Candlelight at Pala Mesa

Earlier in June, I coordinated my first event at Pala Mesa. Located in Fallbrook, they have a beautiful ceremony site and our reception was held in an amazing tent. The tent was accented by uplighting, swags of fabric, chinese lanterns and a personalized gobo from Concepts. Jennifer Cole designed all of the flowers and included tons and tons of beautiful candlelight. The bride asked that the back end of the tent be left open so that we could add candlelight to a fountain. It looked magical as the sun set! I was so excited to work with a new amazing photographer, Michael. Congrats to the new family--Eden, Duane and Brooklyn, I wish you guys the best!

A Day of Surprises at the Prado

Yup, I've been a regular here lately. I've been talking to the Prado's catering and sales team about my own parking space, but no such luck yet! It was a romantic and grand day, and we were able to include lots of fun touches. After Keri and Beau kissed, they were suprised with all of their two hundred guests wearing clown noses! Hey, we stuck with the theme.... the clown noses were red:) The Groom also surprised the Bride with reading their first emails, as they met online.A final surprise was the Groom's cake, courtesy of Flour Power. Bob did a great job with playing music for all ages, and it was a treat to work with John, of Aquario Studio again this year. Keri and Beau, congrats and good luck with the big move!

Classic Beauty at The Prado

I've said it once, and I'll say it again, I truly love the Prado. Daphna and Ian got married earlier in June in the gardens and the ballroom, and it was a stunning day! Even planning from afar, no detail was overlooked! The Bride was serenaded by the Groom, and the crowd danced all night long to a band and also a DJ. The day was accented by florals and decor from the ever-amazing Haydee. Mazel Tov and congrats Newlyweds!

May 12-San Diego Mission and Mission Bay Hilton

My most recent wedding was a really fun day. Any time I get to hang out with Tony, I am a happy girl! Justin kept the crowd dancing all night long, and we even passed out glow sticks for the last hour of the party! The cake was just amazing...any time you were closer than 10 feet to the cake, you could smell chocolate--perfect for my chocoholic bride and groom! And how cool is this? The newlyweds left the church in a friend's Lotus. Congrats Manny and Erika!

Vote for An I Do...Weddings! Bride to Be Modern Bride of the Year!

Hey everyone, I need your help! I just found out the Traci, one of my brides has been selected as a top 10 finalist for Modern Bride's First "Bride Of the Year!"
You can see her video and vote for her by visiting:
http://www.brides.com/modernbride/modernbrideoftheyear/voting/
Traci's full name is Traci Swain, and is from New York City
The top five finalists will go to New York for a fashion shoot, which will air on The Insider. The winner will be featured on the cover of the December/January issue of Modern Bride.
How cool is that?
Congrats, and lets help her win! You can vote every hour till May 9th.

April 30-Cuvier Park and Azul

About a month ago, I was approached by Danielle and Steven to help plan an intimate elopement. So, this past Monday, they celebrated with a dozen friends and family for a beautiful ceremony officiated by Rev. Powers at Cuvier, also known as the "Wedding Bowl." We then moved to Azul restaurant for a private dinner in the wine room. I was honored when they asked me to be their florist, as well as their coordinator. Be sure to check out the photo of their arch above (click on the photo to see additional detail). I wired dragonflies and orchids to the trees, which will be planted in the newlyweds' back yard. Congrats Danielle and Steven!

April 28-Mission Bay Hilton

I haven't worked at the Mission Bay Hilton for quite some time, so it was wonderful to be back!

I worked with this couple for the past year, and really enjoyed it! I was especially pleased with the stunning flowers, all of which were created by the Mother of the Groom the night before, and the morning of the wedding. Bill kept the dance floor packed all night! Kim and Steve, I wish you all the happiness in the world!!!

Do You Want to Be In People Magazine?

I was taking a break from a wedding timeline and just stumbled onto this on People's website: http://reallifeweddings.people.com/.
There's a lot of fun categories to peek at, and the first ever wedding issue hits newsstands on June 15th. Have something fun to submit? Try to do it soon:) There's a fun section on Bridesmaid dresses. Check it out to relieve some wedding stress!

April 21-A beautiful view at Oceanview

I may have mentioned to several of you that I've never had rain at a wedding (knock on wood!). With the rains on Friday, I was getting a bit nervous, considering my Saturday wedding was almost completely outdoors at Oceanview! With a bit of luck, and the help of some amazing vendors, the wedding was absolutely stunning! Concepts hung the lanterns, which looked spectacular at night. Amanda provided beautiful flowers (and also the beautiful first photo!), and Georgie satisfied many sweet "tooths" throughout the night. Stan and Jeanette and John and Norma were on hand to document the fun day. Kendra and Marcus, I've enjoyed every minute of getting to know you over the past year! Have a wonderful time in Fiji, congrats!

April 14-A Wild Wedding at the Park!

