Jonathan, a photographer and avid surfer, was living on Nantucket Island in Massachusetts. Wanting to catch some west coast waves, Jonathan planned a surf trip out to California.
That’s where he met Avalon.
“Soon enough, Avalon fell in love with Jonathan who was smitten the moment he saw her,” says friend and fellow photographer Rebecca Love. When the couple started planning their wedding, a beachy celebration in the backyard of Avalon’s parents’ Newport Beach, CA home sounded like a dream come true. Avalon orchestrated every detail of the day, and the end result was a funky, colorful house party full of love.
“It was the most beautiful wedding for the sweetest couple,” Rebecca says. When Rebecca got married, Jonathan was the one who photographed the event, and in a full-circle moment, Rebecca got to photograph Jonathan + Avalon’s big day!! She shot a mix of digital and film photos of this stunning sea-side wedding, and they all turned out AMAZING. Let’s get into it!
How great are these simple white-and-navy invites!! Loving the hand-drawn details.
Bride Avalon was behind the day’s bright and bold florals. We spy some magenta cock’s comb and some pink gerbera daisies!
The Ceremony
Our Musical Choices Processional: "Crazy Feeling" by Lou Reed
Recessional: "All Your’n" by Tyler Childers
First Dance: "Something About Your Love" by Mason Jennings
We are OBSESSED with Jonathan’s Indigo Flower Shirt from Harago!! “Avalon said, ‘You’re not allowed to wear a tie!'” Jonathan remembers. “She also had this idea of wanting me to have flowers on my shirt. I said, “Perfect, I hate ties!'”
Our Favorite Memory From The Wedding Firstly, our officiant, our dear friend Kameron, forgot to do the exchange of our rings during the ceremony. He launched into “you may seal the deal with a kiss” before we did the ring thing and Jonny was like “wait, what about the rings?!” Everyone just started busting up laughing
Second, we ran out of tequila!!! Jonny’s groomsman took an Uber to the nearest liquor store and came back with more after a quick drunken photo shoot in the liquor store parking lot with bottles and bottles of tequila.
Lastly, the cops got called! Not once, and not twice, but three times! The house party vibe we were going for really rang true here!
Avalon’s beautiful beachy waves are the work of McKenzie Penhall, and her fresh makeup look was done by Megan Dolores.
Love the idea of tying the knot in your own backyard? Check out our tips and ideas for a dreamy backyard wedding!
We love these bold pink bridesmaids!! Take a look at our fave places to buy bridesmaid dresses if you’re on the hunt for your own iconic bridal party look.
Avalon + Jonathan absolutely nailed a casual chic vibe for their wedding day looks. Black jeans are such a great way to do groom fashion if formal’s not the feeling you’re going for. Check out this slim fit pair from Rolla’s.
“I was never the girl to envision what I wanted to wear for my wedding,” says Avalon. “When the time rolled around to get one, in my head I was like, ‘Okay, I love thrifting and finding things for a deal. I’ll start with that!'” But thrifting didn’t yield the right dress. And neither did a totally unforgettable trip to Saks OFF 5TH with her best friends where she tried on absolutely everything and sipped champagne they’d snuck into the fitting rooms.
“So one day my mom and I met up at Bloomingdale’s, and we split up and pulled every white dress we could find and met back at the dressing room,” Avalon says. She tried on a few before getting to the Janet Gown by Amanda Uprichard, one she had originally pulled and PUT BACK on the rack. Her mom insisted she try it on. “That was the one!” she says. “It was on super sale which made the pick that much sweeter!!! My mom’s face said it all as I looked at her in the mirror in the dressing room.” We are in love with the dreamy, drapey open back and the high slit.
Avalon’s ball heel strappy ankle wrap sandals are from Cult Gaia.
It isn’t available at Bloomie’s anymore, but you can still find this dress at Revolve!
Avalon’s a silversmith and jewelry designer (Jewelry By Avalon), so it’s no surprise that she and Jonathan went for these super-unique rings by Spinelli Kilcollin.
The Reception
“We wanted a house party vibe with all of the people that we love,” the couple says. “It was important to us both to throw in an intentional touch of Mexico as Avalon lived there for a while working on jewelry and Jonny enjoys surfing, photographing, and drinking tequila there!”
This second look is ICONIC!! Recreate it with some high rise white jeans and this metallic silver top!! OR take a peek at our fave reception looks for any style!
Our Advice To Those Planning Now 1) Keep it fucking simple!
2) Don’t stress … everything will be perfect and you’ll be the only one to notice if something doesn’t go right! But it will.
3) Stop and soak it all in!
Congrats, Avalon + Jonathan on adding this bold + bright backyard wedding to your beautiful, beachy love story!! All the best from GWS!
photography: Rebecca Love Photography // venue name: Backyard, Newport Beach, CA, USA // event design: Bride // planning: Bride // florals: Bride // wedding dress: Amanda Uprichard - "Janet" gown // wedding dress boutique: Bloomingdales // bride's shoes: Cult Gaia // bride's ring: Spinelli Kilcollin // hair stylist: McKenzie Penhall // makeup artist: Megan Dolores // groom attire: Harago // groom's ring: Spinelli Kilcollin // catering: Soho taco // cake: Alyssa Phung // music: Alex Lemire Pasternak // officiant: Kameron Brown
