Thanks again must go to Dave and Sandy Richards for the wonderfully vibrant, happy photos. And, seriously, doesn’t everyone want ‘happy’ photos?? I know I do for you!

Visit the rest of the images [and you can click through the gallery, too!!] here!

Radiant bride…. check!

Handsome groom…. check!

Killer cohesive bridal party…. check!

Ridiculously pretty church… check! And then, there’s love.

Lots and lots of love.

And a great reception locale like The Ebell Club, Long Beach doesn’t hurt either!

The decadent arrangements from Flower Allie add the perfect POP to this fun color scheme of navy and orange. And here’s a designer’s inside tip: when working in a candle-lit, romantic environment, go a shade lighter with your linen. In the light of day, you may not understand- but in the deep, dark colors of your reception, that extra “lift” of color will make all the difference. Keeping with Spanish feel, we used La Tavola’s dupionique in royal [a cobalt blue tone, much like the Spanish tiles we used as escort cards] to ensure the colors didn’t get lost in the evening light. It was the perfect impact!

Isn’t it always the “little” things that get you?? Elena chose for us to do a “detail wrap up and decor budget” for her. It’s one of our most popular additions these days and can be added to any of our services. For Elena and Nathan, we took the liberty of implementing several tiny decor elements to really impact her day. We upgraded linens and napkins, added a lace knot napkin wrap, detailed the bride and groom chairs [with lace tails and signage], created menu cards for their buffet, concepted and created their escort card tiles with alternating blue/orange colors, wrapped candles in custom lace, created wedding programs, and designed/assembled 20 welcome baskets [complete with custom timeline, logo/artwork, and packaging for her guests]. WHEW. All in 2 weeks time. If THAT’s not bang-for-your-buck, I don’t know what is!

Just a suggestion, but if you skip on over to Dave’s site, there’s more where this came from. He’s a great blogger [in example: timely, generous with images that are generously sized, and credits all of his vendors]. I love this in a photographer. I love this in ANY vendor. I’m on his side.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this wedding come together! I got to work with Elena and Nathan from the get-go, so here’s a shout out to our all-star cast of characters:

Ceremony: Wayfarer’s Chapel
Reception: Ebell Club Long Beach
Photographer: Dave Richards
Event Design and Planning: In The Now
Florist: Flower Allie
DJ: John Suarez, After Dark Entertainment
Napkin Rentals: Signature Party
Linens: La Tavola Fine Linen
Catering: Jay’s Catering
Custom Graphics: Kristen [Graphical Intern], In The Now
Vinyl Escort Card Logos: Creative Media Print
Hair/Makeup: Artistry By Briana

Holla! Look at that list. It’s what I love to see. :) So sad it’s over… so happy they’re married. It’s the bittersweet small moments in life that keep me pushing forward. Hoping you find some JOY in today, tomorrow, and your ‘forever’.

xoxo,

The Party Dress recently used images from our adorable Orange and Yellow Summer Tabletop in an inspiration board:

The Wed Bug featured Alicia’s gorgeous Valentine’s Day Wedding shot by Adrienne Gunde:

The Wedding Yentas also featured a wedding of Alicia’s from last season… Emilie and Ross!

And lastly, the blog Marry You Me gave us a sweet little hollar on the Stylelab Workshop Wedding Chicks featured last week!

Yayers!!

xoxo,

A.

Think rocky-sand east coast beaches meets white shingled houses and uppercrust people. I want the design to exude style and grace, and embody the cool wealthy beach vibe as it used to be in past times. Hamptons. Cape Cod. Nantucket. Grab a Tom Collins or a Long Island Iced Tea [garnished with a fresh slice of orange], put on a long flowing dress, and join me on the deck to soak in the sound of the sea.

Keep your eyes peeled for more.

xoxo!

A.

This tabletop was part of my previous collection that I styled last summer, shot by Wayne Toshikazu. It’s taken me forever to go through the images and select a few favorites but now, here we are! The glorious day!

I love the play on traditional elements. At heart, I’m a gal who truly loves a good wedding. By saying that, I mean I love the classic feel of elegance and style. When I think about my personal style, as a designer, I know that I’m constantly taking the warmth of the familiar and splicing it into my modern, clean aesthetic. This table is no exception! Take a popular subtle color like eggplant and add a pop of orange to the pallet! Take a large over-wrought centerpiece and break it up into smaller portions by separating the flowers by style and color! Take the familiar old and hoist it away to bring in the flashy new.

It’s what we’re all about!

Orange Bengaline linen was sourced via BBJ Linen. Flowers were provided by the amazingly incredibly wonderfully talented girls of In The Now [and trust me, I'm saying that to THEM, not about us!]. The backdrop was provided by Stacey and staff at Shorebreak Hotel Huntington Beach [cannot thank you all enough for allowing us to INVADE for the afternoon!].

Each place setting held a mini corsage/boutonniere for the guest. Sandwiched between the flowers was a small round name tag, to designate each guests’ place at the table. I love this idea, like a lot!

We used opaque white crushed glass in the bottom of each cylinder vase- which brought in a great modern feel. We hand-tied each mini-bouquet of flowers with lush dupioni eggplant ribbon and then finished it with copper wire to accent.

My favorite part about this table? The lady slipper orchids. I love, love lady slippers.

