zero stressful memories attached to this day, & you are such a huge part of that!!! Thank you for being there, thank you for being yourself, thank you for your time!
& now…I have looked at this gallery about one million times & it is so freaking perfect. I feel like we’ve gotten to relive this day so many times over with your photography & I am so so so grateful!!! I want to get every single photo printed & use them as wallpaper all over our house because they are so stunning & make me beyond joyful & I think if these photos were the first thing I saw in the morning every day I would be a better person for it!!! 😂” – K.M.
When K and AJ originally started planning their wedding, they were thinking about something closer to home. Somewhere familiar and somewhere that made logistical sense. But the more they thought about what they actually wanted their wedding day to feel like, the more they realized that a traditional wedding at home was not quite it.
Instead, they chose one of their favorite places and planned a Newport, Rhode Island small wedding surrounded by their closest family and friends.
The result was a wedding that felt less like a single event and more like a trip everyone got to experience together. Their families stayed together at The Hamilton Hoppin House for the week, spent the days exploring Newport, toured The Breakers together, ate pizza at the rental the night before, and then gathered for a morning wedding that left the entire afternoon and evening open for more exploring.
And honestly, that was one of my favorite things about their day. It was intentional without being overly complicated. It gave them time to actually be together.
Venue: Rose Island Newport
Rental home: Hamilton Hoppin House
HAMU: The Best of You Inc
Flowers: Poppy Flowers Co
Reception lunch: Stone Acre Garden
Invitations: Minted
Officiant: Don Beach at Elope To Newport
Vintage car rental: Newport Classic Cars
Groom suit/tie: The Black Tux and Tieroom
Bride dress/earrings/shoes/bag: Vintage Gunne Sax by Jessica Mcclintock, Thou Art Momo, Sam Edelman, and Fable England
Wedding bands: Down To The Wire Designs and Rustic and Main
Choosing Newport Over a Traditional Wedding
K and AJ had originally been planning a wedding back home, but eventually realized that Newport felt much more like them.
They already loved the city and wanted their wedding to be part of a larger experience. Rather than bringing everyone together for a few hours and sending them home, they turned the wedding into a full Newport getaway.
Their families stayed together in a rental for the week, giving everyone time to explore the city, and spend time together.
A few days before the wedding, they toured The Breakers with their guests and showed everyone around one of their favorite cities. It was not just about having a wedding in Newport. They wanted their family to experience Newport with them.
That approach is one of the things I love about planning an intimate wedding or destination wedding. Your wedding does not have to begin when you walk down the aisle. The entire week or weekend can become part of the story.
Pizza, Family, and the Night Before
The night before the wedding, everyone gathered back at the rental for pizza and some much needed downtime.
There was no elaborate rehearsal dinner or overly structured evening. It was simply K and AJ, their families, pizza, and time to hang out together before the wedding morning.
I think these quieter moments are easy to overlook when planning a destination wedding, but they can end up being some of the most meaningful parts of the entire time.
Everyone was already together. There was no need to rush from one event to another. They could relax, talk, eat, and enjoy being in Newport together before the wedding day officially began.
It also meant that when morning came, everyone already felt settled into the weekend.
Getting Ready and Their First Look at The Hamilton Hoppin House
The wedding morning started at The Hamilton Hoppin House, where K and AJ were staying with their families.
The historic property gave everyone a place to get ready, relax, and spend the morning together before heading out for the ceremony. The house itself brought plenty of character into the photographs, with historic architecture and rooms that felt much more personal than getting ready in a traditional hotel.
K had her hair and makeup done with her mom, adding another quiet moment to the morning before everything got started.
And then there was the dress.
K found her wedding dress on eBay and had it altered to fit her. It was such a perfect detail for a wedding that was never about following a traditional formula. She found something she loved and made it her own.
AJ also brought one of my favorite details of the morning with his knit tie.
Honestly, 12/10.
Once everyone was ready, K and AJ had their first look at the house.
There is something especially nice about doing a first look when you are planning a smaller wedding. You are not immediately moving from one major event into another. There is room to actually stop, see each other, and take in the fact that the day you have been planning is finally here.
Their first look gave them that quiet moment together before heading out for the ceremony and beginning the next part of their Newport adventure.
A Rose Island Ceremony and Exploring the Lighthouse
For their ceremony, K and AJ took a boat out to Rose Island, making the trip even more meaningful because it was actually their first time visiting the island and getting to explore it together.
It was such a fitting choice for two people who love traveling, hiking, antiquing, exploring cool bookstores, and generally finding places worth wandering around. Their favorite adventures have always involved getting somewhere and seeing what happens along the way.
Rose Island gave their wedding day that same feeling.
Instead of a traditional ceremony venue, they traveled across the water to an island and exchanged vows surrounded by their family.
But the experience did not stop with the ceremony itself.
While they were on Rose Island, K and AJ also got to make their way to the top of the lighthouse.
That was such a fun part of the day because it turned their ceremony location into an actual experience. They were not simply arriving at a venue, taking a few photos, and leaving. They had somewhere to explore together and another part of the island to experience with their family.
