Real Wedding {Ashley & Dave}: Vintage Estates, Yountville, CA

As a wedding planner, I get to work with some of the most amazing people, creative vendors and at some of the most beautiful places, and when all three elements align for one wedding, that's when wedding magic really happens. That magic I'm referring to is exactly the magic that this enchanting wedding at Vintage Estates in Napa's wine country was made of.

It's apparent that this couple is just absolutely gorgeous. It's also apparent how in love this couple is, but it's very rare to find a couple who's inner beauty rivals their external beauty which shines so brightly in Ashley and Dave. Dave is grounded, genuine and adores Ashley. He truly cared about all the details that went into planning the wedding and provided great value and support during the entire process. Most of all, you could tell how important it was for him that Ashley was happy. Ashley, by far, one of my favorite brides of all time, really is the girl that everyone wants to be best friends with. She's self-deprecating, calm, happy, has great sense of style and really truly makes you feel like you are part of her family. As a couple, they were an absolute dream to work with. After meeting them, you know that their upbringing obviously is a big part of who they are and how they became the incredible people they are. Upon meeting Ashley's parents, I knew instantly where she got her loving, caring and grounded personality, values and physical beauty from.

With that said, this wedding was not themed by an era, a style or a trend, it was much more than that, it was themed by Ashley's Italian heritage and family values that she was brought up with. It was about who she was, who her parents are and what she and Dave were building together - family, style, sophistication, class and overall, a beautiful life.

My favorite quote of the evening came from Ashley's father's welcome speech just before the start of dinner when he said, "When Dave came to ask my permission to marry Ashley, I told him, "I might as well knight you now" since he wanted to take my princess away." It was truly a special moment for any wedding.

The color palette for this affair was white, kiwi green and cobalt blue, but most importantly, the symbolic icon of the wedding was the olive branch. To put the theme in motion, an impressive cocktail hour display was created using imported olive oil in custom bottles with custom labels and tags that acted as escort cards and guest favors nestled in rustic wooden crates. Also, the over sized white dinner chargers on the tablescapes had an olive tree branch impressed on the top which added a beautiful touch.

The event design was all about simplicity, clean lines, perfectly manicured floral treatments and personal touches. Classic Party Rentals did an amazing job with providing beautiful white modern furniture in the form of chaise lounges, couches and ottomans that really made all the floral treatments designed in a spectrum of green and ivory stand out. We also loved the pop of cobalt blue that was provided in the wedding party's attire.

One of my favorite elements in the wedding was the Historic Barrel Room for the dancing reception. Over 400 votive candles were used to create an amazingly romantic glow throughout the brick room and the outdoor lawn that we transformed into a cigar lounge equipped with an espresso bar, cigar bar, cordials bar, photo booth and picture screening slideshow of the couple.

In the end, the bride's mother said it best, "All this is just fluff, it's beautiful fluff, but nothing compares to the beautiful smile on my daughter's face when she walked down the aisle."

As I said before, it was pure wedding magic.

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Kurpinsky!

Vendor Credits:
Wedding Planning: Simone Lennon, Soiree by Simone
Photography: Enluce Photography
Videography: Alex Keyes, Thomas Hughes Films
Floral Design: Karen Baba, Plan Decor
Ceremony Venue: Mt. La Salle Church, Napa
Reception Venue: Vintage Estates at Villagio Inn & Spa, Yountville
Catering: Villagio Inn & Spa
Reception Music: Denon & Doyle
Cocktail Reception Music: Garden String Quartet
Rentals & Linens: Classic Party Rentals
Cake: Forget Me Nots Bakery
Chocolate Fountain: The Chocolate Curtain

Real Wedding {Erin & Brian}: Winters, CA

Erin and Brian planned a country backyard affair for their summer nuptials in Winters, CA this past June. It was over a 100 degrees that day but you couldn't tell for one second that it bothered this couple who were so excited their day had finally come.

The site was Brian's parents' house where the couple had spent nearly an entire year building and creating details from scratch to support their Southern inspired wedding. Brian and his family hand built a stage which was covered in burlap and hung glass luminaries.  Erin created perfect Forget-Me-Nots favor bags as guest favors, cute little signage for every place on the site and made sure all disposables were made of eco-friendly materials.

For the ceremony, my team handmade mason jar vessels with lavender details that hung from wrought iron shepherds hooks to help frame in the space. Their guests sat on hay bales covered in cream colored canvas and held match parasols as they watched the couple exchange tears, laughter and "I dos".

After a catered buffet dinner of Southern specialties such as Jambalaya, fried artichokes and Cajun crab cakes, the couple and their guests danced the night away to a local swing/jazz band.

Congrats Mr. & Mrs. Button!

 

Vendor Credits:

Wedding Planning: Soiree by Simone Lennon

Photography: Jay C. Winters 

Venue: Private Home

Bride's Dress: Jim Hjelm

Bride's Shoes: Kate Spade

Florals: The Bride & her Mom

Bridesmaids Dresses: J. Crew

Catering: Checkers Catering

Music: Campbell's Soup Jazz Band

Grapefruit & Mint Mojito - A Summer Time Cocktail Obesession

If there are two things in this world I love dearly, it's a great cocktail and Martha Stewart. When the two join forces, I'm not sure what to do with myself - like right now.