The idea that all of the flowers were cascading outward and pouring off the table. The vases actually sprawled across the length of the table, taking up 2 guest places. I truly adore the idea of “unconventional” positioning of centerpieces, as well as disproportional. I didn’t want something over-the-top or extravagant, but I did want something that made a statement!

Modern votive holders in varying heights make my heart melt! And one last detail shot for you of the darling plate:

And here is my commitment to you, dear readers. Here’s the skinny on what’s been up over here: we are committing to shoot one tabletop a month. Kinda amazing, right? Since we’ve already shot our January table [and dying with anticipation to show y'all], we’re off to style-to-death our February with a – you guessed it- VALENTINE theme! Can’t wait to bombard you with design in the coming months!!

Stylize your life today! Make it cohesive and beautiful in every step, with every moment… exude your style!

xoxo,

A.

I became obsessed with the cool, modern pallet of poppy pink, yummy warm orange against a stale, slate grey backdrop. The 3 together became absolutely drool-worthy! I knew I wanted to use poppies “sprouting” from grass for the centerpieces and the idea of a dual centerpiece became equally appealing to me. Two trays, the same size, shape and color. Filled with grass, then poppies bursting out towards each place setting. Fabulous. Of course, what’s better than having a bud and budlet tucked into each napkin! I chose to do a modern style long plate [which I love], with a modern take on the classic “menu fold” napkin that we all see these days- wrapping the plate. I did a salad plate above each place setting and to the right, leave the glasses lined on the left. So modern, simple and chic. That’s what I’m all about. LOOK at those classy flutes! Ugh, it’s love!

I chose a different colored flower for each napkin. That may be THEEE best part about buying poppies: it’s a mixed bag of color. SO organic, natural, and wild!

As a favor [on that salad plate we mentioned] we opted for a fresh, ready-to-gobble option: a trio of mini cupcakes. Not only are they modern and gorgeous, but they’re deliciously one-bite satisfying!

The whole table. What a DREAM, right? It turned out so well!! By the way- this was one of my first times taking care of a centerpiece by myself… I wasn’t thrilled with my droopy poppies at first but the more I look at them, the more I love them. It’s like they were meant to be that way!

Love this angle:

And LOVE the sun hitting the blooms:

And now… [are you ready??] for table #2!! For this specific look, I opted to add in the idea of a “kid’s table”. Kid’s-only tables are great because you can vary your decor to suit them, and really have fun with the look. It exploded into it’s own little world of table and I love it ever-so-much!!

Same linen. Same colors. Pizza for dinner!! I came up with the idea of using mini pizza boxes and turning dinner into a craft time full of fun. Provided that your catering company will be flexible with it, I basically filled this mini box with cut outs like the toppings they could put onto their own pizza: veggies, pepperoni, extra cheese, sausage, pineapple. I know that kids love a good activity! We also switched their plates to white square plastic ones to be more kid-friendly.

I loved the idea of giving each kid a balloon, tied to the chair. The more you can do to make them feel special, wonderful, and loved.. the less they’ll care if they’re in the corner or even in another room! The pink trays that you see on each seat are lap trays- coloring books and crafts provided for them are easy to use since they have a place for everything!

Switch out those mini cupcakes for a box-o-goodies, kid style! From bubbles to candy to slimey sludge, it’s a good time all in one place! And don’t forget the centerpiece…

Creating a smaller centerpiece will give the kids more room on the table to make a mess [and isn't that what all kids love doing??]. I swapped the poppies for large round suckers in cotton candy flavor- a crowd pleaser [... especially for my husband!].

I gave each place setting a sparkling fruit juice so that when the toast arrives, they’ll feel just as special with their bubbly… and of course, the straw attached is the easiest way to dress up ANY cute bottle/can! Behind the plate is the plastic craft box that we filled with goodies- easy to move and then take home at the end of the night!

My favorite thought/aspect of the kids table has got to be the bedtime basket. Since most weddings these days have just a handfull of kids, and most of those kids end up by 9pm sprawled across 3 chairs out like a light… why not make it a bit more comfy for them? Ribboned together is a small pillow and blanket for them to grab when they get that sugar coma we all know they love. Plopped in the corner near the kids table, it’s the perfect ending to a great evening for the kiddos!

All in all, the table came out beautifully and was captured even MORE beautifully!! Here’s the list of people who I now owe at least a kidney to, for their time, energy, efforts, and love!

Rentals provided by Signature Party Rentals
100% CUSTOM linens by Dress My Chair [yep, she made 'em to match my vision!]
Venue setting was at Rancho Capistrano
Adorable mini cuppies provided by Once Upon A Cupcake
Suckers for the kids from Ju-C Suckers
And last but CERTAINLY not least… for the visual stimulation: Hazelnut Photography and KimLe Photography

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful… right? Now- leave me comments on this seriously. Because if I don’t get any, I’ll assume you hate it. And if you hate IT, then you may as well just say you don’t like me. SO yucky. And I know [well, I think we all know] that you love me. :)

Have an ab fab Thursday!

xoxo!!

A.

Shelley & Tony came into my life just a little over a month ago. We got an inquiry from Shelley who said she was planning her wedding from all the way out in Chicago and she needed help. And what better place to turn to for a wedding planner extraordinaire then here right?!?

