California garden wedding | Spring wedding

Good morning, beautiful bouquet! It’s always nice to have weddings from industry folks pop up in the 100LC inboxes because you get a different perspective on planning the day. For Nicole of Nicole George Event Planning & Design + her guy Oscar, they knew right away they wanted to throw an awesome party, keep it intimate, and of course, enlist to Swann Soirees coordinate. And, having worked with Kim of Chaz Cruz Photography in the past, choosing a photog was a no-brainer too.

When it was finally time for Oscar and my wedding, we knew that we wanted to host a killer party full of meaningful details that were special and unique to us. Coming from Long Beach, we are far from traditional and live pretty easy-going lifestyles. We wanted to reflect that by keeping our guest count intimate with close family and friends, have an eclectic mix of music from oldies to old school rap, eat our favorite foods (sushi, ramen, and Mexican of course!), customized craft cocktails (we had a cocktail tasting with our cocktailer to determine our favorites!), and most importantly, atmosphere is everything!

We chose the Darlington House in La Jolla for its privacy and exposed brick courtyard, balancing the masculinity and femininity of our day. We settled on a cocktail reception with various lounges to create a relaxed atmosphere for guests to mingle and cozy up. As a wedding designer, I created a lot of the décor such as the dream catchers and signage, but kept it minimal. We are definitely a less is more kind of couple!

Love the bride’s Tara Keeley gown from Mia Bella Couture.

Wedding Music
Ceremony Processional: Just like Heaven, The Cure
Bridal Processional: Love you Till the End, The Pogues
Ceremony Recessional: California Love, Tupac
Grand Entrance: Sky Full of Stars, Coldplay
First Dance: Grow Old with You, Adam Sandler

The bouquet had dahlias, garden roses, and eucalyptus, which translated into this cascading table garland.

If I had to choose a favorite memory, it would be all of the special one-on-one moments that were created throughout the day—first look with my dad, pre-ceremony huddle with my bridesmaids, first look, our time at the sweetheart table during time where we could reflect with each other… All were very intimate and meaningful! Our first dance stands out, however, as the most emotional and intimate of them all. I don’t even remember anyone else being there. We danced to Adam Sandler’s “Grow Old with You.”