i am happy to announce that the day has come to announce that i am now offically in my 30's. yes, it's true......i actually have heard from quite a few people that 30 is the new 20, so i'm going to stick with that notion for a while. :) i was completely and totally spoiled by everyone (most of all josh). i had 2 parties, 1 surprise party, a surprise trip to vegas (i adore vegas) and the best gifts i have ever received. (shameless plug for burberry bags and diamond rings goes here) josh really is the best gift giver ever, and now the pressure is on for me to plan something spectacular for his 30th. i guess i should start planning now......all in all, i have had the most amazing 30 years, and i am blessed with my husband, family, frineds, business, and of course the cutest sidekicks i could have ever dreamed of (thanks payton & ryan). here's to the next 30 years, and thanks to my pals who helped me ring it in!!
lana & michael november 24
i am a little late on this posting, but it is not because i had a lack of things to write about lana & michael. their wedding was so different and fun- i really had a great time planning, as well as the doing the wedding itself. lana & michael were married on the beach at the del, and their reception was in the windsor complex. kathy wright did the most amazing transformation i have ever seen- turning the windsor complex into a tropical oasis. it was complete with a teal and blue cabana that held the white dance floor and white ottomans. since there were 20 people at the wedding, we were free to really play around with the space, and kathy did an amazing job!! lana had 2 dresses for the evening- one long formal dress for the ceremony, and a micro mini as a surprise for michael in the reception. since the night before was thanksgiving, lana & michael decided to take their guests to the kansas city bbq. i just love the pictures from that!! josh aull (my hubby :) was the photographer- and i am so excited to add the rest to my website- they are amazing! it really was fun working with this couple, and i will miss lana's text messages- she is so fun!!
nancy & sean november 11
i know i say this a lot in my blogs- but i really really loved working with nancy & sean. they are such a great couple, and nancy was so much fun to work with during the year. nancy & sean held their ceremony at seagrove park, and then we headed off to l'auberge for the reception. music was very important to this couple, and it showed everywhere. We had a string quartet playing at the ceremony, as well as a bagpiper who led the groomsmen down the aisle (a nod to sean's irish roots) and sean's brother ( a member if the l.a. opera) who performed a duo. for cocktails, we had flamenco guitarists, and inside, we had blake miller dj, and the liquid blue band rocking!! (by the way, if you are looking for a band, you must check them out!!) there were so many great parts of the night, but one of my favorites actually occurred at the ceremony. when i arrived at seagrove park, the wind was howling, and it was freezing (any out of towners- that translates to around 50* :). we get nancy down the aisle, and as soon as the duet began, i am not kidding when i tell you that the clouds literally parted, and the brightest sun broke it's way through. pair that with an amazing sunset, and you have some pretty great luck. to top it all off, minutes later, we were greeted with a full rainbow!! what were the chances??it was one of my most favorite wedding memories ever. later on, sean surprised nancy by singing the most amazing song to nancy, and there were not too many dry eyes in the house. the are an amazing couple, and it was an amazing wedding. la vonne once again "wowed"us with her creative floral talents, and tony was on hand to capture the day. thanks to everyone involved- it was magical. and thanks again to mother nature, who waited until the end of the night to rain. that is the luck of the irish!!
anne & mike october 27
i was lucky enough to be involved in anne and mike's wedding this past friday. anne has got to be one of the most relaxed brides ever, and it was so nice working with them. anne & mike exchanged vows on the vista walk at the hotel del, and held their reception in the beautiful coronet room. almost all of their guests cam from atlanta and virginia, and they also had quite a few guests travel all the way from england. we were lucky enough to be surrounded by the beautiful flowers of kathy wright again (lucky us!!) and we also were in the company of robert marcos again. people danced all night long, thanks to miles and everyone had so much fun dancing to "devil went down to georgia" (very appropriate for this atlanta crowd :) it was a beautiful night and anne's mom surprised her with a rose petal send off from all of her guests. thanks again anne & mike- congratultions!!