I have to be honest, when I first heard that the wedding was only two months away and Shelley and Tony had ZERO vendors booked, it made my heart race. The wedding was to be held at her Uncle’s private residence in Trabuco Canyon, but other than the venue and me, there was zero set in stone.

Happily though, I am amazed at all we have accomplished in just this short month. Every vendor is booked and so many decisions have been made, it makes me giddy with butterflies in my stomach to think of how amazing this wedding is going to be!

So let me share with you guys, just a few tid bits of what’s to come…

Their color scheme is a base of Black & White with accents of Pink, Yellow, & Orange. Shelley and Tony have such an awesome sense of style, so it was no surprise when they picked these adorably funky invites from the Etsy seller ellothere.

We also got to do one of my favorite things during the one weekend that Shelley and Tony came out to California. We took a trip down to the wonderful Dress My Chair showroom in Costa Mesa and tried out soooo many combinations of table setups. We literally pulled practically every linen from the hangers until we finally came up with something Shelley and Tony loved!

It was originally one of the color combinations that Shelley was opposed to when we started, but when she finally gave in and took a look at it on the table, it was perfection! Which is one of the reasons I love taking brides down there so much. Things can look so different in your head than when you actually see them in person, so Dress My Chair’s showroom allows you to find out just what that vision in your head really looks like. :)

And while Shelley and Tony loved this color combination, they definitely wanted to do something different than a damask for their base runner. Some of you might remember the trip to the L.A. Fabric district that Amanda posted about here earlier this month? Well that was for these two!

And after searching through hundreds of options, we had a winner!! This super funky, mod fabric, that incorporates the black, white, and yellow all in at once!

What do you guys think? So amazing right??

We also decided that we’ll use the fabric to wrap the vases of the cocktail table arrangements in, like this. [I make a killer stick figure cocktail table right?] ;)

And last, but not least….the caterers! Shelley & Tony tried a few different caterers while they were out here, but weren’t as impressed as they would have liked to be. So they put their trust into my hands and sent me and her parents (who live in California) off to 24 Carrots for a tasting.

Ahhh the sacrifices a wedding coordinator has to make! ;)

Needless to say, the food was all AMAZING! And the staff at 24 Carrots is JUST as AMAZING!

So stay tuned for more to come. Their wedding is just 3 and a half weeks away! And I promise that there is more fabulouness that has yet to be revealed!!!

~~ Alicia

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.

The Very-Pregnant-and-Talented Sarah K. Chen was with us
Always-a-Fave for attitude and images, Jonilyn Photography, accompanied by husband Alex!
Spontaneous-and-Spunky Jacob Atmodjojo was on board as well
And last but CERTAINLY not least in my eyes
I-Hope-We-Work-Together-Oodles-Next-Year and voted Best Newcomer just now from ME: Jordana Hazel!!

Phew, right?? Images for DAYS! WEEKS! YEARS! Needless to say, staying out of their way was challenging and more than that, I did a lot of “leaving it up to them”. So, hopefully these pictures are pleasing enough to give you a real feel for Chris and Rob’s day. It truly was a great thing to be a part of!!

The pictures start at the church, St. Vincent de Paul in Huntington Beach. Just before the ceremony!

There’s a push and pull, love/hate relationship with church ceremonies when you’re a coordinator. I LOVE them. The tradition of it, the gorgeous churches around here, the fact that I am freed up to take photos. But the hate of it… most of the time the church coordinator gives us “indie” coordinators very little jurisdiction at their site. I never have a problem with that- I don’t want to step on people’s toes or anything and as I said… I love the extra picture freedom. I just always want to be the one taking care of my clients! Fluffing the dress, straightening the veil, giving that last minute pep-talk… it’s my heart!!

That’s Christine, being gorgeous.

Just a few of the “entourage” doing their thing. :)

MARRIED!

I love the fake re-do of the candle lighting [for photo's sake]. More than that, I LOVE Robby’s face. What a character!!

Some post ceremony portraits…. boys+parasols=ridiculous!

And the girls, apparently they’re GREAT at the fake laugh!!

Until it turned into real laughs!

THIS is my favorite! When your colors are green and orange, and your wedding is ’round the corner from Halloween, the socks are just ONE of the perks!!

A few last quick snaps before heading off to the reception!

Off to the reception! The details were outrageous! I loved them!! Linens and rentals all provided by Baker Party Rentals!! Our venue was the clubhouse at Park Newport and was perfect for our intimate, laid-back party setting!! It also gave Chris’ family the access that they needed to create all of the floral details- YES, ALL OF THEM- themselves, the day prior!

These cute orange favor boxes held “a few of their favorite things”. Almond Roca, Reese’s, Candy Corn…

CUTE printed materials and signs!!

Their candy buffet was a hit, provided graciously by one of Christine’s aunts!!

A sweet memorial to Robby’s grandmother.

LOVED the bouts! The dahlias… or, zenias, or whatever they were…. LOVE them!

Straight from the Grand Entrance into their First Dance!!

Christine didn’t want a cake. Like, really, didn’t care for a cake. But, in the end, tradition reared it’s head and she compromised with a small cutting cake and some sheet cakes for the guests. These unique, funky cake topper froggies are really salt and pepper shakers!

