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From Bre of Joyful Weddings and Events… The modern, rustic, wine county wedding was truly a unique and personal event because of the numerous details and symbols dispersed throughout. From the beginning, the bride had a vision of using their love story in Bali as the main theme of the wedding. Hints of kites (reminding them of childhood) and bright pops of colors were found throughout the ceremony to the reception. Combining the palette of coral, soft turquoise and turmeric with the rustic, natural feel of the vineyard, the couple was able to relive their beginnings. Ryan and Kathryn’s wedding was truly one of beauty, serenity, and unity. This beautiful wedding took place at Still Water Vineyard which perfectly set the event, as it is private and nestled in the hills of Paso Robles. From the walk down the aisle into into the intimate ring of succulents to the long, family-style tables with perfectly-paired table tops by April Flowers and Forever Vintage Rentals, nothing could be improved! The day had such a lovely spirit. The vows and commitments made were spoken so clearly and directly, giving everyone a sense of lifelong friendship with the couple.

Wedding Photography: Chloe Murdoch Photography / Wedding Venue: Still Waters Vineyards in Paso Robles, California / Event Design + Planning: Joyful Weddings and Events / Wedding Cinematography: A Friend of the Bride / Flowers: April Flowers / Rentals + Handmade Tables: Forever Vintage Rentals / Catering: Two Cooks Caterers / Wedding Invitations: Ryan Lea-Bou (The Groom, a Graphic Designer) / Dress: Sue Wong

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Post tags: April Flowers, California, Chloe Murdoch Photography, Coral, Forever Vintage Rentals, Joyful Weddings and Events, Paso Robles, Ryan Lea-Bou, Still Waters Vineyards, Sue Wong, Turquoise, Two Cooks Caterers, Yellow
Post categories: California Weddings, Whimsical

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From the bride… We wanted to have an intimate wedding full of personal touches. My husband and I are both in the field of architecture, so design is very important to us. Although this often means having expensive taste, we both believe in living within our means, and budgeting is also important to us. Our wedding was no exception — we were driven to use everyday materials in thoughtful and clever ways that would not only save us money, but also showcase our personality. We live in New Orleans, and unfortunately there is no glass recycling. I had been collecting a few jars before our engagement because I didn’t want them ending up in a landfill. The wedding was the perfect opportunity to put them to use. I also enlisted a few friends and family to fill out my collection. We grouped the various sizes and shapes and added candles to make simple, and surprisingly beautiful, centerpieces. No two tables were alike! I also hate seeing flowers thrown away after weddings, so rather than use floral arrangements, we opted for individual plants that guests could take home as favors. Getting married at the Wildflower Center meant that we couldn’t compete with the natural beauty of the flowers already there, so we went with succulent plants. They are unusual and relate to the Southwest, so I thought it added nice, rustic charm. We put the succulents in simple silver buckets so that the candle light from the jars would reflect off of them in interesting ways. We designed our own save-the-date cards and printed them from home. My husband has a huge extended family so I figured putting our faces on the cards might help the recipients recognize us! I also made our cake topper out of wooden balls from a craft store and a peanut can.

My husband’s family is from Louisiana, while I was raised in Texas and am also of Taiwanese heritage. We met during college in Austin, so the city has always had a special place in our hearts. We wanted to express this to our guests and had the opportunity to do so with our appetizers. Called “His, Hers, and Ours,” we featured meat-filled pockets (which seems to be a universal food typology) done in three ways. “His” were crawfish beignets (representing Louisiana); “Hers” were asian dumplings (representing my heritage); and “Ours” were pork empanadas (signifying Austin). I found a lady who made handmade lollipops, and she had a Texas-shaped mold — this made the perfect homage to the place we love.

If I could give any advice to brides, it would be to focus on a couple of areas that you really care about, and let everything else go. There isn’t enough time (or money) to worry about every little item, and in the end, people will only remember the things you spent time and energy to make spectacular. Focus on injecting personal touches — it really makes for a memorable experience.

