The weather is always a gamble when you plan an outdoor wedding, but the odds are generally in your favor when you’re venue is in Southern California. However, there are those rare days when a downpour hits—and doesn’t let up for 24 hours. A rainy wedding certainly wasn’t part of the plan for Shawn + Deanna, but they made it work. Here’s the story from Deanna:
Shawn and I started out planning our wedding the way most Southern California couples do: dreaming of a sunny, springtime outdoor wedding. The morning of our wedding arrived and my 6 am wake up call had me staring out across wine country, flooded with drizzle and dense fog. We pitched a big tent over the ceremony site and across the dining area, laid rugs down in the barn, and loaded up on clear umbrellas. Needless to say, many of our meticulously planned details were quite literally lost in the fog. Our hand-watercolored escort cards got damp and droopy; the welcome beverage doused by pouring rain; our insane tablescape only seen by the fraction of our guests brave enough to sit on wet seats and eat soggy chips.
Nevertheless, we all persisted. This foggy, soggy day turned out the be the best day of our lives. Not one person in our party of 125 let the rain ruin the love! We danced under stars obscured by dense fog, holding each other for warmth and rain cover. We lit sparklers that lasted only a few moments and ruined endless pairs of shoes in the name of having a truly amazing, freeing night—incredibly magical and one-of-a-kind, filled with moments and memories we will never, ever forget.
We think the old fear of “rain on your wedding day” is one we should all let go of forever—the persistent love between S+D and these photos from By Amy Lynn are bound to convince you, too!
The day took place at one of our favorite boho spots, Wolf Feather Honey Farm. Deanna called on her brother to design the invitation suite!
The Bride + Groom
Seriously so sweet!!
Deanna wore a lace gown by Made with Love and from Love & Lace Bridal Salon.
Love love love the colors in her bouquet!
The Wedding Party
Pro tip: Order these cute clear umbrellas if rain is in the forecast! The gals wore a color palette of peach + rust dresses from ASOS and Lulus.
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…with the most rad denim jackets hand-painted by the maid of honor’s mother!
Are you not yet convinced that rainy days make for the BEST photos?!
The Rainy Wedding Ceremony
Moody perfection!!
Processional: Bridal Party: Follow the Sun by Xavier Rudd | Bride: Love On Top by Mat & Lydia
Recessional: You Make My Dreams Come True by Hall & Oates
First Dance: When I Get My Hands On You by New Basement Tapes
Film for the win!
Obsessed! Just look at their faces!
Try to enjoy every moment of planning! You only do this once so it should be joyful, not stressful, and authentically YOU! We felt pretty strongly about having a long engagement so that we had enough time to enjoy the process and not compromise on the details. We learned a lot, crafted a lot, and really thought everything through. This helped with controlling our budget as well, since we didn't have to settle or rush any decisions. No matter how much you plan, the last month or so becomes pretty hectic. And no matter how meticulous your planning, the day-of just might turn out unlike anything you could have imagined!
The Reception
From the get go, we were set on playing by our own rules. I am an interior designer by trade, so took this as an opportunity to really flex my creative muscles! I rummaged flea markets for decor and alleyways for furniture to recover, watercolored the escort cards, and did all my own calligraphy! Shawn is pretty handy himself so he took on the challenge of building us a chuppah, dip-dying our table runners, and frequenting Craigslist.
Our first dance! Our whole schedule was thrown off because of the crazy weather. The caterer wasn't ready and the rain had died down a bit, so our DJ suggested we have our first dance earlier than planned. We were pretty adamant about dancing outside under the stars and the twinkle lights...but as soon as we walked outside and the music started, so did the rain! We had an umbrella but at one point, Shawn threw it to the side and we just got soaked—it was pretty magical. I wouldn't have changed that moment for anything.
And at the end of it all, they did what they came to do: get married!! Congrats to S+D and wishing you more unexpected + amazing adventures in the future!
photography: By Amy Lynn // venue name: Wolf Feather Honey Farm, Temecula, California, USA // event design: the Bride // planning: the Bride // florals: Nelly Gavrilov // wedding dress: Made with Love // wedding dress boutique: Love & Lace Bridal Salon // bridesmaid dresses: ASOS and Lulus // hair stylist: San Diego Bridal Stylist // makeup artist: Make Me Blush // videography: Jake Galasso // paper goods: Designed by my brother and printed by local letterpress company Gold Image Printing // handmade details: Bride // catering: Pink Taquiza // cake: Rosebud Cakes // furniture rentals: Bride + Wolf Feather honey farm // music: Jeremy Hersch // photo booth: Indybooth // bride + bridesmaid jackets: Hand painted by Elin Katz (MOH's mom)
Gorgeous wedding guys !
The bouquet is probably the most Bohemian bouquet I have ever seen! Love every bit of this wedding ! What a great wedding team who worked on this.
The rain at the end only added to the collective of beautiful photos / memories :)
Where are her bridesmaids rompers from?!
Gorgeous! Fully expecting rain on my wedding day. Where did you get those umbrellas! Having a hard time finding the shape I love, and these are perfect…