Tuesday, May 18, 2010

brian and victoria - an nba wedding at trump national golf club

although i did a blog post on this wedding being the first celebrity feature in bride and bloom magazine, i haven't had a chance to blog all the DETAILS! well, here they are!

when kathy and susan of bella weddings asked me to meet with an nba client of theirs, i was excited but of course super nervous...i went to meet brian and victoria at their oceanfront home and was blown away by how sweet and down to earth they were! it was an instant chemistry between designer and client...i live for those moments :)

victoria told me the color turquoise held special meaning for her and that she wanted to combine it with purple for a day that was bright and vibrant (which to me, is SO indicative of her personality)...with the ballroom at trump national golf club being formal and elegant, we wanted to keep with that vibe somewhat but we also wanted to make the day FUN! so i think what we came up with held true to their traditional venue but was also modern, colorful and glamorous at the same time...

bridesmaids bouquets were composed of "picasso" mini cala lilies wrapped in a purple and teal cuff and adorned with a turquoise brooch...




flower girl "purses" of turquoise dupioni silk, a double band of purple and teal satin ribbon and a rhinestone finish...



victoria's bouquet was made entirely of white phalenopsis orchids (my fave) and the stems were wrapped in ivory satin, rhinestone trim and crystal appliques...




here brian is pictured with some of his groomsmen, which included fellow nba players luke walton, kareem rush and richard jefferson...




ring bearer "pillows" were made of all eggplant carnations, tied up with turquoise ribbon...




the ceremony had amazing views of the pacific ocean...




b and v just look so happy here...they're physically glowing!


of course they had a purple specialty cocktail!



placecards were lined up in a 6' tray wrapped in turquoise dupioni silk and a band of eggplant satin ribbon...the tray was then filled with white crushed glass and fuschia phalenopsis orchid blooms...


when i first met with the couple, brian had only 1 rule about the flowers - he didn't want the centerpieces to look like a "brain"...i laughed so hard when he said this and i totally stole that word to describe the "poofball" arrangements normally seen in ballroom weddings...

so i did something i call "flower-blocking"...which is when i group 1 type of flower together in 1 particular area of the arrangement...so i had a group of fuschia roses next to a group of plum tulips...and then eggplant mini cala lilies next to purple mokara orchids, etc...i finished the whole piece with a cascade of fuschia hanging amaranthus and phalenopsis orchids spilling over the side of the vase...

overall there was tons of texture and tons of color but it was asymmetrical and irregular to keep it from looking too tight, perfect and "brain-like" :)



the head table was with glass vases, varying in shape, and filled with 1 type of purple, eggplant or fuschia theme flower...plus turquoise crushed glass and tons of floating candles and votives...




every napkin was wrapped in a band of eggplant satin ribbon and finished with a fuschia orchid bloom...






for the cake we used my tall acrylic base and filled it with hanging turquoise crystals and fuschia + purple "floating" mokara orchid blooms...then we stacked a smaller acrylic base on top and filled it with white crushed glass and fuschia phalenopsis orchids...


all white phalenopsis orchid arrangements lined the mantle...


the couple invested in "intelligent lighting" - which basically changes colors as the evening goes on...so the room started off fuschia, moved into purple and finished the night in turquoise! pretty nifty huh?








victoria surprised brian with a killer groom's cake, shaped like a basketball and covered in the logos of all the nba teams brian has played for, along with his numbers...


all of brian's nba buddies, including luke walton, kareem rush, richard jefferson and jordan farmar...


brian cutting his cake...


and of course the guys promptly smashing it in his face :)


it was an amazing night!


thank you vicki and brian for trusting my design eye and vision for your day...and i am so excited for the new addition to your family! congrats!

also, many thanks to the talented and super fun group of vendors...the pleasure was all mine :)

wedding planning + coordination: kathy and susan, bella weddings and events
photography: jasmine star
lighting: nathan with lighten up inc.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

carissa's 30th birthday party in the desert - la quinta resort


back in january i celebrated my 30th birthday and i knew i wanted to ring in the next decade of my life out in the desert! the weather in january is still nice there and i wanted to be able to spend time with my friends outdoors...

so of course we headed to la quinta resort and spa, one of my favorite places to stay ever! i have been a guest there about 8 times now and i have such amazing memories on that property...whitewashed buildings, orange trees, fuschia bougainvilla, blue skies and gorgeous sunsets behind the mountains...i always compare it to santa barbara but without the beach :)

so i rented their gorgeous "pueblo suite", which had a big back yard, a swimming pool, hot tub, kitchenette, living room, 2 fireplaces and a HUGE master bathroom...i just love the "spanish hacienda" style of the resort and i let that dictate the decor i brought in for the party...i utilized all the existing furniture in the suite and of course designed using tons of succulents, cacti, terra cotta, wrought iron crosses and grapewood branches...







we brought in tons of corona, mexican sodas, white sangria, margaritas, tacos and fajitas...




we filled some low wood dishes with small pieces of grapewood, succulents and candles and floated them in the pool...





gloria mccune's sweet husband even baked me a delicious hazelnut cake!!


one of my favorite things we set up was a "pot your own succulent station"...guests could choose a succulent and give it a home in a terra cotta pot along with some twine and crocheted laces...



it was all set up with a backdrop designed by me and jesi haack using studded wood panels, burlap and some woven lace fabric...we then nailed potted cacti to the panels so that they hung perpendicular to the panels...it was super funky and unique - i loved it :)





a HUGE thank you to la quinta resort and spa for hosting us! BEST.BIRTHDAY.EVER!! you spoiled me rotten and we can't wait to come back...

to jeff almquist of almquist photography - who knew that all those years ago when we met in kindgergarten that we would re-connect 25 years later and you would come to my 30th birthday party? and that you would happen to have your camera?!?! i am SO glad you did and that you were able to capture these memories for me! hugs to you!

and to my dear friends (old and new) who came all the way out to the desert to celebrate with me - thank you for making it SO special! i had such a blast and have officially entered my 30's feeling insanely blessed :)

xoxo,
c

sidenote: mr. haack made an appearance and brought his camera too...the following photos are taken by him...when people started getting a little silly :)

jesi haack and melody from sweet and saucy shop (who brought delicious dulce de leche + mexican chocolate cupcakes that were devoured in 5 minutes)




amanda from in the now weddings, melody, jesi, gloria mccune from grand engagements, allison howell, courtney from joyful weddings and events, jane from olive hue paper


a cute little banner from courtney's "joyful joyful" etsy shop



leila from be inspired pr, jesi, gloria, courtney, melody, me