Happy Monday everyone. I hope everyone had a great weekend. I have a gorgeous wedding to share with you all today. The wedding takes place at the stunning Orella Ranch in Santa Barbara – the views here are amazing! Eileen + Ian wanted a fun wedding that captured both their love for outdoors and a unique venue and I think we can all agree they succeeded! I’ll let Eileen talk a bit more about their day :)
Because Ian was happy (too happy) to leave the wedding planning to me, it was important to me that he was still fully-represented in the flavor of the day. Since he is an avid backpacker, backcountry skier, mountain biker (you get the picture) and I am a fervent world traveler (with insatiable wanderlust), I thought that venue-wise, the rustic and wildly beautiful oceanfront ranch would capture his love of the outdoors and my love of unique and unparalleled moments. The venue then influenced all of the other decisions. It was also very important to me that when my guests would later think or talk about the wedding, their first thought would be “fun!” so I wanted my guests to be comfortable and have creative touches to enhance their experience (watermelon mojitos in jars with paper straws, the blue grass band and a dj for dancing later, stuffed cupcakes, fun late night pizzas, etc.). It is a party, after all!
Most memorable moment of your wedding day? Well I have two: (1) my husband-to-be peaking around the guests trying to see me as i walked up the aisle – meeting his eyes that first time was the best feeling i’ve ever had; and (2) (my husband will kill me for this) bumping into Kobe Bryant when we got back to our hotel (after all, the lakers are my second family). I tell people, it was like the universe asked itself: “what else can we give eileen to make this her absolute best day ever? We have already given her a perfect wedding, family, friends, and two rainbows.” The answer of course was Kobe. :)
Any advice for those planning now? It was very important to me that i had vendors that i felt i could rely on completely and who understood what i wanted (and gave me the freedom to be creative too). By the time the wedding rolled around, i was not at all worried about anything vendor related – i trusted them completley, and in return, all of them gave me more than i could ever have dreamed of. You should be able to enjoy your wedding and i would recommend hiring folks who make that their prerogative.
I would say that even if you feel that you are not a creative diy person (it certainly is not my strong suit), if you spend some time figuring out what you like and talk to friends, you will definitely find ways to contribute and make the wedding even more of your own: my husband built furniture and he and his father made the signs; I made or coordinated a lot of elements that the vendors ultimately put together (the escort cards, drinks, etc.); I burned music cds as favors (every one of the cds was different) while my friend who has a baking buisness made fresh cookies and assembled the favors; another friend made (unbelievably delicious) beer and then made signs that described each of the beers offered (even the ones he did not make).
Vendors:
Getting Ready Venue: Bacara Resort
Wedding Dress: Monique Lhullier
Hair: Mikell at Salon Patrece Encino, Make-Up: Bacara Spa
Venue: Orella Ranch
Catering: Pure Joy Catering
Cake/Cupcakes: Enjoy Cupcakes
Florist/Event Design: GD Design
Invitations: heatherjeany from etsy.com
Bluegrass Band: Chris Carins Band (from AMS Entertainment)
DJ: Morgan William (from AMS Entertainment)
Photography: Jackie Wonders
Jackie Wonders is based in San Diego and available for travel worldwide. Thanks Jackie for letting me share your lovely photos and big congrats to Eileen + Ian!
What a lovely wedding. I love the simple and rustic decorations!
Lovely! Where are her shoes from?
What a beautiful wedding, love all the lovely little details. The green and white striped straws? Adorable!
Adore this wedding – especially the mason jar vases on the tree limb, very unique!
So beautiful! I love the invitations by Heather. So perfect for the location!
Love the bouquet and those hanging mason jars! So adorable!
love the hanging mason jars! and jackie did an amazing job!
I’m in love with those straws but can not find them anywhere! Any hints? Stunning wedding!
Hi Kathleen!
Yes! You can find the fun striped paper straws at Urbanic In Venice CA. http://urbanicdesigns.com/ If you don’t live in LA, Audrey will ship them to you, just send her an email at hello {at) urbanicpaper [dot] com. They come in red, blue, gray and green :)
What a lovely ceremony site! And well thought out details, and a beautiful couple. Congrats to them! Now I’m off to Google watermelon mojitos…
I would love to know where the bride got her shoes? Gorgeous wedding!!
Thanks Jen for showing Ian & Eileen’s awesome wedding day! I loved being a part of it…thank you!!!
In LOVE with this wedding design! How absolutely gorgeous! The very organic wooden box centerpieces are unbelievable. Such a simple, yet intricate design option. The use of mason jars is always a must-do for outdoor / garden weddings. And using them as hanging vases with sweet ribbon on branches is brilliant! One of the best outdoor wedding designs I’ve seen in awhile. I’m in love. :) Oh, and the large lavender in burlap along the aisle is another great idea. So creative!
Thank you so much for sharing.
-Savannah
http://www.thefrenchbouquettulsa.com/blog
The French Bouquet
A-freakin-mazing! i Love everything about this weddings. The setting is amazing and the decor is so unique! and everything looks great with ball jars?! And i am loving succulents right now.
Where are the shoes from?? I need to know!
gah. now i want a watermelon mojito reaaal bad. that bouquet? sheer amazement.
One last question for this gorgeous wedding. I’ve been trying to find mason jars everywhere! What size did you use and wear did you purchase them? Thanks so so so much for the info on the straws! :)
I was asked to pass along the shoe details: they are ballet flats by Restricted. (I’m kind of embarrassed to say…) They were actually very cheap and on sale. Just do a search online (you’ll find them at endless, amazon, etc.). Super comfortable too. Hid the dirt well (my toes on the other hand…).
The jars are pint size, wide mouth.
I’m dying to know where the shoes are from… Beautiful wedding!
These photos are gorgeous. I love the romantic feel, it’s like Gone with the Wind or something!
Hi Eileen –
So i know you said where you got the shoes, but i have a question… were they plum or are those a different shade of purple then what i can see on the websites?
http://www.endless.com
and are they true to size? or do they run big/small?
thanks
Sharon
Hi Eileen! We are looking for a blue grass band/dj in santa barbara for our wedding and I was wondering if you would recommend the people you worked with? if you prefer to email me: [email protected], i would appreciate it tons! thanks!