A Picture Perfect Malibu Wedding, Complete With A Fortune Cookie Escort Wall!

Samantha Melei
December 24, 2019
Categories: Real Weddings, The Blog

Does it get any better than a vineyard in Malibu? I didn’t think so and neither did today’s bride and groom who said their I Do’s at Cielo Farms with not only beautiful backdrops but equally beautiful blooms by Mirabel Floral Design. The couple had it all for their intimate, romantic nuptials from stunning table settings to a fortune cookie escort wall, all perfectly planned by Weddings by Susan Dunne! Take a look below and get lost in the lovely imagery by the one and only Anya Kernes Photography!

From Weddings by Susan Dunne…

About the couple: Nolan and Brooke met during the summer of 2012, where they were both interns at a media agency in New York City. It wasn’t until they both moved back to the city, after graduating from college, that sparks started to fly. Despite a few rocky dates, in the beginning, the chemistry was undeniable and they fell in love quickly! Their first official date was to the Gramercy Tavern. 6 years later, their dinner dates consist of trips to Five Guys, where they compete to see who can eat the most french fries.

What was your color palette and your style vision? We envisioned the wedding to have a natural, romantic, and effortless feel. The color scheme included blush pinks, beiges, and vibrant greens. The venue we chose was a vineyard in Malibu that was incredibly scenic with a ton of natural light and greenery. We knew we wanted a beautiful outdoor setting, so it could not have been a more perfect fit! We wanted our wedding to feel elegant with a touch of boho-chic, so we incorporated pampas grass in our aisle décor & also on our arch.

We hoped for conversations during the dinner reception to be fun, carefree, and flow organically. To encourage this light, comfortable vibe, we decided against large, formal centerpieces and went for luscious green garlands that ran across long tables. Looking around and seeing everyone’s smiling faces, with the sun setting behind the canyons in the background, the dinner party I had dreamed of was finally a reality.

Your favorite crafted detail? The place cards were one of my favorite elements. Names were attached to bunny-tail grass with a beautiful hand-torn ribbon and placed on top of the menus. The delicate pieces of grass paired with the ribbon allowed each place card to be individually unique. Getting these done was no mean feat! Luckily my friends from California were sweet enough to get together and help out. We had a full-blown assembly line going!

What unique elements or DIY details did you include? I knew I wanted something in the wedding that was creative and uniquely my idea. This led to me creating “The Fortune Board” – an escort board with 125 fortune cookies lined up and surrounding a handmade fabric banner that said, “so fortunate for you all”. Guests were told to find their fortune cookies from this board, and inside the fortune cookies held their seat assignments. It turned out cute and was something fun for our guests, not to mention I’m Chinese so it was a nice alignment, hah!

What was your favorite moment? The speeches! Across both the rehearsal dinner and wedding reception, our family & friends gave such perfect, heartfelt toasts. We went from crying one second to laughing until our cheeks hurt. The emotions were surreal and we felt so much love! It made us realize how incredibly lucky we are to have such extraordinary people in our lives.

Tell us about your flowers, your gown, your favors, your cake, etc.

Bouquet: I wanted my bridal bouquet to look romantic and sophisticated, but also a little whimsical. I opted for an organic and unstructured arrangement with a mix of beautiful blooms – the layered petals in the white peonies and pink ranunculus gave the bouquet the perfect amount of volume and the anemones added a nice pop of boldness.

Dress: Believe it or not, my Pronovias wedding dress was the very first dress I had tried on! I’d love to say that I instantly fell in love, but I actually didn’t think anything of it when I first put it on, since I had nothing to compare it to. I visited multiple bridal boutiques and tried on countless other dresses but nothing would top the first! I loved every aspect of my dress so much – the intricate illusion neckline was stunning and the long train made the dress even more fabulous! The wedding dress was a gift from my grandma and I loved seeing her big smile when she saw me in it.

Venue: We had a lot of solid options for where we’d be getting married. We live in New York City, I went to school in Richmond and Nolan in Charleston. It felt impossible to decide because all these cities were important to us. Ultimately we chose California, where I grew up and where my grandparents still live. We wanted to make sure it was somewhere they could get to easily at their age! When we saw Cielo Farms, everything felt right and we knew it was the perfect place for our big day.

Favors: We gave our guests little bags of California wildflower seeds, including California poppies! The message with these favors was, “let love grow”.

What is one piece of advice that you could give brides-to-be? The advice that I’d give brides-to-be might go against what many people say. As I was planning, I cared a lot about all the details. I remember losing sleep over the type of chairs to rent. Sounds so silly, I know. People would tell me, “just go with the cheapest option, no one will care or even remember the chairs”, so I was constantly battling and rationalizing with myself. One day I just decided to bite the bullet and ordered the chairs I really wanted. While it may be true that people didn’t notice the chairs, I certainly did. I was ecstatic to see them perfectly lined up with my favorite people sitting in them! The point I’m trying to make is, whatever the detail is, if you care about it, go for it and make it yours.

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