Wedding Photography: Jennifer Lindberg Weddings / Wedding Ceremony: St. Paul Lutheran Church in Austin, Texas / Wedding Reception: Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas / Caterer: Austin Catering / DJ: Greenbelt DJ / Wedding Cake: Michelle’s Patisserie / Bouquets + Boutonnieres: Central Market / Lollipop Favors: Ju-C Suckers / Potted Succulent Favors: IKEA / Wedding Dress: Jasmine Bridal / Bride’s Shoes: Target / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Priscilla of Boston “Vineyard Collection” / Bridesmaids’ Shoes: Shoe-Nami in New Orleans, Louisiana (504-895-1717) / Bridesmaids’ Bracelets: Anthropologie / Groom’s Suit: JoS. A. Bank

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Post tags: Anthropologie, Austin, Austin Catering, Black, Central Market, Green, Greenbelt DJ, Ikea, Jasmine Bridal, Jennifer Lindberg Weddings, Jos A Bank, Ju-C Suckers, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Michelle's Patisserie, Orange, Priscilla of Boston, Shoe-Nami, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Target, Texas, Vineyard Collection, Yellow
Post categories: Austin Weddings, Texas Weddings, Whimsical

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From the bride… I was never the girl who dreamed about a big, fancy wedding. In fact, I never really thought about what my wedding would be like, until one day in July of 2010 the most wonderful boyfriend I’ve ever had became my fiancé. After he popped the question, I faced about a million more questions. Where did I want to have the wedding? What would my colors be? Who would be in my wedding party? Band or DJ? Cake or cupcakes? Or both? The list was never-ending and overwhelming. As a producer, I’m no stranger to making decisions and planning. I had a notebook filled with clippings from bridal magazines, dozens of computer bookmarks, and a ticket to a wedding expo. After pitching idea #146 to my fiancé, I knew I needed help honing in on my perfect day. This was my wedding, and I had no idea how to answer any of these questions. I wanted something that was perfectly us and totally unique, but beyond that I was lost.

With help from Amy Velasco, a friend and wedding planner, we decided we wanted our wedding to be “fun, whimsical and casual.” I used those three words as a guideline for answering any question. If the table setting wasn’t fun, whimsical, or casual, it wasn’t right. But when I saw the orange zig-zag pattern, I knew it was my perfect table runner. When my fiancé suggested that the groomsmen wear purple Chuck Taylors, he prefaced the idea with the word “casual.” Done. We incorporated kazoos into the ceremony because there’s nothing quite so whimsical as 140 friends and loved ones piping away on kazoos as you and your husband kiss for the first time. And that homemade photo booth my bridesmaids and I made was tons of fun! My bridesmaids also helped me turn vintage travel postcards into table names and escort cards during a marathon crafter-noon.

For flowers, I chose orange pincushion protea, purple kale, kangaroo paws, billy balls, mango calla lilies, green spider mums, coxcomb and hot pink freesia. Certainly not traditional wedding flowers, but colorful and whimsical. Amy’s genius advice even helped me pick the venue. Traditional venues were nice enough, but they weren’t us, and they certainly didn’t embody the three words I had chosen to guide me. Then I found The Ace Hotel when I was looking to take my fiancé away for a long weekend to celebrate his birthday. The Ace Hotel in Palm Springs as about as fun, whimsical, and casual as it gets. Stepping into the macramé decorated reception area, I knew this was the place. It was everything I wanted in a wedding venue! The Commune Area, with concrete floors and a vintage Airstream trailer, had just the vibe I was going for. We booked it that weekend and then returned home to send out save the dates—vintage travel postcards featuring a photo of The Ace Hotel. When the wedding day finally arrived, those three words helped bring the whole evening together. It was fun, whimsical, and casual, to be sure. But most of all, the wedding was totally us.

Wedding Photography: Holly Steen and Jennifer Ebert of Cakes and Kisses Wedding Photography / Wedding Coordinator: Amy Velasco of Velasco Events (amykvelasco@gmail.com) / Venue: The Ace Hotel / Music: DJ Smiles of Our Labor of Love / Flowers: Rancho Mirage Florist / Lighting: Karen Lawrence (karenlawrence@sbcglobal.net) / Wedding Cake: Juliette’s Bakery / Officiant: Todd Beauchamp (tbeauchamp@mac.com) / Dresses: David’s Bridal / Bride’s Shrug: Anthopologie / Groom’s Suit: Michael Kors / Bridesmaid Necklace: Heartworks by Lori / Chalk Signs: Trevor Takahashi Designs / Wedding Invitations: Printable Press / Table Runners + Photo Booth Props: DIY

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Post tags: Amy Velasco, Anthropologie, Cakes and Kisses Wedding Photography, David's Bridal, DJ Smiles, Heartworks by Lori, Holly Steen, Jennifer Ebert, Juliette's Bakery, Karen Lawrence, Michael Kors, Orange, Our Labor of Love, Printable Press, Purple, Rancho Mirage Florist, Todd Beauchamp, Trevor Takahashi Designs, Velasco Events
Post categories: The Blog, Whimsical

