If anyone’s an expert in drawing from a lifetime of inspiration to curate a cohesive aesthetic, it’s gotta be an interior designer. Weddings + interiors both rely on many sources of inspo, so it takes a real talent (and healthy dose of organization!) to successfully combine so many elements. Interior designer Elle + her guy Eliav were inspired by everything from modern decor to Japanese design to tropical getaways and their venue Millwick itself, which is why we’re extra impressed by how it all came together. And while they had a super strong aesthetic, they knew they needed someone to help pull it altogether. Mein Schatz Events was behind the groom’s sister’s wedding planned in just five weeks (remember?!), so they knew who to call.
PS: After perusing all the images Hannah Costello shared, be sure to click over to this post for a peek at Elle’s moodboards and design process throughout their year of planning!
Elle wore the sleek, modern Victoria gown from Fame & Partners for the ceremony.
Naturally, the first way Elle used her design chops was with the modern terrazzo-inspired invitations.
The bride tells it, We wanted to create an experience to immerse our guests in an idyllic oasis. I designed a tropical bohemian aesthetic inspired by our love of Japanese design. Simplistic lines and vivid colors reflected the south pacific or a Gauguin-esque painting. I never specifically selected wedding colors, the palette sort of came together organically. A mix of blush, rust, tangerine, plum and gold hues gave a feeling glowing warmth and set the mood. I really wanted the wedding to feel casual and a bit resort-like so the blend of these colors and styles felt perfect for late summer in LA.
Love these geode escort cards!
I love that Millwick feels like a hidden oasis in the middle of downtown LA. The entrance is a parking lot in a warehouse district. As you step through the doorway, you are transported to a lush and elegant garden contributing to the “vacation escape” we wanted to create. The indoor and outdoor spaces meant we could create multiple experiences throughout the night. Our ceremony and cocktails were outside and the seated dinner inside, providing opportunities for the guests to come together in different settings. The most compelling thing about Millwick is all the incredible greenery which already set the stage. For me, there is no better decoration than the natural living beauty of plants!
Fun detail: Eliav used his talent for creating circuit boards to make custom circuit coasters for the place settings.
And they sourced the Terrazzo tile from one of Ellie’s favorite vendors, Concrete Collaborative. See more on how her interior design background influenced their wedding in this post!
We omitted a few standard wedding traditions. For example, we saw each other before the ceremony, I didn’t throw my bouquet, both my parents walked me down the aisle and my bridesmaids wore their own dresses. A few unique elements we had were our whiskey and cigar bar hand selected during our recent trip to Japan and since Eliav is an international award winning laser designer, we had a laser light show during the reception!
These two also made their own chuppah from copper pipe, that Eliav cut and soldered and they assembled in their driveway before the big day.
Elle loved that Hannah Costello‘s wedding photos were moment driven rather than posed, as evidenced by her work on insta.
The bridal bouquet from Ly of Foxglove LA included white king protea, blush and tangerine orchids, light pink and green anthurium, buttercup ranunculus and ferns and bottle brush for greenery.
Cakies, be sure to pop into our inspiration gallery for more from this modern jewel toned wedding:
We spent about a year planning. Our biggest hurdle was simply keeping on track with the to-do list. In the beginning, we tried to schedule out the planning in a phased approach to accomplish one element at a time. One month we chose the venue, one month catering, one month music, but, of course, in the end it all bottlenecked as the wedding was fast approaching. Having our coordinators help at the end to bounce design ideas off of, and help tie up loose ends was invaluable. Similar to my approach for designing interiors, throughout the process I kept a running moodboard of the design elements I could add and modify to keep the aesthetic consistent. Eliav and I also kept very detailed spreadsheet on Google docs, so we could both update the budget, add links to vendor quotes and build the guest list. Planning a wedding can be really stressful and making sure both the bride and groom get the outcome they envision is a lesson in balance and compromise. A good tip we got from Eliav’s brother was before the planning started, each of us wrote down our top 3 priorities for the wedding and we used those as the guide for planning the day. Mine were good food, good music and a stunning venue. Eliav’s were good food, good bar/libations and lasers.
Congrats, E + E! As promised, we’ve got more on Elle’s design process (moodboards ‘n all!!) over in this post. Enjoy!
Photography: Hannah Costello / Venue: Millwick in Los Angeles, CA / Planning, Design, & Invitations: Mein Schatz Events & Bride, Elle Gound / Florist: Foxglove LA / Cake: Hansen’s Cakes / Catering: Little Nelly / Terrazzo Tiles: Concrete Collaborative / Rentals: borrowed BLU, Found Rentals, & Pico Party / Bar: Mr Bartender / DJ: Dart Collective / Ceremony Wedding Dress: Fame & Partners / Ceremony Shoes: Pour La Victoire / Reception Dress: Ulla Johnson / Shoes: Doen / Groom’s Suit: Suit Supply / Tie: Ted Baker
