The Lane San Diego Wedding - Colorful Modern Wedding

High school sweethearts Jess and Ryan wanted their guests to feel joyful and connected during every part of their wedding day and knew a whimsical color palette (which also celebrated the bride’s love of all things orange!) and playful details would create such a mood. They worked with Jessica and Camille at Crowned Events and Stephanie at Velvet & Gold to channel the vibe at a modern new venue, The Lane in San Diego. Scroll through the images by Erin Marton Photography to see how it all came together!

Colorful modern wedding at The Lane in San Diego

Yellows, oranges, pinks, and pops of blue created a look that was a little Wes Anderson inspired, a little classic with a twist.

Sun Grow Floral channeled the mood with whimsical florals featuring poppies, ranunculus and roses. And how cute are our bride’s orange nails?!

Choosing Their Venue: The Lane in San Diego, CA

Bride Jessica explains, Even before picking the colors and looks, we focused on venue. We knew we wanted modern, we were open to the venue having a “vibe” or style to it already but wasn’t a deal breaker (happy to design it up to the feel we were looking for), and the ability to bring outside vendors (mainly food). We’d scoured Orange County to find a right fit, but struggled with so many venues requiring their inside food vendor. We weren’t about that—we wanted food we love to eat and that was memorable… This was a driver in us taking our time because we hadn’t found one that was “right”. Jessica at Crowned Events knew we were struggling with this decision. Being based out of San Diego, she was in the loop of the venue scene there and heard a new one was in the works. And that’s The Lane, the venue we ended up picking!

We toured it June of 2020, socially distanced of course, with the venue only partially done. We were sold by the simplicity, yet modern-ness of the space. You’re along the water, yet not in the sand. You feel the buzz of the city, yet you’re not in the middle of the chaos. Guests can stay in the building, but it wasn’t a cheesy ballroom. Just a few minutes into the walkthrough, Ryan and I looked at each other and said, “I think this is right!” And we signed the contract the following week.

The Moniker Events Team that hosts The Lane is top tier. They know what they’re doing, they have years of experience, and are communicative and flexible. This is extremely important to find when wedding planning. Without this, our day would not have been as seamless as it was.

vintage telephone guest book for wedding

Don’t you love a good voicemail guest book? (Especially with a cute pink vintage phone!) It’s one of 2023’s biggest wedding trends.

taquito appetizers for wedding cocktail hour

When dreaming up their modern colorful design, the couple prioritized good food, great music, and details that would have guests thinking, “this is so Ryan and Jessica” or help to get to know them even better.

colorful place settings and menu for wedding

Love these kitschy, colorful wedding cakes and candles to brighten up the sweets table!

Favorite Moments

Once all the logistics were done, most of the items on the timeline were wrapped, we finally got to dance and just be together with the people we love. The cake cutting was a surprisingly intimate moment, yet a good chunk of the guests watched it happen. It was fun and silly and the cakes were so cute, it’s stuck in my mind as a memory where we’d experienced all that we’d been planning and it had come together.

A little bit after this, Ryan had pulled me aside at one moment while I was rocking out to some song I can’t remember, and let me know that one of his best co-workers’ daughters, Juniper, wanted to have a dance with me. It was the sweetest thing—you would’ve thought I was the most amazing Disney princess that was gracing her with my presence. She was so excited to be there, to dance with me for a minute or two, and you could tell it brought joy to her and her parents. So many sweet moments were had between Ryan and myself, but a big priority for us was that our family and friends could have moments like that too. And that moment with little Juniper felt like that goal was achieved.

Wedding Advice

Ryan and Jessica were engaged in December 2019 and initially planned for summer 2021. But when the time came, it still felt too soon to gather confidently and safely, so they worked with their venue and vendors to push until 2022. When the time came, everyone was so at ease and excited to spend time together, they knew it was the right choice!

Jessica says, My biggest advice would be to give yourself time. There isn’t a rush to get it done, give yourself the freedom of time to plan, think creatively, gather your budget, DIY a few things, find vendors you truly love (not just because they’re convenient or in-budget). Surround yourself with supportive people that have skillsets you lack—this includes both your wedding parties, family/friends that offer to help, and your vendors. The more time you take to plan effectively and curate a team of experienced, competent, and understanding of your vision people, the less hands-on you will have to be the day-of. Which is truly the goal—for you to experience your wedding, have new meaningful moments with your partner and your guests, and leave the day with positive memories (not having been frustrated about the place settings or the DJ not showing up on time or the photographer missing the cake cutting).