Can I brag enough about Alex and Brad’s wedding? I don’t think so.

I am BLOWN AWAY by Jan and Tey Garcia and their images from A&B’s big day! I needn’t say more. Seriously.

After the ceremony they went to Soka for their portraits. A PERFECT background, don’t you think? The grounds are so gorgeous over there… I love them all!!

True colors, shining through [that's why I love you!]

Straight out of the pages of Ceremony magazine! Well, it SHOULD be, that’s for sure!

Forgot to mention that Alex’s eyes are two different colors. We kinda bonded over that [but my eye is only 1/3 different than the other].

Inside the Art Gallery for a sneak at the reception:

And Soka, by nightfall:

More here on their blog. Since he blogged a gazillion of ‘em, it’s like a little eensy meensy surprise for you when you go visit. Jan’s art is apparent, right? Love them. Love their photos. Love their love [as always]!

Hope your weekend is full of remarkable moments that allow you to remember why you’re going through all this insanity in the first place- sometimes, you gotta look to find them. FIND THEM!
xoxo,

A.

Alex and Brad are some of my favorite people. Throughout their entire engagement, they’ve been upbeat, fun, full of love, and so great at every meeting. We laugh, we cry, we’re attached. That’s why they were one of our first couples to feature on our “In The Mix” sessions- here, and here [for a peek at their florals], also here [with a sneek peek at their linens and decor]. Of course, who could forget their engagement session from just last week, here, taken by the amazingly fabulous Jan Garcia!

Their wedding yesterday was a dream. In the weeks prior to the wedding, life kind of exploded for Alex’s family and I was honored to be able to help them pull this wedding together at the last minute to truly make this day as joyful, beatiful, and amazing as possible. It went off without a hitch. And Jan’s “same day slideshow”, which is always an epic part of his services, was TO. DIE. FOR. Seriously! I can’t wait to see the rest!

Now, the ceremony was held at Lake Hills Wedding Chapel and was truly and simply gorgeous. I totally spaced and forgot to bring my camera along for the fun at the church, so I snapped this mid-ceremony with MiPhone:

A couple swags of white chiffon and we were done. This chapel is such an amazing sight in person- the natural stone, the wood, the modern, sleek design. It’s amazing! Since we knew that going in, we opted for a simple ceremony focusing on the couple, and dolled up the reception site to the nines!

The reception was held at the Art Gallery in Soka University. A two-story space of uniqueness that provided us with a blank slate to play in! The white walls and hardwood floors are perfection. To top it off, the gallery was displaying a black and white photography exhibit for Alex’s black, white and aqua wedding!! An amazing and thankful coincidence! Onto the pictures.

The cocktail hour took place upstairs [and the upstairs of the gallery actually has a large cutout area that looks right down to the lower story. We placed our dance floor right in the middle with their custom designed gobo on top!!]. Our sleek all-black dance floor was SUCH a hit. I seriously cannot wait to get pro pics back because mine just don’t do justice! Okay, I’ll stop… more pictures!!

Since the linens downstairs were black with aqua runners, we reversed them for the cocktail tables. Mini arrangements were the perfect accent.

These escort card boards were my labor of love! The family gave me this task a bit last minute [Thursday afternoon!!] and I knew I couldn’t just take the easy route. Alicia and I [love you Leashy] put our heart and souls into these little cards and boards! Since the black and white damask was a huge part of our theme, I carried it into their cards!

Alex and her mom, Debby, set up a beautiful “heritage table” for their loved ones.

They decided on a “signature drink” in honor of their honeymoon and it was a HIT! People had margarita glasses all over the place! It was too cute!

[Of course I made all of the custom and ever-so-darling signs!!]
Then we headed down for some downstairs details….

The gallery was LITERALLY the perfect setting for their event!

The lighting in the gallery played a perfect roll in our dramatic impact of the event, but the rest was taken care of by the FABULOUS team at Carcano DJ [Stefani is the best!!], who also provided our gorgeous brand spanking new white chiavaris through their sister company, Chiavari Chairs 4 Rent! Their team swept into our space and transformed it in a matter of hours!

The flowers were provided by a friend of the family and they combined the traditional with the modern by using warm flowers with funky blue painted manzanita branches dawning large crystals!

Black Forest Bakery made this lil’ beauty. I looooved their blingin’ cake topper with actually was the SAME font they used for their monogram [you guys know by now how deeply in love with a monogram I am!!].

