Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From the Bride…Seth & I met in Tucson, AZ and after a year of long distance, we found ourselves together in San Francisco. Our proposal was as low-key as the wedding planning process was: just the two of us in our apartment.We initially wanted a barn wedding, but without the Bay Area barn wedding price. Being a full-time student with little free time and a moderate budget, I knew I needed to find a venue that was outstanding on its own without needing too many added elements. We found that in Barndiva, about an hour and a half north of San Francisco in the heart of Sonoma County’s wine county. The charming, modern-yet-vintage restaurant stole our hearts during our first visit, but it was the back garden and dining area that really sealed the deal. Little details like an old library card catalog on the back porch, wrought iron weather vanes, and strings of twinkling white lights made the venue seem as if it were made just for us! Not only is it a “barn”, but it’s a modern take on the old barn wedding.

Because we met in the desert, I knew that succulents and other arid-weather plants were going to be an important component that allowed me to keep my color focus on neutral, natural colors such as grey, green, ivory, and dusty yellow. DIY was the name of the game when it came to decorations and details. In lieu of table cards, I painted individual names on 3 large, old window panes that we found at the Alameda Flea Market. I was inspired by a few “mad lib”cards on Etsy and fashioned my own. I printed out copies for everyone on my home computer and used them instead of a traditional guest book (great way to save money!). From making the moss-covered monogram and ampersand to cutting old maps of the Bay Area for seating cards,my best piece of advice is to start projects MUCH earlier than you’d think! Even the small project of covering our initials with decorative paper took hours longer than originally expected-not to mention the time it takes to shop around for good deals on paper, glue, etc.- it’s a time-consuming process.

Our short-and-sweet ceremony was performed in the back garden of Barndiva by owner Lukka and the sun peeked through the grey skies right after The Mighty Chiplings finished playing the processional song “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles. The cocktail hour moved next door to Studio Barndiva where guests were able to enjoy eclectic art pieces (another money saver-no need to decorate this space!) before everyone was whisked to the back garden dining space. Magical arches lit up with tiny white lights as guests dined on filet mignon and pan-seared halibut. We chose not to have musicians during the dinner hour, instead enjoying the clinking of glasses and laughter from the guests to serve as background music. Bonnie at Dragonfly Floral used beautiful succulents and other local floral from her 6-acre flower farm less than a mile from the venue. Being able to utilize local vendors not only cut down on delivery and travel costs, but it made the event much more personal and special. The night finished with a bang as everyone danced the night away to the most amazing cover band HIP Service.

All of the time and effort spent on the many DIY projects definitely paid off and we are still getting compliments on all of the little details. The overall mood was completely relaxed and we can’t wait to go back to Barndiva for our one-year anniversary!

Wedding Photography: Matt Edge Wedding Photography / Venue: Barndiva / Wedding Dress: Lea Ann Belter via Clarissa Bridal / Hair + Make-up: The Traveling Stylist, Amy Perdigone / Bride’s Earrings: Nadri via Nordstrom / Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew / Bridesmaid Jewelry: Katie B. Design Shop / Groom + Groomsmen Suits: J.Crew / Groom + Groomsmen Ties: Brooks Brothers / Floral Design: Dragonfly Floral / Invitations: Hello! Lucky / Calligraphy: Beacon Lane / Custom Address Stamp: Emililies / Vintage Paper Straws: The Gray Goose / Wooden Clothespins: Honey Can Do / Additional Paper: Paper Source / Guest Book “Mad Libs”, Monogram, Table Number Window: DIY / Wedding Cake + Desserts: Barndiva / Cake Topper: Vintage (bride’s grandparents’) / Officiant: Lukka Feldman of Barndiva / Bride + Groom Rings: Cresalia Jewelers / Ceremony + Cocktail Music: The Mighty Chiplings / Reception Music: HIP Service

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 17 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Barndiva, Beacon Lane, Brooks Brothers, California Weddings, Clarissa Bridal, Cresalia Jewelers, Dragonfly Floral, Emililies, Healdsburg, Hello! Lucky, Hip Service, Honey Can Do, J. Crew, Katie B. Design Shop, Lea-Ann Belter, Matt Edge Wedding Photography, Nadri, Paper Source, The Gray Goose, The Mighty Chiplings, The Traveling Stylist
Post categories: Casual Elegance, The Blog

Rentals by Wine Country Party & Events.

Our best man had taken Brian to visit his family’s property, Seven Arches, in the Summer of 2004. Brian fell in love with the property – 400 acres of peaceful serenity is easy to love!  As our best man watched mine and Brian’s relationship grow, he would always mention that we should get married at Seven Arches even though no one had been married there before. It wasn’t a tough sell, we just felt in our hearts that was the right place for us to say “I Do”.  Brian wanted an outdoor ceremony. California fall weather is amazing, the scenery offered breath-taking photo ops, our families were able to travel to a destination they might never travel to on their own… it was all perfect!

