[section title=”The Planning”]
[field title=”Wedding Colors”]French blue, pink, yellow, coral, tangerine, peach[/field]
[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]I wanted the day to just feel happy, colorful and playful/whimsical. The theme I kept picturing was confetti and wildflowers, so I tried to incorporate as many colorful and playful details into everything.[/field]
[field title=”Proposal Story”]The proposal was a cascade of surprises! It was December in San Francisco and Max told me that there was a new holiday pop up spot in town that we wanted to go to as a date. However instead of a holiday pop up, he took me to the rooftop garden of the Fairmont where there was a heart made out of flowers was set up (which he’d enlisted one of my best friends to set up, the same best friend that he convinced to hide in the bushes to capture the moment :)). He then proposed on the rooftop and right after I said yes I heard cheering from the on lookers on the nearby balconies that happened to have a perfect view of the proposal.
After sharing a celebratory glass of champagne on the roof, Max led me into the lobby of the Fairmont that had its holiday life size gingerbread house set up. We were led into the house and at the table inside the house were my parents, Max’s parents, my best friend and Max’s best friend (who’d flown in from Texas and Southern California for the surprise)! We had a perfect dinner inside the life sized gingerbread house. We were event sent champagne by one of the hotel guests that had seen the proposal from the balcony. They told us that 30 years ago someone saw their proposal and sent over a bottle of champagne, and they were so excited to see ours and be able to pass along the tradition to us.
Just when I thought the evening could not be better, we decided to head back to our apartment for drinks, and when I walked inside, the apartment was full of all of our favorite people and decorated to the nines to celebrate our engagement![/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]
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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]
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[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]
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[section title=”The Fashion”]
[field title=”Wedding Gown”]Louvienne, Malea gown
Veil—wild flower embroidery with “Max + Ali Forever” embroidery, Etsy,[/field]
[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”]Show me your mumu, House of Harlow, fame and partners, A.L.C, Hello Molly[/field]
[field title=”Groomsman Attire”]Indochino[/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Wedding Party”]
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[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]
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[board_carousel title=”Cocktail Hour”]
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[section title=”The Details”]
[field title=”Food & Drink”]Sonoma Preferred Catering did an INCREDIBLE job on the food and drinks! Not only was the food incredible, they also included edible flower confetti to decorate each tray. The menu included tray passed hors d’oeuvres, spring green salad with peaches and chèvre, dry rubbed tri tip, sautéed chicken breast, spinach and roasted garlic ravioli, rosemary and olive oil grilled vegetables.
For dessert, I mentioned that I would love to incorporate cotton candy and rice crispy treats, and Sonoma Preferred delivered! They were spinning mini cotton candy cones all night and used a custom sprinkle mix with our colors on the rice crispy treats, as well as chocolate mousse, apple tartlets and chocolate caramel squares (which were made by a good family friend of ours and Sonoma Preferred incorporated seamlessly into the dessert display).
Then we had late night pizzas made in the on site wood fired pizza ovens passed around at the silent disco after party in the underground barrel room.
Our Signature Drinks included fresh, edible flowers in each cocktail as well as ice cubes with our monogram. We also had edible glitter for guests to add to their drink to add some sparkle![/field]
[field title=”Florals & Decor”]I wanted the florals to be bright, happy, colorful and whimsical and Fignvine delivered! Our aisle had flowers along the way and at the end of the aisle we had a floral ground arch with a loose, wild flower-esque design. I’d also asked that my and the bridesmaids’ bouquets be on the smaller side and look whimsical. The bouquets were all gorgeous and looked like each of us had just picked a posy of bright wildflowers.
For decor, we wanted to include as much color as we could and also include personal touches throughout. For the escort cards, we designed custom note cards and hand wrote a note to each guest, which we then placed in a colorful envelopes with each guest’s name and table assignment on the front. With 250 guests, we wanted to be sure we were able to personally thank each person for coming and celebrating with us, so we decided writing a love note to everyone there was a great way to express our love and gratitude.
