A Divine Occasion: 2012

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Jeri and Eric's Wedding: Part 2

Presenting...Part 2 of Jeri and Eric's wedding! Planning two weddings at the same location for two sisters, all within a six-month time period was an incredible challenge, but we managed to pull it off with style! Speaking of style, Jeri really had a strong sense of style and wanted her wedding to be very romantic, but with 1920's glamour. She did not want anything too girlie, but strong with a touch of elegance. She wanted soft, flowering fabric and crystal to create a romantic, glowing effect. Jeri and Eric also wanted long tables to create more of a family style atmosphere. With her parents large yard, that was easy to create.

We focused on all shades of white and cream with candles, fabric and crystal and transformed the back yard into a dreamy, romantic atmosphere. We used bold tones with gold, silver and bronze and softened the look with pearls and lace. Bronze table cloths from Wildflower Linen, with an elegant lace cap allowed the lush cream and white flowers with pearls to pop! This, combined with amazing lighting from BIG Production made the backyard spectacular! Building the ceremony under a large Ficus tree with a fabric arch and crystal chandelier balls made for a dramatic setting for the ceremony and the wedding cake display during the reception.

The ceremony and reception turned out to be gorgeous and emotional! Eric's swim coach, Kris Kubik, was ordained especially for the ceremony and he took a moment to honor Eric's father, who passed away a year ago from cancer. It was a very meaningful end to a beautiful new beginning!

Wedding Planner: a Divine-Occasion
Photographer: Cean One Photography
Videographer: Mission Visual
Catering: Choura Events
Bakery: Great Dane Baking
Bar Service: La Bodega
Florist: Bliss Floral
Rentals: ANZA Party Rentals, AFR, United Site Services, BIG Production
Linens: Wildflower Linen
Stationary: Delights and Invites
Calligrapher: Gigi Moss
Entertainment: Wayne Foster Music and Entertainment
Hair and Makeup: Karen Allen Salon and Spa
Transportation: Sunset Parking Service, Gemstar Limo

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Jeri and Eric's Wedding: Part 1

Jeri and Eric met on the swim team at Auburn University when they were both freshman, where they developed a close friendship and four years later began dating. Eric is a 2008 Olympian and cancer survivor. During the summer of 2008, he achieved his dream of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Swim Team. On June 19, 2008, just one week before the trials, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Eric was able to delay surgery to compete in the Olympic Games where he swam a personal best time in the 200 meter breaststroke.

Currently, Eric trains under Dave Salo with the pro team at the University of Southern California. He spends his extra time working as a LIVESTRONG Envoy for the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and enjoying his new life with Jeri. He is an advocate for cancer awareness and travels the country giving motivational speeches to swimmers, students, business professionals, and fundraisers.

Because we did Jeri's sister, Casey and brother-in-law Brando's wedding (as seen previously on our blog), Jeri and Eric wanted something completely different since several guests would attend both weddings. Two weddings for two sisters within six months was a challenge, but we pulled it off! It was so interesting to finish Casey and Brando's wedding and then go straight into planning Jeri and Eric's wedding. Even though it was the same venue, it was a completely different look.

Stay tuned next week for Part 2 of Jeri and Eric's wedding with more beautiful photos by Cean One Photography!

Friday, June 22, 2012

Jeri & Eric's Wedding Video!

Don't miss Jeri & Eric's wedding video by Mission Visual. Stay tuned for the beautiful couple's love story and photos coming soon!

Video by Mission Visual

Thursday, June 21, 2012

We're Featured on California Wedding Day!

We're happy to announce that one of our weddings has been featured on the California Wedding Day blog! The story couldn't be more timely, as Eric, (the groom) a 2008 Olympic swimmer, is swimming this weekend to qualify for the Olympics in London! For the full story on California Wedding Day, click here.

Photo by Cean One Photography

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

A Luxurious Balboa Bay Club Wedding

Our lovely bride and groom dreamed of having a wedding by the ocean and the Balboa Bay Club was the perfect location. The staff at Balboa Bay Club is amazingly helpful and we love working with them.

The bride's sofreh aghd was the inspiration for the look of the ceremony and reception in rich and elegant gold and pearl with lots of sparkle. A sofreh aghd is a Persian tapestry made of a luxurious fabric; usually termeh which is gold, embroidered and made from cashmere and soft wool.