Most of you know that I am a huge animal lover. While all of my events are near and dear to me, I was especially excited to play with the animals at my Wild Animal Park wedding this weekend. The ceremony took place in the Heart of Africa, and was officiated by Holly. Daniel kept the crowds very happy dancing! I was very impressed with Leigh's work, and you can see more examples of her work and more of this wedding on her blog. All in all, it was an amazing day which really reflected my couple's personality and wonderful style. Besides, what other wedding can you go to, where you get to pet a hedgehog? I did, and it was great! Congrats Sarah and Rudy! Be sure to look at the amazing cake topper handcrafted by the Groom.

April 7th-Admiral Kidd Club

My wedding on the 7th was a great combination of traditional (such the Groom's uniform) and non-traditional (their first dance song was "Get Low."), which made for a really great party! I again worked with Mick, Shirley and Van Johnson. The bridal party was transported in style via trolley, and the dance floor was packed all night long. Though the bride and groom were in Italy for 99% of the planning, no detail was overlooked. The kid's table was stocked with Easter candy, and toothbrushes to get rid of cavaties! As they say in Italy, "Congratulazioni!"

April 1st-Opening Day!

My wedding this past Sunday definitely showed my bride and groom's love for baseball. The wedding, held at Tom Ham's Lighthouse, was full of touches from having guests sign a bat in lieu of a guest book, to naming tables as different areas of a ball park (like "Upper Deck") to bags of sunflower seeds and cracker jacks with a note to "Enjoy the Season!"

I was able to work with some old favorites: Bill Calhoun, who was also the DJ at my wedding, Linda of Something Borrowed and John of Aquario Studio. Marci and Corey, what a unique and fun day! I wish you both all the best!

Hotel Del

Every once in a while, photographers go above and beyond to create beautiful collages of weddings for me. My Saint Patrick's wedding was a PERFECT event as there were so many pretty touches! Here's some details from the day. All of the images are courtesy of Marissa and Weston, the wonderful photogs from Boucher Photography. Thanks guys!

March 24th-That's Amore at the Kona Kai!

This past weekend, it was great to be back at Our Lady of The Rosary! 350 guests celebrated with my couple at the Kona Kai, my first time coordinating an event at the Shelter Island venue. I was jazzed to finally have met Merrilyn of Artistic Productions in person. We're working together many times this year, and she was even more wonderful and impressive than I could have ever dreamed! Van, one of my favorite photographers, captured all of the great Italian traditions--including a telegram from Italy! Jennifer and Spencer--you guys throw one heck of a party, thanks for letting me join in on the fun!

March 17th-Saint Patty's Day at the Del

This past Saturday marked the third wedding of the year at the Hotel Del, and again, the weather worked in our favor. My couple, had Irish roots, and celebrated with Mick's music, as well as beads, hats and other fun Saint Patty's Day goodies well into the night. Check out this beautiful arrangement, designed by Haydee. It was such a fun day, and I enjoyed every minute of it! Katie and Taylor, thanks so much for having me and congrats!

Bliss in Jamaica!

My week in Jamaica was pure heaven! Wonderful food, warm water and relaxation was a perfect way to gear up for wedding season. My husband Brett and I also ran into a wedding or two:)

February 17th-Luck and Sunshine at Estancia

The weather lately, as I know you'll agree, has not been as nice as usual (I'm a biased "Diego" native, but still....). So, I was literally skipping around Estancia this past Saturday when it was warm, sunny and almost 80 degrees! The only kink in the day was my camera--which was being cranky and kept turning off. Luckily, I was over peeking at their photographer's blog and found some great teasers: http://www.lunaphotoblog.com/old/index.php?paged=2
Enjoy! Congrats Carrie and Steve, I had a blast!

February 3rd-Beautiful Butterflies at the Del

It's only February and I've already worked at the Del twice this year! The Del is a beautiful backdrop for a whimisical, magical event and my beach wedding was no exception. It was my first time working with the wonderful Minister Jerry Bryant. I really enjoyed working with All Around Mobile Sound, as well. My favorite part of the day was the inclusion of the bride's favorite--butterflies! Check out the to-die-for cake from the ladies at CAKE, as well as the placecard tree. Congrats Daphne and Goetz!

I Do...Weddings! event featured on Elegala

I learned this morning that Kimberly, my partner, had a wedding featured with Elegala. Check it out!
http://www.elegala.com/realweddings-10.html
The wedding took place at the gorgeous La Valencia in La Jolla. Congrats to the bride and groom!

January 27th-The Prado

Back at the Prado this past weekend! The ceremony was held at Torrey Pines Christian Church, and was absolutely amazing! A really fun party, with an amazing bride and groom! Everywhere you looked there were personal touches--from the photobooth (see the post below), to Adina's gorgeous flowers, to Daniel spinning some great tunes. Shaabini and Dave, it's been wonderful getting to know you both over the past year. I enjoyed every minute with you, your family and friends--congrats!