Whimsical Spring Wedding at Ethereal Gardens in California

Samantha Melei
May 27, 2019
Categories: Real Weddings, The Blog

Julie and Sang’s wedding day was a whimsical, romantic dream taking place at a venue with quite the fitting name, Ethereal Gardens. With a handmade veil, created in the bride’s late mother’s honor and her three brothers, all to play signature roles throughout, this fête felt all of the emotions. Natalie Bray Studios captured the magic, including the prettiest floral, pastel wedding cake to an always spectacular, sparkler send-off. Top it all off with beautiful bouquets and eye-catching centerpieces by Wallflower Inspiration and get whisked away as you scroll and check out more at the full gallery!

From Natalie Bray…Julie and Sang are truly amazing!! Julie is a beauty inside and out. She lost her father and mother recently and this was such an emotional day. Her brother walked her down the aisle and she had a veil handmade in her mother’s honor. The florals were fantastic, the venue was a stunner, and the support for these wonderful souls was palpable.

From the Bride…

What was your color palette and your style vision? I wanted to go for classic and elegant, so neutral colors-simple black suits and shades of grey for the bridesmaids. Pops of color with our florals. and touches of gold in décor details.

What did you envision your wedding being prior to planning? Simple and elegant, in a tent. Rustic but modern. To be honest I always wanted it to be in a tent in the middle of some great outdoor area, like Montana or even Italian Tuscany Hills. So when I saw the venue in San Diego, I kinda knew it was the one.

What unique elements or DIY details did you include? Nothing was really DIY except for the honey jars gift favors that acted as name placements for the guests as well.

What was your favorite moment? Reading our vows and the father-daughter dance with my brothers. My father passed 6 months prior to my wedding very unexpectedly and the only way I felt right for him to be there with me was to have each of my brothers play a crucial role because each of them has different qualities of my father. My oldest brother was my officiant, my second to oldest brother walked me down the aisle, and I danced with all three of my brothers during the father-daughter dance with a slideshow of different photos of my dad and I dancing throughout the years. It was emotional but very meaningful to me.

Your favorite crafted detail? My Veil. It was a custom cathedral veil, Juliet cap. It was just so elegant and the details went very well with my dress.

Tell us about your flowers, your gown, your favors, your cake, etc. My flowers – I wanted to have touches of color and very organic. My gown – I didn’t really know what I wanted but when I tried on that one I knew this classic lace sleeve gown felt very me. My cake – was made by Fab Cakes and it was a very light grey color buttercream with handpainted handmade flowers cascading down the tiers.

What is one piece of advice that you could give brides-to-be? Take it in. It’s so hard to slow it down on the day of. Everything will work out, and if things don’t go ask plan, it’s ok because you’ll be too happy to notice. Also if you have the chance, try to greet everyone at your wedding. If not, I had a welcome dinner two days before the wedding, for anyone everyone who flew in for the wedding so we could catch up, mingle, and really spend quality time since I knew during the wedding I’d be so busy running around.

More from the Bride… Natalie is an amazing photographer who made my husband and me feel super comfortable in front of the camera. We’re both awkward when it comes to us getting our photos taken and she made it fun and comfortable. We did three shoots with her and she captured every detail. She’s very professional and has the warmest, kindest heart. We found her through Instagram and a friends wedding that she shot. We felt that her style of photography was just beautiful, light, and elegant. We also love that she shoots in film so the quality of the images is just amazing!

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