After spending so much of my last few years swimming in sea of weddings, I’m still amazed how they strike such a cord with me. Oh, and they do. I open up a wedding like a child opens up a present, with such enthusiasm and anticipation, and when a wedding like this one from Studio Castillero from a Bride this stylish waits on the other side, I can barely believe me luck. Because this type of soiree sits with me for awhile, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. See why here.

 

From the Bride… Athan and I met in Encinitas, a little San Diego beach town, three years before we became engaged. We hit it off immediately and discovered that we both had a love for music and art. And we’ve been together ever since!

We had traveled to New York City for a friend’s wedding. The day before the wedding, Athan and I were taking a stroll in Central Park, around Turtle Pond to be exact, when he popped the question. It was a total surprise! Such a beautiful place to be proposed to. Afterward, we had some alone time in the lovely park to take it all in.

Athan is of Greek descent, so it was very important to him and his family to have a traditional Greek ceremony. For the reception, Athan and I wanted a casual yet elegant outdoor atmosphere and we found the perfect location at Leo Carrillo in Carlsbad. It had that old California and Spanish rustic charm in the architecture and landscaping that we were looking for. Plus, I fell in love with the gorgeous peacocks that roamed the grounds.

I adore anything and everything bohemian so I knew I wanted that to influence the style of our wedding. Since Leo Carrillo had these great white-washed walls and beautiful succulents, we wanted to incorporate that into the look for our linens and centerpieces. Our floral designer, Lily, did an amazing job of mixing the succulents with more vibrant flowers which really stood out against the white linens. I wanted there to be a variety of different vases and flowers on each table for more of an eclectic look. My mother-in-law and I picked out all the vases and candle holders, mainly in rustic mercury glass to give it a more elegant finish.

I was on somewhat of a tight budget for my dress. After trying on what seemed like a million dresses, I finally found my dress online. I went to the store to try it on and knew it was the one! It was simple which is what I wanted and it also had a somewhat Grecian look which was perfect for a Greek wedding! My headpiece was just two gold necklaces that my hairstylist, Tara, incorporated into two braids around my crown. I decided to wear flats the entire day– one of the best decisions I made! I was comfortable throughout the ceremony, reception and dancing. Priceless.

Whitney Lee did the cake and desserts which included baklava for Athan’s Greek side and cannolis for my Italian side. Having the reception outside under the market lights was perfect for Greek dancing. D.J. Ray did a fantastic job of keeping the music going and everyone danced until the end of the reception. Festivities went beyond our expectations in making sure everything was coordinated beautifully. I can’t say how happy we are with Megan and Brent’s photography as well, so precious! We were extremely lucky to have such helpful and talented vendors.

The whole day was magical and turned out exactly how we wanted it. We couldn’t have done it without the help of our families. It was beyond amazing to celebrate and dance the night away under the stars with our family and friends. Couldn’t ask for anything better.

Wedding Photography: Studio Castillero | Ceremony Venue: Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church, Cardiff by the Sea, Califonia | Officiants: Fr John Kariotakis + Fr Michael Sitaras |  Reception Venue: Leo Carrillo Ranch, Carlsbad, California | Event Coordination + Catering: Festivities Catering | Floral Design: Lily Custom Floral | Invitations: Papyrus | Desserts + Cake: Whitney Lee (whitney.lee21@yahoo.com) | Hair + Makeup: Tara Fontana of Fairytale Hair and Makeup | Dress: Vera Wang Collection-David’s Bridal | Bride’s Shoes: Aldo | Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Vera Wang Collection-David’s Bridal | Men’s Attire: Black by Vera Wang-Men’s Wearhouse | Music: Ray Blake from MY DJ’s

I’ve always considered myself a classic bride (with an uber-romantic twist), but when I hear the words “boho” and “chic” something in my heart goes a little crazy.  Maybe it’s the laid-back elegance, perfectly imperfect blooms or the just the overall vibe of a bohemian day, but whatever the reason, I think I definitely need to reconsider my “someday wedding.”  Case in point?  This drop-dead gorgeous shoot at Silver Lake Farms from an uber-talented team of  CA vendors, including Jessica M. Wood, Sincerely, A. Photography, Nicole Alexandra Designs, and Archive Rentals.  It’s inspiration overflowing with up-cycled goodness, eco-friendly details and a plethora of organic pretty.  See it all in the full gallery.

 

From Jessica M. Wood Photography… This is a wedding inspiration shoot with two real couples photographed at Silver Lake Farms in Los Angeles, CA. We choose an “Up-cycled Bohemian” theme in order to show that a wedding could be both beautifully eclectic and eco-friendly by highlighting re-purposed goods and sustainable vendors. We were so lucky to be able to assemble such an amazing team with the same vision. Our inspiration came from textures such as worn wood and glass, and our color scheme was inspired by the fresh spring flowers Tara at Silver Lake selected (and grew!) for us.