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From the bride… Ryan and I don’t take life too seriously, so when we started planning our wedding, we wanted it to be relatively casual and lots of fun—more like a party than a wedding. We also wanted our family and friends to get a real sense of us in the details of our celebration. When it came to choosing my dress, I knew right away that I wanted a knee-length dress. My dress felt fun and a little bit sassy — like a party dress. Our location and food choices supported our “fun” vision. We got married at the Los Altos History Museum, which has a beautiful courtyard surrounded by a lovely garden where guests can mingle in an intimate setting. Our guests were thrilled to be served cheeseburgers and french fries for dinner (one of the reasons we chose our caterer was  how crisp they could keep their fries)!  And for dessert, we skipped the cake and had an assortment of our favorite sweets like rice crispy treats and chocolate chip cookies, which were baked by Ryan’s sister.

We’re both creative and enjoyed making most of the décor elements for the wedding, using lots of inspiration from Style Me Pretty. Since the venue is outdoors and has a fairly rustic setting, we wanted to infuse a modern look into the table décor. So I chose fabric with a graphic pattern, and Ryan’s mom made our table runners. I collected vases of various shapes and sizes from eBay and Goodwill, and we spent a Saturday afternoon spray painting them all white, which helped us keep costs down without sacrificing décor. Ryan’s mom and I also made a “here comes the bride” banner for my niece and nephew to carry down the aisle. Plus, we created our own ceremony programs with celebratory words on the backside, including “woo hoo!” and “hooray!” Ryan and I enjoy playing Scrabble together and when he proposed he made a special Scrabble board, replacing the squares with photos of us and our favorite places.  He glued together letters to form the question “will you marry me?” So it made sense to us to carry the Scrabble idea through to our wedding celebration. At our wedding, I used Scrabble letters to create cute signs like “drink up” at the bar and “sweet treats” at the dessert table. The guest book table, next to the photo booth had a sign that read, “say cheese and sign here please.” Table “numbers” were large wooden blocks made to look like over-sized Scrabble tiles and we used real tiles on the guests’ seating cards. When put together the seating cards and table letters spelled out “M&R the big day”!  While we were not planning a Scrabble-themed wedding, these few reminders of our engagement made us smile.

We both have favorite memories from the evening. Mine was our “first look” when Ryan and I saw each other for the first time that day. He burst into tears when he saw me and it was just such a wonderful, emotional moment. And one of our only moments alone all night! Ryan’s favorite moment was being introduced as “Mr. and Mrs.” for the first time by playing a game of flip cup.  As our wedding party was introduced they lined up to form a tunnel that Ryan and I ran though.  On the other side, was a table complete with decorated keg cups and a pitcher of beer. It was Ryan and his groomsmen versus me and my bridesmaids, and despite my bridesmaids giving me a hefty lead, Ryan beat me in the end.  It was definitely a fun and unexpected way to kick off our celebration and everyone had a blast playing flip cup the rest of the night.

Photographer: Scott Stater Photography / Wedding Dress: Priscilla of Boston (Vineyard Collection) / Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Bridesmaid Dresses: Various, each bridesmaid chose her own / Groom Rentals: Black Tie Tuxedos /Caterer: Continental Caterers / Location: Los Altos History Museum / Photo Booth: San Francisco Photo Booth / Veil:  BlossomShop / Wooden Table Name Cards: CraigWoodWorks / Cupcakes: Kara’s Cupcakes / DJ: Morgan at MK Mobile Sound / Floral Designs + Day-Of Coordination: Rose Smith of Flowers with a Personal Touch (925-447-8095) / Hair + Makeup: Jane Kim of The Glamourist /

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Post tags: Black Tie Tuxedos, BlossomShop, California, Continental Caterers, CraigWoodWorks, Flowers with a Personal Touch, Jane Kim, Jimmy Choo, Kara's Cupcakes, Los Altos, Los Altos History Museum, MK Mobile Sound, Priscilla of Boston, Rose Smith, San Francisco Photo Booth, Scott Stater Photography, The Glamourist
Post categories: The Blog, Whimsical

From Joel of Outdoor Wedding Films… This was hands down the wildest wedding I have ever been too. Antal and Ashley’s wedding was armed with dirt bikes, explosions and bounce houses. That’s what you would expect from Antal, a Hollywood stuntman. This wedding blew my mind.

