Karina and Samuel’s wedding at Casas del XVI was as enchanting as they come! The couple chose a venue in their hometown where they fell in love, decided on a vision, and left the rest to the professionals. The result was an insanely romantic ceremony with overgrown greenery and floral installations beyond anything we’ve seen before, and a cozy reception on a covered patio complete with gold accents and vibrant centerpieces. The bride’s fully beaded gown from Giannina Azar and pearl hairpiece from Giovanna Gidoni were equally fairytale-inspired. Our wildest garden wedding dreams were brought to life in this Dominican Republic wedding, and these images from Adolfo Florentino Photography told the story in vivid detail!
Wild. Family. Joy. Those were the 3 words that stuck with Taylor and Joe from the very beginning of planning, and those are the exact words we would use to describe their Sacred Mountain Julian wedding! From the very beginning, Caleb Gaskins Photography was able to capture the most sincere joy radiating from everyone involved, and the love just kept getting stronger and stronger as the day went along. Their mountaintop “I dos” were full of song and community, and their cozy outdoor reception was full of heartfelt details and wildly fun moments. The only thing that could outshine the carefree vibes was the bride’s effortlessly chic style that included a Grace Loves Lace gown and natural beauty!
The most important thing to us was that our wedding felt like home and was full of the presence of Jesus and family. That people could enter into a different world and be able to be so present with one another. That celebration, joy, and adventure would be the heartbeat of the gathering. We just love being with our people!
During our ceremony, the most important thing to us was to have a couple worship songs right in the beginning. The reality of our relationship is that we would not have found one another if we hadn’t found the goodness of Jesus Christ in our lives. Worship is such a huge part of our hearts and we wanted to worship in full abandon over the valley of Julian with all our friends and family. It was a mixture of joy, laughter, overwhelming freedom, and extravagant love. The powerful worship that took place in that time set the tone for the whole wedding.
The people in your life want to help you…ask them for it! It is a beautiful opportunity to make people feel wanted and engaged in your engagement process. See the gifts that your friends and family have and ask them to participate in the things that bring them joy, too. We would never have been able to do this without our friends and family.
Also, we suggest writing down 3 words that describe the feeling of your wedding so that you can continually go back to those words throughout your process when things start to get crazy and remember what you wanted from the start. Stick to what you originally envisioned.
Simplicity was the name of the game for Erica and Michael in their unbelievably gorgeous wedding at Hamel Family Wines in Sonoma Valley! The iconic Northern California landscape was the perfect backdrop for this special day on its own, but then you add the modern, minimalist architecture of the venue and it was a match made in heaven for these design professionals. They tied the knot on a patio overlooking the vineyards, with 9 family members there to bear witness. Then they dined with an indoor reception that needed nothing more than greenery sprigs to make it totally chic. Though the details were minimal, the moments were exceptionally romantic and the style was timeless. These images from Madeline Shea Photography show off every angle of this California wedding!
Our goal was really to keep our wedding as simple and stress-free as possible. We wanted to be able to enjoy ourselves and spend the day focused on us and our vows, while surrounded by the gorgeous scenery in Sonoma. Our immediate family (9 people) were the only attendees – and it really made the whole day feel so special and intimate.
We always knew that we wanted to have an intimate destination wedding or elopement, and were open to traveling anywhere in the US. We happened to visit Hamel Family Wines on vacation (shortly after we got engaged) and were so impressed by the staff, the winery, and the architecture of the estate house. We called on a whim as soon as we got home from that trip to ask if we could have our wedding there, and luckily they said yes!
Michael and I are minimalists; I’m an architect and he’s a web developer, so we just naturally knew we’d want something simple and beautiful. Luckily the scenery at Hamel Family Wines (both the architecture and the vineyard itself) is so beautiful on its own, that we really didn’t have to do much to achieve the modern aesthetic we were after.
We did a “warming of the rings” ceremony. Our rings were passed to each family member during the ceremony. When one of our family members received the rings in the palm of their hand, they would clasp their hands over the rings, rub their hands together, and send “well wishes”, “prayers”, “good vibes” for us. We also did a wine box ceremony. We bought a bottle of wine from Hamel and sealed it in a box (along with love letters to each other), which we’ll open on our 5 year anniversary!
I think my favorite photo is one Michael and I “cheersing” with our wine glasses. The photo actually doesn’t show our faces, but I think I love it because it feels spontaneous and natural. It also captures the relaxed, joyful vibe of the wedding day.
I knew that I wanted a simple, architectural dress, but didn’t have a specific style inspiration beyond that. I bought my dress at a sample sale and had my seamstress reconstruct it into something totally new…I think that’s my favorite part about the dress; it’s completely unique to me! I also absolutely loved my belt sash from Sara Gabriel. It truly made the dress. And lastly, I wore some flowers in my hair that were part of my grandma’s belt that she wore on her wedding day. It was so special to have something sentimental included in my accessories!
Our photographer was a dream! Because our wedding was so small, we didn’t hire a coordinator. Madeline somewhat stepped into that role on our wedding day, bouncing between locations where Michael and I were getting ready to make sure she truly captured every detail of the day. She also curated and kept us on schedule for every other event of the day – first look, ceremony, cocktail hour, family photos, and dinner!! Madeline has such a fun and relaxed demeanor, which really helped me to stay calm during the day. She is the caring, peaceful friend that every bride needs on the big day!! She also is super smart and thinks quickly on her feet, which is evident in the variety of styles, backdrops, and stances in our photos from the day.
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