Terri & Joe were married at the Mill Valley Outdoor Art Club in California. Their photographer, the ultra-talented Gia Canali, captured soooooo many memorable moments that she’s shared with us, today …
from Gia …
What I love about this wedding, and what I think SMP readers might find really inspiring is how budget-friendly / d.i.y. friendly this wedding was. Terri and Joe have such great taste – and they managed to pull off a really gorgeous, very personal wedding in an urban / wedding-industry-saturated area on a decent budget.
They chose a venue with lots of natural beauty, so little adornment was necessary. Mill Valley Outdoor Art Club was built in 1904, and is classically Arts and Crafts Style. We loved the funky architecture. Even though it’s right “in town,” there are redwoods growing on the property. The flowers growing all over the property are native to the area. Coreopsis is the only one I know – those are the striking orange ones, but there were also lacy pink ones, small white ones, etc.
Again, from Gia …
The redwoods provided a natural visual focal point for the (otherwise undecorated) ceremony. The ceremony was super emotional. I remember that Joe cried through most of it … They had a florist (who was also a friend), Rima Zegarra, to create the bouquets and boutonnieres, but had (non-professional) friends use locally grown flowers to make loose arrangements in mason jars for the centerpieces. The sunflowers were the attention-grabbers, but there were also dahlias, delphiniums and snapdragons.
The table numbers were made from photographs Terri had taken on her travels. They also made their own programs.
Her french veil was from Unveiled Bridal Designs
This was Terri’s “something borrowed.”
A friend, Colin Kennedy, catered the whole event. The food was beautiful and delicious. Cupcakes were by Kara’s Cupcakes, . I still dream about them … (I’m not kidding). We love that Kara’s uses local, natural ingredients in their cupcakes.
Terri bought her dress at a sample sale and I absolutely loved it, but I don’t think she ever told me who the designer was. Joe’s suit was a slim modern fit – it looked great, too!
In addition to being a fabulous photographer, Gia also hosts a blog that rivals any other when it comes to tips and tricks for planning and capturing your wedding day to the utmost! Her blog ~ Pursuing the Picture Perfect Wedding ~ is truly one of the best. It’s really different. Instead of just reliving beautiful wedding days, Gia uses her own photographs from the weddings she shoots to educate, inform and inspire her readers. It’s not often that you will hear us tell you that. The fact that she so aptly puts into words, what her images show is the mark of a remarkable talent.
Congratulations, Terri & Joe from all of us here at SMP! And thanks soooooooo much to Gia Canali for sharing another of your wonderful weddings with us. Remember, everyone who is in pursuit of a picture perfect wedding, you simply have to bookmark Gia’s blog for step-by-step instructions for achieving just that … from one of the industry’s best!