jody & scott october 22
i just did the wedding of jody & scott at the hilton mission bay. it was another beautiful day on san diego- the weather was perfect. jody was such a pleasure to work with while planning the wedding. she was always so laid back, and i knew that they would have so much fun on the wedding day because of this. jody & scott exchanged their vows with a jewish ceremony, and plenty of fun at the reception. joyce from j design was on hand to provide fun centerpieces- she filled tall glass containers with apples and nuts then placed flowers on top. the result was a creative and unique way to incorporate the popular choice of brown and green. it was very different and fun. jody's brother gave one of the funniest toasts i've ever heard (and i have heard a lot of toasts!!) we really had a great time working the wedding- it was a great night!! thanks to tara luz stevens for the lovely pictures, and we were fortunate again to work with eric nelte from blue pearl video. (he also was on hand at sonia's wedding) keeping everyone dancing all night long was miles from mobile dance party. thanks to everyone for another great wedding!!
sonia & jeff october 15
sonia & jeff were such a pleasure to work with. there were so many fun aspects to their wedding, and it was really fun putting all of the pieces together. sonia really wanted to honor her mom's scottish heritage, and we incorporated touches of her scottish roots throughout. a bagpiper was brought in for the ceremony music, and even learned the michigan fight song for the groom & groomsmen who are huge fans. in the reception, scottish shortbread was given to each guest as thanks, and we even brought in a surprise for everyone- scottish dancers. jeff's mom stole the show with her dancing :) and the sparkler exit topped off the night. it was such a pleasure working with people as nice as sonia & jeff. josh was there once again, and i have posted just a few of my favorites (it sure is hard to pick when you have hundreds of photos right in your own house :) a wedding like sonia's is why i love my job!!
jaclyn & brad october 14
i just did jaclyn & brad's wedding at tower 23- and it was a beautiful location to have a wedding in. the day stared out a bit shaky, when one of my assistants called me and told me that "the sky is black". yes, rain was definitely in the forecast, and it was pouring all morning. things did turn out, and the sky was absolutely beautiful. the ceremony was on the upstairs patio, and the reception was in the wine room. kristin from kreeations created beautiful centerpieces and a fun, contemporary vibe at the ceremony site. during dinner and the toasts, we were all treated to a 10 minute firework display. (i am a huge fireworks fan :) after dinner, the guests made their way back up to the rooftop patio for dancing and the lit fire pits. look for this wedding soon to be featured in the san diego union tribune wedding magazine. thanks also to melissa from true photography- it was a pleasure working with you!!
megan & jeremy october 1
megan & jeremy's wedding was so much fun. the two exchanged their vows and had the reception at la valencia, and it was an absolutely beautiul fall day. jeremy is from australia, and megan lives out there with him as well, so it was really fun to bring another culture into the wedding mix. the couple met in spain, so there were many guests from spain, europe, australia, and california there to enjoy the festivities. (let me tell you- it is absolutely fascinating listening to an autralian girl speak spanish- they were all bilingual, and it made me wish i payed more attention in school! :) megan loves color, so we enlisted the help of lavonne from adorations once again to be really creative and colorful for the bouquets, as well as the centerpieces and ceremony site. the result was an abundant fall feeling. smal pomegranites held each placecard, and the favors were cute little stuffed koalas, kangaroos, and platypus animals. the night was beautiful and fun, and jeremy gave the most moving speech during his toast to megan. miles kept the crowd dancing all night long, and we were fortunate again to be working with angie gaylor from true photography. thanks everyone for a great evening!!
libby & david september 30
i recently did libby & david's wedding at the hotel del . they came all the way from seattle to recognize their dream of a beach wedding, and the del did not let them down. their ceremony was on the beach at the del, and we moved into the windsor complex for the reception. the ceremony had the perfect weather, and it was beautifully decorated with florals from joyce of j design. after the ceremony, guests were invited up to the windsor complex where they enjoyed the cocktail hour. a fun element to the cocktail hour was the addition of the flowers 'bells of ireland'- a nod to david's irish roots. the reception was beautiful with the addition of glass chargers and mahogany chivari chairs. each table was enhanced with cappucino colored linens, and they added more color to the room. josh was the photographer, and we always have so much fun working together :) it was a beautiful intimate wedding and we were happy to be a part of it. thanks libby & david!!
