Palm Springs Wedding from Docuvitae Photography
Palm Springs is where pretty weddings come to life. Somewhere between the desert skies and lush palm trees is a happy place that makes nearly every wedding there perfection. And this pretty little number captured by Docuvitae Photography represents everything a modern wedding should be. Fun, laid back, and oozing with that nontraditional, eclectic elegance. With the help of Artisan Event Floral Decor and The Bride and I, this couple was able to write their own rules and craft a day true to "them" inside and out. Get caught up in all the gorgeousness right here.
From the Bride... Ryan and I live in Chicago, but from the minute we got engaged knew we wanted to have a small, intimate destination wedding with our closest friends and family. Of everywhere we looked - the Palm Springs vibe seemed the most like us - laid back, fun and a place we thought all our friends and family would enjoy a warm weather trip to. I work at a hotel (The James in Chicago - a SMP Little Black Book vendor, so was very particular when it came to choosing the venue. The Parker was exactly what we were looking for - unique design, great service, great food and an all in one destination. Pulling up to the huge orange doors when we first arrived was a definite highlight of the week and I just can't say enough nice things about the staff there.
Since we were planning from afar, we selected vendors whose overall aesthetic and philosophy fit into what we were envisioning for the day - a funky but elegant (think Dorothy Draper meets Martha Stewart) event that was above all fun for those in attendance. Joey from Artisan and April from The Bride and I were amazing to work with. I had an idea of what I wanted each component of the wedding to look/feel like and they were instrumental in really bringing it to life. Gennia from Docuvitae Photography (who was also in the midst of planning her wedding at The Parker!) shot the day perfectly - very documentary-style and capturing the real moments as they occurred which was very important to us.
Dress shopping was one of my favorite parts of the planning process - though I was very singular in knowing that I didn't want a white dress upfront, just as I didn't want a diamond engagement ring when we got engaged. (Mine is a sapphire.) So that narrowed down the options quite a bit. My style leans towards a little bit more eclectic and I was worried I would regret not getting something more traditional. But, I think looking back, the nontraditional color and big, sparkly vintage earrings will always feel more like me than a white ballgown ever would. In keeping with the nontraditional - Ryan and I decided we didn't want to require anyone in our bridal parties to wear the same thing. We just wanted everyone to look and feel like themselves that day - and to be there with us to celebrate.
No bride ever wants to be upstaged - but I'm pretty sure Ryan upstaged me on our wedding day. His very stylish friend helped him pick out his suit at a store in Chicago called Suit Supply. And his friend also has a great tie company called Artfully Disheveled - which is where he got the awesome bow tie The Spark - with little spark plugs all over it. I highly recommend it for a unique take on classic wedding wear.
My favorite part of the day was when Ryan's sister read The Lovely Other Dinosaur during our ceremony. Nothing about any of the traditional wedding readings resonated with us as we were planning. The Lovely Other Dinosaur is an illustrated book about two dinosaurs that was one of the first presents I got for Ryan when we first started dating. (My mom actually found it and pointed it out to me since she said it seemed like us.) When Ryan proposed to me, he wrote his own version of the book that told our story of how we met and got engaged. Everyone always said to me that you have to take all the traditional wedding elements and examine each one as you're planning to see if it feels like "you." This was an interpretation of a traditional wedding element that I'm really glad we did in our own way instead of just discarding.
Wedding Photography: Gennia/Docuvitae Photography | Floral Design + Decor: Artisan Event Floral Decor | Wedding Planning: The Bride and I | Ceremony + Reception Location: The Parker Palm Springs | Invitations + Paper Goods: Baumbirdy | Calligraphy: Feast Fine Art & Calligraphy | Linens: La Tavola | Wedding Dress: Vera Wang | Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Bride's Jewelry: House of Lavande | Groom's Suit: Suit Supply | Groom's Bow Tie: Artfully Disheveled | Hair and Make-Up: Fiore Beauty | Officiant: Mike Coppersmith
Since we were planning from afar, we selected vendors whose overall aesthetic and philosophy fit into what we were envisioning for the day - a funky but elegant (think Dorothy Draper meets Martha Stewart) event that was above all fun for those in attendance. Joey from Artisan and April from The Bride and I were amazing to work with. I had an idea of what I wanted each component of the wedding to look/feel like and they were instrumental in really bringing it to life. Gennia from Docuvitae Photography (who was also in the midst of planning her wedding at The Parker!) shot the day perfectly - very documentary-style and capturing the real moments as they occurred which was very important to us.
Dress shopping was one of my favorite parts of the planning process - though I was very singular in knowing that I didn't want a white dress upfront, just as I didn't want a diamond engagement ring when we got engaged. (Mine is a sapphire.) So that narrowed down the options quite a bit. My style leans towards a little bit more eclectic and I was worried I would regret not getting something more traditional. But, I think looking back, the nontraditional color and big, sparkly vintage earrings will always feel more like me than a white ballgown ever would. In keeping with the nontraditional - Ryan and I decided we didn't want to require anyone in our bridal parties to wear the same thing. We just wanted everyone to look and feel like themselves that day - and to be there with us to celebrate.
No bride ever wants to be upstaged - but I'm pretty sure Ryan upstaged me on our wedding day. His very stylish friend helped him pick out his suit at a store in Chicago called Suit Supply. And his friend also has a great tie company called Artfully Disheveled - which is where he got the awesome bow tie The Spark - with little spark plugs all over it. I highly recommend it for a unique take on classic wedding wear.
My favorite part of the day was when Ryan's sister read The Lovely Other Dinosaur during our ceremony. Nothing about any of the traditional wedding readings resonated with us as we were planning. The Lovely Other Dinosaur is an illustrated book about two dinosaurs that was one of the first presents I got for Ryan when we first started dating. (My mom actually found it and pointed it out to me since she said it seemed like us.) When Ryan proposed to me, he wrote his own version of the book that told our story of how we met and got engaged. Everyone always said to me that you have to take all the traditional wedding elements and examine each one as you're planning to see if it feels like "you." This was an interpretation of a traditional wedding element that I'm really glad we did in our own way instead of just discarding.
Wedding Photography: Gennia/Docuvitae Photography | Floral Design + Decor: Artisan Event Floral Decor | Wedding Planning: The Bride and I | Ceremony + Reception Location: The Parker Palm Springs | Invitations + Paper Goods: Baumbirdy | Calligraphy: Feast Fine Art & Calligraphy | Linens: La Tavola | Wedding Dress: Vera Wang | Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Bride's Jewelry: House of Lavande | Groom's Suit: Suit Supply | Groom's Bow Tie: Artfully Disheveled | Hair and Make-Up: Fiore Beauty | Officiant: Mike Coppersmith