Vintage Wedding at Walnut Grove
Our next wedding is a real treat! A member of our very own vendor guide, Marisa Nicole Weddings & Events, tied the knot with Tim, a photographer/cinematographer, in a gorgeous outdoor wedding. With both the bride and groom working in the wedding industry, you know it's going to be an amazing wedding! Using a bold color palette of blue, mustard, grey and red, this couple filled their wedding with tons of vintage decor, DIY projects and family mementos that made their special day one to remember.
Continue reading to hear so much more from Marisa about the details of their wedding day, including their budget breakdown and things they would have done differently. Don't miss a single detail of this vintage wedding at Walnut Grove by visiting the full gallery here, all magnificently captured by Becca Rillo Photography.
From the Bride (Marisa Nicole Weddings & Events):From the beginning Tim and I wanted our wedding to precisely reflect who we are, tell our story and for everyone to have a rad time. Tim is super nostalgic for the ‘good old days’ and I love designing all things vintage, so we knew the whole thing had to have an vintage/art deco and rustic feel.
Tim and I are both proud Italian and it was important to us that we give a nod to our heritage throughout the party. Unfortunately, all the New Yorkers weren’t able to make the long trip to LA. To keep my family close, we tethered my grandmother’s engagement ring to my bouquet for my walk down the aisle. We also stole all the old photos from our grandparents and parents that we could get our hands on to have an homage to our ancestors by the lit fireplace.
For our color palette we choose estate blue, mustard yellow, grey and pops of ruby red. These colors came to life through our flowers along with our signage, linens and fashion. I wanted to juxtapose mostly dry/rough/sharp textures with super soft/lush petals. Enchanted Garden brought my ideas to life and took it to the next level by adding flowers that I had never even heard of. As part of the gift to my ladies, I gave them each a unique mustard/gold art deco headband to adorn at the wedding.
With Tim being a photographer/cinematographer and my background in theater we decided to go toward a ‘glory days of Hollywood/old theatre glam’ theme. We worked to bring these motifs into the life of our wedding by having all our signage and printed materials use theater and cinema jargon (designed by one of my amazing bridesmaids). We said our vows to the backdrop of a tasseled red velvet curtain.
We really wanted the whole party to be crazy fun for the two of us, our bridal party and all our guests. Music was a huge part of that. Our guests arrived to the ceremony with the backdrop of the blues. Our whole processional was to instrumental versions of modern songs (our parents walked into ‘Sweet Child of Mine’ and had no idea!).
Tim stole photos of each of our guests off the web, edited them to have a retro look and then we strung them up to an old door. People found their table by finding their photo! Each of our guest tables was named after a play or movie that was near and dear to our hearts.
Our wedding was at the Walnut Grove at Tierra Rejada Ranch. I came to this venue with one of my clients looking for her ideal wedding location. From the moment I stepped out of the car, I knew this ranch was where Tim and I would tie the knot. All the natural beauty of the corn fields, bistro lit brick patio, fireplace and plethora of lush walnut and apricot trees made it the perfect spot to celebrate our love with our friends and family.
A weathered dictionary served as our guest book: we had guests ‘reference’ their love for us by choosing a word of well wishes and signing their name… people said the funniest things!
One of my personal favorite details of the day was our two wooden love-birds atop our cake. We put together burlap sacks, filled with walnuts and brought together with a cute tag, as our favor.
We scoured LA flee-markets and antique shops to gather vintage wine, beer and apothecary bottles to house our flowers. We went crazy with old camera, frames, and lanterns galore to fill in each and every delightful corner of the venue.
One of my personal favorite details of the day was our two wooden love-birds atop our cake. Another project I took on to give the tables a hint of theater lighting was creating differing sized DIY mercury glass and filled them with candles to make the place glow!
We all danced the night away, and for those who aren’t fond of frolicking, we had a photo-booth and s’mores for all to enjoy.
We ended the evening with an Italian tradition, fleeing the scene of our wedding through a sea of twirling napkins. I’ve always loved the old-school wedding getaway car, so we turned my little versa into our own ‘just married’ honeymoon vehicle with tin cans and everything. I’m happy to say that it was seriously the most fun, most fabulous day of our lives, everyone had a great time and Tim and I wish could relive every second of it!
Get a closer look at this vintage wedding by watching the wedding video from the ever so talented Andrew James Abajian below.
https://vimeo.com/69341942
Read on to see hear from Marisa about the budget for their vintage wedding at Walnut Grove and to find out what she would have done differently. Please note that costs change as the years go by, and prices are subject to change. This is just one couple’s breakdown to give you a rough estimate on how much a wedding like this may cost you.
On the Budget:Our budget is actually a tricky thing to share with you. To be honest with you, as a wedding planner, I pulled every string I could to have an awesome wedding that didn't cost a ton. We actually spent only about $27-28K because of all the favors our fabulous vendors were so kind to do for us. However, when taking the value of the services that people did for us in mind, the benefit of being a wedding planner and knowing all the tricks on where to cut corners with a budget and how to DIY the heck out of things, it was more like a $35-40K budget wedding. I would share the breakdown with you, but because our vendors really bent over backwards to help us out, I think it would be a disservice to those vendors to share how little we actually spend in certain areas.What the Bride would have changed:I think the items I would have changed are all things that were out of my control. There are a lot of things we wanted, but just couldn't have due to our budget (like expensive tables & chairs, chandeliers hanging everywhere, 3 dresses, a 10 piece jazz band - I know this is something every couple deals with!). For me, I just wish I just would have had more time. We spend so much time tearing it up on the dance floor, that we barely had a chance to go crazy in the photo-booth or stuff our faces with s'mores.
What Tim would have changed you ask? I think he wishes that he would have remembered to go back and get a piece of cake after the traditional cake cutting. I mean it was good cake, and he often mentions that the only cake he had all night was the morsel that actually when into his mouth when I smashed a piece in his face... so fellas, remember to go back for cake so you don't miss out!
View All Images
- Rentals: La Tavola Fine Linen
- Bridesmaid Dresses: The Dessy Group
- Cakes & Catering: Skiff's Cakes
- Chalkboard Signs & Paperware: Paper + Ink
- Cinematography: Andrew James Abajian
- DJ: All Professional Sounds
- Event Designer & Coordinator: Marisa Nicole Weddings & Events
- Flowers: Enchanted Garden Floral Design
- Hair, Makeup & Beauty: Kat Laskey
- Prop or Furniture Rentals: Happy Chuppah
- Rentals: Command Performance Catering
- Stationery: Cori Cook Floral Design
- Veil or Hair Accessories: Brass Lotus
- Venue: Walnut Grove
- Wedding Dresses: Nicole Miller