California Wedding by Amy Nichols and Lisa Lefkowitz

We always love the weddings that Northern Cali based wedding planner, Amy Nichols, sends our way. The attention to detail is generally off the charts gorgeous and she always manages to score the brides with the coolest style. Well, this next little number is no exception. It’s the PERFECT combination of total elegance and total whimsy. A combo that you don’t often see pulled off quite so beautifully. Photographed by Carolyn Quilici for Lisa Lefkowitz Photography, this wedding is all about the pretty.

To see the full wedding and all of the gorgeous details, click right here!

From Amy Nichols, planner….It was such an honor to be a part of Katherine and David’s wedding day.  They met 6 years ago while working in Washington DC and decided to get married in California where they’re both from originally and currently live. What I loved about them was how easy going they were. Katherine really trusted her vendors and deferred to us when she needed suggestions on what she should do or what the best timing was. She’s incredibly stylish and a natural beauty, which I think really shone on the big day. I love the portraits of them taken during the reception – they really reflect their casual elegance. Carolyn Quilici for Lisa Lefkowitz Photography was the talented photographer behind this big day and captured every element beautifully.

From the bride, Katherine…David and I love visiting Napa Valley and always knew we wanted our celebration to have an outdoor element, so from the moment we laid eyes on Beaulieu Garden we knew it was the perfect venue for our reception. The grounds have a naturally beautiful, understated elegance that perfectly conveyed the feeling we wanted for our wedding day.

St. Helena Catholic Church, a lovely, quaint church just down the road from BG, was where we held our ceremony. It was personal and fun – perfect for us. We surprised our guests by having the St. Helena School Youth Choir perform, and they did a fantastic job. And who doesn’t love children singing! We used whites and ivorys for the ceremony for a crisp, clean look in the church, and brought in pops of color at the reception. The ribbon wands were a last minute addition, completed by my wonderful aunt days before the wedding. Since we didn’t have a “departure” planned for the end of the night, we thought the ribbons would be a fun touch for our exit from the church.

My bridesmaids chose their favorite style dress in ivory or white, and we all wore J.Crew heels. As my friends will tease, it wouldn’t have been possible for me not to incorporate J.Crew somehow! The groomsmen all donned sharp navy suits with grey/blue ties. My dress was Monique Lhuillier – which I impulsively purchased without trying on right after David and I got engaged. (I’d seen the dress online and couldn’t stop thinking about it and learned a boutique in San Francisco had the dress – but was living in Chicago at the time. My dear friend and bridesmaid Becky ran over to check it out for me, and I purchased it over the phone sight unseen!)

The reception was beautiful. Beaulieu Garden is the perfect venue for a progressive party. When guests arrive they walk through a gorgeous rose garden to the cocktail area with a fountain, sculptured trees and lawn. We incorporated our pops of color here, with bright pink linens on the bars and large bowls of lemons, a nod to David’s grandfather who lives on a citrus ranch in Southern California. Guests cross a little white bridge and walk down a covered pathway towards dinner under an arbor of trees with white twinkling lights – it was fantastic. Guests sat at long tables with crisp ivory linens and pretty florals that complimented the beautiful natural setting and conveyed the feeling of casual elegance we hoped for.

Looking back, the two best decisions we made were the venue (which by the way came with Paula Le Duc Catering, which equals absolutely unbelievable food and a top notch staff) and the band, WonderBread5, who kept all our guests on the dance floor the entire night. We were also so grateful for the contributions by our family and friends – from the yummy cupcakes my mom and her friends made for dessert to the fantastic wines paired with dinner provided by our family friends. Our guests dined on great food and danced the night away – it was a a wonderful celebration!

Photograpy: Carolyn Quilici for Lisa Lefkowitz Photography / Catering/Venue: Paula Le Duc Fine Catering / Flowers: Simply Blossoms / Band: Wonder Bread 5 / Hair & Makeup: Sarah Hyde / Planner: Amy Nichols Special Events / Paper Goods: Felix Doolittle