Leave it to the ladies at Amorology to take this bride’s vision of an “indoor/outdoor English garden-style wedding set against Spanish ranch architecture” and bring it perfectly to life. Along with stunning blooms by Oak & The Owl , they wove in lots of playful nods to the couple’s story – including where they first met at happy hour. Lots more in The Vault from the lens of Carmen Santorelli!
From The Bride…Ours was a classic love story of boy meets girl at Rock Bottom…Brewery in San Diego. We met at an after work happy hour and immediately hit it off. Our personality types were very opposite – Jason is an unfettered extrovert while I very much cherish my quiet time, my alone time, and my “me time” — yet we also had so much in common! I even cancelled my plans for that very evening to spend more time getting to know him. We were both living in San Diego at the time with no plans to move anytime soon.
Flash forward 4 years and we were both living and working in San Francisco when I was invited to have lunch with a childhood friend who also lived in SF. There was limited parking close to our chosen venue so she suggested we meet at her place and walk through the Palace of Fine Arts, a San Francisco landmark with beautifully landscaped grounds. As she and I walked down the path I noticed a sign that read “Amber, please have a seat” sitting next to a lone chair. As I sat, Jason came from where he was hiding behind a tree, playing Tim McGraw’s “My Best Friend” on his guitar, knelt down, and proposed…cue my friends and family cheering from where they were watching nearby!
One week later (yep, just one week… I was excited!) and we were planning our wedding. Since we had met and fell in love in San Diego (and because the weather is kind of spectacular) we decided it was the perfect place to start our lives together. I scoured the web and magazines for the perfect planner in that area, and that’s when I came across Heather and the Amorology team. I fell in love with a wedding they had created and knew I needed to work with them!
Flash forward again and, a year and a few months later our wedding day had finally arrived. Thanks to our wedding planners, Amorology, it was a perfect day/night. I was adamant that I wanted the convenience of a hotel wedding without a cookie-cutter package. I waxed poetic about the merits of an indoor/outdoor English garden style wedding set against Spanish ranch architecture, and as crazy as that sounds they made the dream a beautiful reality (thanks for existing Rancho Valencia! And Erica, we heart you!)
Everything was customized by Amorology in a palette of creams, copper, and lunar grey with touches of brass and accents of wood. From the free standing beer bar with working taps aptly called “Rock Bottom”, to the moon cutout backdrop built from reclaimed wood that was a nod to a story about a boy and the moon that my mom told me as a little girl. Calligraphy place cards alluding to the moon sat at each place setting atop tin ceiling tiles that doubled as chargers.
They brought in actual church pews for the outdoor ceremony and to play to our love of ice cream we had vintage ice scream scoops to serve as table markers as well as lovely take home favors for our guests. Simply everything was carefully designed to make it feel special and unique to us. The Amorology team and the right, level headed fiance combined to keep me on track so that we ultimately got to experience the most perfect day of our lives!
And while we’re giving props to those that helped us out, we also wanted to say thanks and throw a shout out to Generation Tux for introducing tuxedo rentals to the 21st century, getting my wonderful husband, his groomsmen, and his father looking so sharp, so conveniently, on the big day!
Photography: Carmen Santorelli Photography | Wedding Planning: Amorology | Floral Design: Oak And The Owl | Wedding Dress: Mira Zwillinger | Cake: SusieCakes | Invitations: Lovely Paper Things | Hair And Makeup: 10.11 Makeup | Calligraphy: Twinkle And Toast | Lighting: Classic Party Rentals | DJ: Matt Phipps | Groom's Attire: Generation Tux | Groomsmen Attire: Generation Tux | Venue: Rancho Valencia | Backdrops: Backup Backdrops | Ceremony & Cocktail Hour Music: Trent Hancock | Chair Rentals: Abbey Party Rents | Gelato Bar: Bottega Italiana | Lounge & Tables & Ceremony Structure & Pew Bench Rentals: Found Rental Co. | Tabletop Rentals: Hostess Haven