lora & lewis september 24
lora and lewis were such a treat to work with. lora is a catering manager at a hotel, and lewis is a chef. i knew that their wedding was going to be so cool when they told me that they were going to have a pre cocktail hour prior to the ceremony, a post cocktail party, and then they would have more cocktails at the university club before the reception. they decided to hold their ceremony on the rooftop of the natural history museum, and it was completely transformed. lavonne from adorations really outdid herself this time, by creating "central park in fall". lavonne created four 8 foot tall hand made trees, complete with hand strung leaves and even little mushrooms!! the arbor was the most beautiful wedding arbor ever- it was spectacular. lora and lewis do get my "most popular program award". they made a mock newspaper complete with a recipe section from lewis and articles on their vendors. all of the programs were displayed in a real newspaper stand.........moving into the reception were more gorgeous flowers, and lewis even made the cake for his new bride. this wedding was so rich in detail i could go on and on.....:) thanks to sara france for the great photos!
kate & judah september 23
i loved working with kate & judah. kate is a super cool girl who owns kate ross- a new clothing shop in north park. i loved the vibe that kate and judah had- they were so funny and just wanted a fun hip wedding. i think we achieved that at the prado. the ceremony was held out by the wishing well, and cocktails were held in the courtyard. we brought in the chocolate brown suede lounge-(i do love a lounge!! :) and kate's mom added to the decor by making matching pillows and coordinating linen overlays for the belly bars. bob lajes (photographer) added to the cool feel of the wedding by providing a "do it yourself" photo booth. this wedding was so fun for us- kate had such fun bridesmaids, and it is so great to watch two genuinely nice people get married. by the way, kate's dress was amazing, thanks to michelle at m bride. thanks again kate & judah- best of luck to you both!
laura & tony september 8
i recently had the pleasure of working with laura & tony. they are such a cool couple, and we had such a blast while planning their wedding. i really lucked out on this one, since their wedding was held in mexico- at las rocas. adding to the fun was the fact that josh (my husband) was the photographer, and adrianne smith traveled down south as well. the weather was amazing, and it was such a treat to work in a new location. laura looked absolutely beautiful, and she had the cutest shoes ever :) i loved the favors- she had miracas hand painted and they added such a festive vibe to the fiesta. this wedding was a great combination of friends, family, travel, and fun.!
jamie & scott september 3
jamie & scott are one of the nicest and happiest couples i have worked with. they are always upbeat in our meetings, and you can tell that they were just so thrilled to be getting married. their cereony and reception was held at the beautiful rancho santa fe farms golf club. their flowers were just beautiful, thanks to adrianne smith, and the her florals helped to dress the cutest flowers girls ever!! we had the pleasure of working with angie gaylor of true photography again- thank you for the lovely pictures. :) the tables were all named after places that the couple were going to visit on their honeymoon to bali. i wish jamie & scott the very best for the future- thanks for including us in your day!!
tiffany & jim august 5
i knew that i was excited for jim and tiffany's wedding at our first meeting- when we discussed wine in great detail. from there evolved the wedding design that incorporated their love of wine and food, great friends, and family. their ceremony was an intimate gathering of 15 people, with jim's brother officiating at st. francis in balboa park. after the ceremony, we moved on to cocktails and the reception at the prado. blood red cosmos were passed to the 200 guests at cocktail hour, and custom made coasters added to the details of the wedding. a chocolate brown lounge set was brought in to add another seating area for guests, and a poloroid camera kept guests entertained throughout the evening . i was so happy to be working again next to paula & michael from luna photography. (they are great!!!) inside the ballroom, guests were treated to an awesome dinner, along with the coolest favors - individual bottles of honey and olive oil. the theme was reiterated again as the tables were named after different wines......what a fun night. i will miss our meetings!!
