Hello, most glorious tree to ever adorn a wedding. Isn’t it otherworldly? But even so, we can’t exactly choose a favorite detail from the photos Gary Ashley captured of Arlene + Mark’s day at the Ambassador Mansion and Gardens in Pasadena, CA. We’re talking a grand floral + eucalyptus adorned staircase, a macaron tower, and nods to their Thai heritage sprinkled throughout…
Eeee! These are some blooms… Crystal of Heirloom Design House chose a variety of seasonal blooms including peonies, tulips, garden roses, ranunculus, pincushion protea, blushing bride protea, silver brunia and astrantia. She also mixed in some darker foliage, like the cotinus and agonis with the other greens to deepen the contrast with the colorful blooms.
Arlene tells it, We looked at a few photographers with styles we liked and what was most important was meeting them and feeling comfortable and connected with them since we knew we had to be comfortable in front of the camera. Gary is pretty much the nicest and coolest guy you will ever meet and we immediately knew we wanted to work with him. Every moment just came naturally.
Aisle song: OK GO’s Last Leaf (their rings are engraved with the lyrics forever it’ll be)
1st dance: A mashup version of Taylor Swift’s Blank Space, ending with Stand By Me
Their ceremony was on a bridge in the middle of a fountain, so they could be surrounded in a circle by guests who all got a great view. Then the reception had both indoor and outdoor seating, and everything felt grand yet intimate for their crowd of 135.
Final words from Arlene… Overall it was a really fun experience for us because we both were very involved together. I think what helped most was setting the expectations all up front. (Budget, what was important for each of us so we could compromise or make sure we both had a say in those areas, also areas where we were comfortable letting the other person just run with and make the decisions on.) Luckily we have similar design taste and wanted the same things in terms of what we imagined for the special day. We also were very lucky to have met Tory and her team at Smith James Events. She really helped guide us through the process and made it really enjoyable.
Cheers to the happy couple!
Photographer: Gary Ashley with the Wedding Artists Collective / Videographer: Atomic Tangerine / Venue & Catering: Ambassador Mansion and Gardens / Planning + Design: Smith + James Events / Floral Design: Heirloom Design House / Hair & Makeup: studio mm&b / Paper Goods: Monolith Design Collective / Cake: Danielle Keene at Sheila Mae / Popsicles: Sipeletas / Macarons: Yongmin Kim at YK Pastry / Band: Night Owl Productions / Bride’s Dress & Veil: Custom from Shin bu Bridal in LA / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Bracelets: Bride & Groom’s moms / Rings: Vincent’s Jewelry / Groom’s Suit: Theory / Shoes: Gucci / Groomsmen Suits: The Black Tux
