You know how to kick your Tuesday off with a bang? Immerse yourself in some Michael Costa captured pretty. That’s how. And not just any pretty. A stop-you-in-your-tracks, downright gorgeous, seriously couldn’t be more lovelier if it tried pretty. The kind of pretty that Michael always, always delivers and that will leave you spending hours upon hours in the full gallery. (Believe you me.) It’s a Dos Pueblos Ranch affair planned to perfection by Soigne Productions that just so happens to be overflowing with gorgeous florals from Tricia Fountaine and a whole lot of l.o.v.e. And did I mention that gallery? Click here for sooo much more.
From the Bride… Having fallen in love in the great outdoors, we knew we wanted our ceremony to be someplace wild and majestic if still comfortable and accessible for our guests. When we summited the bluff at Dos Pueblos ranch just ten minutes north of our California home to look out in sheer wonder at the Pacific Coast, we knew we had found our wedding venue.
The rest seemed to come in equal parts planning and magic. Having never loved cake despite an insatiable sweet tooth, I wanted alternative deserts (like an old fashioned sundae bar and never-ending pie display). Andy, being a raging extrovert, wanted a fabulous party and, as a former insect biologist, he insisted that our butterfly escort cards be anatomically accurate. We also wanted our friends as involved as possible at every step of the way. And they were, serving as our officiant, our musicians, hand-brewing the beer we served, and making tiny, personal labels for our wedding favors.
We de-prioritized dancing in favor of providing our guests with a carnival of activities- a movie-like slide show of Andy and I throughout our lives complete with an old-fashioned popcorn maker, a bonfire for making s’mores, a photo booth with costumes, lounge areas for sleepy children and their grandparents. And yet, with only our friends’ iPod playlists as accompaniment, we also ended up having a spectacular dance party, headed up by Andy’s 91-year-old grandmother.
We were told that you won’t remember later so much how your wedding looks as how it feels. Indeed, we were so caught up in the emotions of our exciting day that we sometimes forgot to look at all that was so artfully laid out by our genius of a florist and designer, Tricia Fountaine. Thank goodness we had the immensely talented Michael Costa to archive the day in gorgeous photographs. We are also forever indebted to our wedding planner, Tonya Szele, whose guiding brilliance helped bring it all together.
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Wedding Photography: Michael Costa of Michael & Anna Costa | Wedding Venue: Dos Pueblos Ranch in Santa Barbara, California | Event Planner: Tonya Szele from Soigne Productions | Wedding Cinematography: Big Picture Video | Floral Design: Tricia Fountaine | Officiant: Jessica Land, a friend | Floral Supply: 7 Day Nursery (7DayNursery@gmail.com) | Caterer: Seasons Catering | Pies: Nancy & Hana from Simply Pies | Alcohol: BevMo! | Ceremony Music: Seth Donovan & Deborah (SBDonovan131@gmail.com) | Lighting + AV: Geoff Mognis from Ambient Event Design | Linen: Brandi Wolff from La Tavola | Rentals: Nicole Charuvastra from Classic Party Rentals | Popcorn Stand Rental: Just 4 Fun | Photo booth:Michele Higgins from My Flash Booth | Transportation: Santa Barbara Airbus | Restrooms: Robert Medina from Marborg Industries (rmedina@marborg.com) | Hair: Bliss