Photography: Chloe of The Collective Photographers / Cinematography: Joel VanZ of Outdoor Wedding Films / Music: Joel VanZ / Location: River Oaks, Paso Robles, California / Wedding Gown: Sottero & Midgley

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Post tags: California, Joel VanZ, Outdoor Wedding Films, Paso Robles, River Oaks, The Collective Photographers
Post categories: California Weddings, Whimsical

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… Nisan and I met exactly 9 years before our wedding in front of a cafe in London and became great friends. Years later, after not having seen each other for years, we ended up in the same place for New Year’s Eve. Two things occurred that night: 1) The power went out at the bar we were at, and we took a bouquet of red balloons and wandered around the streets of San Francisco with them, and 2) We decided in the midst of all that that we would find a way to make a relationship work. Granted, at the time, he lived in Los Angeles and I lived in Boston, but for some reason, we both knew in our hearts that this was something we needed to make work. Five years after that, he gave me a book that he had made. It was a hardcover children’s book that he had illustrated about the story of our relationship and at the end of the story, he asked me to marry him with a ring carefully hidden in a box cut into the back pages of the book. I said yes, and that started the whirlwind adventure of planning our wedding.

The one central tenet of the wedding for us was that we wanted people to feel like they knew us better after attending our wedding. We wanted to include all of our family and friends and create a unique ceremony that included traditions from both of our families. We quickly realized that if we wanted it to be as personal as we hoped, it would mean that we would have to make and design almost everything on our own. We welcomed the task and ended up having a great time doing everything together from creating our own website from scratch, designing every component of our invitations and save the dates and creating a unique ceremony that included Sri Lankan, Buddhist and Jewish traditions.

We made the theme and logo for our wedding based around the bouquet of red balloons from our New Years Eve encounter, and everything else began to fall into place around it. One major design adventure we came across was that we had the idea to make a huge centerpiece of large papier-mâché yarn globes to hang in the center of the barn. We could not have gotten it all done without the help of our amazing friends and family. Nisan’s parents helped make the yarn lanterns, my dad designed an amazing Huppah that one of the groomsmen built for us, and my mom put together personalized goodie bags for all the kids to entertain themselves. My brother helped us create table numbers with wine bottles from Nisan’s family vineyard. The flowers were done by the maid of honor’s floral company, Petals & Posy, who created the perfect arrangements, more than we ever could have imagined. One of my favorite parts of the day was when Nisan, along with his band, hello evening, performed a song that he had written for me. We thought it was going to be a day where people learned more about us, and it was that, but in truth it became more a day where we learned how lucky we were to be surrounded by all the people who have made up both of our lives.

Photography: Andria Lo Photography / Flowers: Petals & Posy / Event Design: The bride and groom / Wedding Coordinator: Laurie Laxa (laurielaxa@sbcglobal.net) / Venue: CornerStone Gardens / Invitations: The groom / Shoes: Calvin Klein / Wedding Dress: WTOO / Bridemaid Dresses: J.Crew / Groom’s Suit: J.Crew / Groomsmen Ties: American Apparel / Makeup: Chariss Ilarina (charissfilarina@gmail.com) / Bride’s Hair: Ashlee Hemrick (ashlee.hemrick@gmail.com) / Bride’s Necklace: Katherine Smith (katsmith@gumps.com) / Cake: Occasional Cakes / Caterer: Sage / DJ: John Laxa (johnlaxa@sbcglobal.net)

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Post tags: American Apparel, Andria Lo, Ashlee Hemrick, California, Calvin Klein, Chariss Ilarina, Cornerstone Gardens, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, J. Crew, John Laxa, Kartherine Smith, Laurie Laxa, Occasional Cakes, Petals & Posy, Sage, Sonoma, WToo
Post categories: Whimsical

Up first in our pretty parade is a charming Indiana wedding by the oh-so-talented Todd Pellowe.  With a gorgeous bride and groom who also happen to be New York City actors, it comes as no surprise that this darling day is bursting with fab creative touches, heartwarming moments and a whole lot of whimsy.  I am LOVING every last second of sweetness… and from the lovely paper goods (designed by the groom!) to the fresh from the garden centerpieces to the bride’s chic Amsale dress and sparkly Jimmy Choos, there is absolutely no end in sight to all of this pretty.  Click here for more!