I have always loved fall colors. We figured that because grapes in Sonoma in the fall are purple, we would have rich wine and purple tones paired with warm hues of gold and amber. Our tent was love at first sight!  Our Moroccan inspired marigold “Maharaja” tent from Raj tents was insanely beautiful. 3 glam chandeliers created a romantic atmosphere and made the golden interior of our tent glow.  It was so warm and welcoming, very cozy!

Our theme was “Rustic Romantic Elegance” and Bonnie at Dragonfly Floral achieved just that! She had such an impressive portfolio to gain inspiration from and wonderful suggestions to coordinate with our theme.  The pops of color from Peonies and English Roses brought beautiful life to the grapevine, herbs and greenery we picked out.  The wooden crates andtall branchy centerpieces gave rustic flare to the ceremony and reception.

Cake: Oliver’s Market / Catering: Park Avenue Catering / Venue: Seven Arches / Music & Entertainment: Michael Peterson / Florist: Dragonfly Floral / Hair & Makeup: Stephanie from Pucci / Linens: Park Avenue Catering / Tent Rental: Raj Tents / Paper Products: Celebrations in Paper / Photographer: Hollye Schumacher Photography / Rentals: Wine Country Party & Events / Cinematography: Met Media / Wedding Coordinator: Victoria Canada Weddings & Events / Wedding Dress: Destiny’s Bride / Wedding Officiant: Father Gerry Caprio

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Post tags: Antique Ring, bouquet, California, California Weddings, Celebrations in Paper, Color Palette Purple and Orange, Destiny's Bride, Dragonfly Floral, Flip Flops, Hollye Schumacher Photography, Met Media, Oliver's Market, Park Avenue Catering, RAJ Tents, Sonoma, Victoria Canada Weddings & Events, Vineyard Weddings, Wedding Photography, Wedding Planners & Designers, Wine Country Party & Events, Winery
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

see more of this Eco-Friendly shindig here!

Our inspiration was earth-friendly rustic elegance meets fun. With good food. I love nature (my educational background is in environmental issues and I work for a nature NGO), so going as green as we could was imperative. Therefore our colors were green and white, with brown and gold accents (in honor of autumn when we got married- we were a 10.10.10 couple!). We also had a strict budget, so we really worked and researched for weeks to find venders that could give us what we wanted within our price range. We knew early on that we’d be spending a little more of our budget on the photographer and venue/food, so we really looked at ways to cut our costs but didn’t sacrifice our style. So, lots of DIY!

Although Megan at MaeMae Paperie did the invitation design (They turned out so well!), it was a very fun DIY process. My husband took over the role of printing the invitations, as doing it ourselves decreased our costs and cut down any emissions inevitably created by having Megan print everything out and then mail it to us from LA. The cutting and putting together of the invitation suite became a fun bonding event for us and it allowed us to really put our own stamp on everything. I also learned calligraphy for the event, which cut down on costs as I did our Save the Dates, place cards, and invitation envelopes by hand, thereby avoiding printing or professional calligrapher costs. I had someone create custom rubber stamps that I used for our Save the Dates, RSVP cards, and envelope flaps. Creating our Save the Dates was a really fun project. Using an example we saw in a Martha Stewart Weddings magazine, we found an old postcard of Healdsburg from the early 1920′s, made enough copies to send out to our guests, stamped a message on the front, and then used calligraphy in the back to display the important wedding information. It was a very time consuming project, but the end product turned out beautifully.

For our wedding reception, we created a photo booth with a sheet hung on painted PVC pipes, pirate and clown costume props, and a tripod with a small camera. The pictures turn out really nice, and it was a great way to have guests bond. Whoever came up with this trend, a big thank you! We also gave as our wedding favors succulents that were grown from my stepmom’s garden in San Francisco, so each guest got to take home a piece of California with them. Doing the favors ourselves cut down on costs enormously! As well, my husbands father is very handy and actually made our table signs by cutting the names out of sheet metal. Since our wedding reception was at night and outside, the candlelight glowed through the signs and made them really easy to see. We plan on hanging them in our house.

Venue and Food: Barndiva and Studio Barndiva / Photographer: Shannon Leith / Invitations: MaeMae Paperie / Florist: Dragonfly Floral / DJ: DJ Jeremy Productions / Dress: Marisa / Bridesmaids’ dresses: J.Crew / Menswear: Men’s Wearhouse / Hair and Makeup: JS Makeup Artistry / Videographer: Justin Visual

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 18 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Barndiva, DJ Jeremy Productions, Dragonfly Floral, J. Crew, JS MakeupArtistry, Justin Visual, MaeMae Paperie, Marisa Bridal, Men's Wearhouse, shannon leith, Studio Barndiva
Post categories: California Weddings, Casual Elegance, Napa Valley Weddings, Real Weddings, The Blog

{click here for more images from Sarah + Andrew’s happy, happy day}

Sarah and Andrew met in Tiburon, California. They were both on a bike ride with friends and Sarah asked Andrew about the local ferry schedule.  When the couple was engaged in late April they decided to plan a wedding for that October in California wine country. They knew it would be a challenge planning for the high season with such little time but it all came together. Sarah learned about their venue from a colleague at work. When she called about availability, it turned out a date had been made free the day before. They knew it was a sign. They looked at a few other places for reference but fell in love with the gardens and rustic barn at Healdsburg Country Gardens. All of their vendors were exceptional. They loved everything about the event, especially fantastic food and lots of dancing with all of their family and friends.