For the table decor, we kept the table cloths and napkins simple so that we could focus on color with the table settings and flowers. For each table setting, we incorporated paper in each of our colors and tassels to add a bright element. Each table setting had the guests name, a QR code that turned the guests’ phone into a disposable camera, a fun facts quiz about the bride and groom to stir up some friendly competition amongst the table and the menu.
I made all of the signage and painted each acrylic sign in one of our colors and used my circuit to add all of the designs on the signs. I love dinosaurs and included a few hidden dinosaur elements throughout the decor as well.
To add a personal touch to cocktail hour, we made different “two truths and a lie” napkins about the bride and the groom in each of our wedding colors. Guests were able to find out the answers to each of the napkins at their place setting.[/field]
[field title=”Wedding Cake”]I decided to make my own wedding cake! Max loves to surprise me with flowers, so over the last year, whenever Max brought me home a bouquet of flowers, I’d save and press a few from each bouquet and then used the pressed flowers to decorate the cake.
It was quite an adventure getting the cake to the venue. The day before the wedding the elevator in our apartment broke, so we had to carry the cake down five flights of stairs. Then in between hair and makeup on the day of the wedding, I brought the cake to the venue to set up, while still in my pajamas and with curlers in my hair. But it all worked out!
The bottom layer was cinnamon spice cake, middle layer was red velvet and top layer funfetti.[/field]
[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”]I walked down the aisle to an acoustic piano mash up of Canon in D and the Jurassic Park theme song. The song was custom made by Johnny Keys on TikTok.
One of Max’s sisters officiated the wedding and we wrote our own vows, which we read from vow books that I painted with flowers to match the florals of our wedding.[/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #1″]Barbie Jeep!
Growing up I’d asked my parents for a Barbie Jeep at every holiday and received the same answer: “We’ll get you one as a wedding present.” This was of course just their way of avoiding having to get me the Barbie Jeep by punting this off to the future. Although I never forgot about the Barbie Jeep, I eventually gave up on the dream of owning one.
Then, at the wedding, at the end of my dad’s speech, he asks: “What is the one thing you’ve asked us for your entire life that we never got you” and as I respond with “Barbie Jeep”, I turn around and a Barbie Jeep is being carried out to me! I could not believe it—I finally got the Barbie Jeep of my dreams! I drove the Barbie Jeep out on to the dance floor and it was perfect. The guests also got in on the fun and were taking the Barbie Jeep for a spin. My mother in law even took it for a ride!
(Given the hype about the Barbie movie this year, Barbie Jeeps were sold out everywhere, so my Dad actually was only able to find a Frozen Jeep, which he then turned into a Barbie Jeep after ordering the original 90s Barbie decals.)[/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #2″]Welcome Bags
Our welcome bags were custom McDonald’s happy meal boxes. McDonald’s chicken nuggets played a central role in our first meeting, so we designed our welcome bags in the iconic happy meal shape as a nod to our initial meeting. Inside we included our favorite treats, which included Hershey’s “nugget” chocolates and custom fortune cookies.[/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #3″]Max and I both lost one of grandmas, but we wanted to be sure we included them in our day. I had each of our grandma’s names in their handwriting etched onto pendants and I attached the pendants to my bouquet.
The pearl necklace and bracelet I wore were on the wedding day were from the necklace my grandma had given me as I grew up. When I was born, my grandma gifted me a gold necklace with one pearl. Then for each major birthday or graduation, my grandma added an inch of pearls to that necklace. At my law school graduation, she gifted me with the completed 20 inch pearl necklace. For my wedding, I had the necklace restrung into a shorter necklace and bracelet to wear on the day.[/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]
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[board_carousel title=”Reception”]
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Photography: Lauren Lee Photography | Cinematography: B Studios | Event Planning: Carly Saber Events | Floral Design: Fig & Vine | Wedding Dress: Louvienne | Cake: Ali DeGolia | Invitations: On Three Designs | Ceremony Venue: Viansa Sonoma | Reception Venue: Viansa Sonoma | Catering: Preferred Sonoma Catering | DJ: Golden Bell Music | Groom's Attire: Indochino | Beauty: Bridal by Jasmine K | Beauty: Stefanie Fritz Makeup Artistry | Rentals: Encore Event Rentals