Tucked into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Jennifer and Steve exchanged their wedding vows overlooking the expansive vista of the Santa Clara Valley. Guests enjoyed a beautiful sunset as they celebrated with the bride and groom, savoring the delicious food from the evening’s menu, which included a fresh oyster bar and traditional southern fried chicken. This beautiful vineyard wedding was photographed by Jinda Photography.

The Couple: Jennifer and Steve

The Wedding: 6.1.2013 – Bella Montagna, San Jose, California

The Goals: We wanted our wedding to represent us, as a couple and as individuals. When we began brainstorming for our special day, we each listed our top three “must haves” for the wedding, and thank goodness all three were the same for both of us. Eat, drink and be merry! Food and beverages had to be plentiful and memorable. We wanted to make sure our guests could sample and enjoy everything on the menu while keeping the quality and presentation intact. Live music was a key component to our wedding, we wanted our guests to come ready to dance the night away. Last but certainly not the least, we wanted our wedding really to be about our friends and family, a celebration of the years of support and love they have shown us. We knew as much as it was our special day, we wanted the chance to shower them with that same love and appreciation.

The Design: We wanted our guests to feel as if they entered our secret garden. We envisioned a romantic, rustic and lush environment with a modern feel. We wanted an intimate affair, so we focused our venue choices on private homes and estates. Luckily Bella Montagna also came with a stunning view. Hedieh from Flower Affairs really set our tone and mood for the entire night. Her use of blush and cream colored garden roses and hydrangeas set against eggplant colored foliage and lilies in vintage silver urns really captured my vision. Candles flooded our dance floor and tables, exuding romance. We used mounds and mounds of wood grain paper stock, envelopes, cards for our save the dates, invitations, menu cards, station cards and even our thank you cards. We translated more of the rustic theme with our food. We served a lot of items that represented Steve and I’s casual palette. We are huge oyster fans, so we had to have Bill the Oyster Man there, and I (the bride) am from the south, so fried chicken had to be on the menu. We even served hush puppies and fries as our late night snack! We also didn’t serve a traditional wedding cake. Instead we opted for a full dessert bar so guests could try a variety of items like our mini apple pies and the most delicious red velvet cupcakes made by a dear friend.

The Look: The wedding dress was really where the whole wedding theme blossomed from. I knew I wanted a lace dress and it took us over five different appointments to find the perfect dress. My favorite accessory was my mother’s necklace. It was a necklace she wore everyday when I was a child, and also held such a special meaning to me. I knew even if it didn’t fit with my dress, I was going to wear it. The bridesmaids had the freedom to pick their own dresses. I wanted to make sure they were comfortable and wore something they felt confident in. It also gave them the chance to show their own personal style which I loved.

The Moments: Our favorite part of the day by far was the unexpected flash mob. Our bridal party secretly sent our guests an instructional video for them to learn a dance routine and everyone surprised us in the middle of the dance floor. It was hilarious! The most romantic moment was at the end of the night when our band played one last slow song and Steve and I took a moment to watch our friends and family on the dance floor enjoying a romantic moment with their loved ones; it was very special to us. It felt like we were starting our union surrounded by love.

The Advice: Make sure when you are planning your day-of schedule, to set aside a few minutes to be alone with each other to savor all your hard work and reflect on such a special day. It gives you a moment to stop and smell the roses! Our biggest wedding success was that we pulled off the exact wedding we dreamed of. During the process, we felt like it was a huge guessing game. We made all the decisions and hoped that our vision would translate. At the end of the night, our wedding exceeded our wildest imaginations. Our guests to this day still talk about our wedding.

The Wedding Team:

Photographer: Jinda Photography
Event Planner: Weddings by Mega
Ceremony and Reception Venue: Bella Montagna
Invitation Designer: Groom, Steve Kim
Catering: Toast Catering
Florist: Flower Affairs
Cake: Sweet Tooth Confections
Wedding Dress: Marisa Bridals
Bridal Accessories: Tom Design
Bridesmaids’ Accessories: Shakoori Jewelry
Groom’s Apparel & Accessories: Calvin Klein (suit) and Hugo Boss (shoes)
Hair: Raquel Valerie
Makeup: Jenni Tay
DJ: Dion Decibels
Live Music: Raquel Rodriguez
Favors: Saba Shakoori
Fresh Oyster Bar: Bill the Oyster Man

Thank you Jennifer and Steve for sharing your spectacular vineyard wedding with us!

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