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From Todd Pellowe… Actors from NYC get married in New Harmony, Indiana.  The groom is an artist, as well, and designed the invitations.  A friend owns a press and had them printed on thinly shaved wood!  Great details including a tailored tux, fun bow tie, short wedding dress, Jimmy Choo shoes and custom rings.  The bride and groom got ready together!  Fun! Their friend Maggie wrote an amazing poem/tribute/story about love, the groomsmen wrote and performed a beautiful song during the ceremony.  Gifts were steins and Brendan’s favorite German pilsner was on tap.

Wedding Photography: Todd Pellowe, Louisville Wedding Photographer / Wedding Ceremony Location: Roofless Church / Wedding Reception Location: The Atheneum / Wedding Invitations: Handmade by Groom / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Wedding Dress: Amsale

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Post tags: Amsale, Eclectic, Gray, Indiana, Jimmy Choo, New Harmony, Peach, Roofless Church, The Antheneum, Todd Pellowe
Post categories: The Blog, Whimsical

Now hows about we finish this party off with an ever so cool film of the day captured by Land Shark. Sound good?

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… Travis and I have been together for over a decade and share a million interests; we also love a good theme party.  We did a lot of waiting around for inspiration to strike but, with so many conflicting ideas,the hardest part was finding a way to focus on something useable and romantic.  Since meeting at an academic summer camp in high school, what has always united us is our shared curiosity and love of learning. Our fantastic planner, Kelly Simants, recognized this and suggested our perfect theme — science!  We immediately set about collecting mid-century science items from Etsy, eBay, vintage shops, bookstores, and our families.  Rather than numbers, each table featured a different science, with guests using 35mm slides and a couple old slide projectors to find their seats.  We also used balloons to transform the space into something a bit colorful and whimsical and unexpected.

We also incorporated other things we love in small ways.  All of our ceremony music was from RPGs that we’ve played together. Our guestbook was a blank world map I created for guests to mark their hometown, favorite city, or where they’re dying to go, and to fuel our own travels. The boutonnieres were cut from an 1806 map of London and secured with clock faces–a little nod to Doctor Who. Our save the date was a short film; our invitations secretly held the story of our relationship; the giant lighted letters were a weekend project with our close friends.  Wherever we could inject a little “us”, we did.

Ask your friends for help with style and execution.  Assemble your dream team of vendors by surrounding yourself with talented people you like and trust–and have as much fun together as you possibly can. We decided we simply HAD to have a wedding because it was the one time we could gather our friends and family in one place, and we firmly believe that the people in our lives are fantastic and should be in each others’ lives.  The most rewarding part of the weekend was watching all the new friendships roll in.

Wedding Photography: Sarah Rhoads Photographers / Wedding Cinematography: Land Shark / Flowers: Talented friends and the groom’s sister / Event Design: The bride and groom / Event Planning: Kelly Simants of Sweet Pea Events / Event Styling: Event Styling by Shawna Marie / Ceremony Location: eM the Venue / Reception Location: eM the Venue / Catering: eM the Venue / Cake: Fancy Cakes by Lauren / Invitations: Vynsie Law (with ferris wheels by the bride’s mother) / Other Paper Goods: The groom’s sister + the bride & groom / Guestbook Map: The bride / Shoes: Hey Lady / Dress: Pronovias / Bridesmaid Dresses: Traffic People / Groom + Groomsmen Suits: Thick as Thieves / Groomsmen Boutonnieres: Talented friends / Officiant’s Suit: Magnoli Clothiers / Hair: Jorge Abrego Jr. / Makeup: Emily Ward / Hairpiece: Twigs & Honey / Jewelry: Petra Domling / Music: DJ ModChap / Rentals: Period Charm Rentals / Balloons: Balloon City USA / Fair Day Dress: Dear Creatures / Fair Day Shoes: Chocolate Schubar / Fair Day Jewelry: We Dream in Colour

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Post tags: Balloon City USA, Chocolate Schubar, Dallas, Dear Creatures, DJ ModChap, eM the Venue, Emily Ward, Fancy Cakes by Lauren, Hey Lady, Jorge Abgrego Jr., Kelly Simants, Land Shark, Megnoli Clothiers, Period Charm Rentals, Petra Domling, Pronovias, Sarah Rhoads Photographers, Sweet Pea Events, Texas, Thick as Thieves, Traffic People, Twigs & Honey, Vynsie Law, We Dream in Colour
Post categories: The Blog, Whimsical