Martha released her favorite 31 specialty cocktails yesterday via her online wedding site and of course I immediately read every single recipe. Cocktails are such an important part of wedding and event celebrations and selecting the right signature cocktail is so important to the overall theme of your big day. It might sound surprising, but I have had status calls with brides and grooms to talk about one thing, the SIGNATURE COCKTAIL. So, when Martha puts together a list of her favs, you know they are not only delicious, but are gorgeous. If you know me, I love anything that is delicious wrapped up in beautiful.

Since I'm throwing a pink themed bridal shower for one of my best college girlfriends next month, I've been on the search for a refreshing pretty pink cocktail that packs a punch. Thanks to Martha, I have found it - a Grapefruit-Mint Mojito. YUM. Give a whirl, I have included the recipe below.

To view Martha's top 31 favorite signature cocktails, go here. Cheers and enjoy!

Grapefruit Mint Mojito

Grapefruit-Mint Mojito
A simple mint syrup takes the place of crushed leaves in this grapefruit-mint mojito. Be sure to add fresh sprigs on top for a dash of color and heady aroma. Tall, slender glasses and long stirring sticks impart a modern elegance.

INGREDIENTS (makes 4 servings):
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup packed fresh mint leaves, plus sprigs for garnish
1 ruby-red grapefruit

3/4 cup white rum

3 cups ice

1 cup seltzer

DIRECTIONS:

Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, and add mint leaves. Let steep 10 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve into a small bowl, and discard mint. Let cool.

Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from grapefruit in long, wide strips. Place in a large glass, and add rum. Cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve intoa large glass measure, and discard zest.

Cut away remaining pith from grapefruit. Cut between membranes to release segments. For each drink, place 2 to 3 segments in a glass. Top with 3/4 cup ice. Stir 3 tablespoons infused rum, 2 tablespoons mint syrup, and 1/4 cup seltzer in a glass measure, and pour over ice. Garnish with mint sprigs.

Happy Planning!

Letterpress Trunk Show - Daupine Press @ Union Street Papery on Wed. August 10th

Letterpress is king among invitation ensembles and anyone who knows stationary or invitation suites will agree with me. The craftsmanship, quality and customization that goes into each invitation ensemble is simply exquisite and is really incomparable to any other printing process. If you are a bride and receive a letterpress invitation, then you know the couple is making a serious artistic or aesthetic statement about their wedding.

As with all amazing, one-of-a-kind, simply exquisite products, it's pricey.

If you are a letterpress junkie, like myself, then you may know of Dauphine Press. If you don't know of them, I am more than honored to introduce you to them. At Dauphine Press, they take letterpress to a whole other level - using sophisticated and modern patterns, fonts and colors - it's simple stunning.

I've had a chance to view Dauphine's new collection last month with a couple of my 2012 brides and I was in awe of the gorgeousness they have put out this year. To top it all off, all of their suites in their new collection are named after Bay Area locations - Rutherford, Sausalito, Marinwood and Meadowood to name a few.

If you have always wanted letterpress for any part of your special event, attend Dauphine Press' trunk show this coming Wednesday, August 10th at Union Street Papery's Bridal Bungalow for a view of their 2011 collection wedding invitations and other products. To have a representative from a company such as Dauphine Press on hand to answer any related questions is invaluable when it comes to such a fine crafted custom product. What's the best part? If you purchase your wedding invitation ensemble during the trunk show, Dauphine will throw in 20 invitations to your order for free. Ummm.... if you haven't done the math yet, that's hundreds of dollars off your bottom line. Man, if there is any one who loves to provide their clients with a great deal, its ME! If that's not enough to spark an interest, Union Street Papery will be hosting the event with wine and cheese. That's enough for me to reschedule a few things in my calendar. 

UNION STREET PAPERY - SAN FRANCISCO
If you haven't visited Union Street Papery in the Marina district of San Francisco, you are missing out big time. This amazing stationary specialty boutique has the most beautiful bridal bungalow and knowledgeable staff in the business. Ask for Nichele, she's one of the best assets a bride can find in the world of paper, wedding invitations and design. She will help you find the most perfect collection to match your wedding day, not to mention, she's one of the nicest people ever!

See you there!

DAUPHINE PRESS 20% OFF FOR THE ENTIRE MONTH OF AUGUST
For those of you who can't make it to the trunk show, Dauphine is running a special this month only giving you 20% off your entire order. See promo below for details.

Wedding By Soiree by Simone Featured in Gentry Magazine July 2011

 

Our lovely Holman Ranch wedding was featured in the July 2011 edition of Gentry Magazine! It's always an honor to have one of our weddings recognized by a leading Bay Area lifestyle and society publication.

Congratulations to Eileen and Stephen Di Franco, again.

Feel free to look at the entire gallery of the wedding by going here or check out the feature in Gentry here.