Drooling over the darling details sort of comes with my job title, but it’s moments like these that put the heart into that pretty package and keep me coming back for more. The onelove photography team never fail to deliver those sweet captures and I love them for it. This at-home Santa Barbara soiree is filled to the brim with them (including a fun Burying the Bourbon tradition!)—see it all here.
Fun tidbit from onelove photography… The couple practiced the tradition “Burying the Bourbon”! Southern folklore says that if you bury a bottle of bourbon at the site where the bride and groom are to be married, then it won’t rain on their wedding day. According to many believers, this must be done exactly one month before the wedding, the bottle must be completely full and it must be buried upside down in order for it to keep the rain away.
From the Bride and Groom… We don’t take ourselves too seriously, so we wanted the vibe of the wedding to be relaxed and fun. We cut out a lot of the traditional elements that didn’t appeal to us in the hopes that it would help everyone just relax and enjoy the day rather than stick to a strict schedule.
We modeled the whole vibe after our family gathering/holidays, which are typically big gatherings centered around good food, drinks, and laughs. We focused a lot on perfecting the menu, both food and drink, to capture our favorite things. Gourmet tacos, a self serve beer bar, and delicious local cupcakes were some of the big hits.
We liked the vibe that the long, family style tables set for dinner. Instead of being separated into different round tables, it allowed people to talk to the people next to them, across from them, behind them, etc and feel like they weren’t stuck at one particular table. It also made for some beautiful photographs!
The beer bar! The thing Brian was most focused on making happen was inclusion of a self-serve beer bar. We found an idea for it on Pinterest and worked with my uncles to get it built. From there, Brian got the various components needed from a home brew store and we suffered through sampling several kinds of beer before settling on our favorites. I handwrote the chalkboard signs for each type of beer and we nailed them to the bar. It was a total hit! The vintage pickup truck in many of the photos is my uncle’s truck. He brought it to the property at the last-minute and it ended up being the centerpiece of many of our photos.
Finally, the big trees in both the front and back yard. The tree in the front yard, where we made our grand entrance to dinner, is actually the same place where we got engaged last year. The big tree in the back yard, which we wrapped with lights and was the centerpiece of the reception, is where we have had countless Thanksgivings, Labor Days, and all sorts of other holidays. Both were really special and it was great to be able to include them in our wedding.
I picked up every copy of The Knot that hit the news stands while I was planning and I spent a lot of time browsing Pinterest for inspiration for ideas that would highlight the gorgeous natural surroundings of the house. Some of my favorite pinners to follow were Style Me Pretty, 100 Layer Cake, and The Wedding Chicks. After I made a scattered idea board, my wedding planner, Kelly, just took it and ran with it. She put together the most beautiful design plan that was so “us” but much more polished and cohesive than we could have pulled off. We couldn’t have done it without her!
Don’t take it too seriously! As we were driving back from the weekend trip where we got engaged and just starting to talk about wedding plans, we promised each other than when we started getting bogged down in what shade of coral looked best with what type of napkins or what type of twine worked best to tie invitations together, we would remember that the whole point was to create a day that made us happy and let us celebrate being in love.
Photography: onelove photography | Coordination: Event of the Season | Event Designer: Event of the Season | Floral Design: Juniper Floral Designs | Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier | Cake: Enjoy Cupcakes | Stationery: Minted | Shoes: Nine West | Jewelry: Banana Republic | Jewelry: Bauble Bar | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Anthropologie | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Donna Morgan | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Joanna August | Bridesmaids' Dresses: French Connection | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Rebecca Taylor | Catering: Omni Fresco Catering | Makeup: Hale Koa phineas Estate | Hair: Mishay Salon & Spa | Lighting: Ambient Event Design | DJ: DJ Chel | Groom's Attire: Suitsupply | Groomsmen Attire: Express | Location: Private Residence | Rentals: Town And Country Rentals | Veil And Accessories: Nordstrom