joanna and brian - marvimon, downtown LA

"great gatsby...white wedding...elegant and romantic...timeless"

these were all key words used when joanna and i met together for the first time...we came up with this idea of an upscale 1930's cocktail party held in someone's private home...we wanted to utilize the venue's existing wood furniture and tables but add in tons of crisp white linens, chairs, lace and florals...

i also wanted to incorporate some vintage elements without it looking too crafty or handmade...we wanted statement pieces that just had a lot of character on their own, because of their age, not necessarily because we made them that way...

for the bouquets and boutonnieres, we wanted to go with something soft but DRAMATIC! so i created the bouquets entirely out of cream toned balsa wood flowers, collared by ivory feathers for the bridesmaids and black feathers for the bride (a la "vera wang"). we wrapped them in gorgeous raw edged laces and the kicker is that they are entirely sustainable and will never die! so the bride was able to keep her bouquet forever :)

for the guys, we did balsa wood boutonnieres with accents of cream or black feathers...elegant, chic but sustainable too! best of both worlds...

the reception was held at marvimon, which of course has a ton of charm and funk, all on its own...

jesi really wanted to do something different for the aisle treatment so she and her husband designed this "runner" made entirely out of reclaimed wood! it was amazing!!!

for the ceremony, we nixed the idea of traditional "altar pieces" and instead i brought in these antique bedside tables which we jazzed up with florals and candles...they flanked the couple during their vows and added a little something while keeping it understated...

how stinking POSH is this bridal party!?!?!? nothing is classier than a black suit or LBD...

i spent months scouring thrift stores, good wills and flea markets and found tons of tarnished silver vessels and cut crystal drinking goblets, which we filled with tailored white florals and green passion vine for added texture...we added in mercury glass candlesticks plus antique filigree mirrors, gravy boats, luggage and serving trays to give it the overall feel that this was someone's home and we just pulled things off shelves to use as decor...

half of the tables were set with a vintage wood drawer that jesi found and we added the floral pieces and candles both inside and outside of the drawer...

OKAY...listen up here people...this was my FAVORITE CAKE DISPLAY EVER...the cake was designed by melody at sweet and saucy shop (duh, who else??!)...it was just so ruffly and feminine but architectural at the same time...and the stark white makes it so classic!

and with that backdrop of the lace and pearls, installed by the FAB jesi haack, it just did not get any prettier!

for the existing wood tables, i added a scallop edge lace runner to bring in some softness...

i LOVE this picture...just pure, unadulterated BLISS..

vendor love...

photography: annie mcelwain - who has quickly become one of my new faves :)

coordination and design: jesi haack weddings

cake: sweet and saucy shop

venue: marvimon

and THANK YOU to 100 layer cake for featuring this wedding on their blog! check out the feature here...