A couple more detail shots for you:

Their favors were shot glasses filled with m&ms and tied with black tulle. Perfectly simple and matched our decor, to boot!

Check out those Waterford toasting flutes!!

During dinner, our sugary sweet sweetness of a groom played and sang a song he wrote for his bride. Before starting this he told the guests all about the night they got engaged how that prompted him to write the tune. This was all a surprise to Alex and she was waving tears away with her napkin before the song even started. SO cute!!!

Straight into their first dance [this was taken from the 2nd story, looking down, and I looooove that I could get this angle. Gives it such an intimate feel]:

Great shots of their gobo, too. And now, father/daughter [and let me just say that Alex is Daddy's girl! Her father had a hard time letting her go, and their dance was SUCH a unique expression of that relationship. It was fun, upbeat, and totally "connected". I love the heart that I saw out on that dance floor!]:

Time to cut the cake!!

And just in case you hadn’t noticed- Alex is a KNOCKOUT! Just wait til you see more pictures from Jan and Tey. I’m not kidding. You’ll cry!

Fave picture of the whole night:

[... and she MEANT it!]

Tossing, tossing, tossing….

Also a great shot of Alex’s dress, which fit her like a GLOVE [despite her stress level rising and her losing 2 INCHES two weeks before the wedding... thank goodness for last-minute alterations!]!!!

Alex basically threw it purposefully RIGHT at her best friend and Maid of Honor, Megan, who has been with her boyfriend for 9 years. This is her rejoicing at getting the correct angle, right to Megan:

And this is Alex being embarrassed by her husband [already and it'd only been a few hours!]:

Alex: there’s nothing wrong with modesty! :)

She was a great sport, though, and Brad definitely had fun with it! The last shot of the evening I snapped while walking around during open dancing. When the lights in the gallery were turned down, we relied on the candles and up-lighting to set the tone. The result was truly magical. It was such a warm, fuzzy feeling in my heart. I totally loved it!!!

A&B: I miss you two already! I know I said this already but I’m truly happy/sad about all of this. So, so, SO happy that you two are married. So happy that it went perfectly, that the stress is over, and that this new chapter in your life is beginning. I remember how excited you two were when we first met and to see it all fallen into place and to have lived it with you two… wow- truly remarkable. I’ll have to learn how to live without our monthly laugh-fests [err, meetings] and without our daily emails! You two have a love that will last a lifetime, I just know it. I am so thankful that I got to be a part of your story. It’s something I treasure very much. I hope this week is full of so much love and happiness, and memories to last a lifetime [but hopefully none similar to your parents' honeymoon stories, A!!!]!

xoxo,

A.

A&B are having an amazingly stylish wedding with an art gallery reception in just a week or so here, and their engagement pictures couldn’t have rolled in at a better time for me to be swept into a cyclone of excitement for their big day.

You’ll remember them from my “In The Mix” sessions that I posted here, here, here, and here! Yep, they’re awesome. I’ve been so SO lucky to worth with them each step of the way in their wedding planning process and now that their day is quickly approaching, a huge rush of emotions is accompanying it!

I knew from the moment Alex mentioned her love for Jan and Tey Garcia that we were a match made in Heaven. They are some of the most superb photographers I’ve worked with and I enjoy their company to boot! That always helps, right?! [Plus, HUGE bonus points for them posting their session on their blog and then shooting me an EMAIL to let me know it was up- even without me asking... holla!!]. Their images truly speak for themselves:

I love Jan’s photo journalistic and artistic style. Each photographer is truly unique with their art and they’re REALLY got their angle nailed down!

Plus, they capture “the hottness” with ease. Anyone that captures “the hottness” is great in my book!

Heartbreaker, huh??

This is possibly my engagement photo ever. Possibly because this laughing, gorgeous face is something that graces my presence about twice a month. :) I always look forward to meetings with Alex and her mom, Debby, because we spend so much of our time together really being TOGETHER and getting excited for this rapidly-approaching special day!

Sigh… I couldn’t pick a favorite, so I posted every single one they blogged. Is that bad?? Hopefully you loved the sweet Friday treat as much as I did! More to come- possibly even over the weekend despite the busy days ahead- so stay tuned with me, kay y’all!

And Alex- keep that sanity! Hold one for ONE more week and then, you’ll be walking the aisle in your designer kitten heels [on sale, mind you, and JUST her size] like a champ!

xoxo,

A.

You’ll remember Brook and Dan from their engagement photos and the little blurb I wrote on their planning process.

