“Once we started dating, I knew that he was the one almost immediately,” gushing bride Roshal admits. “It was just so easy and fun to be around him. We laughed constantly, and were in sync from the start.”
“My shoes were my something old,” says Roshal. “My dress was my something new, my jewelry was my something borrowed (from my mom) and my garter was my something blue.”
“I saw the Jenny Packham ‘Willow’ dress on line and fell in love,” says Roshal. “Once I tried it on, both my mom and I knew we’d found the dress.”
Roshal’s accessories were perfection from head-to-toe.
Roshal’s wedding gown was fierce from every angle. We love, love, love it!
And about those gorgeous shoes…”They were from Jimmy Choo and my jewelry was my something borrowed from my mother,” says Roshal. “I did not wear a veil.”
Roshal’s romantic walk to her groom Zwade for their “first look” was picture-perfect!
“I knew she was ‘the one’ after a trip to Jamaica early in our relationship where I first met her family,” Zwade admits. “I saw how close she was with her family and how warm and welcoming everyone was. I knew that this was the type of family that I could make my own.”
Zwade was moved to tears the moment he laid eyes on his beautiful bride for the very first time on their wedding day.
“Jim Hjelm designed the bridesmaid dresses,” says Roshal. “I knew my colors for the wedding were emerald green and aqua blue. I was open to the girls choosing different styles of dresses in the same color. But, when we got to the salon, they all loved the same dress! Nothing could have been easier.”
“We don’t have children yet, but Zwade’s cousin Savannah was our flower girl,” Roshal shares. “She was thrilled to be the only one in blue and the center of attention!” Could she be any cuter? Like, seriously?
“The groomsmen wore seersucker suits from Jos A Banks,” says Roshal. “Finding the right suits for them was a big challenge. We wanted a light Caribbean look but we were getting married in December and most stores in the U.S. didn’t have any light colored or lightweight suits available. Many of our groomsmen live outside of the U.S. so renting a suit was not an option. Luckily, we were finally able to find the perfect look.”
“When I met Roshal, we had similar goals, values and cultures,” says Zwade. “I could easily see her as my lifelong partner and the mother to my children.”
“Zwade is loving, thoughtful, supportive, driven and intelligent,” says Roshal.
“My bridal bouquet was made of all white roses, lilies and orchids, and we used roses, lilies and orchids in shades of white and blues for the bridesmaids’ bouquets too,” says Roshal.
“I knew it would be humid, and my hair tends to frizz, so wearing it up was my best option,” Roshal explains. “Wayne Maxwell was my childhood hairdresser and so I knew he would be the perfect person to style my hair for the wedding. I had an idea of what I wanted, and Wayne modified it to what he thought would look best on me.”
“I said ‘yes’ simply because I love him and I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him,” Roshal gushes. (And what a lovely ring you have to prove the feelings are mutual.)
Such a fly group. We love it!
“Our wedding was held on the croquet lawn at the Half Moon Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica,” says Roshal. “We always knew we wanted to get married in Jamaica. I was born and raised in Jamaica and always dreamed of getting married in my home country. When we visited we knew it was the place. The scenery was quintessentially Caribbean with the palm trees and the clear blue ocean in the background. It was also a blank canvas, with nothing to constrain our creativity.”
“Roshal is energetic, funny, sexy and compassionate,” says Zwade. “I absolutely love her sense of humor.”
We see a “Most Stylish Couple” Bridal Bliss Award in Roshal and Zwade’s future.
“My dad walked me down the aisle,” says Roshal. “I am definitely daddy’s little girl, and he has been dreaming about walking me down the aisle since I was a little girl. There was no chance that we were breaking with that tradition. Zwade cried when he saw me for the first time during our first look photo session and then when I walked down the aisle. He tries to deny it, but luckily we have the pictures to prove it!”
“I loved that we wrote our own vows,” says Roshal. “We were both nervous about it, but were so glad we ultimately made the decision. It made the ceremony so much more personal.”
“I walked down the aisle to Bach’s “Air on G,” because it was the song that Zwade asked our friends to play for us when we got engaged,” Roshal shares. “I felt excited and happy looking into his eyes at the altar.”
“My dad’s cousin, who is an ordained minister, officiated our wedding,” says Roshal.
“We included religious and romantic readings and songs in our ceremony,” says the bride.
The Mr. and Mrs. were all smiles for their big walk back down the aisle, and their guests were too!
“I felt unbelievably happy that day,” says Roshal. “We had been planning the wedding for months and we were finally married. It felt like a dream realized. And the best part was that the night wasn’t over. We had hours left to celebrate with our family and friends.”
“He is a true partner; he is my biggest cheerleader and my sounding board,” says Roshal. “I love that we’re a team.”
“I was happy and ready to finally get married,” says Zwade. “I can’t say that I ‘dreamed’ of being a groom, but that night certainly surpassed all my expectations.”
“We had a cocktail hour immediately following the reception. We had passed Caribbean-inspired hors d’oeuvres, a steel band playing traditional music and men walking on stilts like you would see at carnival in the Caribbean. Luckily, our wedding, cocktail hour and reception were held at the same location.”
Roshal and Zwade’s reception was stunning and oh-so-romantic.
The happy newlyweds chose Adele’s “Make You Feel My Love” for their first dance song.
Roshal and Zwade were fully committed to their tropical theme and we loved every single detail.
“Our wedding cake was a tiered passion fruit cake made by Selena Wong from Kingston, Jamaica,” says Roshal. “Selena made an even lovelier version of a cake design that I saw on Pinterest.”
The couple’s florist, Anne Marie Whyss of Every Blooming Thing really did her thing with the couple’s wedding flowers — front the bouquets to the centerpieces.
A romantic combination of flowers and candles kept an air of elegance and romance going throughout the evening.
“We gave boxes of traditional Jamaican rum cake,” says Roshal. “Rum cake is the traditional wedding cake in Jamaica. Because we went with an unconventional passion-fruit cake for our wedding cake, we decided to give the traditional cake as a favor.”
The love and happiness really shine through in each and every one of Roshal and Zwade’s wedding photos. Can you feel it?
“During our cocktail hour we snuck off and had our first dinner together as husband and wife,” says Roshal. “It was a special moment and one of our best decisions. We were able to mingle with our guests throughout the entire reception without once hearing our stomachs rumble.”
If you enjoyed Roshal and Zwade’s fairytale wedding story as much as we did, tell us your favorite details below and leave the happy couple a little comment love. Want to see your wedding featured in Bridal Bliss? Email us now!