pictures with paul barnett
there are a ton of benefits of working in the wedding industry, and one of them is meeting really great, talented people who are at the top of their field. one of these talented people is paul barnett, an amazing photographer who kindly offered to take pictures of my crazy two year old Payton and Ryan who is 5 weeks old.........as you can see, the images are awesome, and i am very thankful for his time. payton is very excited to have pictures of her and "cinna-moose", who is sitting next to her on the stool. (cinna-moose is the brother to "cinnamon" the bear.......) i don't know where she gets this stuff........
kristina & tony august 4
okay, so if anyone is reading these and noticing that there are a TON of kristins, kristina's kristens, etc. it was a twist of fate that brought them all to me in less than a month apart.........
kristina and tony came all the way from virginia to celebrate their marriage vows in coronado, at the hotel del. kristina was a very organized bride, and that made it very easy to help her realize her visions of the perfect beach wedding. lavonne from adorations helped us out again, creating a beautiful simple huppa for the ceremony, and a stunning bouquet. natural colored parasols helped shade her guests, and the small intimate wedding party all headed over to 1500 ocean for their cocktails and reception. robert marcos shot the wedding, and even the weather cooperated- it was a beautiful day!
kristin & yamile july 29
i was a little nervous for kristin & yamile's wedding, since the weather has been SO unpredictable in san diego. the weather did cooperate, and we had a beautiful wedding at la valencia in la jolla. kristin looked absolutely amazing, and yamile and his boys were very stylish in their tuxes and converse high tops. this wedding had a very hollywood feel, as most of the guests were from l.a., and there were famous faces in the crowd. the real fun was watching yamile's family from the dominican republic tear up the dance floor, to the beats of some VERY well known dj's. this party was crazy, and it was a wedding that definitely made me wish i was a guest!! heather de anda provided these great photos- thanks so much!
kristen & vince july 16
when i met kristen and vince a year ago, i was immediately excited about their wedding and the planning that was ahead of us. they had booked the four seasons resort, but had no other vendors in place. they did, however, know what they wanted! kristen had her colors chosen of pink, red and touches of purple, and she loves flowers!! they found their perfect match with kathy wright- a floral legend in san diego!! kristen and vince are a young, hip couple, so we brought in white lounge furniture and transformed the foyer in the grand ballroom into a hot pink lounge, complete with a chocolate fountain and the interactive guestbook. guests were treated to tray passed pink signiture drinks at cocktail hour, and the pink was everywhere the rest of the day. they were in great hands with luna photo (paula & michael are the BEST!!), and jason taylor as the videographer. the greatest part of the wedding for me was to see this couple and their families. they have such great parents and all of their grandparents were in attendance as well. thank you kristen and vince, and best of luck on your new adventure in boston!!
kristy & brad july 8
kristy and brad have got to be the sweetest, most kind people ever. they came to me to help them get things in order for their 6oo person wedding!! (they have got to be great to have 600 friends!!) the ceremony was at brad's alma mater, point loma nazarene college. the ceremony was beautiful and heartfelt, and the unique color combination totally worked. the reception was held at tidelands park in coronado right next to the water. we had an enormous tent with hot pink uplighting, beautiful florals by joyce (jdesign) and awesome band, that vibe. we were lucky enough to get to work with jennifer dery again, and her photos of the event are beautiful! it was a great wedding to come back to- just two weeks after having the baby!
ryan caleb aull june 23
so, with some serious pressure from family, friends, and especially my husband :) i took the entire month of june off to have my second baby. he was born on june 23rd at 7:39am, and we named him ryan caleb aull. he joins his sister payton, and needless to say, things are busy and crazy and fun. he is a bit chubby, and has red fuzzy hair and blue eyes- if you can believe it. he is so sweet and i will keep you all posted with great new pictures :) (it sure is great having a photographer in the house!! check out josh's website.....) back to work in july!!!