Green Wedding Shoes Wedding Blog | Wedding Trends for Stylish + Creative Brides

Visra + Chris live on an amazingly beautiful property in Woodside, CA and wanted to share their love of their home and property with all their family and friends on their wedding day. These are two easy going people with fast paced jobs – he’s the VP of a little site called Facebook and she’s a filmmaker that travels around the world. They wanted a mellow burning man/concert type of celebration where guests camped on the property for 3 days which I completely love! ”Tent city” was made up of numerous tents on the property and guests were welcomed to camp out for the weekend – Visra + Chris even had a special wedding night tent (the gorgeous pink tent above made of pink fabric + wood overlooking a mountain range where they put their bed and spent their wedding night “camping”!). Outdoor sinks with antique mirrors were set up along side the outdoor showers. Vintage rentals were also brought in to complete the homey and woodsy feel.

The most amazing part of the day had to be the triangular dining table. Visra + Chris spent 6 months with artist Drew Bennett designing + building the dining table for their 200+ guests. The idea was to have all the pieces connected so that their family and friends could sit down and share the dinner at one table. Their wedding also had fresh produce + oysters that were brought in for munching, mixologist’s mixed top notch cocktails, and 2 bands and DJ kept the party going into the wee hours of the morning. Visra + Chris truly had the wedding at home that they dreamed of…unlike any other. Big thanks to Jenny Kim Photo for the gorgeous photos + to the ladies of Sitting In A Tree for the wedding planning + design.

Super gorgeous bouquet and custom made dress – such a stunning bride!

Love all the playful photos with the balloons + tent :)

Instead of registering, Visra + Chris asked guests to bring an unwrapped book for their ever expanding collection. Guests shelved the books on a rustic bookshelf.

And the amazing triangular dinner table created by artist Drew Bennett - amazing, right?! I still can’t believe this is their backyard – such a perfect location for a wedding…

Big congrats to Visra + Chris and thanks so much for sharing your personal and truly one-of-a-kind wedding with us today!

vendors:
photographer: Jenny Kim Photo // event design: Drew Bennett + Sitting In A Tree // event planner: Sitting In A Tree // venue: private residence // floral designer: La Fleuriste // wedding dress: custom made // hair stylist: Luxe Image // invitations + paper goods: Bride’s cousin // vintage furniture rentals: One True Love Vintage Rentals // catering: Hog Island Traveling Oyster Bar, Facebook Chef - Josef Desimone // music: Baba Ken Okulolo and Nigerian Brothers; VMC; Househeads

When Kim + Kevin discussed the vision for their wedding, the primary element they aimed for was “fun”. Since they knew the day would fly by and it would be hard to chat with all 200 of their guests, they simply aimed to create an environment where everyone would have fun catching up with each other and it would be a truly unique day. And what could be more perfect, than an old Western Town? Long Branch Saloon & Farms in Half Moon Bay, CA was the perfect setting for their Old West wedding. Cowboy boots, burlap, baby breath, lots of games + a campfire made for a unique, one-of-a-kind wedding. :) Big thanks to Sloan Photographers for the super gorgeous photos!

Tell us a bit about your music
Processional: Ave Maria
Recessional: “Home” – Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes
First Dance: “Stand by Me” – Ben E. King

Most memorable moment of your wedding day?
One of the most memorable moments of the day was the result of a last-minute option proposed by the owner of the site on the day of the wedding. He had recently obtained an old vehicle resembling the car from the Beverly Hillbillies and offered a unique opportunity for a grand entrance during the bridal party announcements. Given the Old West theme of the site and our goal of keeping things fun and light, we went for it. It ended up being a riot, everyone got a kick out of it, and it made for some fun pictures as well!