I wish I’d gotten MORE pictures of the centerpieces. This is just one of the many arrangements! The clusters of vases on each of the tables were gorgeous!

One of the two frames showcasing their fab engagement pictures:

This drink is the green machine. Seriously!

These simple cocktail arrangements were perfect!

And we had 7 of these little cuties!

C&R love cocktail snacks! So, they provided dishes for the lounge area and cocktail hour! It was totally “them”!

Father/Daughter and Mother/Son dances…

We had a Starbucks Coffee station set up for the guests!

And around that time, Jonilyn set up a killer photo
booth, too!!

More detail.

One of our cute hanging vases out on the patio, at sunset!

The “entourage” snuck the couple out during sunset for a prime photo op!

A cookie bar accompanied the cake cutting and the cookies were delicious! All 8 kinds, a mix of home-made and store-bought!

The uplights were amazing! Provided by Lifetime Weddings!

After the speeches, a few words from our groom:

And Christine had a little surprise planned of her own. All for the joke, Alicia [the 'sistant] and I brought out these HUGE champagne glasses for C&R!!

A few VERY blurry shots of bouquet and garter and things and things!

And I love this!

The photo booth was a huge hit!!!

You know, with the vendors, too! Jonilyn, you know I’m on my tippy tippy toes waiting to see your images!!!

And, to end off the blog, a few of my schmappy images, edited up all pretty like [as pretty as they'll get for me]:

And my fave, just after the cake cutting, cute little crinkle-nose faces!!

C&R: I loooove you two! Your friendship, love, and laughter is so apparent. At your wedding, it was obvious that you had already been a family for so long now. It wasn’t a beginning, it was a continuing, and a deepening of your love! To be a part of that day, was an honor for all of the In The Now family! Have SO much fun on your vacay. Come back rested, and ready to party some more! xoxo!!

Let’s get to the goodies!!! Ceremony…

The florals were provided by M’s Flowers in Whittier. Incredible!!

During the wedding A&J presented a bouquet to each of their mothers, and pulled a single rose from each for their fathers!

The couple got married at Anita’s family’s church, Concordia Lutheran. I loved the history there, and the church was PACKED!

Before the actual ceremony, after all the guests were seated, A&J played a 15 minute slideshow cataloging their relationship and then setting the stage for their nuptials!

The fabulous Crissy Farah not only worked it out at their engagement session [clearly shown here by their killer enlargement] but accompanied me on the Day-Of [and BONUS! Jonilyn was there backing her up, too!!].

At work!

They had soo many great, funny, quirky ceremony moments! The crowd was laughing, the party was laughing, Anita and Jay were laughing… it was such a fun personal time!

Married!!!

Over to the Renaissance Long Beach Hotel for the reception. I LOVE that Anita let the hotel dictate her color scheme. She took the bright colors and RAN with it!

Aren’t these to die for??

And inside the room for a few more details…

Ugh, these centerpieces are amazing!! If flowers didn’t die, I would be a happier lady!

Outside of the room, displayed on an easel, was the whiteboard that Jason wrote Anita the night he proposed. This is, essentially, their proposal story!!

Their table numbers were too cute!

Cute little ribbon wrap and menu at each place setting!

I have a gagillion pictures of this cake. When it’s accompanied by the up-lighting, it gets stupid-beautiful!

During cocktail hour, some portraits took place with the amazing hotel lighting…

I cannot WAIT to see what Crissy is going to deliver!!

And now, onto the reception! Straight after the grand entrance, we danced! Their first dance was magically beautiful with the ambient lighting [2 follow-spots for the room... 2!!! I was in love!]:

Oh, some more cake pics. Half with blue up-lighting, half with amber [that is how the room was split- every other light! Soo neat!]

An impromptu kiss from the couple [apparently they took that glass clinking pretty seriously!]:

And onto speeches:

Okay, okay, so he’s making fun of Jason for balding… [this is Anita's dad, by the way, speaking]

Onto the cutting!!

I loooove Anita’s attitude here:

The shadow that the spotlight created on the wall behind them was unreal! Sooo gorgeous!!

And now, after a few words from our bride and groom, a presentation to one of the groom’s best friends, Mark. It was after all, his birthday!

So they gave him a surfboard shaped brownie cake, made by Jason’s sister. Too much!!!

And of course he had to cut it [and I'll admit, after this he tried to feed Jason as well...]

After the cake was cut, we proceeded into the father-daughter and mother-son dance…

Anita provided baskets of sandals for her guests to dance with! These puppies were snatched up before the baskets were even down! See that hand??

And, my FAVORITE part of the evening… at 11pm, the hotel brought out little mini slider burgers for all the guests to enjoy as a late-night dancing snack! The slider station was a hit and soo delicious! :)

And, as we packed up, another close up shot of their menus…

As the sliders went out, A&J requested all the guests left to get onto the dance floor for a group picture. I snagged a shot, as the dancing lights went on all around them!

Of course, the photobooth pictures HAD to appear on the blog [that's me and my assistant, Miriam]!

