The Smog Shoppe in Los Angeles is one of my all time favorite venues. It’s the perfect combination of elegance, style and total approachability and to be honest, some of the best weddings we’ve seen on SMP have come straight out of this fabulous venue. And this next one, photographed by Love Ala Photography, is at the top of our list. Not only is it completely adorable/chic/gorgeous/insert-your-own-gush-here…it was also designed for $12,000. And in one of the nation’s priciest cities…that kind of makes it completely steal worthy! To see even more, click right here.
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For the big day Eric and I had three priorities…celebrating with our family and friends, a reasonable budget and representing who we are. We wanted a small meaningful ceremony in LA, our home, with our family and close friends. We wanted to have quality time with everyone while still allowing them to have their own vacation. After all LA is an amazing city!
After family and friends, our next concern was the budget. We wanted to spend approximately 12k total on our wedding and thus did a lot of the leg work ourselves.
We also had a lot of help from our family and friends. I think our dear friend and wedding coordinator Amy said it best, “I’m totally down to help with any/everything for the next 10 months. When my grandmother and grandfather got married during the war, their families joined together and gave them a ‘Hope Chest’ filled with items to start their life together. That’s what a wedding is. The community joining together to bless your union. The (official) start of your life together. So, if that’s driving to the Rose Bowl, writing on chalkboard glasses, heavy lifting tables and chairs, supervising the bar staff or holding your dress up while you pee, I’m there.”
Just a few ways we chose to save money. Designing and printing our own save the dates and invitations. My mother and sister scoured garage sales in the Midwest for mason jars to hold candles and also found the gorgeous blue containers that held the flowers. Having our wedding at the Smog Shoppe also played a major part in keeping our budget down, as the space is gorgeous without having to do anything to it. We loved all of the raw wood and the succulent wall is beautiful and takes the place of needing the extra cost of floral arrangements. The flowers and plants we did use were picked from our garden and arranged by my bridesmaids. Other benefits to having our wedding at The Smog Shoppe include having all of the equipment needed for a DJ so you can get a cheaper rate for a plug and play DJ or you can just bring your own iPod. They also have a huge projector screen that you can do a slideshow on or just play some cool movies for added ambiance. And last but not least you can supply your own alcohol.
We wanted our wedding to reflect us and our lifestyle. We wanted it to be California, outdoors, fun, laid back, rustic, colorful, unique and meaningful. I picked three jewel tones for the bridesmaids and let them choose their own dresses. The groomsmen wore their own black suits and we gave them each matching ties and pocket squares and fun colorful socks from Urban Outfitters. We chose to leave the tables bare for the family style dinner provided by Epicurean Umbrella. For the ceremony we asked our dear friend Michelle Van Dillen to marry us. We couldn’t imagine getting married by someone who didn’t really know us. We went to the library and researched all things wedding and put together a meaningful and heartfelt ceremony that included our marriage intentions and our own vows. We had my brother and Eric’s sister in-law read I Carry Your Heart with Me by E.E. Cummings and an excerpt from A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. Although I made it through the ceremony tear free I can’t say the same when I watch the wedding video today. It was a truly special ceremony.
Advice for future brides…The most important thing, no matter the budget, is that the wedding reflects you and your partner. Ask your family and friends for help. It will be the greatest and most meaningful gift you can receive. The best piece of advice I was given was to relax and just enjoy everything! Make sure you take several moments to just pause and take everything in. Once the ceremony starts the rest of the day goes by SOOOOO fast and it is truly hard to remember it all. Relax and enjoy it and just know that everyone who is there loves and supports you. In the end nothing else matters.
Photography: Love Ala Photography / Cinematography: A2K Studios / Flowers: DIY, succulents and flowers grown in the couples garden / Event Design: Bride & Groom / Event Planning: Amy V. Dewhurst / Ceremony + Reception Location: Smog Shoppe / Invitations: DIY Bride & Groom / Shoes: Nina / Dress: Oleg Cassini Style CT326 / Caterer: Epicurean Umbrella
Wow! I am just curious when the bride said 12k for their budget. Does she mean the total budget including caterer, dress, photographer, and etc. If so, that's amazing!
what a beautiful budget wedding!!! i LOVE the flowers and arrangements - well done on that gorgeous DIY wedding project.
LOL - I love the socks! Her flowers are great and the joy on their faces is awesome! :)
Absolutely gorgeous! Random side-question: is there any way to find out where that beautiful purple dress came from (one of the guests is wearing it in the group shot with the bride; flower on the waist; second in from the right)?? I'm in search of purple bridesmaid dresses and I LOVE this! Anyone?
How cool are the dresses!? Love the colors. That's great that she designed the wedding for $12,000.
