"Clean Girl" Wedding Design at Maravilla Gardens on a Sunny SoCal Day
We wanted a simple, clean, and classic look throughout all elements of our wedding, from our florals to our place settings.
I “knew” when Diana and I reconciled and she explained that our feelings had gone beyond friendship. Diana claims she knew all along ;) Diana proposed to me back in 2021 on a trip to Kauai with all of our friends!
We initially weren't sure if we wanted to wear full-on gowns, so we took our time exploring different styles. But once we both tried on ball gowns, we realized this is the one time in our lives we could go all out! We chose not to see each other in our dresses before the wedding day, but stayed in sync about which dress we chose. We wanted to make sure the vibes and shades of white wouldn't clash, and in the end, we felt each dress stood out in its way.
We were fortunate enough to collaborate with the amazing catering team, Command Performance Catering. They impressed our guests with a variety of delicious hors d'oeuvres, an eye-catching bread tower, and a lovely buffet dinner. On a day when so much is in flight, we felt so at ease trusting CPC with our guests' meals. For a fun and personal touch, we followed the tradition of signature cocktails but added our twist. Instead of 'his & hers' drinks, we featured 'hers & hers' cocktails as a nod to our queer relationship.
We envisioned our florals to enhance and emphasize our wedding colors and overall vibe, and The Little Branch brought that vision to life. They created simple yet elegant arrangements of all-white florals contrasted against vibrant greenery. Our venue, Maravilla Gardens, offered a natural backdrop during every moment of the wedding that hardly needed any extra decor. The cocktail hour overlooked the hills, and the reception was enveloped in a beautiful canopy surrounded by trees and greenery. We fell in love with Maravilla Gardens from the moment we saw it!
Of course, we wanted our cake to look good, but we especially wanted it to taste good! Lark Cake Shop helped us deliver on both fronts. They offered free cake tastings, and we both immediately chose their Chocolate Cookie Cream Cheese as our favorite. Beyond that, they offered gluten-free and vegan cupcakes to allow us to cater to our guests with dietary restrictions without compromising on flavor or quality.
Despite having an American wedding, we still wanted to incorporate our Middle Eastern and Japanese cultures into our wedding. Our Japanese family folded a thousand origami cranes as part of Japanese tradition to wish the newlyweds good luck and prosperity. On the dance floor, our incredible DJ Chris from Elegant Events Entertainment mixed Afghan songs into our playlist. We taught all of our guests how to dance along, and everyone had a blast! We also had a Chai cart from OChai that perfectly blended our cultures by serving hot chai and iced hojicha. As two brides, we also wanted to stray a bit away from some typical wedding practices. We had one joint "Bridal Party" consisting of all our closest friends, and had our best friend, who had stood by us through our entire coming-out journey, officiate our ceremony. At each guest's place setting, we included a small favor bag with a custom crossword puzzle. During dinner, guests had the opportunity to collaborate and solve crossword clues with trivia about us as a couple or some of our favorite hobbies, adding a playful and interactive touch to the evening.
We specifically sought out photographers that identified as queer and were grateful enough to work with the amazing team at Apollo Fotografie. They found ways to pose us that felt authentic and genuine and captured our romance and connection without overdone gestures like kissing. They made us feel more comfortable as a couple in front of the camera, and we felt like it showed in the result.
One of our guests' favorite moments was the opportunity to take a photo with us at the sweetheart table before heading to the buffet dinner. This relatively simple idea ensured our photographer could capture a moment with every guest in attendance.
