Happy Thursday….almost the end of the week! I’m feeling cosy as I sit here with a hot chocolate, watching the raindrops pour down the window panes. OK, so not the perfect morning, but still, anything as long as chocolate is involved wins in my book….and anyway, I have today’s real wedding to admire which is 100% cheering me up a treat! One thing that we know more than most here at Festival Brides (because we work with some absolutely AMAZING suppliers), is that choosing the right photographer for your wedding is vital when it comes to making memories; our advice is to do your research and follow your hot-list on Instagram to get a really good feel for their talent and vibe before booking. Today’s photographer is husband and wife duo Inner Song Photography, and they are incred – vibrant, documentary-style photographers with a beautiful quirk – totally fitting for Lauren and Craig’s eclectic, colourful and fun wedding.
Today’s couple planned their wedding at Millwick in Downtown LA. thousands of miles away from their home in Jordan. They used the expertise and flair of LA-based wedding planner Lilian from Just Merried Events to help plan and pull their vision together from afar….
Because we live our lives abroad, we lead varied and created lives – we wanted the inspiration to be eclectic. Once we booked the venue, the vision became more clear.
Lauren wore an absolutely stunning Grace Loves Lace design, with loose, scallop edged cape sleeves, adding to the bohemian, laid back and free spirited vibe of the day. This wedding is beyond beauty – read on to hear how Lauren planned her post-elopement wedding celebration to husband Craig….
Elopement Wedding Followed by a Celebration for Friends and Family
We are both international teachers, and when we decided to change jobs in the fall of 2017, we knew we wanted to be married first. So, we eloped right before we moved to Jordan, and decided to have a wedding for our friends and family exactly one year later.
Venue in Downtown LA
We were married in the Grass Room at Millwick, Downtown Los Angeles. We put all our trust in Lilian, our amazing wedding planner from Just Merried Events. We needed a coordinator since we were planning everything from abroad. She found a bunch of sample venues, and after we did our research, and she visited all the sites for us. We chose the Grass Room because we trusted the venue’s vision. The site wasn’t finished when we booked it, so an early booking discount sealed the deal for us.
Ceremony Performed by a Friend Featuring Moroccan Rug Aisle
My friend from college performed a short ceremony for us to restate our same vows (from our elopement a year earlier) for our friends and family. The rug we stood on at our elopement hung behind us and served as a connection to that special day. The collection of runners down the aisle tied it all together. We kept it short and sweet!
I wore a beautiful Grace Loves Lace dress with a dainty Quartz Crown from The Fawn and Sparrow via Etsy, along with my mother’s earrings. The bridesmaid’s dresses were ‘Mix and Match’.
Naturally Beautiful Reception Space with DIY Stationery and Personalised Touches
The reception area was already beautiful, so we didn’t need much décor besides the flowers and tableware. I made name cards out of agate slices, and Kimberly from Chloe Rose Design hung flowers above the tables. We also displayed a lot of photographs from our travels, which we hung all around the space for people to enjoy. I made all of the stationery, and used an online website for the invitations and letter boards that we placed around the venue.
Blue Thistle and Cockscomb Florals
While we knew we wanted flowers, this aspect of the wedding wasn’t something that we wanted to micromanage. Kimberly (from Chloe Rose Design) was so sweet and willing to try so many things, so we trusted her. We gave her a colour scheme and a few favourite flowers (cockscomb and blue thistle), and she took over the rest.
Internationally Inspired, Custom Made Menu
The food was a very special part of our day. Little Lily’s Kitchen did an amazing job designing a custom menu inspired by places that are important to us – California (where I’m from), Alaska (where Craig is from), South Korea (where we met and lived for 6 years), and Jordan (where we live now). We added small décor items to fit the theme of the buffet tables.
The Right Vibes | Inner Song Photography
Our photographer, Inner Song Photography, was amazing! I’m an art teacher, so we felt this was a very important vendor to book. Looking at his work, we knew it fit our vibe, and after talking to him, everything just clicked!
First Dance
Our first dance was to ‘Stand By Me’. We didn’t really feel passionately about the first dance or song, so we did it more out of tradition. It’s a song that just clicked for both of us.
Favourite Moment
Because we’d already been married for a year, we decided to get ready together. It was so nice to enjoy the whole day together and share all the same memories. Our hotel room had two rooms, so our friends got ready with us. There was an ease to our day. We just wanted to focus on savouring each moment, and being together allowed us to do that.
Any Advice?
Trust the experts. We gave our vendors a lot of freedom because they know more than we do, and we were inspired by their vision. Once you have the right vendors, trust that everything will work out.
The Line Up
Venue: Millwick; Photography + Photobooth: Inner Song Photography; Planning: Just Merried Events; Wedding Dress: Grace Loves Lace; Bride’s Shoes: Rebecca Minkoff Caterer: Little Lily’s Kitchen; Desserts: Front Porch Pops Florist: Chloe Rose Design; Hair / Makeup: Sherilyn Beauty; Quartz Crown: Fawn and Sparrow; DJ/MC: LA PIX Events; Vintage Tabletop Rentals: Fern + Bone; | MTB Event Rentals;Neon Sign: Best Buy Neon Signs
