Southern Weddings

Sarah K. Chen sent us what are, quite possibly, some of the most lovely and most unique couple shots we’ve seen in awhile!  Check out the spin action on Jessica’s 1950’s-inspired tea-length frock from Priscilla of Boston.  (Am I sensing a hint of dress envy in the blogosphere?)  Let’s all take a minute to marvel at this dream dress before moving on to the reception photos… sigh.

Tell us about finding your wedding dress: Once I decided that I wanted something vintage-inspired, and tea-length (so I could show off my shoes), the rest was pretty easy. My mom and older sister live in Denver, and it was really important to me that they be a part of the process, so we checked out a few places when I was there visiting. To be honest, I was pretty discouraged at first because there were so few short dresses to choose from. But then we made an appointment at the Priscilla of Boston salon. I had already spent hours drooling over the dresses on their website, and the salon did not disappoint! I told my consultant what I was looking for, and that I wanted to keep it under $1500. I tried on a few dresses from the Vineyard collection and narrowed down to 3 that I liked. Everyone always says that when you put it on you’ll just “know,” but I don’t think that’s always true. There was no “eureka!” moment for me, but that night, while I was trying to fall asleep, my dress was the one that I kept picturing myself getting married in, and it just felt right.
Describe your wedding flowers: Curt is a big fan of succulents, and they were a perfect fit for our venue, so it was a pretty easy decision. We collected and harvested our succulents over the course of about 6 months, and Curt potted most of the arrangements himself (we have a bunch of them around the house now). Originally, we were planning to make all the bouquets as well, but I was pretty nervous about having to pull that off. Thankfully, Jesi stepped in and totally made our vision come to life. My mom and I met her at the flower district in downtown L.A. a few days before the wedding, and we got ALL the flowers for about $200. No joke! Jesi made an all-succulent bouquet for me, and the bridesmaids’ bouquets were kale, baby’s breath, and plum-dyed eucalyptus leaves. It was a little risky but I’m so glad Jesi talked me into it! Everything was amazing. We also got spider mums, dahlias, and a bunch of greenery, and put loose, simple arrangements into all the glassware we had collected. Simple and easy, but absolutely perfect.
Describe your wedding cake: We knew we wanted a more eclectic dessert display, so we collected a bunch of cake stands and had a few friends and family members make their signature treats. I even managed to bake a carrot cake (Curt’s favorite) the day before the wedding. But Melody of Sweet and Saucy made us a seriously show-stopping cake. She designed it to look like a block of wood, and it was so realistic that our guests didn’t believe it was cake! It was delicious, too! If you’re ever in Long Beach, stop by her shop for a buttermilk cake pop! Mmmm…
Were there any wedding traditions or new ideas you included in the wedding? I included “something old/new/borrowed/blue” in my accessories, and we combined traditional vows with the ones we wrote. But most things were very non-traditional: I walked down the aisle to “Here Comes the Sun” (a friend of ours played a beautiful acoustic version on the guitar) and we all danced back up the aisle to MGMT’s “Electric Feel.” We served a BBQ buffet with tri-tip, pulled pork, and mac n’ cheese, and our bar featured locally brewed Hefeweizen and a huge batch of sangria that I had made the day before. Instead of a guest book, we had a “kissing booth” mirror where our guests (even the guys!) but on bright lipstick and left us a kiss and an autograph. And the DIY photo booth, with all the crazy props, was a huge hit!