We have such a cool story for your afternoon viewing pleasure along with not one but TWO gorgeous weddings photographed by the ever so talented Gia Canali. The two brides behind these pretty affairs also happen to be besties who came up with the brilliant idea of sharing their wedding dress, a breathtaking Monique Lhuillier number. And what followed was two totally unique and insanely lovely weddings. Pretty brilliant, right? The first wedding is all about garden glamour designed by the ladies of Nonpareil Events along with some scrumptious florals courtesy of Susie Nadler for Flora Grubb. Sit back and enjoy the first big day in this dress’s career and we’ll be back in a bit with the second. What a lucky dress! You can see more of the sunny details from this California soiree in the gallery.
see more of this garden shindig here!
The story of THE Dress… Katie had tried the dress on at a trunk show, but couldn’t decide for sure if it was the dress. So she went back to Monique Lhuillier with Laura and they booked back to back dress appointments. When Laura saw Katie try on the dress, she exclaimed, “You look amazing!” And then, “Can I try it on, too?” So she did and she loved it, too. That’s when they had the idea of sharing. Katie and Laura had shared dresses and swapped wardrobes over the years, but a wedding dress?! She asked the salesperson at Monique Lhuillier if it was crazy to think they could share, but she was very encouraging. The folks at Monique Lhuillier measured them both for the dress, and Katie and Laura’s measurements were within an inch all over, even though both women have very different bodies! So … the dress sharing began.
Katie and Karl had their wedding in Katie’s aunt’s garden in Woodside, California, in September, a month affords some of the finest weather of the year in Northern California. Her aunt worked for nine months in advance to prepare and perfect the garden in time for the wedding. What a good excuse for some time in the garden, right?! She had her gardening club over the day before the wedding to show it off and celebrate!
We loved the color palette of this wedding – so many different yellows — and such happy ones! The yellows were accented with soft grays and neutralized purples. Florals included yellow and white dahlias, pale purple echeveria, lavender, smoke bush leaves, Queen Anne’s Lace, et cetera. The linens for the meandering S-shape dining table were patterned with yellow and gray. The couple loved photographs from the Hipstamatic App on their iPhones and really kind of fantasized about having their guests take photographs of the wedding with their iPhones on the Hipstamatic App. I confess to taking one or two photos on my phone with the Hipstamatic … but really made a point of taking lots of toy camera photographs for them at their wedding, trading the digital trend for its analog answer.
Photography: Gia Canali Photography / Flowers: Susie Nadler for Flora Grubb / Hair: Caryn Cohen / Makeup: Karina Kasper / Event Planning & Design: Brook Holton Sheahan & Alexis Ring of Nonpareil Events / Ceremony and Reception Location: private backyard garden (at the home of the bride’s aunt!) / Linens: La Tavola / Rentals: Hartmann Studios / Catering: Bi-rite Catering / DJ: Nick Foster Entertainment / Dress: Monique Lhuillier / Film Work: Richard Studio