Santa Barbara Wedding from Vinson Photography

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April 24, 2013

When it comes to weddings, it doesn't get much prettier than a sweet Santa Barbara soiree. Maybe it's the oh-so-perfect weather, the Montecito Mountains or the downright elegance and sophistication that just comes with the territory, but whatever the reason, Santa Barbara nuptials rock. (Literally.) And when those rockin' nuptials happen to include colorful bouquets from Tenley Erin Young, yummy comfort foods from DUO Catering and an entire gallery of pretty from Vinson Photography, that's what we call beyond swoon-worthy. See it all in the full gallery.

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From the Bride... Beyond being surrounded by our friends and family, it was incredibly important for us to feel at home at our own wedding. We immediately fell in love with the theme "Eat Drink & Be Married." We carried this theme throughout the wedding. We wanted a casual but refined atmosphere. We choose to get married in Santa Barbara because it held such a special place in our hearts, we were engaged in Santa Ynez the year before. We felt incredibly lucky to have been able to use a family home for both our ceremony and reception.

The natural beauty of the venue inspired us to highlight and accentuate our surroundings. Color schemes & ideas came from our exquisite surroundings in the Montecito mountains. Our florist worked wonders by expertly using our colorful backdrop as a guide to help us make our color selection.

On the big day, as our guests approached the house, they were greeted with hand-painted reclaimed wooden signs. Guests then entered the ceremony area through the side of the house and were offered Lavender Lemonade. One thing that we agreed upon early was how important serving great food was to both of us. Our caterers understood our vision immediately and did an incredible job adding elegance to some classic comfort foods.

The 130 guests filled seven family style tables spaced around a central dance floor. Our lighting people suggested a dimmer and we found it very helpful for setting the mood. Along with mercury vases and white tablecloths, we added a natural burlap runner down the center with votives, vintage lanterns placed around our centerpieces. Our dinner service was family style. Our incredibly amazing event planner and our florist even mapped out where on the table each dish would go, no last minute surprises or knocked over candles.

As the sun set, our tables glimmered with romantic candlelight and the subtle glow of the paper lanterns. We've always wanted to do something different for dessert, so we decided to pass out homemade ice cream sandwiches and tiny ice cream cones. For traditions sake, we cut a freshly made 6" fondant cake. We asked our guests to sign a blown up version of our "I Heart Santa Barbara" logo, which now hangs on our wall, a constant reminder of that wonderful day.

Vendors

Event Planning: Dreamcatcher Artistry | Event Planning: Stuart Weitzmen | Invitations: Tenley Erin Young Floral | Jewelry: Icing on the Ring