Thanks to Cheesy Photobooths for being awesome as always!! And to wrap up, a few moody broody shots of Anita’s personal details for the day:

I hope you all enjoyed the pictures! Honestly, I’m not sure my images captured the love, beauty, and joy surrounding this day! Anita put together this entire event and truly, it was a pleasure to work and be a part of! When all of the vendors feel like a team, there is NOTHING better! We all pulled together a truly gorgeous event for A&J, and they were nothing but gracious about it. To be honest, they were soo into one another that I’m not positive they noticed any of the details! So, guys, these pics are for you to remember by!! :)

A&J: you two are the best! I love how naturally comfortable you are in your love. It’s apparent. Being best friends is the best part of marriage, and seeing you together, I know you have that down! Keep on soaking in the love you two share- it’ll keep rubbing off on the people you meet! I know it did on me!! xoxo!

Court and James are one of the most fun couples I’ve had. They met over in England where Courtney was in school for Interior Design and where James lived! Once they met, they were inseparable! I love their infectious style of love, and their style for their big day rooted in their creative careers [James is a graphic designer] was a chic soiree! I was honored to be on board for the ride!!

They opted for a late, 8pm ceremony time spot at the historic and gorgeous Mission Inn in Riverside. Their chapel is seriously breath-taking. My apologies in advance that my pictures feel sub-par. But I had to give you a taste of their day as best I could!!

With the late evening sky, the outside of the chapel was incredible!!

I heart the pin spot light! And now, my blushing bride…

Ready for the ceremony!!

Yes, her dress has an over-the-top-awesome side bow. I loooove the asymmetry!!

The glowy reflected from the church’s gold altar area made the most scrumptious vibe lighting ever!!

And onto some reception details [sorry, I took these with my flash off and had to lighten them quite a bit... the quality is... meh]:

C&J had an intimate affair for about 75 of their closests friends and family, so they opted for 3 long banquet-style tables to fill the courtyard. It was amazing and totally a perfect way to compliment their stylish wedding!

Our courtyard [near the Ho-O-Kan room in the Mission] had two levels. The top level was our lounge area, and this was taken from up there, down to the dining area:

John Suarez and his wife at After Dark Entertainment not only rocked this vibe-y couples very specific music selections but they provided up-lighting in the upper lounge area that was to DIE for!!

Alternating purple and golden tones…

The cake was incredible! White and orange marbled chocolate wrapped around buttercream. It was simple, it was artsy. It was delicious. All that you can ask from a cake. And these urns full of oranges were everywhere! Accented with stephanotis and gardena, they smelled delicious, too!!

Serving Set:

More of the vibe-y lounge area details [did I mention the entire event was DRIPPING in candles and candle light??]:

A large gold clam held oranges on the punch table:

One more cake pic before heading back down stairs…

C&J opted for place cards at each guest’s seat. This worked out great! Because we provided the guests with a pen, and on the back, we created an instant guest book! The cards were collected by my team prior to the meal being served, and placed into their guest book which contained pages of glued mini envelopes that we slipped the cards right in to! I loved it!!

A quick snap of the very quick portrait session that the bridal party had:

Their photographer, Chip Shaffer, was great! I can’t wait to see images! And onto the GRAND ENTRANCE!

Real men carry trains! :)

We enjoyed our dinner and it was onto speeches…

And James himself:

A close up shot of some of the table’s decor:

I looooved that they used palm trees everywhere! And I mean, EVERYWHERE. In the church, outside of the church, all around the courtyard, ON the table tops [3 per table, actually], in the entry, in the lounge area… palms. Palms! Here’s a cute shot I grabbed of their guest book:

And another… love TRUMPS all!!

Being that we are the hip socialites that we are… no real formal “traditional” elements, and no dancing. It was really a nice that fostered relationships and love- kept the focus on the people who came out to be with them, and on James and Courtney’s love for everyone there [especially each other] as well! So, onto cake cutting we go!!

Sooo in love. Soooo cute!

A last picture to leave you with… during pack up, I grabbed a shot of some of the centerpiece vases that Courtney [yes, her and her mother] put together:

Basically, just orchid heads jammed into clean, slim vases. I love it!!

Honestly, the night was SO full of love and wonder. It was like being a part of something magical. Is that totally overboard sounding?? Court and James “international love” will surely continue for years and years to come!!

C&J: I truly love and admire your love for one another! It’s tender, it’s strong, it’s willing to go the distance. Seeing two people so connected and so real is remarkable! I really treasure your wedding as a fond memory of mine, and I treasure our friendship in the future as well! My absolute BEST to you two, beaming newlyweds!! xoxo!

First thing’s first: Craig and Laura. Your ceremony was filled with SO much love and emotion that I found myself crying right along side of Craig as he told Laura “I tell you ‘I love you’ every day because you deserve to hear it” [through big, tear-filled eyes]. Holy moly. Your love, rooted so deeply in friendship and a true understanding of one another, is what they make movies from! It’s what real LIFE is about!!!

Now, onto the day:

Posh Productions catered our event and took care of all our rentals, which was FAB. A shout out to Kim… you are amazing!!! Oh, did I mention that this whole event took place at the top-notch Rancho Las Lomas in Silverado [shout out to Julie... haaay!]. Anyhow, Posh took care of so much and was able to free up me and my team to do what we do best- serve the bride and groom! Here are some fab details from our day:

Cocktail table cuteness!

Prim and Pixie supplied all of Laura’s printed paper goods and I LOVED them! I’m a sucker for all-matching printed paper materials! You’ll see much, much more later…

Becky Sykes provided our florals!

