I just adore everything about this wedding! You can really tell that Briana + Tom’s friends and family care so much about them and loved helping out however they could to help them throw their perfect wedding. Thanks so much to Priscila Valentina for letting me share her gorgeous photos with you guys today!
From Briana, “Most of the inspiration for the day came from my love for succulents and the beauty of the church that we were married in. The church was built in the late 1920s and is in the middle of a very small and quaint neighborhood. The brick walls, stained glass windows, and the giant tree in the courtyard are some of the simple beauties that we highlighted. The bridesmaids dresses mirrored the wine color found throughout the church (in the stained-glass windows, carpet, and church decor). We made almost every decision together.
We both knew we wanted to get married in our church and write our own vows, most of the other decisions took some time to work out. We are both artists and love creating, but we were also tight on time and money. So we came up with the ideas and most of our friends + family offered their talents and time to help make things happen. Although the process of planning was time consuming and difficult at times, our wedding was absolutely amazing, so fun and so full of love.”
Love the girls’ tights!! And of course, boys will be boys…
Love how they did their first look!
I walked down the aisle to a covered and altered live version of the song “hoppipolla” by Sigur Ros, played by Tiger Tank Euphoria.
The most memorable meaningful moment was saying our handwritten vows to each other. The most memorable funny moment was the best man singing “Hold the line” by Toto during his best man speech with a full band (all groomsmen).
We kept it pretty simple, lots of hanging lights, some paper lanterns and some tulle. The centerpieces were different size glass containers with succulents planted inside, which at the end of the night were given away for a small donation to the bride and groom. I had started a succulent garden at my mother-in-law’s house about 3 months before the wedding and asked everyone I knew to donate clippings that I could grow, and by the time we planted them in the centerpieces we had more than enough.
Another inspirational aspect of the wedding was the amount of help and generosity of our family and friends; it was the people who were involved that made our wedding so beautiful. All the music (ceremony and reception) was played live by our friends who are amazing musicians and we had a wonderful jazz session during the reception. My bridesmaids and my husband’s aunt helped me immensely with creating all the floral arrangements and decorations. My maid-of-honor took the reins in decorating our tandem bike which we road off on at the end of the night. The day before the wedding all of our family and bridal party worked an 8 hour day to completely set up the church and reception hall, everything was done from hanging lights, setting up tables and chairs, getting the PA ready, to folding each napkin perfectly. Our friends and family also ran the wedding and reception! We had friends making food, serving food, and at the end of the long day and night it was our family and friends who had to clean up. There is nothing more touching than when the love of others is so obviously and freely given.
Remember that the wedding is about you, the bride and groom, and not about everyone else. Do what you think is best and try to get help when you need it. Involve your friends and family with the planning and let them use their talents to bless you. Weddings can be very expensive, but they don’t have to be, try to be resourceful. Keep things simple and on the day of the wedding enjoy each activity, soak it all in and take lots of mental pictures.
Vendors
Photography: Priscila Valentina // Venue: All Saints Church (Long Beach, CA)
Hair and Makeup: Viktoria Erickson at JN Couture Salon // Shoes: Found at a second hand store.
Hairpieces: The veil was borrowed and the hairpiece was handmade by the bride.
Groom Attire: jacket: h&m; vest: express; undershirt + ascot: umbertos; pants: nordstrom; shoes: bedstu
Floral Design: Bride, Briana Maxson // Invitation: Hailey Sivadge and Groom
Cake: Pastries by Jacquelynn // Music: Tiger Tank Euphoria, and some friends
Catering: Kpasta (Long Beach, CA) // Wedding Dress: Davids Bridal
Love how unique to this couple’s personalities this wedding was. I could really tell their wedding was all about the happy couple with so many of their personal touches. Gorgeous wedding!
Her dress. The tights. Those shoes. The succulents. The first look. THE GROOMSMEN!
All amazing!
Love these photos! The bridesmaids look amazing with their patterned tights and the boys…well (very funny photos). Such a gorgeous bride and I’m totally loving the wedding bicycles I’ve been seeing around lately, too cute! The cakes look sooo yummy as well!
holy. photography. this wedding is beautiful! i love that first ring/succulent shot.
loved the first look concept-might have to steal that…..and the brides shoes of course.
so cute! can you tell me where the gorgeous beaded belt is from?
gorgeous work. looks like fun as well. wonderful photography
OMG I love this from Aubergine shoes to underwear-clad groomsmen to tandem getaway. OMG!
The photography is amazing!! I love the getting ready shots…so captivating!
please tell me someone filmed this wedding!
All that live music with amazing moments…
boys will definitely be boys….but i love how they did their first look too!
Ooh what a FABULOUS wedding!!! Love everything about it. Her dress is gorgeous.
The last shot with the sparklers and bike is just brilliant.
The picture of the boys “having fun” and being “boys” is great!!! Love the idea!!!
Would love to be their friend – awesome pictures!
Wow, what a beautiful bride and an amazing day!
Just breathtaking!
xo
http://www.PlumPrettySugar.blogspot.com
Oh. My. God. I don’t even know where to begin….What an amaaaazing wedding, and what drop-dead-gorgeous photography!
Hands down, the best GWS real wedding yet.
lol so fun :)
I think I just found the hairstyle I want for my wedding… gorgeous!! And gotta love the pics of the guys, they’re hilarious!
What a fun, beautiful wedding!
Joanna…I think that’s a David’s Bridal dress and if that’s the case the belt comes with that dress
why do boys, no matter what age like to pull their pants down?
LOVE!! The color combination and the fun tights! Such a unique addition to add a little flare!
That dress! Oh my heck that dress. I am obsessed with the bride’s attire from the head down. Not to mention the shoes, adorable!
Love the pictures!! Anyone knows what city the photographer works out of?
How fun are these! her dress is amazing!
So creative and different! what a fun couple!
Truly great…love the outdoors feeling and the succulents everywhere…it’s fabulous!
OH MY HECK….the groomsmen with their pants down…I can’t stop laughing! Now THAT is a groomsmen shot I’ve never seen done before……hahahahahahahahaha!
Stacey- Priscila works out of of the OC! :)
What a fun photo shoot!!! I loved the shots of the “boys being boys”, having sword fights and climbing trees- it really made me smile.
PS- I want that bride’s DRESS. The back is so prettyyyy…
This wedding is BEYOND exciting! The colors, the flowers, the people, the images … we’re blown away!
Does anyone have an idea where she got the mini chalk board name tags for the mason jars? Thanks!
xoxo
Natalee
What a hilarious groomsmen picture! love the desserts, too! :)
WOW!!! I love those amazing shoes our bride is wearing, love the tights on the bridesmaids and love the use of succulents. What an awesome wedding.
That ring is gorgeous! how can I get one of those :)
Wow thanks for all the comments everyone! And all the facebook likes!! :) Love you Jen!
Love the bouquets and ADORE that first look!! One of my favorite weddings I’ve seen…
Bouquets are BEAUTIFUL!!! Great photos
Ohhh! Gorgeous photos… and so funny!! a fabulous wedding like in dreams :)
This wedding is super fun. Love that they really thought about their personalities for it. The bouquets are gorgeous also!!
Love all the succulents in this wedding!!
Love the flowers and the invites! Not sure how to get in touch with the artist?
I live near that church. Absolutely beautiful venue.
I adore your dress and that fact that you walked down the isle to Sigur Rós… Just beautiful! Congratulations!
I love the tights of the bridesmaids! And how the boys are just themselves. The couple’s personality totally shone through. Love it!