California Fall Wedding: Kaitlyn + Chad

Happy Monday, lovelies! We can’t think of a better way to start the week than with Kaitlyn + Chad’s beautiful fall wedding, held at a private family ranch, tucked away in the hills of California’s Santa Ynez Valley. After years of a long distance, bi-coastal romance, Kaitlyn + Chad wanted to celebrate the start of their future together with a fun celebration, filled with meaningful moments + details that were significant to them and their love story. TOAST Santa Barbara knocked it out of the park with the beautiful florals + event design, which perfectly captured the spirit of autumn. Lots of great inspiration for those of you planning a fall wedding – or even looking for some fun details to incorporate into your Thanksgiving tablescape! Here’s a bit more about the day from Kaitlyn:

As a Boston girl living on the West Coast, I wanted a wedding that transported my East Coast sensibilities to the quintessential California setting of the Santa Ynez Valley. Thanks to the incredible generosity of Chad’s uncle, we were able to turn the blank canvas of his historic ranch into a day that simply captured our hearts. We kept things East Coast with gold-plated silverware and it’s best fall colors of red, brown, and yellows; but the bridesmaids wore cowboy boots and the boys kept it California cool in black suits and RayBans.

Thanks so much to Daniel Kiyoi for sharing Kaitlyn + Chad’s beautiful wedding with us today + big congrats to the newlyweds!

---

Such a perfect fall bouquet, right?!

---

And loving these cute photos of the bridal party on their bikes! :)

---

Kaitlyn designed her dress herself + it was made by the bridal atelier, Jinza. Her beautiful headband is from Anthropologie. Majorly adore her look!

---

To reach the ceremony, our guests followed a path covered by oaks, and across a stream into a small clearing where they could mingle over lavender lemonade (lavender being the first flower Chad ever gave me). Chad, his dad, and my dad spent a summer of weekends preparing the property, even building a rustic bridge over the stream. And since we were the first couple to get hitched on the land in living memory, we were able to plan all the details, right down to how the guests moved from one stage of the night to the next, like scenes from a movie. Once up a small hill (and through vintage doors that Chad and our dads built), the guests could finally see the full venue tucked into the gold between the oaks. Not a road or a power line was in sight. The valley was ours.

---

If you are able, we highly recommend sneaking away with your photographer for a few minutes at sundown to capture a few more portraits together. It’s so nice to take a five-minute breather and just enjoy being newlyweds! And as Kaitlyn adds, There was nothing more special or fulfilling than to stand there with my husband and to look out over a valley of friends and the setting sun.

---

Be sure to take a peek at their beautiful wedding video, captured by Long Neck Giraffe Weddings and for those of you on the fence about whether or not to hire a videographer, check out Kailyn + Chad’s advice below…

photography: Daniel Kiyoi // venue: Rancho Nuevo Tinaquiac Santa Maria, California (private property) // event planning, design + florals: TOAST Santa Barbara // wedding dress: (designed by the bride) made by Jinza // hairpieces: Anthropologie // shoes: Steve Madden // bridesmaid dresses: various // hair + makeup: Allure Salon, Cristin Holmsen // groom suit: J.Crew // videography: Long Neck Giraffe Weddings // paper goods: Arboreal Paper // catering: Seasons Catering // cake: Enjoy Cupcakes // music: Gavin Roy, Gavin Roy Presents