And that arch is NO easy task!!

Onto the ceremony!!

This is Brooklyn. Brooklyn is the daughter of my darling bride and groom. She’s amazing. She was definitely not in the mood for her dress [or really, walking for that matter]. So, here she is, being walked in with her flower girl basket by our MAN of honor. Yep, that’s right. Man of honor!

Here’s Laura!

Eli, our Man of Honor, is SUCH a sport- holding her bouquet and fixing her train- and doing it all with pride! I love that he embraced it so whole-heartedly!!

Their own personal vows:

Renee Broughton is so super duper fab. I heart her big time!

You know when like you work with people all the time and then you don’t work with them and then you suddenly work with them again….?? Yeah, that’s what it’s like for Renee and I. The BEST easy-going photographer!!

Things about the above picture that Amanda thinks is sexy:

1. Craig is totally ALL the way over to Laura [like in Hitch "you go 90, I come 10!"]… Craig’s at 120% for sure!

2. The way he’s holding the back of her head

3. That THIS came next…

Kiss on the lips, kiss on the forehead. Nothing says I love, honor, and cherish you more than that!!!

This picture, below, reminds me so much of Josh and I…

and THAT makes me happy!!

Okay, MORE details!!

Since Craig and Laura have had quite a few people of importance pass away, they set up this honorary table for them to be remembered. I thought the quote was so touching and poignant! They had a candle and place card for each person, which you’ll see later…

When your colors are cornflower blue and orange, you just HAVE to rock a blue cake. I mean, really!

L & C had an intimate wedding of less than 100 guests, and in order to fill a room of that size, we focused on spacing the tables well. It helped that our SUPER cool square tables seated 8!

Oh how I love the hustle and bustle of the pre-event hour!!

Their engagement photos kicked some serious tail!!

That’s probably my favorite engagement pic turned guestbook cover I’ve seen yet!!
Sneaking back down to steal some portraits…

And now, for the MAIN EVENT! Grand Entrance!!

I caught this quick moment as the pastor gave his blessing of the meal. I loved that Laura picked up Brooklyn and Craig embraced them for this moment…

One more dinner time shot of the cake…

And here are the honoring candles that I spoke of earlier:

The toasts by the Best Man and… Man of Honor!

Then, her Dad gave an embarrassing speech… LOVE dads!

Loved this mother/daughter moment!

But all was forgiven come dancing time…

Laura and her dad are like… BFF

And Craig is definitely Momma’s little boy!

Our precious, sweet little Brooklyn kept sticking her fingers into the cake! Frosting on the sides of her mouth confirms it!

But, it’s ok… it was time for the cut anyway!!

And then, THIS happened, in the blink of an eye…

Wow, guys. WOW!

And I snuck this as they went to clean off… too cute!!

The bouquet toss [soo super vibe-y indie]!

Garter:

And of course, Laura’s brother caught the garter!!

NOT stoked!

All in all- the night was off the HOOK! Fly By Night gave us a karaoke set up and provided some killer background tunes for the guests! It was a total party and everyone had a GREAT time!

L & C: Josh and I loved being a part of your big day! Your love for one another is so apparent. I’m truly honored that you two came into my life [well, ok, Brooklyn makes 3]!! I wish you the best forever and ever and ever! xoxo!

The best thing about Fifi is that I think we share the same brain! :) Her details were insane! Hand crafted down to the embossing on many of her paper goods, the ribbon wraps on the napkins and the color scheme flowing throughout the ceremony and into the room! Martha Stewart would be SO proud!!

We’ll start out with the front of the building. Falkner Winery provided the gorgeous backdrop to our day. These faux windows worked perfectly for Fifi’s hand crafted oversized initials!!

Here’s a peek from the balcony of our long aisle down to the ceremony lawn:

Fio’s color scheme, a limey green and popping orange, worked great to make her decor stand out! Sorry in advance for how washed out these pictures look… my camera settings were a bit off!

Dawn at Lavender Hill seriously outdid herself with the florals. They were immaculate! I wish I had better pictures of the arch, but the dripping orchids and curly willow that covered the metal structure created such an amazing sanctuary for the couple!

On the front two rows were “reserved” signs for the immediate family [with the names on the front of each chair]. On every seat, Fiona made these great multi-page program tags that hung from the chairs, along with a paper cone of petals to toss at the couple as they recessed as Mr. and Mrs. She did a TON of work- and it paid off!!

A terrible shot of the cones. They were lime green with an ivory tag and their monogram in orange. Filled with the orange petals, they were to die for!!

Into the room for some details…

The seating cards were corks- from the winery, [which I loved!] laid in trays of white rice…

Loved the backs, where she used animal stamps to indicate meal choice!

Fifi put this glass of “conversation cards” on the bar. The questions ranged from personal to political to romantical and all over the place!

Each napkin was adorned with menu, ribbon, and orchid bud!

The cake was INSANE!!

Not sure what you call the detailing on the middle tier, besides “stitching” but I ADORE it!!

The kids table, in the back corner, was so perfect! Fifi made personalized bags for each of them chocked full of goodies!

Their engagement pics, blown up:

Onto the nuptials!!

And some post-ceremony portaits [I know, I know.. I hate it when I can't stick around for the kiss, too, but lately I've just had to miss it! ]

Luna Photography ROCKED and I’m seriously holding my breath until they blog some teasers!!

