I do not know how to do a proper introduction for this lovely wedding. First of all, this wedding takes place at my favorite destiantion location, Palm Springs, California. Which right there, I can stop. Palm Springs is just a dreamy location, and add a wedding into this gorgeous city, and I am done. However, there is a bit more, actually a lot more about this wedding that has me stopped in my tracks. It is the beautiful bride and how she designed this spectacular wedding just perfectly! Perfectly for her, and for her wedding guests. Do not even get me started on the details. I have to admit, I kind of want to make myself a mini size, and place myself into one of the many breathtaking wedding photographs. Am I nuts? Nuts and crazy in love with this wedding. Oh, and to top it all it all off, the couple is so adorable and super gorgeous! So, there is that. It seems there is no way to introduce this wedding but to allow you to see for yourselves. I have to warn you, this wedding will have you locked in for hours! Clear your schedule for a few hours, for the day, and enjoy the most romantic destination wedding your pretty eyes have seen!
From the bride…
It was really important to us that our wedding didn’t just last a few hours, but extended into a weekend long celebration. So, we decided to take over the entire Alcazar Hotel in Downtown Palm Springs for an entire wedding weekend! We turned their poolside conference room into a retro cocktail bar & stocked it up with treats and drinks for all 70 guests that stayed with us at the hotel. We basically had a 72 hour pool party, complete with a poolside DJ. The entire wedding party even took a dip in the pool after the wedding fully clothed… Including me in my wedding gown!
We had so much fun surprising our guests with little details, like welcome baskets, custom do not disturb signs, & personalized Govino wine glasses for the weekend.
For the ceremony & cocktail hour, we had a friend play acoustic guitar on vintage equipment. All of our friends & family sat in a circle around us while we read our own vows & Greg’s grandfather married us. We wanted the ceremony & reception to feel as romantic & intimate as possible, so we sat everyone at family-style tables & served seabass en papollote, filet mignon, truffle mac & cheese & blue lake green beans on large family-style platters & had everyone share.
The theme of our wedding featured colors of “neutral” (gray, cream, blush). We went for romantic art deco mid-century – think rat pack in the dessert. What I loved was that the bridesmaids chose their own dresses in neutral colors & I didn’t see them until the day of the wedding! I’m so glad they all looked so good together!
We brought in hundreds of twinkling lights and candles, vintage barware, custom upholstered couches & amazing china and flatware to transport our guests back to the amazing Rat Pack era that makes Palm Springs feel so magical. Our DJ played only off of vinyl & on one side of our venue, we set up a cigar lounge for our guests to enjoy.
Instead of a regular cake, we had seven different cakes on vintage milk glass stands from Over the Rainbow Cakery. I can honestly say that they were THE BEST cakes I’ve ever had in my life! And as a surprise, our caterers brought out a bunch of amazing pizzas for a late night snack for our guests towards the end of the evening.
Looking back, we feel so blessed that 130 guests made the trip out to the dessert, and braved an absurdly hot heat wave, to celebrate with us. We had so many amazing vendors that made our day perfect & we can honestly say that it was the best weekend of our lives.
Vendors:
Location: Alcazar Hotel, Palm Springs
Caterers: Birba (Palm Springs)
Cake: Under the Rainbow Cakery (Palm Springs)
Photography: Mathieu Photography (OC)
Flowers: My Little Flower Shop (Palm Springs)
Stationary: Bride
Design & Coordination: Bride & Liz Mahlow
Bridal Gown: Ivy & Aster
Bridal Shoes: Stuart Weitzman
Hair: Angela Thompson
Makeup: Brie Does Makeup
Groom & Groomsman Suits: Tommy Hilfiger
Ceremony Music: Acoustic guitarist (friend of couple)
DJ: Dylan Course