Photographer: Tanja Lippert / Venue: Healdsburg Country Gardens / Florist: Dragonfly Floral / Caterer: Preferred Sonoma Caterers / Paper Goods: Emma Rose Papery / Makeup: Tia Reagan, Free Bird Productions / Cake: Auntie B’s Bakery / Band: Blue Moon

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Auntie B's Bakery, Blue Moon, California Weddings, Dragonfly Floral, Emma Rose Papery, Freebird Productions, Healdsburg Country Gardens, Napa, Preferred Sonoma Caterers, Tanja Lippert
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Real Weddings, The Blog, Whimsical

{Click here for the full gallery of images from this fresh, fun wedding}

I know this is a bit long but the bride, Emilie, had sooo many wonderful snippets to share that I couldn’t possibly leave out one single detail. And, she was inspired by Style Me Pretty through out her planning process… we love that!

Venue: While we both grew up in Maryland, not more than a mile away from one another and felt a heap of pressure to get married there, we simply didn’t fall in love there.  We fell in love in the Bay Area taking road trips to wine country.  The landscapes take our breath away and the easy lifestyle is totally inspiring. We wanted the decorations to be fresh, comfortable, and easy on the eye.  Essentially, we were going for an atmosphere akin to a dinner at our place with friends, kicked up a notch.  The yellow screams fresh, fun, and lively while the gray suggests a little sophistication.  The color juxtaposition constantly caught our eye as we were planning, kind of like the sun shining through on a cloudy day.

Food: We wanted the food to be local, organic.  We’re pretty passionate about the environment and wanted to tread lightly. The cupcakes were done by a friend of a friend and we knew we wanted them as soon as we sat down at the baker’s house for a tasting.  Besides, cupcakes are so much more delicious than regular cake.  Our guests raved about them.

Ceremony: We wanted it to be a real reflection of us.  We love the Beatles, so the violinist playing Here, There, and Everywhere as our wedding party walked down the aisle.  The musicians (Ann Wang & friend) also wrote the music for Flashdance’s What a Feeling, which always makes me feel like a million dollars every time I hear it.  Of course, I wanted to walk down the aisle to something like that.  And it absolutely struck me when played on the violin. Gray’s bother-in-law married us and used a passage from Charles Darwin’s diary as he contemplated marriage.  Gray works at the Cal Academy of Sciences and the choice of passage was perfect. Gray’s sister read E.E. Cummings’ I carry your heart with me and very talented and dear friends of ours played the guitar and played the Beatles Something.  The ceremony continued with friends standing up Quaker style to read quotes from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathon Safron Foer, a book we read aloud to each other when we first started dating.  It closed with an exchange of our vows, which we wrote ourselves, and our guests singing Huey Louis’s Power of Love.    It absolutely rang us and rang fun!

Reception: We wanted the reception to be comfortable, casual, and engaging.  We had several things for guests to do from leaving us love notes on fabric squares (I’ll make that into a quilt for our 1 year anniversary) to getting their pictures taken by the hanging cloth photo backdrop (I’ll use the fabric to reupholstered a piece of furniture in our home so it can live a little longer with us).  There were also some DIY mustache “sticks” for a little prop for the photo backdrop photos.  To make sure the grounds were entirely accessible, we posted homemade chalk boards with directions and drink details.

Details: Our cocktails were designed by our parents who were desperate to play a role.  I loved Gray’s father’s cocktail, The Love Maker: Maker’s Mark any way you like it.  Another cocktail was from a local farm in our hometown, Fergie’s Punch, in honor of the Alice Ferguson Farm. Our tables were named after our favorite places, some in San Francisco, some in Maryland and North Carolina, where we vacation with our families.

Favors: We wanted our guest to keep cool, so we offered pre-ceremony beverages and fans.  Each table-setting had a packet of California Poppy seeds for guests to plant at home to remember their trip to California.

Venue: Little House Weddings / Photographer: Kate Webber / Wedding Coordinator: Denise Kramer Weddings / Caterer: Park Avenue Catering / Florals: Dragonfly Floral / Dessert: Sweet Peony Cakes / Band: The Smoking J’s / Wedding Gown and Shoes: J Crew/ Bridesmaids: J Crew

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 36 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: California Weddings, Denise Kramer Weddings, Dragonfly Floral, J. Crew, Kate Webber, Kate Webber Photography, Little House Weddings, Park Avenue Catering, Sonoma, Sweet Peony Cupcakes, The Smoking J's
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Real Weddings, The Blog, Whimsical