Real Wedding: Vanessa + Chris’ Vintage Spanish Wedding

I think you guys are just going to adore this sweet wedding sent to me from Studio Castillero. Vanessa also sent over lots of fun details into their day. Thanks Vanessa!

The theme for our wedding was a vintage Spanish Summer theme. We wanted to create an atmosphere that was reflective of us and show our guests how much they mean to us. This meant incorporating romantic, meaningful, traditional and non-traditional elements into the wedding, but at the same time we wanted to overflow with fun and good times! Finding a venue that fit our Spanish theme was easy when we walked onto the beautiful grounds of Portola Inn. This Spanish villa is such a hidden jewel since it’s not widely publicized and it feels like you’re in the hills of Tuscany instead of California!

spanish wedding invitation

I am mostly Spanish and Mexican, and had the privilege of studying abroad in Spain which is where I fell in love with the culture! My main source of inspiration for the wedding were these old posters and postcards from the annual Spring festival in Sevilla, Spain. I actually trucked these posters and postcards in-hand all the way back home to California because they were so beautiful, and have had them hanging in my room for years! The Spanish Summer theme carried into everything, including our invitation design (beach cruisers included!), table number cards, ceremony programs and even into the food like sangria, ceviche and tapas.

ranunculus wedding flowers

bridal party

outdoor california wedding

Most memorable moment of your day? When you’re marrying an amazing man that you love in front of all of your loved ones, it is hard to say which moment is most memorable! I loved seeing Chris standing and waiting for me to come down the aisle. At that moment when I saw him I began crying because there were so many amazing emotions synergistically happening at once: the excitement that the day had finally come, seeing my husband cry when he saw me, anticipating our ceremony, walking with my dad and being surrounded by friends and family that we love! It was a moment that I wouldn’t trade for anything and I’m so glad we waited to see each other until that moment! I also got to relive that at the end of the night since Cana Video Production actually showed a 5-minute preview to all of our guests at the end of our wedding, which was a special treat!

outdoor wedding ceremony

outdoor wedding ceremony

outdoor california wedding

With a tight budget in mind and creativity at our heels, we set our priorities and cut corners where we could. This turned out to be a blast since we were challenged to be creative, enjoyed tweaking “the usual” wedding traditions to make it more personal and did things entirely DIY-style! I love doing crafts and thinking-outside-the-box but rarely get the chance so this was my time to have some fun! I had a blast going to thrift stores, antique shops and garage sales with friends over our engagement to hunt for perfect, cheap items for the wedding like glassware, vintage books and even an old candelabra. I scored most of the vintage lace used on the tables for $10 at a garage sale, including the lace valence that we made into our “Just Married” sign using burlap flags that we cut out and black paint.

wedding quilt

Since I’m Mexican, we had to have some of the Mexican wedding staples: a mariachi band, mexican beer, horchata and of course, the traditional dollar dance where you try to make the bride and groom look as ridiculous as possible with dollar bills. A small price to pay I’d say!

mexican wedding horcata

wedding portrait

We handmade mostly everything – the road sign, photo booth, seating chart, “Just Married” sign, centerpieces, table signs, red paper poms that hung in the trees, and favors to name a few! I knew that I wanted to use cute paper doilies to write guest names on for the seating chart. My friend and I spray painted each doily and then pinned them to a foam board covered with lace that was in a vintage, brown frame. Instead of doing the usual sign-in book or picture frame we decided to capitalize on one of my life goals of making a quilt and opted to have everyone write their well-wishes on it, which I’m excited to read soon while snuggled up with my hubsky!

lace wedding place cards

love banner wedding

outdoor wedding reception

Chris and I strongly believe that dessert is the best part of any meal and we have had our share of not-so-appetizing wedding cake so we wanted to make a big, drool-worthy dessert table! A few of our fabulous friends made 10 of our favorite desserts and we made cute signs to recognize each of them and their homemade treat! The dessert table had gelato, flourless chocolate cake, funfetti cake, local apple and ollaliberry pies, churros, chocolate-dipped strawberries, puppy chow, red velvet cupcakes and strawberry cake. It was so fun to see our friends get excited about making and decorating the desserts, which we were blown away by because they turned out amazing!

wedding churros

Our cake was generously handmade by my aunt, decorated with Spanish tile designs and topped with 2 beach cruiser ornaments since we LOVE riding our bikes!

wedding photography california

Thanks so much Vanessa + Chris for sharing your beautiful day with us! We wish you all the best! And thanks to Studio Castillero for sharing your photographs. Studio Castillero is based in San Diego and available for travel worldwide.

Photography: Studio Castillero
Videography: Cana Video Production – Be sure to check out their video here!
Venue: Portola Inn, Atascadero, CA
Florist: April Flowers
Wedding Dress: Casablanca
Shoes: Frye
Groom’s Suit: Michael Kors
Cocktail Hour Music: Mariachi Mexicanisimo
DJ: Our friends, Ish Abdullah and Mike Burns
Invitations: Paper Sky
Hair and MakeUp: Melissa Dyke and Maggie Manley

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