For couples considering a Newport, Rhode Island small wedding, this is one of the reasons Newport works so well. There are so many ways to build movement and exploration into the day.
Your ceremony does not have to happen in the same place where you get ready.
You can take a boat.
You can explore an island.
You can climb a lighthouse.
You can make the location itself part of the experience.
And your wedding day can still feel relaxed and intentional.
Lunch at Stoneacre Garden and a Vintage Car
After the ceremony, everyone headed back toward Newport for lunch at Stoneacre Garden.
Rather than planning a long reception that stretched late into the night, K and AJ chose a daytime celebration. It gave everyone the chance to sit down together, eat, talk about the morning, and celebrate without turning the day into a marathon.
Stoneacre Garden was a natural fit for that part of the day, with its garden inspired setting and relaxed atmosphere in the middle of Newport.
And then K had one more surprise planned for AJ.
A vintage rental car.
After lunch, K surprised AJ with the car so the two of them could spend the rest of the day exploring Newport together.
This might be one of my favorite examples of how to make a wedding timeline feel personal without adding unnecessary things.
Instead of spending the afternoon at a formal reception, they got in a vintage car and continued their Newport adventure.
They could explore, drive around, stop wherever they wanted, and enjoy having a few hours together after the ceremony and lunch.
It also made complete sense considering how much they love antiquing, traveling, exploring, and finding new places together.
Why a Morning Wedding Can Be Such a Good Choice
One of the most practical decisions K and AJ made was choosing to have their wedding in the morning.
That meant they could get ready, have their first look, travel to Rose Island, get married, explore the lighthouse, return to Newport, and enjoy lunch together while still having hours left in the day.
For couples planning a small wedding or destination wedding, a morning timeline can completely change the experience of the day.
Instead of waking up and immediately feeling like the clock is counting down toward a late afternoon ceremony, you can start your celebration early and have the rest of the day available for whatever sounds fun.
That could mean exploring the city with your family, taking a boat ride, going antiquing, stopping at a bookstore, having a long lunch, taking portraits somewhere you would not normally have time to visit, finding a great dinner spot, or simply sitting somewhere together and doing absolutely nothing.
There is no rule that says your wedding has to occupy your entire day.
For K and AJ, having a morning wedding meant their wedding was only one part of a much bigger Newport experience.
A Wedding Day Built Around Their Relationship
When I asked K and AJ how they met, their story started at Target.
They were both leaders, and eventually AJ changed positions so they were working on the same team. AJ was naturally more reserved, while K started asking him ridiculous questions every day just to get him to talk to her.
Eventually, K realized she had started missing AJ on his days off.
The rest is history.
Their favorite adventure together has been traveling along the coast of Maine, including multiple trips up to Acadia during the same week. They got engaged at Munising Falls in Michigan at the end of their annual fall trip.
And when they are not traveling, they like gardening, hiking, antiquing, visiting cool bookstores, and sometimes doing absolutely nothing.
That context makes their wedding day make even more sense.
A boat ride to an island.
A lighthouse.
A historic Newport house.
A vintage car.
A day spent with family.
A wedding that doubled as a trip.
None of those choices felt random. They all connected back to how they actually spend their time together.
Making Your Newport Wedding Feel Like a Trip
If you are considering a Newport, Rhode Island small wedding, I think K and AJ’s wedding is a great example of why you do not necessarily need a complicated itinerary.
Start with the places that matter to you.
Where do you want to stay?
Where do you want to get married?
What do you actually want to do with your family?
What would make the day feel like you?
Then build the timeline around those answers.
K and AJ stayed together with their families, explored Newport throughout the week, toured The Breakers, gathered for pizza the night before, got ready at their rental, took a boat to their ceremony, explored the Rose Island lighthouse, had lunch at Stoneacre Garden, and spent the rest of the day exploring in a vintage car.
That is a full wedding experience without needing a traditional full day wedding schedule.
And perhaps more importantly, they had time to actually experience it.
A Newport Wedding Weekend That Felt Like Them
K and AJ’s wedding was not about packing as many traditions, decorations, or events into one day as possible.
It was about creating a wedding that made sense for their relationship.
They took the place they already loved and invited their favorite people into it.
They gave themselves time to explore.
They made room for family.
They chose a ceremony location that required a boat ride.
They climbed to the top of a lighthouse.
They had lunch instead of a traditional evening reception.
They ended the day driving around Newport in a vintage car.
And they made the entire thing feel like an extension of the adventures they already love taking together.
That is what makes an intimate wedding meaningful to me. It is not simply about having fewer guests. It is about having more room for the parts of your relationship that actually matter.
If you are dreaming about a Newport, Rhode Island small wedding, an intimate destination wedding, or a wedding weekend that feels more like an adventure than a production, Newport gives you a lot of room to make that happen.
Your wedding can be a boat ride, a lighthouse, a long lunch, a vintage car, a week with your family, and a city you already love.
It can look like yours.