We all have been looking forward to this wedding for a LONG TIME, but I have been looking forward to it for several reasons. Here’s a few, in an appropriate list form [as is my style]:

1. Brooklin is drop dead gorgeous. I cannot WAIT for the photos because they’re gonna be killer. And I knew she’d make a gorgeous bride.

2. Dan and Brook have such a special relationship- so real and beautiful to watch. The ceremony was so touching and personal- it radiated everything that they are, as I knew it would.

3. This was my FIRST wedding of 2009 and I couldn’t think of a better way to spend my day then with this fantastic couple!

That being said- the wedding was exactly what Brook and I had envisioned: organic, inviting, stylish, and an all-around great time! Here’s some pictures to prove it!

We’ll start at the church. Their custom monogrammed black aisle runner was oh-so-chic!

A close up [and a bit over-exposed picture] of the small floral splash for the guest book- really giving you a feel for the style of florals at the reception…

In the bathroom [Brook and Dan got married at the church on the site of where Brook went to high school! A bit of nostalgia on her big day!!] here’s B’s mom attaching her gorgeous veil!

I love this picture because it feels SO real.

The ceremony!! He cried. Then she cried. Then I cried. :)

Married!!!

Over to the reception, which was held at the OC Sailing and Events Center in Dana Point- about 5 minutes from the church. The room is known for being a blank site- white ceiling, grey carpet and with the right “vision”, it can turn magically delicious. That’s what me and my team did last night. Can you believe it… there were 6 of us working this wedding [Me, Josh, Alicia, Brittany, Miriam, and Rebekah]!!!

The cake is always my favorite part the wedding decor it seems. This cake, however… was beyond words it was so stunning.

We used these great ivory and black damask runners from Dress My Chair to set the vibe for the evening along with the color theme of the avocado bridesmaid dresses. The florals were whimsical and garden-inspired and were the perfect compliment!

Long banquet tables filled the room with that family-style vibe that Brook had been hoping for!

Since the space is SO blank and white, we used pipe and drape to create a background on the stage area, where the sweetheart table was placed. Adding their ceremony decor, a few up-lights, and a hanging monogram and voila! You’ve got magic!

This picture below actually isn’t the BEST picture of how the room looked, but I love the centerpieces and tables all in a line like this, so here it is:

The team, halfsies style:

Britt, what’s with the peace signs, huh?? I’m beginning to think this may need to be your pose for the new site!!

Back to the cake. L.O.V.E. The florist SO outdid herself with this. When the cake arrived it was a simple cake- just plain black ribbon wrapping the round tiers. They did a floral cascading swirl down both sides of the cake that trailed all the way down to the table. It was a shame we couldn’t cuddle it and keep it forever. And yes I said I want to cuddle a cake. Deal with it!

First dance. B’s dress is soooo flamenco flowy pretty delicious!

“Bustles that kill me for 100, Alex”

Father/Daughter:

A little backdrop close-up:

Bouquet toss!!

Her gorgeous bridal bouquet:

And a quick final snap of the cake cutting:

All in all- the day was perfection! We had ZERO snags. My staff was pumped to work and we works our little tails off! The weather was gorgeous [after a year and a half of anxiety about the possibility of rain and what we'd do with the outdoor cocktail hour!], the site was transformed, and the party was so fun!

B&D: you two have a love that is infectious. If I didn’t know it before your wedding day, I am so 100% sure of it now. It’s not about the words you say- it’s about HOW you say them. About your eyes behind them. About your hearts showing through. Love like yours moves me. It’s why I’m in business. It’s why I work to ensure that your vodka tonics and vodka-and-diet-cokes get to you in a timely fashion. It’s why, when I hug you goodbye at the end of “the perfect day”, I hug you with my whole heart, and release you knowing that you’re the ones who’ll make it work.

You are the ones who will give what I do a good name.

xoxo,

A.

Just wanted to show you a quick snap of A&B’s REAL invite suite.

Here was our computer mock up:

And HERE is the real deal:

They came out so so so so so so so so so great. We are all thrilled with them. Yippee!!

Since Alex and Brad [who you may remember from my initial post about them HERE and then my post on their invites- still in the works- HERE!!!] have a family friend who is their florist, they made the trek to downtown LA and braved the early morning market hours to have a little floral trial run. It came out wonderful and she LOVES it- which makes me more happy than anything. The staff at Dress My Chair were kind enough to allow me to borrow the linens for a bit to allow us to really complete the look! Here are some pics below.