This color palette was pulled into the invitation design by Artiface, which were tied with pretty silk bows. The bridal bouquet by Asiel Design was classic and gorgeous in white roses and callas, stems wrapped in golden silk fabric. It looked so perfect next to the lace bridal gown designed by Oscar de la Renta.

The ceremony flowers were breathtaking in all white and placed in beautiful clear vases containing even more flowers. The pews were adorned with arrangements and flowing silk fabric, creating an elegant and luxurious feel.

Cocktail hour had a more ocean feel and was decorated with beautiful Wildflower Linen tablecloths in aqua blue in a bubble-like pattern. Asiel Design created some gorgeous floral arrangements for cocktail hour in yellow, fuchsia and orange that were reminiscent of a California sunset; and the bride surprised her groom with a very romantic gondola ride at sunset, just before cocktail hour!

The reception was romantic, elegant, rich and incredible! The centerpieces overflowed with gorgeousness and pearls were draped over the vases. The linens were white and beautifully textured and we placed candles and lovely items in gold and pearls throughout the room.

Vendors:
Wedding Planner: a Divine-Occasion
Venue: The Balboa Bay Club and Resort
Flowers: Asiel Design
Linens: Wildflower Linen
Photographer: Pepper Nix Photography
Bakery: Assal Pastry-Persian Bakery and Sweet Art
Ceremony Site: St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church
Entertainment: Chuck Wansley Band
Rentals: Chameleon Chairs
Transportation: Gemstar Limousine Service and Gondola Adventures
Videographer: Mission Visual
Invitations and Paper Goods: Artiface Custom and Distinctive Invitations and Milkfed Press

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Adrienne and Dan's Wedding Video

Check out this amazing video by Mission Visual and stay tuned to the blog for the full wedding story and lots of gorgeous photos by the very talented Michael + Anna Costa Photography, coming soon!

Santa Barbara Zoo Wedding Film - Adrienne + Dan from Mission Visual on Vimeo.
Vendors:
Videographer: Mission Visual
Wedding Planner: a Divine-Occasion
Venue: Santa Barbara Zoo
Baker: Christine Dahl Pastries
Catering: Rincon Beach Club & Catering
Photography: Michael + Anna Costa Photography
Florist: a Divine-Occasion Floral and Decor
Linens: Exclusive Importer Distributor of Fine Fabric
Beautician: Make-up by Page Berse, Hair by Shine Blow Dry Bar
Calligrapher: Calligraphy by Kathy
Entertainment: Chuck Wansley After Hours-Luna Productions
Officiant: Robert Niehaus
Stationary: Urbanic Paper Boutique

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Fusion Linens

I love working with Fusion Linens because I can always expect professionalism and quality service and products. Fusion Linens provides the highest quality standards in the linen rental business. They are a laundry and linen business, which means the care they take with their linens is top notch; often laundering their fine linens by hand to preserve the beauty and glamour for each rental.

Fusion Linens offers additional products that complement their sophisticated linen selection, but that are also suited for just about every budget. The company is responsible for every aspect of the rental operation — design, linen manufacturing, laundry, dry-cleaning and event production. They can provide table top rentals, chiavari chair rentals, fabric draping services, chair cover and sash rentals and special event labor. Enjoy these examples of a Divine-Occasions weddings where we designed receptions using beautiful Fusion Linens.

Photography by Jim Kennedy Photographers

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

a Divine-Occasion Cakes

Wedding cakes are a tradition we love to talk about and taste! Choosing the right baker and wedding cake is as important as choosing the right dress and cake design is just as much an art as fashion design. We've worked with some of the best wedding cake designers and bakers out there and have some stunning photos to share with you from some of our a Divine-Occasion weddings.

When it's time to choose the right cake for your wedding, you can start by perusing magazines and blogs to collect photos of beautiful cakes you love. Your wedding cake should reflect your personal style and of course, go with the overall look of your ceremony and reception. Once you've decided on a cake style, it's time to start visiting bakeries to see their portfolios and do some taste testing! We hope these a Divine-Occasion wedding cakes inspire you to find your perfect cake!