Any advice for those planning now?
Don’t let any of the stress of spreadsheets, budgets and logistics let you lose sight of the importance of the day and the true reasons you are gathering all of your closest friends and family to witness this milestone and celebrate with you. It may sound cliché, but take it from two people who recently went through the experience – it’s all worth it!

vendors:
photography: Sloan Photographers // venue: Long Branch Saloon & Farms, Half Moon Bay, CA // floral design: Michele with Flora by Fauna // wedding dress: San Patrick – Cambados // hairpieces: Pixel & Hank // shoes: Miss Sixty // bridesmaid dresses: Jcrew.com // hair + makeup: The Makeup Dolls // groom suit: Men’s Wearhouse // invitations+ paper goods: My Big Day Designs // catering: Emergency BBQ (San Carlos, CA) // cake: That Takes the Cake (San Francisco, CA) // music: DJ Maurice Atendido of Bring That Beat Back

Doan + Jason had a wedding weekend starting on Friday with a traditional Buddhist ceremony in Pasadena, followed by an American ceremony in Palm Springs on Saturday. It was important to Doan + Jason that their wedding was a very personal experience to share with their family + friends. They had Jason’s aunt as their wedding officiant and all the rest of their guests also participated in a small part of the ceremony as well. They really wanted everyone to truly feel and be a part of the bond that was being celebrated through their wedding.

They also wanted their wedding to be an actual party and just a fun time with all their closest friends + family! They found the perfect location at the Ace Hotel & Swim Club in Palm Springs (love that place too!!) and served lots of great food, drink + treats! Instead of traditional wedding favors, they provided their guests with a candy bar consisting of all of their favorite Asian snacks to take home. In addition to the standard drinks, they had alcoholic snow cones at the bar. They wanted the wedding to be a special day, but they also wanted it to be a blast for everyone involved and I think you will see it was a huge success! Thanks so much to Heidi of Our Labor of Love for the dreamy photos and congrats to Doan + Jason!

From Doan, Photography was very important to us. You’ll have the photos forever and they’ll be the best way to relive the great memories of the wedding day. Try to also set aside some extra time to take photos in interesting and fun locations [like they did above!]. It’s not too often that most people have the chance to get made up, dress up, and have a professional photograph them. Thus, maximize the experience and enjoy yourself while doing so. We did!

Tell us a bit about your music!

Groom’s Processional: “All I Want is You,” Vitamin String Quartet
Bride’s Processional: “Just Like Heaven,” Vitamin String Quartet
Recessional: “Hoppípolla,” Sigur Rós
First Dance: “Make You Feel My Love,” Adele

Most memorable moment of your wedding day?
The most memorable moment of our wedding was definitely when we exchanged our vows. We wrote our own vows, which we recommend others do as well if possible. It was truly a special moment when we exchanged vows and heard what we had written for one another. It was during this process when the power and mystique of our marriage really began to feel tangible for the first time. We will never forget those moments for the rest of our lives.

Any advice for those planning now?

This may sound really obvious and a given for some people, but one piece of advice we have for others who are currently planning their weddings is to make sure to do things the way you want. Once you let people know you’re getting married, it seems like everyone has an opinion about what your wedding should be like. In the end, though, it’s impossible to satisfy everyone’s expectations and requests. More importantly, your wedding should be about you, your partner, and how you want the celebration to go.

Second, your wedding day is guaranteed to fly by. The experience is amazing, but before you know it, the day is over. Thus, in our opinion, it’s very important to hire a great photographer whose style you like to help you capture all the fun and beautiful moments of your wedding. Hiring a photographer we really liked was one of the best decisions we made. We definitely know that weddings can be expensive and costs seem to sneakily increase without you even noticing. 

vendors:
photography: Heidi of Our Labor of Love // venue: Ace Hotel & Swim Club, Palm Springs // day of coordinator: April Seuss of The Bride and I // floral design: Primary Petals // wedding dress: custom Monique Lhuillier (and it’s for sale) // hairpieces: Twigs & Honey // shoes: Christian Louboutin // hair + makeup: Kelly Zhang // groom suit: Prada // invitations+ paper goods: bride // catering: Ace Hotel // cake: Over the Rainbow Cupcakes // music: James Gonzales

Primary Petals is a featured vendor of Green Wedding Shoes. Check out their vendor profile to see more of their work or discover other GWS recommended vendors for your wedding day in our Vendor Guide.