I am bowing down in awe. From creating their own stencils and letter pressing their own invitations, to crafting adorable signs, this couple should look into a new profession. All of their hard work paid off for their whimsical, romantic celebration, paying homage to their personalities while looking picture perfect in every pic by Koman Photography. This gorgeous gallery is guaranteed to inspire us all.
From Koman Photography… Whenever we’re around this couple we can’t help but smile and laugh continuously. Their hearts are beautiful and that quality radiates when you see them in person. Christine and Jeff are goofy, fun, loveable, and visibly so in LOVE. We feel incredibly honored and privileged that they chose us to document their beautiful wedding at the Skirball Cultural Center.
From The Bride… Once upon a time, in a land known as Sun Valley, California, a little princess dreamt of her fairytale wedding. She clipped magazine pictures of wedding gowns, collected swatches of potential color schemes, and kept an impressive list of love songs that one day a live band would play, filling the air with music, love, and laughter on the biggest day of her life. That little princess was me.
On Friday, October 12, 2012, after a long shift at the hospital, my prince charming took me to the place where we first met. Outside of UCI’s physics lab, he asked me the biggest question of my life: will you marry me? And that’s when the wedding planning officially began. The search for the perfect venue was not an easy task. We wanted an old Spanish-inspired church ceremony that was secluded from the city, and a vintage-inspired venue that would comfortably accommodate 260 guests (including 30 children). We drove up and down the coast of California from San Juan Capistrano to Santa Barbara, physically visiting over 20 churches, and over a dozen reception venues, ending up right back in the heart of Los Angeles. We chose to exchange our vows at St. Monica’s in Santa Monica and to celebrate at the Skirball Cultural Center, and although it was not exactly what we had initially envisioned, it best fit our needs with ceremony times, distance from church to venue, and comfort for all of our guests. But with one look at the elegant Guerin Courtyard, which is adjacent to the Ahmanson Ballroom at the Skirball Cultural Center, we knew we had found the perfect wedding venue. We were in complete awe with the high chandelier ceiling and loved how the glass doors opened to create a seamless indoor/outdoor flow.
With the venues booked, we spent countless hours researching the best wedding vendors. After several meetings, we finally ended up with our handpicked “dream team” who made our wedding day nothing short of amazing.
With a shabby chic theme in mind, we chose details that were soft and romantic, inspired by a modern-day Marie Antoinette with a whimsical Alice in Wonderland touch. Being a perfectionist, nothing was ever good enough to purchase as-is. Everything had to be customized with our personal touch. Making our own stencils, we hand painted our “Let them eat cupcakes,” “Here comes the bride” and “Mr. Right/Mrs. Always Right” wooden signs (which looking back at it now, we probably should have just saved ourselves the 20 hours of labor and purchased them from Etsy). We never thought we would learn so much about fonts, paper, flowers, and Chantilly creams. We quickly became self-proclaimed experts in all of our projects, designing our own website and filming our save-the-date video (http://booboowillyoumarryme.com/save-the-date/). Laser cutting and letter pressing our own invitations, we designed every detail leaving no font unnoticed, and no templates purchased.
That day was perfect. We chose a soft palette of blush pink, nudes, ivory, and gold. I will always remember my smiling bridesmaids who wore long blush pink chiffon dresses in varying styles with rose gold and glitter shoes by Chinese Laundry, while my Matron of Honor stood by me in a long, ivory crème lace gown. They wore loose curls, and although they all had different hairstyles, they all incorporated a braid to give them that whimsical touch. The groomsmen wore gray suits with matching gray Vans and argyle socks. Incorporating our Filipino culture, our fathers and Godfathers wore traditional barongs for the church ceremony, and changed into dark gray suits for the reception.
The night was filled with live music by AMFM band, a magical processional with flower girls in vintage wooden wagons wearing pale pink and ivory tulle dresses, lace wrapped cupcakes in 4 different flavors, a Filipino candy bar, a periodic table of seating chart (to show our nerdy side), girlie yet romantic tea cups, personalized cookie escort cards, an ice bar, portraits of our parents on their wedding day, pale pink peonies, and customized tote bag giveaways. We cannot thank our families and bridal party enough for all the time spent rehearsing for our first dance remix which incorporated our parents doing a hip hop number and our bridal party essentially “making it rain” to kick off our reception.
Although that little princess who once thought that her magical wedding day was just a Bippity-Boppity-Boo away, finally learned that there is much, much more that goes into planning a wedding. I cherish every bow tied, papercut obtained, and every friendship made along the way because it is with those experiences that I gained a true appreciation for the art of wedding planning. Despite the tremendous amount of detail that went into the planning process, they are the unplanned details that will forever make this day legendary. I will always remember my husband standing at the end of the aisle watching me as I made my way to him and the tightness of my father’s embrace before he gave me away. I will remember my mother’s touch, constantly fixing my belt, dress and veil ensuring that every detail in my attire was always properly in place. I can still hear my sister singing “Ikaw” in Tagalog as our family members placed our traditional cord, veil, and coins on us while lighting the unity candle, and I can still remember my husband tightly holding my hand as we made our way down the aisle after finally being introduced as Mr. and Mrs. while the cantor gracefully sung Michael Buble’s “Everything.” It was the most perfect fairy tale, and I could not have asked for more. It is a moment we will look back on when we are old and gray and reminisce how truly magical that day was – the start of our happily ever after.
Photography: Koman Photography | Cinematography: TwentySeven Studios | Coordination: Love Is Sweet Events | Floral Design: Deefined Floral Designs | Invitations: Mount Tabor Park | Ceremony Venue: St. Monica's Catholic Church | Reception Venue: Skirball Cultural Center | Bridesmaids' Shoes: Chinese Laundry | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Christy's Bridal | Lighting: Inlight Lighting | Groom's Attire: Al Weiss | Band, DJ And Emcee: Downbeat La | Bridal Shoes: Louboutin | Cake, Cupcakes And Macarons: Artistic Cakes | Cupcake Boxes: Pepermart | Dessert Display: Carrara Pastries | Hair And Make-up: Beauty In Motion Studio | Ice Bar: Crystal Creations | Linens And Chairs: Stephanie's Linens | Personalized Tote Bag Giveaways: 4 Imprint | Photo Booth: Fotopod Booth | Wedding Dress (custom Made And Designed): Mount Tabor Park