We often toss around adjectives ~ fantastic, terrific and fabulous, but when we say THIS wedding is spectacular, well, we mean SPECTACULAR! First ~ a handful of photos from their amazing photographer, Victor Sizemore …
Choreographing a wedding like Erin and TJ’s took the talents of a pretty incredible team of wedding vendors … their wedding planner was Jeannie at Details Details and fellow Little Black Book member, Christopher Aldama of Fiori Fresco Special Events was responsible for the “spectacular” floral and floral design!
Erin had two custom gowns, designed by R-Mine Bridal.
The St. Regis at Monarch Beach was transformed into a virtual 1940’s jazz supper club with three tiers …
Unbelievable! You can read ALL about their wedding and see so many more of Victor’s stunning images on Erin and TJ’s website. It’s a pretty awesome website too!
Congratulations on a very memorable celebration!
Erin & TJ’s Story
We wanted to incorporate what was important to us: our family, friends, interests, and heritage. The first thing we did was to create a family crest. The crest represented the joining of our families and became the starting point for our planning. Then our focus turned to the music element of our wedding Travis and I are both avid music lovers and we wanted live music to help incorporate all of the various factors important to us.
The Ceremony
Travis loves the water and thus we decided the Grand Lawn at the St. Regis with its oversized fountains and ocean view would the perfect place for our ceremony. My mother is Irish and we thought it would be wonderful to incorporate Irish traditions and music in our ceremony. Therefore, the ceremony had an Irish garden element and we used natural colors such as ivory, champagne, and copper to compliment the resort’s beautiful exterior. We also lined the aisle with large candelabras and created swirl patterns with rose petals to accentuate the feeling of glamour and romance. World-renowned Irish soloist Gavin Coyle, who flew in from Chicago, sang the processional song, “She Moved Through the Fair”, as my father walked me down the aisle. In honor of my Japanese culture, Reverend Ito performed the traditional Japanese wedding ceremony, “san-san-kudo”. San-san-kudo literally translates as “three-three-nine times”. It is a formal and ritualized drinking of a small amount of sake by the bride, groom, and their parents symbolizing the joining of the two families. To end the ceremony, we followed the Irish tradition of ringing a bell together. According to Irish tradition, the bell is to remain in our household and is to be rung in order to end an argument by bringing the couple back to the time when they said their vows to each other on their wedding day.
There were two “books” laid out on the welcome tables. One was the wedding program and the other was a Celtic Tree of Life program, where we asked our guests: “What Tree Did You Fall From?” Then they could find their birthday and its corresponding tree, turn the page to see the meaning behind it. Some compare the Celtic Tree of Life to a type of horoscope. We thought it would be a great way to keep our guests entertained!
The Reception
I grew up listening to vocal and classic jazz music and I wanted to have that type of atmosphere for the reception. That said, the style of the reception used supper club elements with multi-tiered seating, surrounding a dance floor in front of our big band. The reception is where our main color scheme came into play: black, white, and crimson with a gold accent. The reception ballroom was intended to have a jazz club setting with multi-tiered seating, surrounding a custom designed dance floor that was situated in front of a 22-piece jazz band. The music comprised of classic jazz tracks from Etta James, Solomon Burke, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, etc.
Three types of centerpieces were used to highlight the different levels of seating. On the lowest level (orchestra) we chose a collection of small glass vases filled with roses, peonies, and dahlias. The second level (mezzanine) had large trumpet vases with a loose pseudo-pave of red roses and orchids. The third level (balcony) had the most dramatic arrangement, which consisted of an oversized flute shaped vase with white hydrangea, gold curly willow branches and white ostrich plumes. Our tablescape included gold leaf chargers, black satin napkins, crimson glassware, and gold mercury votive candleholders.
Our Crest
Our crest represents the unity and equality of the future we shall share as husband and wife. It symbolizes the joining of family, tradition, and cultural aesthetics. The left side of the family crest represents Erin: the element found in the top left section is the Kaneko kamon (KA meaning “Family tree” and MON meaning “crest or emblem”). The Kaneko kamon is an emblem of a flowering quince or C. Japonica and the cross section of a mokkou. The lower left element is the arms section from the Walsh Family Coat of Arms (Erin’s mother’s maiden name). This portion of the Walsh Coat of Arms depicts an argent with a chevron in gules between three pheons; the chevron embodies the roof of a house signifying protection and faithful service and the pheons indicate warrior and strength. The right side of the crest represents Travis: the upper right element is a stylized illustration of the symbol for water in a circular shape representing unity, wholeness, and infinity. The lower right crest element is the emblem representing the Young family. The white undulating scroll represents the revelation of life and time; both ends are still wound indicating a life that is unfolding like a scroll of uncertain length. The scroll is white in color, which identifies the truth revealed and the sincerity of the written word. The crossed flags in sable embody perseverance. Last, the equine bridle signifies constancy in devotion.
Bride’s Attire
I wore a family heirloom diamond bracelet, which was a gift from my grandmother. My hair accessories, which included a bejeweled comb and a hair broach with bleached Guinea and peacock feathers and satin accents, were from Pronovias. Both of my gowns and my birdcage veil were custom-made by R-Mine Bridal. I wore 4” black and white wingtip shoes by Ellie for the ceremony and 3” bejeweled champagne evening sandals by Stuart Weitzman for the reception. For more details please view our wedding website.
Vendors
Wedding Planner: Jeannie Savage, Details Details
Floral Event Designer: Christopher Aldama, Fiori Fresco Special Events
Wedding Gowns: Custom made by R- Mine Bridal
Music: Gavin Coyle, himself and West Coast Music
Invitations: Mimio in Pasadena
Photographer: Victor Sizemore
Cake: St. Regis Pastry
Venue: St. Regis Resort and Spa
Details Details: Erin & TJ’s Wedding in Japan
Victor Sizemore’s Blog Feature: Part I, Part II
More from Details Details blog …
Summer Sunshine At The Ritz : Color Palette~Yellow and Gray
Modern Beach House Wedding: Inspiration~A Pillow. Lucite invitations! Collaboration w/Fiori Fresco Special Events.
Eco Chic Wine Country Wedding: Lovely lavender bridesmaids & killer wedding gown! {more from photographer here}