I loved this shot! As they were in the vineyard wrapping up, I realized that they were underneath the wrap-around balcony. I popped out there for a shot, and they noticed me and waved. Loved it!!

Just before the grand entrance, they practiced their first dance, downstairs in the wine cellar, alone. Swoon…

Into the reception we go!!

And their fab first dance!!

Josh caught this gem:

On their head table, we re-used the ceremony decor, covering it with orchids and pomanders hanging from these manzanita trees!

Speeches [I know, these are dark!]

Onto Father/Daughter [by the way, the maid of honor gave a toast that made me cry just prior to this. Because of the crying, I forgot to snap a picture... whoops, but seriously!!!]

Luna at work:

Cutting!!

Fifi’s hand-made pockets for her favors [which were photobooth pictures, with the booth provided by Party Booths!

A few shots of Fio’s gorgeous dress details:

Some tossing:

I LOVED this shot, below:

Here’s one I took to get a good detail shot of her programs. I wish I’d done this of an extra petal cone, too, but I didn’t! My main reasoning was to show off their “while you’re here” page, which was the last one. I’m a HUGE fan of these, when weddings have multiple things going on [did I mention that they rented a Dippin’ Dots machine and 4 flavors for their guests?? Yes. It was amazing and delicious and incredible and Josh got seconds!!

Some yummy decor shots from later in the evening:

A heritage table, which included a few more engagement shots and pictures from both of their parents’ weddings, was along the back wall in the room. They also included a digital frame that played a slideshow of pics throughout the evening!

But my favorite image of the night, by far….

<3!!!

And, of course, a close 2nd:

Great, now he’s one of those weirdos that goes into a photo booth alone… just great! :)

F & V: Seriously… it was SO fun to be a part of the planning process with you! Your love for each other is evident and just watching you interact, anyone can tell you fit like a glove! Promise me that you’ll take that honeymoon once October hits!!

I met Caroline over at the San Clemente Inn to do a quick bouquet drop off!

I’m sure you’re sick of hearing about him, but Wayne Toshikazu was there shooting, along with Kim Le taking the lead!

You’ll see Kim Le in action a bit later…

Our ceremony and reception took place both at the Historic Cottage in San Clemente. It was amaaaazing! Onto the ceremony…

Caroline put together some incredibly intricate, fun details!

Caroline’s uncle playing guitar for the ceremony. I loved that when he was walking out, I saw this on his guitar:

Just before they were off to take portraits, I caught this moment:

More details:

Yep. These are huge mounds of tissue paper flowers. I loe them.

If you can’t tell yet, the theme was a Mexican fiesta!

Their cake was… incredible. It was so, so, so intricate, amazing, and PERFECT for this type of affair!!

So, I know this is a picture of my husband’s butt, BUT… he tore this huge hole in his pants during the ceremony. Seriously, unreal, right?? Good thing he had a back up pair of pants.

If you haven’t been to the Historic Cottage- you’re missing out! Surrounding the area that we used as the dance floor, is a big, adobe bench that Caroline’s mom sewed all of these pillows for!

After the ceremony, we moved the sweetheart table under the arch for the rest of the evening.

For favors, Caroline made tins of runts candy packaged colorfully, and my FAVE, the personalized Jones sodas again. TONS of different custom pictures and LOTS of flavors!!

We put out the groom’s cake, which was a surprise for Stephen, during the cocktail hour, with this CUTE customized cake topper!!

She gave Country Garden Caterers a few of these cute terra cotta arrangements to decorate the buffet!

A quick shot of our two photogs, workin’ it!

And the lovely bride:

And our dashing groom:

Our lovely florals were provided by one of my faves [for brides on a budget, especially], Floral Event Outlet! The bouquets were lush, the centerpieces were just what she wanted, and the vases were so fun wrapped in alternating colors of bright ribbon!

Just before the grand entrance, I caught C & S looking through their polaroid guest book…

And now onto the festivities [they opted to have their entrance, first dance, father/daughter and mother son, and then their toasts all back to back to back to... you get it]. It was a GREAT way to get the formalities out of the way and free up some time to par-tay!

Dancing with dad…

And now, with mom…

A few more decor shots: [she made these to line the aisle, and I kept them on the chairs for the bride and groom!]

A few more details…

Onto speeches…

Cake cutting…

My favorite faces always come from the cake cutting…

Bouquet and Garter…

The crew at After Dark Entertainment were GREAT at keeping the party going with their music selection. They also provided these amazing up-lights, which went perfect with our decor and gave this outside space JUST the right amount of vibe and light!!

Caroline and Stephen put together a KILLER slideshow for their guests as well, and we played it just as night was falling…

A sweet VIBE shot of the cake, after being cut, as the night rolled on…

And, of course, my favorite of the evening:

To Caroline and Stephen- you two are fabulous!! I loved every moment of your event. I’m so honored that I was able to witness your marriage- the ceremony literally gave me chills [and it wasn't just the ocean breeze, I promise!!]. Have SO much fun on your honeymoon, and hopefully you’re checking this in the nick of time before you two take off! I know, C, I promised I’d get ‘em up by Monday!!

