Cait and Ned’s California Vineyard Wedding

Cait and Ned, self-confessed opposites, knew they wanted something unique and different than anything they’d seen on any blog or Pinterest for their big day. From Cait: “I wanted to infuse the traditional, starched, East Coast elements of Ned’s upbringing with the feminine, luxurious, and rad Californian in me; and so we struck a balance. The contrast element was a big part of our love story, and it came out strongly in our design aesthetic – which reflected us perfectly as a couple.” They achieved all that and more in this gorgeous East meets West wedding with a “larger than life” bouquet and amazing tablescapes by Siren Floral Co. Since Cait worked with Designer and Planner Kaella Lynn Events for two years before she got engaged, Kaella already had a discerning eye for Cait’s vision for her wedding and orchestrated it perfectly. We’re sure you’ll agree that Jake & Necia Photography did an incredible job capturing every beautiful detail.

From the planner:

Cait assisted me for 2 years before getting engaged herself, so naturally we had discussed her dream wedding long before, but the vision became such a reflection of the two of them as a couple once it became a reality. We worked with Siren Floral Co. to create a flower-full masterpiece that was equal parts foliage and big, bodacious blooms and garden roses. Everything started and ended with the florals, and for Cait a larger than life bouquet was the only way it could be.

Aside from the aesthetics and materials used to illustrate how Cait and Ned’s personalities come together, additional touches were incorporated to reflect their future together. During their ceremony, they planted a baby spruce tree with soil from Rochester and California that they since planted in their new home in Rochester. Both love to read and be inspired, so their favorite quotes were written in calligraphy, framed and displayed throughout the event. Cait’s cousin, who lives and owns a candle-making business in Australia created 3 different scents of small candles for guests to take home as favors. She also created larger ones, one in a more masculine scent to be enjoyed in the masculine den (Ned’s lounge) and the other a floral candle to scent the air at the feminine setting (Cait’s lounge) at cocktail hour.

From the Bride:

How we met – He was East Coast, I was West: we met for the first time working at an advertising firm in San Francisco, and Ned says “the moment I saw her across the sales floor, I knew she was what I had been waiting for.” Hailing from LA originally, and having just graduated from UC Berkeley across the bay, I couldn’t have been more opposite from the girls Ned had met growing up in Rochester NY and living in Manhattan – and that made all of the difference. I was sunshine and positivity and youthful enthusiasm; Ned was life experience and rationality and conservative savings goals (and 10 years my senior, both in his career and in life). I asked him on an outing in October 2012 under the guise of friendship – “Let’s go to the pumpkin festival in Half Moon Bay!” – and being a good sport, he agreed. A two hour drive and 45 minute festival turned into a 4 hour lunch date filled with craft beer, stories of his life on the East Coast and mine in LA, and both of us hoping that ‘friends’ wasn’t a title that would stick. 2 years later, we were engaged under the Brooklyn bridge in a secret garden by the waterfront – and his surprise proposal was one of the only moments in my life that has truly shocked me. It was perfection.

What inspired our wedding – When Ned and I met, I was working full time in ad sales, and on weekends and evenings, an assistant planner at Kaella Lynn Events. Needless to say, I had very little free time – but weddings have always been my calling. Ned says “I’ve always been in awe of her style, and weddings are what make her happy, so I learned that while my Saturdays were for golfing with friends, hers were for helping people on the most important day of their lives. I support that.”  I carried around a copy of ‘Brides’ magazine to preschool with me from the time I was three years old, and when my dad married my stepmom in 1998, I was at the center of their ceremony and planning process. Naturally, when Ned and I got engaged, I looked to my mentor and friend, Kaella Wilson, (the Chief Wedding Planner at Kaella Lynn Events) to bring our big day to life. She and I had a vision for what the day would look like LONG before it actually came to be – but we gathered most of our inspiration from my life with Ned, our unique backgrounds, and our shared vision – what really made our love story pop. The year-long planning process was such a wonderful time for me, because Ned and I had just moved to New York, and working closely with Kaella kept me tied closely to my roots in California during that time, through endless calls/emails/skype meetings that made me feel right at home.

Ned and I would be married in my home town, just around the corner from where my dad and stepmom had tied the knot – and given our shared love of Northern California wineries, a vineyard was a no-brainer.  But I wanted something with edge – a wedding day that didn’t look like anything I had seen on Pinterest or a wedding blog. When I saw my personal flowers on our wedding morning, I almost fell out of my Louboutins – I’ve never seen anything more beautiful, more me, or larger (!) than my bridal bouquet.

The Dress – I went to no less than seven bridal salons with varied groups of my bridesmaids and best friends to try on wedding gowns – and while a number of dresses had felt pretty enough, I hadn’t had a ‘wow’ moment until I visited Bridal Galleria in San Francisco. On that day, I had pulled a few gowns to try on from the sales floor, and as I rounded a corner to take one last glance around, MY gown was hanging from a single rack directly in front of me. I swear it was bathed in magical light as I walked toward it – all gossamer ivory tulle, hand stitched lace with gilded thread, and golden glitter infused throughout the endless layers of horsehair edging. It was a strapless Lazaro ball gown with a 4 foot train and peplum waistline – and I will never forget twirling around the salon, refusing to take it off, while the other gowns I had seen hung unnoticed in the dressing room. It was everything I had ever dreamed of in a wedding dress, and when I saw tears well in Ned’s eyes as I started down the aisle on our wedding day, I knew I had chosen the right one.

Designer + Planner: Kaella Lynn Events // Photography: Jake & Necia Photography // Florist: Siren Floral Co. // Invitations and Paper Suite: Aerialist Press // Calligraphy: Brown Fox Calligraphy // Venue: Triunfo Creek Vineyards // Bridal Gown: Lazaro // Shoes: Christian Louboutin // Bridesmaids’ Gowns: Donna Morgan // Hair & Makeup: Bliss Bridal Beauty // Groom’s Attire: Bonobos // Cakes: Sweet and Saucy Shop // Dessert Bar: Delish Designs // Rentals Premiere Party Rents // Caterer: Command Performance Catering // Furniture Rentals: Found Vintage Rentals // Tabletop Rentals: Casa de Perrin // Linens: La Tavola Fine Linens // Ring Box: The Mrs. Box