The day was sprinkled with all sorts of beautiful up-cycled goodness. The women’s wedding rings we used were handmade and the man’s ring created from an antique spoon. The desserts, by The Good Cookies & Beyond, were created from local ingredients from the farmers market and were vegan and gluten free. All of the flowers grown locally and organically at Silver Lake Farm. Much of the furniture was reclaimed and the invitations were printed on real wood, another eco-friendly option. All of the plates and flatware were meticulously collected by Laura at Dish Wish to create a beautiful vision of a porcelain-past. Topping it off was a fantastic turquoise truck, a complete happy accident and welcome addition to the last moments of our shoot as the sun disappeared behind the LA mountains.

Photography: Jessica M. Wood Photography and Sincerely, A. Photography | Venue + Floral Design: Silver Lake Farm | Event Design + Rentals: Nicole Magnifico-Parker for Archive Rentals | Event Coordination + Styling: Nicole Alexandra Designs | Invitations: Night Owl Paper Goods | Bakery: The Good Cookies & Beyond | Table Settings: Dish Wish | Dresses + Accessories: Chic Little Devil Stylehouse |Rings: N I X I N and Dank Artistry | Makeup: Cheryl Nacario | Hair: Marcy Villa | Models: Jon and Erin + Melissa and Armas

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Lovelies, you might want to sit down for this next one. It’s a love story 20 years in the making, and from the looks of the gorgeous images from the lovely  Caroline Tran, you would think it was a wedding 20 years in the making too. Because the details dreamed up by Every Elegant Detail and Amy Burke Designs at Thomas Fogarty Winery are simply perfection, and might just knock your socks off. It’s image after image of pin-worthy prettiness, and you can see them all right here.

 

From the Bride… We worked together about 20 years ago. We knew “of” each other, but that was it. Then we worked together again at a very small company. Neither one remembered the other, and it took someone else who worked with both of us years ago to reintroduce us. A while after I left the small company we started dating, and have been together ever since!

We talked about getting married for a while. We even had a pre-announcement party, where we told our friend we were getting married… sometime… but didn’t have any more plans. Charles had been shopping for rings, asking me vague questions once in a while. Once morning I was getting ready for work, and he came into the room, all dressed up. He knelt down on one knee, asked me to marry him and presented the most beautiful ring ever! Of course I said yes! We had to go to work right after that – I don’t think I got anything done at work that day except to show off my ring.

Our fondest moment was when we walked into the pavilion, and saw the design for the first time. It was amazing! Six months of millions of decisions all came together. Everything was perfect – the orange and purple colors, the loop design was subtle but there enough that people were able to link the invitation design to the wedding design. It was beautiful!

We could never have done this without Janece and Lori at Every Elegant Detail. They have excellent taste in design, and every time we threw crazy ideas at them, they made it work – like encouraging us to give legos as guest gifts when we were on the fence, and it was a hit! They always made us feel like we were the only clients they had, and were always available. Huge thanks to Janece’s “gut” feelings!

We couldn’t have been happier with our wedding vendors… Amy at Amy Burke Designs did a fabulous job on the flowers. We especially loved the hanging centerpieces over the main table. This was something I had never seen before, and I am so happy we did it. All the flowers were so beautiful – the calla lilies and orchids swept to the sides at the front of the ceremony were gorgeous. Componere Catering was just fantastic. The appetizers were perfect, dinner was amazing and the nitro ice cream station was an enormous hit! Beth Ann at Studio Cakes designed the perfect cake for us. It was beautiful! We challenged her to add something a little unexpected, and we were not disappointed! At first, we weren’t going to have a wedding film, and then right before the wedding date, my sister hired Aaron Kelly. The film from AK Studios is amazing – I’m so glad we did it or I would not have seen the first part of the ceremony when my flower girl ran away! Aaron did a great job editing and we absolutely love our video! Caroline Tran captured every moment – from our nerves at the beginning of the day, to the emotions of the ceremony and the fun at the reception! We LOVE how our pictures came out.

Advice to future brides? Use a wedding planner! Even if you think you can do it yourself, a planner can add so much more than you can ever think of. All of the planning you do leading up to the wedding will be so worth it!

Wedding Photography: Caroline Tran | Wedding Venue: Thomas Fogarty Winery  | Officiant: Maggie Beretz  | Wedding Planning: Every Elegant Detail  | Floral Design: Amy Burke Designs  | Catering: Componere Fine Catering | Wedding Cake: Studio Cake | Invitations: Hello!Lucky | Linens: La Tavola  | Rentals (Tables,Chairs, Lounge Furniture): Hartmann Studios | Draping: Classic Party Rentals | Candy Bar: Candy Warehouse | Ceremony Music: Krista Strader | Ukulele Player: Tennyson Lum  | DJ: Big Fun DJ  | Guest Shuttles: Destination Systems | Limos: Lone Star Transportation  | Photo Booth: Glass Coat Photobooth  | Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Groom’s Suit: Nordstrom Men’s Custom Tuxedo |

Hello!Lucky, Caroline Tran Photography and Thomas Fogarty Winery are members of our Little Black Book, Love what you see? Take a look at their portfolios.

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