Eclectic Palm Springs Wedding: Danielle + Seth

Anthropologie floral dresses

Danielle + Seth decided very early on in their wedding planning that they wanted to get their families + friends together for more than just one night. Seth’s family lives in Georgia, and they knew their wedding would be a rare (or the only) opportunity for everyone to be together in the same place at the same time. Once they found their venue, the beautiful Casa Cody Historic Inn in Palm Springs, their plans for a relaxing + fun wedding weekend began to fall into place. They loved that the lush outdoor space allowed them to keep decor to a minimum. And most of what was included was DIY. Their friends actually threw them a DIY party the weekend before the wedding and they finished most of their projects then! What a fun idea :) Here’s more about their wedding style from Danielle:

Seth and I didn’t exactly have a “theme” for our wedding. Our goal was to make the day feel like our home: vibrant, cozy, and eclectic, with a mix of styles, eras and colors. Most of the decor and DIY projects were done out of simply wanting something to look a certain way and not paying too much attention to making everything match. Our main focus was on making sure everyone had a great time, and that our wedding wasn’t just an evening, but an entire weekend experience.

Big thanks to Logan Cole for the gorgeous photos and to Carina of Tealight Weddings and Events for the fun event design. And, of course, congrats + best wishes to the newlyweds!

Sarah Seven wedding dress

colorful heels

illustrated floral invitation

cathedral veil

Sarah Seven wedding dress

Sarah Seven wedding dress

palm springs first look

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Danielle on her beautiful blush dress, Dress shopping was harder than I thought it would be. I had always envisioned myself in a vintage dress, something unique and one-of-a-kind. But after trying on a hundred vintage dresses nothing felt right, and nothing seemed truly “me.” I also didn’t want to miss out the bridal salon experience, so I made a couple appointments and started my foray into modern dresses. I had seen the Sarah Seven Blushing dress online, and went to the only salon in LA that carries that designer. The first trip I went alone; I am confident in my own style and didn’t want my friends’ or family members’ opinions influencing me before I even got a chance to decide for myself. I had narrowed it down to 3 dress (all by Sarah Seven), and the salon took pictures of me on my phone so I could think about it (how awesome is that!?). When I came back with my family, as soon as I pulled the Blushing dress on, before it was even zipped, I couldn’t stop smiling. Funnily enough, my family were very skeptical of a pink dress at first, but I was so smitten with it that no other dress could have been an option. My mom found a belt in the salon by a different designer but that matched the dress perfectly, and that’s what I wore on my wedding day.

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

red lip bride

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

pattern ties

Anthropologie floral dresses

colorful heels

We’re so in love with the floral Peter Som for Anthropologie dresses the bridesmaids wore! And their bright, fun shoes only made things even better!

Anthropologie floral dresses

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

Eclectic Palm Springs wedding

ice cream sandwiches

By now you know we’re totally crushing on the apparel from this wedding, but the handmade reception is just a good! Shop Danielle + Seth’s eclectic wedding look below, then be sure to finish out the post and see their fun reception details, too:

ceremony program fan

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

Anthropologie floral dresses

Our Musical Choices

Processional: Bridal Party: Peaceful, Easy Feeling – The Eagles; Bride: Don't Worry Baby – The Beach Boys

Recessional: Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours) – Stevie Wonder

First Dance: Guilty – Al Bowlly

Casa Cody Historic Inn wedding

reception programs

Eclectic Palm Springs

reception programs

From Carina of Tealight Weddings and Events, For dinner, we utilized a large grassy courtyard to set one long table for all 80 guests and adorned it with a hand-printed runner and taper candle-holders crafted by Seth and Danielle. The simple, yet perfect florals by My Little Flower Shop were the perfect finishing touch.

eclectic table number

praying mantis

praying mantis

first dance

Our Favorite Memory From The Wedding

Danielle: I was surprised that my favorite moment was our first dance. I thought for sure it would be walking down the aisle or privately toasting our new marriage right after the ceremony (both great BTW), but it was hands down the First Dance. We were kind of lazy leading up to the wedding and initially planned on just getting up there and basically swaying for 2 minutes. But as the day drew closer both of us were getting nervous about how long 2 minutes feels when 80 pairs of eyes are watching you. So we hired Helene from I Do Wedding Dances; she came to our place two weeks before our wedding day to teach us a dance choreographed to our song. We only practiced maybe 3 more times beforehand, so on the morning of the wedding we woke up before everyone else to rehearse the dance in the reception space. And for the life of us, we could not get it right. And when Seth's aunt peeked out with a camera we decided to just wing it later that night...After everything else that day, getting ready, the first look, portraits, more portraits, touch ups, the ceremony....walking to the dance floor when our song started to play was the easiest thing of all. All of the earlier stress was gone, everyone was having a good time, and I was just so happy to be dancing with my husband that we nailed the dance! I was smiling and laughing so much throughout that my cheeks were hurting by final dip. Also, jumping into the pool at the end of the night was pretty awesome - it was the perfect culmination of the months and months we spent preparing for the wedding.

Seth: I enjoyed picking the cactus pieces out of Danielle's veil when we were out in the desert taking pictures. I don't know if it was my favorite moment, but it was certainly a personal and memorable one.

reception band

long tables

wedding party jumping in pool

Our Advice To Those Planning Now

We were engaged for a year and a half, which took a great deal of stress and rush out of the planning process. There were, of course, still some tear-filled moments of contemplating elopement, but overall spreading out the tasks made it a lot more manageable with everything else life throws at you. Finding a great venue, was probably the most difficult part of our vendor search, but so many other decisions were made easier once that was locked down. And once we had our venue and date we booked Logan, our photographer. I cannot stress enough how grateful you will be for having the photographer you want - so book them early!

But most of all, my best advice for couples is to make the day your own. There were so many times that I'd get swept up looking at wedding blogs and Pinterest and wondering why we hadn't planned some kind of cocktail hour entertainment or arranged for an elaborate candy table. Seth was so wonderful in helping me focus on what was truly important to us and what we felt represented our style and our tastes the best. Because when the big day finally arrives, nothing else matters except you having the time of your life - and you will! - and that's the best part: going through the day with nothing but love on your mind, and knowing that this day is all about celebrating the two of you.

photography: Logan Cole // venue name: Casa Cody Historic Inn, Palm Springs, California // event design: Carina McLaughlin of Tealight Weddings and Events // planning: Carina McLaughlin of Tealight Weddings and Events // florals: My Little Flower Shop // hair stylist: Nathan Rickel // makeup artist: Miranda Luna // catering: Cafe on location // music: The Downtown Train // bride's dress: Sarah Seven - purchased at Lovely Bride // bridesmaid's dresses: Peter Som for Anthropologie // invitations: Lindsey Pemberton of Llore Pemberton

Explore: