The Big Day

from Ocean House Spring/Summer 2022

Family Time

SPECIAL OCCASIONS by KIM KAVIN

Two couples hosted property-wide weddings at Ocean House and Weekapaug Inn

Left: Katherine Roberts and William Sorin exchange vows by Quonnie Pond at Weekapaug Inn. Right: After the Kapnick-Solmonson wedding at a chapel across the street, a brass band led a procession to the Ocean House for cocktails and dinner.

Many events and traditions had to be paused during the pandemic. Weddings fell squarely into that mix, with what would have been milestone events either drastically scaled down or postponed altogether.

Now, the time has arrived when those events can once again be planned in all their grandeur—and some couples are embracing every last opportunity to make their big day one to remember.

Katherine Kapnick and Louis Solmonson booked the entire Ocean House property for their guests to enjoy, while Katherine Roberts and William Sorin did the same at Weekapaug Inn. They then set about coordinating with the on-site teams to understand all their options and possibilities, and to create unforgettable events for family and friends alike.

KATHERINE KAPNICK AND LOUIS SOLMONSON images by NORMAN & BLAKE PHOTOGRAPHY

As the Ocean House Collection Director of Membership and Events, Lauren DiStefano has planned some truly memorable experiences. Even so, the August 2021 wedding of Katherine Kapnick and Louis Solmonson stands out.

“The wedding Katherine and Louis hosted was majestic, sophisticated and joyful,” DiStefano says. “It is one of those weddings you aspire to be a part of as a planner, and I am honored to have helped bring it to fruition. Everything was so well done.”

Ocean House’s team planned the four-day event with Tara Guerard, who owns an eventplanning company in South Carolina.

“Tara Guerard Soirée is an incredible partner to Ocean House,” DiStefano says. “She is an elite event production company that made everything fun.”

The details were breathtaking. The bride’s wardrobe changes on Thursday, Friday and for Saturday’s ceremony included gowns by Giambattista Valli, Luisa Beccaria and Monique Lhuillier. On Friday, the Daniel E. Johnson Band brought its brand of Nashville country music to a dance party in the sand, and Del’s Lemonade—a Rhode Island staple—arrived with a truckload of frozen lemonade to quench everyone’s thirst.

“Ocean House worked with us to do a fullproperty rental,” Katherine says. “Once we figured out that we could do that, they let us host events on every inch of that property all day long.”

Saturday, the ceremony was held in a historic chapel across the street with both a priest and a rabbi, since Katherine is Episcopalian and Louis is Jewish. Then, the High and Mighty Brass Band from Brooklyn led a procession to the Ocean House terrace for cocktails before a dinner featuring Katherine’s favorite dish: chicken Milanese. After-dinner dancing was in a tent with a diamond-tiled dance floor modeled after La Sponda in Positano, Italy.

All was picture-perfect until Hurricane Henri—the first hurricane to make landfall in Rhode Island in three decades—arrived late Saturday into Sunday morning. Guests had no choice but to leave early. By Sunday afternoon, only Katherine and Louis were left.

“And then all the power went out in the hotel,” Louis says. “We went for dinner, and the chef was on the grill, and we sat pretty much alone in their grand dining room and had this candlelit dinner of grilled steaks and vegetables. It was one of the most memorable moments of the whole week.”

Below:

Casual elegance and attention to detail were key factors in Katherine and Louis’ four-day wedding celebration.

KATHERINE ROBERTS AND WILLIAM SORIN images by MOLLY LO PHOTOGRAPHY

Switching their wedding date from September 2020 to June 2021 turned out to be ideal not only for Katherine Roberts and William Sorin, but also for their guests.

“It was perfect timing with the vaccine rollout, with everyone having been stuck inside for so long,” Katherine says. “My mom, my aunt and I went up to the Inn for a girls’ week before the wedding. We arrived on a Thursday, relaxed, hung out by the pool, and then we did the welcome rehearsal dinner and drinks and stayed there.”

Katherine stayed in a suite with all her bridesmaids, while William and his groomsmen were together in a cottage. The weather all weekend was spectacular—exactly what everyone hopes a June wedding in Rhode Island will be for an outdoor ceremony.

“It ended up being a beautiful day,” Katherine says. “We had the reception outside as well, in a tent.”

Her father is a cigar aficionado, so in addition to requesting a raw bar, the bride also asked the special events team to create a cigar bar.

“We have cigars here on a daily basis. We sent Mr. Roberts the selection that we have, and he chose what he would like,” says Rachelle Lachica, Director of Catering and Events at Ocean House. “We had a server stand and pass them out. We had cutters available, as well as lighters. It was a nice display with a humidor. There were lounge chairs outside of the tent so guests could enjoy their cigars.”

Another special touch was the dessert bar, in addition to traditional wedding cake. Katherine loves key lime pie, and she wanted smaller-size sweets that guests could grab and bring to the after-party.

“We had a lovely display with key lime pie, crème brûlée, cookie dough pops—a good variety of treats,” Lachica says. “That’s a nice touch. Not everyone likes cake. There was a coffee station as well. We arrange it however guests like it, including with different flavors. I’m doing one soon with specialty coffees.”

Katherine, who is expecting the couple’s first child in May, says there’s not one thing she would change.

“When we were looking at venues, we walked into the Weekapaug Inn, and it was a no-brainer,” she says. “It’s a cozier, more intimate venue. We could rent out the Inn just for our family and friends, so it was our weekend.”