Erin and Ante’s wedding at La Quinta Resort & Club

Erin and Ante’s wedding at La Quinta Resort & Club is the epitome of classic California weddings—it’s totally romantic, with perfectly tailored details. The vision of the couple was edited to perfection by COJ Events and introduced to guests by a beautiful invitation suite created by Heather O’Brien Design. Details followed the light, timeless look of the stationery and included voluminous white garden roses, Erin’s customized Oscar de la Renta gown flanked by a bridal party in champagne, and a classic ballroom reception. The couple honored the groom’s heritage with traditional Croatian music that united guests as they danced their hearts out and Rachel Owens Photography captured it all in these stunning film images.

What made the wedding special and unique?

It was honestly just having all of our nearest and dearest family and friends all under one roof. It is truly such a cool feeling to feel so much positive energy, love and support from everyone.

Tell us about the gown and where/how you found it!

Finding the perfect dress was really important to me as I felt like it set the tone for our wedding and affected my overall mood for the evening. I knew I wanted a classic gown, but with an edge.  However, this wasn’t easy. I must have tried on every single wedding dress in Southern California (twice!!). It wasn’t until I went to Oscar De La Renta that I found my dress. The only drawback…it had no edge. So I decided to create my edge through alterations. I added pockets for a more fun, flirty and runway feel and altered the back of the gown to show more skin for a slightly sexy (but still sophisticated) feel. It was PERFECT!

What were some touches added to make the wedding personal?

Aesthetically, it was all of our custom signage and escort wall that matched our invitations. I wanted to keep with the classic, romantic and vintage theme we had going on. We also personalized our wedding a lot through our music. Christmas songs played by our Flamenco guitarist during the cocktail hour and then a 30 minutes of straight Croatian music at the reception, which was really important to my husband who is of Croatian descent. The songs were a HUGE hit to not only the Croatians in the room, but to EVERYONE. It really united all of our guests and created so much love and positive energy to the room. Still gives me the chills.

What was the most memorable part of the day?

Walking down the aisle. It went by so fast and I nearly blacked out.

Tell us how you met and became engaged.

Ante and I met through mutual friends in Las Vegas of all places!!  I wouldn’t say it was love at first sight at all, but more of a game of cat and mouse until my sister’s wedding that sealed the deal for us.

Ante & Erin from Triptych Weddings on Vimeo.

Photographer: Rachel Owens Photography // Wedding Planner: COJ Events // Florist: Maggie Jensen Floral Design // Stationery: Heather O’Brien Design // Venue: La Quinta Resort & Club // Bride’s Gown: Oscar de la Renta // Hair: Studio M (Nicole) // Makeup: Nyrie Aitken // Groom’s Tux: Giorgio Armani // Rentals & Linens: Signature Party Rentals // Lighting: Perfect Touch // Entertainment: The Flash Dance // Videographer: Triptych Weddings // Ring Box: The Mrs. Box