What was the theme or design inspiration for your wedding?
We wanted it to look like us – we didn’t want it to look manufactured or standard in any way. We wanted it to be eclectic, but simple and classy at the same time. Ultimately our own aesthetic sense and style were the inspirations, as well as the landscape around us.

Tell us about the bridal attire:
The bridesmaids wore simple navy chiffon dresses and the groomsmen wore navy suits. The groom wore a pale grey Lanvin suit and the bride wore a vintage-inspired chantilly lace Vera Wang gown with velvet and chiffon floral bloom belt.

Favorite design element of your big day:
We decided not to have wedding colors which allowed for the design to be free and organic. We had lots of herbs and succulents, as opposed to just the standard flowers. We had lavender, wheat, sage and rosemary mixed in with a random assortment of succulents and white blooms. It was elegant, yet original. We also loved that we used large vintage-inspired metal numbers to mark the tables instead of numbers written on paper.

What advice would you give to a couple planning their wedding?
Excellent photographers and videographers are just a MUST. The day is over so quickly and then the pictures and the video are all you have left to remember. Make sure you find people who will capture the day the way you want to remember it.

What’s your favorite part of the wedding?
I have to put three:
1. We wrote our own ceremony with our officiant (who is a friend) and our own vows. It made the ceremony incredibly special and personal.

2. Our friends who are puppeteers created a simple, elegant, hilarious and touching puppet show of a Shel Silverstein book as a reading for the wedding. We picked the book because it was one of the first books I learned to read out loud, but it was also a love letter that I gave to Jordan the first year we were dating.

3. My father /daughter dance. I spent the weekend before the wedding at my father’s childhood home in Texas with my father and my grandparents. My father and I choreographed the dance together on their front porch. The dance was to Singin’ in the Rain – my favorite childhood movie.

Any specific reasons behind certain choices you made for your wedding? Maybe flowers that were your mom’s favorite, or your first dance song was the first song you ever heard together, that kind of thing?
We got married on my grandmother’s birthday. She passed away about 7 years ago and it was a nice way to make her a part of the day and every anniversary to come. The pillow that the ringbearer carried was also connected to my grandmother – it was a small pillow that she made out of a quilt that her grandmother had made. My mother tied ribbons to it and patched up a hole with extra lace from the bottom of my dress – it looked perfect. Also, the delicious banana wedding cake with rich chocolate frosting was made from Jordan’s grandmother’s famous recipe and it was a nice way to remember his grandmother as well.

Tell me something about your photographer, Viera Photographics, that you absolutely loved:
They were great for us because they caught the unique and unexpected images of our special day. Any photographer can take posed pictures, but it takes real artists to capture personality, movement and color the way they did. The photographs are works of art and we couldn’t ask for anything better than that!

Wedding Vendors and Services:
Wedding planner: Michelle Buckley at Mint Julep Social Events
Caterer and venue: Ojai Valley Inn
Band: West Coast Music
Officiant: Egan Reich
Florist: Jennifer Katz at Fiore Designs
Videographer: Skyline Videography
Photographer: Viera Photographics