This wedding is beautiful and has so much personality! I would love to know where the bright salmon-colored dress with the ruffles down the front came from also :-)
Great socks! Do you know where they are from? Thanks.
"The groomsmen wore their own black suits and we gave them each matching ties and pocket squares and fun colorful socks from Urban Outfitters."
the smog shoppe is so beautiful! the chalkboard glasses are simply adorable.
Oh I LOVE the color in this wedding, It just feels so natural. even the fuchsia. {love it all!}
Is that chalkboard paint on the glasses? AWESOME!
So glad everyone likes! It was truely the best day ever.
To answer some of your questions;
Budget included everything... we hunted for deals (blue vases at the 99 cent store, outlets for chalk note glasses, and instead of paying for rentals we bought all the plates, silverware and glasses*) and told vendor's exactly what we could spend. My David's Bridal dress was $500 and Eric's Theory suit, shirt and tie were on sale for aprox. $800. Good thing he loves it so much;) And he will get to wear it more then once!
*For those brides looking to stick to a budget and not pay high cost rentals fees Classic Party Rentals in El Segundo has a blow out sale the first Saturday in April every year. I bought 100 white dinner plates, 100 sterling silver forks and knives and 50 glasses for only $175! They have everything from table cloths and napkins to chairs. I highly recommend bringing a friend or two so you can get first dibs. It was so fun and they help you load everything!
Classic Party Rentals :: El Segundo :: LAX :: Los Angeles ...
El Segundo. 2310 E Imperial Hwy, El Segundo, CA 90245 | Phone 310.535.3660
elsegundo.classicpartyrentals.com/
I have emailed all the girls on their dress info and will post as soon as I know. I do know that the purple strapless dress in question is from Nordstorms.
You can DIY the chalkboard paint on glasses, but we chose to buy them at a Pier 1 outlet for $1. Chalk Note Glassware regular price, $3.
Happy wedding planning to the brides to be:) And remember, take a deep breath and relax!
xo Amanda Borja
Gorgeous photos!
Thanks for sharing!
Love
Aimee
x
stunning!
LOVE the chalkboard glasses. Great idea for a wedding!
Bridesmaid's red ruffle dress is from Forever 21! $20-25.
Beautiful wedding! I have a question for the bride as well... we tried to create our save the dates from the same template you used - I am assuming it's from Martha Stewart? We gave up, though, because we could not change the outline color to blue (and the MS people said we wouldn't be able to change it from yellow). It looks like you had success with this - can you tell me how? Thanks!!
Gorgeous. So admire the bride and groom for sticking to guns and throwing a wedding that reflect their style. Just curious if the couple received a better rate for the Smog Shoppe b/c the wedding was on a Sunday?
In regards to our save the dates, we did some major photoshop work.
I am so thoroughly impressed I can't even put into words. Smog Shoppe for 12k? Girl, you rock my world. Thanks for putting a little hope back into budget dream. Kudos to a woman who can get married in Los Angeles without going bankrupt. Spending $800 on a Theory suit is money well invested. Love the bouquets........love everything!
If it wasn't written that it was that amount of money, you never would have guessed. It's a gorgeous location and everything looks terrific. :)
Stephanie,
The designer of the purple dress is Eliza J New York. She bought it at Nordstroms. Best of luck!
What type of catering did you choose with the 12K budget? My fiance and I are REALLY interested in having our wedding at the Smog Shoppe. We know that heirloom is the caterer there but you're not required to use them. Did you bring in your own caterer or use them?
What type of catering did you choose with the 12K budget? My fiance and I are REALLY interested in having our wedding at the Smog Shoppe. Did you use heimloom or bring in your own?
Caterer: Epicurean Umbrella
http://www.epicureanumbrella.com/
Contact: Jennyfer
We had a family style dinner w/ minimal service for 70 guests.
I'm wondering if you rented the wooden benches. If so, who did you get them through? I love them. Thanks.
how did you do all this at the smogshoppe for $12K? The price they quoted me for the space, with everything they require came out to just under $10K alone. this was our first choie for location- but at $10k for the space, I don't know if its possible.
Thanks!
Hi..I saw your wedding here online cuz im looking for a great venue for my wedding but were in a very tight budget. Is it ok if i ask you, how much is the rental fee for the Smog Shoppe? thank you so much.
Hi Amanda,
I have to give you big props for pulling of a $12,000 wedding in L.A.! I have been in love with the Marvimon House and the Smog Shoppe in terms of wedding venues. I am wondering how much it cost to rent the Smog Shoppe for your wedding. I'm trying to figure out the budget at the moment. Thank you!
Chiara
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[...] Photo by Love Ala Photography, via Style Me Pretty [...]