It’s okay not to start with the budget…
Almost every wedding planning 101 advice I came across said that the first thing to do was sit down and figure out what your budget is/ who is willing to pay for what. While this may be true for some people, it didn’t really make sense to me. Of course having some idea of how much you have to spend is wise, but instead of starting with some magic number and making all of our choices add up to it, we spent a lot of time up front figuring out what things actually cost in San Francisco and then deciding what was most important to us and prioritizing from there. I’m so blessed to have incredibly supportive parents who made all my weddings dreams a reality. Zach and I knew we wanted a modern, sleek (but also inviting) event space and really delicious food – so our venue/caterer and event design were top priorities. I also (obviously) felt strongly about finding a dress that was perfect for me. Everything else just fell into place from there…
It’s okay not to like whats trendy/traditional…
I did most of my wedding research via the internet since we were planning from across the country (on that note, don’t waste too much money on wedding magazines, its much easier to save/organize inspiration online). It seemed like almost all of the weddings I found on popular wedding blogs and websites were NOT my style at all. Everything vintage/rustic/”barn chic”/DIY was very trendy while I was planning my wedding and it was all the opposite of what I wanted. Luckily, our event designer Nancy Liu Chin was beyond amazing – she did not hesitate for even a second when we first sat down and I basically told her, I want something stunning but I don’t really like anything (including roses, peonies, dahlias, daisies, sunflowers, romantic fluffy flowers, garden variety, greenery, anything rustic/country, too trendy, feminine, whimsical/fun, vintage, eclectic, traditional or “typical wedding”). I could not be happier with how things turned out – but more on that later! Departing from tradition, we didn’t include wedding traditions like the bouquet/ garter toss and we opted not to have a huge bridal party – just a Matron of Honor and Best Man – I loved that it made the ceremony more intimate and special and planning was a breeze!
It’s okay not to have a “moment” when you find the dress…
I’ve seen just about every episode of Say Yes to the Dress at least twice and while I was initially really excited to go shopping for my own dress, pre-shopping online was pretty disappointing. I spent hours looking at what seemed like every possible wedding dress and I didn’t think any of them would be “the one.” Regardless, it took me just 2 shopping trips to find the dress – the first time I went to Hannelore’s with Christen and basically tried on every shape of dress giving the bridal consultant only 2 requirements – no lace and must have sparkle. We didn’t find the dress that day, but I did leave with a better sense of what the dress would look like. The second trip I went with my sister to Carine’s for a Monique Lhuillier trunk show and worked with the sweetest consultant Gabriella. I knew I wanted a strapless, corset top with sweetheart neckline, a full skirt and of course, sparkle. I tried on a couple of dresses before finding “the one” but I didn’t really know it was going to be the one until I tried on a few more. I ended up putting the dress back on because I liked it more than anything else I had seen/tried on – Gabriella asked what I liked about it (I said everything) and what was missing (I said maybe a little more sparkle?) – and so we added a crystal belt and confirmed with the Monique Lhuillier representative that we could make some alterations to the corset top. I didn’t have a “moment” – in fact, I was actually focused on trying to find something wrong with it instead of how perfect it was – I actually left the appointment without committing to the dress, but as soon as I got in the car (and couldn’t stop thinking about it), I knew it was really the one.
I’m working on complete reviews for all of our vendors as well as a full wedding recap, but in the meantime a special thanks to a few people who made our day a truly wonderfelle experience…
Reception Venue: St. Regis San Francisco – Barry Peterson, Director of Catering for going above and beyond to make our experience at the St. Regis all we wanted (and more!)
Event and Floral Design: Nancy Liu Chin Design for making our vision come to life in the most perfect way
Wedding Coordinator: Christopher Lee of Leftwich Events for keeping me sane and making sure we didn’t have to worry about a thing!
Hair/Makeup Stylist: Erica Carr for ensuring we looked our best all weekend
Photography: Michael Muramoto for capturing our special day
