If there’s a couple that knows how to put on a party, it’s this gorgeous Bride and handsome Groom. As the Bride put it, “we wanted to create the party of our lives.” They did just that with their Santa Barbara wedding, which incorporated elements from the Bride’s childhood vacations in Mexico and a band that kept the party going all night. See it all from Michael + Anna Costa Photography in The Vault!
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From The Bride…Andrew and I met in Santa Barbara at school our junior year at UCSB and our love grew from there. Funny thing is we lived in the same dorms freshman year and have many mutual friends but never crossed paths. Our mutual friend eventually introduced us junior year and the rest was history, I guess timing is everything. We fell in love and enjoyed friends, school, party’s and living Beach front in Santa Barbara. Andrew decided San Francisco would be where he desired to finish college with their amazing international business program. We did long distance for almost a year but as soon as I graduate I packed up my Honda Civic and moved to the wonderful city of San Francisco. We enjoyed everything the city had to offer…festivals, amazing food, night life and of course all the outdoor activities. This city will always hold a special place in our hearts because this is where Andrew proposed! We traveled the world together living in his mother’s hometown of Panama for 4 months. This was the most amazing time of our lives and it was amazing to feel the love and culture and how proud of Andrews Panamanian culture we are.
Andrew and I envisioned an outdoor wedding with live entertainment, surrounded by friends and family’s laughter. Andrew and I desired a beautiful classic Santa Barbara style wedding in the town where are love first started. Santa Barbara has a beautiful Spanish style feel to it which we love. I grew up with a beach house in Mexico and have always loved the style culture and beauty. We feel in love with the Santa Barbara museum as it hit everything on our list…naturally beautiful, Spanish style, outdoor, romantic and of course plenty of room to party. Our style is very relaxed and fun and we wanted to create the party of our lives, as we love to party like true kids that went to college at UCSB and lived in Isla Vista. We wanted to treat our guest to amazing live entertainment, delicious cocktails and tons of dancing. We wanted to incorporate tiles from my Mexico town for the menus and also used them as place cards. The guests got to take these home as coaster to remember that amazing day. My father spent countless hours perfecting these tiles which my favorite touch to our wedding decor. I have to give all get credit to Andrew for picking the most amazing band. They are local kids to Santa Barbara and have such an amazing energy that Andrew and I feel in love with. The reception felt like a concert as guest were chanting from the front row for an encore “one more song, one more song”!!!
The day off we have a few hiccups but my matron of honor did an amazing job of not making me aware there was a mud slide that day that closed the freeway…..so many guest were late or did not make it.
We enlisted our friend Hank to marry us, he got ordained! We felt it was important to have someone up there that knew our love so well and it was very special. We wrote our own vows and both procrastinated until the day of, but that made it all the more special as we were in the moment. We were nervous but of course this was my favorite part of the wedding, our vows spoke so true to our personalities…me wild…and him the mellow well spoken one.
I wore a Jenny Lee strapless dress. My mother in law is the most amazing seamstress! She saved the day and was sewing me into this the day of the wedding! I absolutely felt like the most beautiful bride. I felt this dress captured the Spanish theme and my simple style. I had the privilege of wearing my mothers necklace from her wedding and my mother In law pearls. The bridesmaids picked their own dresses because I wanted them to each feel beautiful and dress to their style. We actually didn’t see them together until we got dressed for the wedding. They turned out amazing together and I’m in love with the different styles together. Andrew and his boys looked like GQ models with their blue suits…he wasn’t sure about the vest but I absolutely loved that look.
Without our families none of this would have been possible. We have the most amazing parents! My amazing mom was my rock throughout this experience. She saw all stages of a bride panning a wedding and helped me facilitate the beauty of this day ever step of the way. We like to think of ourselves as wedding planners now but we will stick to our days jobs…it was tough!!!!
It’s true what they say, it’s was the most amazing day of our lives!
Photography: MICHAEL + ANNA COSTA PHOTOGRAPHY | Cinematography: Andrew James Abajian | Event Planning: Simply Santa Barbara Events - Shelley Eschleman | Wedding Dress: Marina Morrison | Cake: SusieCakes | Bride's Shoes: Billy Ella | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Nordstrom | Catering: Omni Fresco Catering | Lighting: Bella Vista Designs, Inc | Band: The Caverns | Groom's Attire: Friar Tux | Venue: Santa Barbara Historical Museum | Bridal Boutique: Marina Morrison | Floral Design + Table Napkins: Knot Just Flowers | Rentals: Ventura Party Rentals