The funky yellow vase was provided by me, but our superb vendors included The Treasured Petal [and aren't you dying already at that ball o'dasies??], Signature Party for all my rental needs and Dress My Chair for their absolutely outrageously fabulous tangerine pintuck linen!! Some of the intricate detailing:

Stuff that I created/put together and DIED when I saw it come to fruition: The individual bottles of Orangeade made the PERFECT summer chiller for an outdoor ceremony or cocktail hour beverage for the kids. Tying it together with a cute orange and white striped ribbon and adding a straw creates fun in the SUN! The favors that I put together were mini bags of macaroons from Paulette in Los Angeles. Staying in the color theme, we picked Lemon, Peach, and Orange Blossom flavors. YUM! For our escort card element, I opted for a second “favor” of sorts, using these orange-and-white wrapped chocolate bars from World Market- how perfect, the large text in the middle reads “rejoice!”. I loved that it tied in so great to the summer theme! Finished it off with a bright yellow napkin underneath a square orange cocktail plate and over a playful placemat from Horchow. I seriously think this one, of all 9, may be my favorite!

Of course, as always thanks to Jonilyn for her fabulous photos and even her hand-made collages of all 9 table sets!! Love her for it!

Hope you took some time to enjoy!! Next month, I’ll post another inspiring tabletop for your eager eyes!

I had the pleasure of working with two AMAZING photogs on this day. Zenia and Jonilyn- what a force to be reckoned with! I cannot WAIT for the pro pics!!

Oh Laura- even her vendor payment envelopes matched the event!

Those photog ladies snagging their signature pics:

Ceremony!

A quick jaunt to check on the reception and some more detail shots:

Hi Jen!

Florals were provided by Yamaguchi Flowers [which I'm not sure of the website for]. They were incredible!

Their home-made margaritas were a HUGE hit!

Laura and Ryan set up their bars ideally for bringing in their own alcohol. As you can see by their bar menus, they set up one bar with mexican drinks, and one with what they affectionately coined “gringo drinks”!

A few shots of the whole shebang!

Back to the important stuff…

Yay!

Candles lined the path from the wedding to the reception. At night, their glow was magical!

Some bridal party close ups:

Cake by the delightful Bread Basket! Holy delicious!

The rope that you see in front of the cake is a VERY important symbol to Laura and Ryan. It’s actually Laura’s grandparent’s lazo, which is a catholic/mexican ceremony tradition. Since Laura’s grandfather passed away last month, the sentiment was very important to the couple!

Some photos of my fab photog buds getting the goods!

Grand Entrance and onto the party!

Speeches!

Cut that cake!

Thanks Jen for the photo of me at work!

LOVE that shot!

The reception just kept getting more beautiful and ambient as the night went on! It was amazing and I loved it!! Laura and Ryan had a grand farwell complete with sparklers all the way to Ryan’s classic Chevy Malibu [that's right, right Ryan? Don't kill me if it's wrong!]. It was seriously beautiful! L & R- you two are the most fun loving, easy going couple to be around! I wish the day could have lasted forever- but Laura I’m sure by the end you were ready to get out of that va-va-va-voooom dress of yours!! Thanks for letting me be a part of it!

On Sunday, Josh and I stayed up all night so that Monday morning we could partake in the LA Flower Market experience. He wanted some flowers for his mom and so I made him come with me to pick them out personally! We ended up with a great selection of warm orange tones paired with buttery yellows. We started off by buying some kumquat branches, then added some funky sunflowers [I think], ranunculus [of course], tulips [parrot tulips, with ruffled feathers], solidaster for filler and then to top it all off… vanda orchids! Yum. It seriously looks delish. I wanted to keep it super garden-y. What do you think??

For my mother in law:

For my mommy:

My husband is the BEST! He really is such a “quality time” guy, and he wanted to do this WITH me. He was a trooper, cleaning the leaves off of the flowers, trimming them for me… I even taught him how to use a floral knife!! And while I was arranging, he made me this:

Maybe this was my “potential-mother’s-day” arrangement! Haha!

It’s only natural that blue made the palette for this beachy table. We stuck in the warm ivorys and added in a carmel color to tie in the sand [with a runner made of a soft woven material, almost like a canvas, but with a bigger weave]. The linens, provided by Elegant Design Specialty Linens, were an ivory silcara, which is a cross between a raw silk [with the texture] and a smooth satin [but, it doesn't have as much sheen]. They were gorgeous! We choose a white chiavari chair to compliment the table, and then picked up these great blue-fade-to-white plates from Target! Underneath the plate are some great ivory colored Capiz shell chargers that we purchased from Pier 1. Another Target find- the charger that’s sitting underneath our centerpiece! Mirrors are always a way to make your centerpiece appear larger and give your table a bit of a POP, so a charger with a shiny stainless interior was the perfect compliment to our setting! Lastly, we added on that great pop of coral with our napkin rings, which just happened to look like sea life! We loved the little beaded “arms” coming off of them! Kristin took our vision to a new level, filling our shell vase with subtle hues of ivorys and sand colored floras, adding in monkey tails for a pop. If you have any questions on where to get any of the unmentioned items for yourself, feel free to email me! This is our take is on a beach wedding… In The Now style! Enjoy the details!!

All photos are, of course, compliments of the lovely Jonilyn Brown!!!

Yay! So fun. Thanks to Eric Slay for these fab few!