The bridesmaid bouquets:

Cocktail centerpieces [but our linens will be aqua crushed satin]:

And now, for the centerpieces!!

Rumor has it the manzanita branches will be painted aqua to match the runner. Yippee… and moreover, we’ve got crystals to hang from the branches. I know in their venue, this is going to be so fabulous. YAY! I can’t wait for wedding season to start!

xoxo,

A.

Remember Alex and Brad?? They’re awesome black, white, and tiffany/aqua wedding is set for March and we’re having oh so much fun figuring out all the details [FUN! not stress! Right Alex??].

We just met up this week and laid the invite comp out on the table and are pleased as punch with the results! One of their groomsmen whipped them up a personalized monogram graphic that will run as a theme throughout the reception. Since the font in it was easily identifiable to me as “Scriptina”, I went for it with the invites and matched it up!

Alex’s main priority and request for the invitations was this: simple, cheap, and easy. She doesn’t “get” spending money on something people throw away! So, we kept it simple with two inclusions- the rsvp, and the map/directions card. We’re using all black ink to print, to save $$, and going with an aqua envelope and ribbon around the invite. I’ve already picked up the ribbon from the infamous Fabric Barn in Long Beach- for a steal, mind you- and we’re off and running! Thought I’d share what we’ve got, for all you D-I-Y gals out there:

The main invitation will be white cardstock with a black backing cardstock:

Page 2 will be double-sided print that we will get perforated to separate the RSVP postcard from the map/directions card:

They’ll be tied together with the aqua ribbon, as pictured in the first picture, and then we’ll be using a matching aqua “open end” #10 envelope [yep, the same size envelopes you buy at the store for your mail... the invites are about the size of 1/3 sheet of paper!].

Does this get anyone inspired for the weekend or WHAT? Have a good one, I’m off to work on more paper products, meet with more clients, walk around more sites, and have a TON of FUN! xoxo!

**This is a new segment idea for me! I really wanted my readers to be involved with my clients and their planning process- so much more than just the final product. So, in these sessions you’ll learn about the couples, their vision, their vendors, their realities, and so so much more! Hopefully this will keep you on the edge of their seat for their wedding days, too… you can join me there!!**

Meet Alex and Brad! They’re tying the knot in March next year and we’ve been working together for months on their much anticipated dream day! It was by no small feat that we’re as far along as we are! After months of hunting for the perfect venue, two date changes [yes, and MOVING the wedding up 6 whole months than we had originally planned] and a lot of stress, we’ve finally hit our stride!! I always tell the newly-engaged that THE most stressful part will be picking a date and place. It’s all down hill after that. A&B are a total testament to that rule!

[This picture was taken right after they got engaged. Aren't they just SOOO mushy gushy cuteness??]

Alex and Brad are nothing but a pleasure to work with! They’re young, fun, have tons of ideas, and a great unique sense of style! I am so looking forward to their big day, with their ceremony taking place at the amazing wedding chapel in Lake Hills Church, and their reception at the ultra hip and “underground” Soka University’s Art Gallery – a TWO STORY amazing space that gives us such freedom to play and create! Just the chandelier alone is worth booking the room over:

What an amazing focal point for our reception!! It’s a hand-blown glass art piece by Dale Chihuly, best known for this monstrosity in the Bellagio hotel [Vegas]:

Fiori Di Como. Yeah, he’s kind of a big deal. When we were there, Josh actually snapped a shot of it!

More pictures and details about A&B’s wedding to come, but for now, a little preview of her linens and monogram style! She chose black, white, and tiffany blue as the color scheme for her big day- funny enough, this shocked her! We didn’t have anything nailed down until we visited Jennifer at the Dress My Chair showroom in Costa Mesa! Alex fell in LOVE with the black and white damask [which will play as a theme throughout] and the pop of tiffany blue just melted her heart!

Pairing this table set up with white chiavari chairs and black cushions [which will have tiffany blue sashes] are a perfect compliment to the style of their big day!

One of their close friends whipped up this monogram, to be displayed on all of their paper products throughout the day! We are THRILLED to have a theme flowing freely and I can’t wait to see how the planning continues on.

With our caterers well on the way to being locked in, now we’re anxiously anticipating their engagement session with the oh-so-talented-it-almost-hurts Jan and Tey Garcia!! You know you’ll see ‘em here the MOMENT they’re posted.