The only thing better than planning a modern Palm Springs affair, is doing it with Karson Butler Events by your side. This bride, who’s no stranger to the event industry, put her years of experience at 100+ weddings to use and brought on the dream team to make it all happen. Abby Jiu photographed the gallery, including beautiful moments captured with the couple’s sweet baby, Chloe.
From the bride, Lauren… As someone who has been apart of the event world professionally for over 9 years, I knew the truth that Pinterest doesn’t convey – it is such hard work to make one day look and feel perfect! Brian and I had our daughter, Chloe Carlene, 8 months prior the wedding and at times I just didn’t think I could handle it all. Brian’s job in Advertising is extremely demanding (he was in Korea 10 days before our wedding!) and at the time, I was a busy Sales Director at an event rental company. How the heck were we going to do this? Truth be told, I could and we really started to enjoy the process once we had Abby Jiu (our photographer) and Emily and Amber (of Karson Butler Events) on board. Knowing that we had skilled professionals in our corner made us both rest easy. I could not recommend them all enough. If you have it in your budget to bring a coordinator and a seasoned photographer on board, do not hesitate to make the smart investment!
Brian and I love heading out to the desert from our home in Long Beach, CA. It is a short drive for us and it feels like a different world. We knew we wanted to be in central Palm Springs so that our guests could enjoy the downtown shops and restaurants, not to mention the ability to “hotel hop” if they wished! Once we found the Frederick Loewe Estate through the Venue Reporter, we were sold. It was spacious compared to a lot of private properties in the area and Brian LOVED it. Our friends and family still talk about how amazing the views of the desert mountains were that night. It makes us both so happy to hear that!!
Our love for the desert was integrated into the drink and food menu as well as 24 Carrots Catering sampled local, seasonal foods and our signature cocktails were a play off the Rat Pack’s favorite sips.
Brian and I are at the age where we have been to a lot of weddings. As mentioned, I have been apart of over 100 events professionally too. We both agreed that after our combined experiences as a guest, we wanted each and every one of the wedding guests to feel well taken care of. The welcome bags came with custom towels, a personalized wedding digital playlist, our favorite Compartes chocolate bar, sparkling water (SO good in the heat!) and yummy popcorn.
Our day-of paper designers, The Romance Between, even created a personalized letter with a hand painted image of the wedding venue. The ombre coloring of the paper complimented the Compartes chocolate.
On the actual wedding day, our coordinators (Amber + Emily) suggested that we have ample water and refreshments before the ceremony, parasols to block the desert sun and a children’s seating area adjacent to the ceremony. Our guests’ comfort was paramount throughout the day.
My favorite wedding detail was all the signage and paper products. Working with The Romance Between, Underwood Letterpress and Backup Backdrops was a paper nerd’s dream. I was in heaven during the planning and design process with all three vendors and their work blew me away the day of the wedding. For Brian, it is a tie. He became a fan of Dart DJ from tagging along to event industry events with (me) Lauren. He was so happy when they were available for our wedding day! Then of course it was the custom sign that read “I Love You Like XO” from our favorite Beyonce song. The Modest Peach helped Lauren create it and used her (the bride’s) own handwriting!
I really leaned on Kim Sanders of Art with Nature heavily during the design process. I am fortunate to have a great relationship with her and she just “gets” me. As a bride, having full trust in your vendors is crucial. She elevated the tablescape to a level I couldn’t have imagined and her gorgeous flowers made every part of the day feel special. Brian and I wanted the venue to really do “all the talking” but with the help of Found Vintage Rentals furnishings, Casa de Perrin china + glassware and all of Kim’s amazing florals, our guests (hopefully) felt like they were being entertained amongst the stars in the finest fashion!
Our ceremony was incredibly special to us both. Our officiant is a dear friend who directs commercials for a living. His guidance through the process was thoughtful and very well planned. The love was really felt during those 30 minutes, in particular when the rings were passed amongst the wedding party and our immediate family for blessings. After he announced us, we both turned to our adorable 8 month old daughter who was so still and quiet during the whole thing and was smiling away. The moment was incredible. And then Django Foxtrot played “Hold On, We’re Going Home” and it was PERFECTION!!
Photography: Abby Jiu Photography | Cinematography: Sharkpig | Coordination: Karson Butler Events | Event Planning: Karson Butler Events | Floral Design: Art With Nature | Wedding Dress: BHLDN | Cake: Over The Rainbow | Invitations: Underwood Letterpress | Shoes: BHLDN | Catering: Giracci Vineyards Farms | DJ: Dart DJ | Band: Django Foxtrot | Grooms Attire: The Black Tux | Venue: Frederick Loewe Estate | Bridal Accessories: Styled By Twos Company | Custom Towels & Thank You Cards: Underwood Letterpress | Day of Paper:: The Romance Between | Desserts: Sweet & Saucy Shop | Entry Backdrop & Escort Card Display: Backup Backdrops | Hair & Make Up: 10.11 Makeup | Neon Sign & Mirrored Table Numbers: Modest Peach | Private Estate: Frederick Loewe Estate | Rentals: Signature Party Rentals | Rentals: Casa de Perrin | Rentals: Found Rental Co.