Chris and Julia contacted two2wed after their initial idea for a summer
wedding was moved up six months to January. The groom’s mother suggested us
to the couple, and our services and direction came into the equation in mid-October
of 2012. Both Chris & Julia were certain that they wanted a “country-themed”
ceremony and reception and after putting in their deposit for The Newland Barn in Huntington Beach, CA they were
well on their way.
Their ceremony was held at the gazebo on the lawn and their reception was
served both inside The Newland Barn and outside on the far lawn behind the water
tower and on the patio. Inside the barn was a blank canvas for us to work with
(as long as we left no nail holes or damage to the walls…hello 3M taped wall
hooks!) and we transformed that rec-room style venue into a shabby chic design
worthy of any cottage magazine. Burlap wrapped twinkle lights, tea candles on
the tables, tea stained lace curtains draped over the windows, and two small
lamps in opposite corners of the room allowed for soft lighting inside the
barn… and kept those intense overhead florescent lights off for the duration
of the receptions’ festivities. Outside large lights were strung from the water
tower to the patio and provided enough mood lighting for everyone to be able to
see who they were talking to and what they were eating, without requiring us to
turn on the outdoor flood lights. As an added touch the mothers of the Bride
and Groom decided they wanted to dress up the restrooms as well, and burlap
skirts were attached under the sinks, floral artwork was hung from the walls, soft
scented air diffusers were added, and of course what country wedding is
complete without some mason jars with the Bride’s favorite flowers of yellow
aster, daisies, and bright green button pom floral arrangements to liven up the restrooms.
For the floral arrangements we followed the Bride’s requests and obliged
her color choices and her personal favorites to create beautiful bouquets &
vibrant centerpieces. As a treat I took the Bride’s mother up to the LA Flower Mart with me, and for under $300 we were
able to make: one bridal bouquet and toss bouquet, x3 bridemaids bouquets,
petals for x2 flower girl baskets, x2 wrist corsages- one for each of the mothers of the
bride & groom, x7 boutonnieres, and all the centerpieces & table
arrangements. Julia also wanted smaller,
uniformed bouquets in mason jars hanging from the aisles at the ceremony. So we
created 28 arrangements that consisted of white daisies, white chrysanthemums,
yellow aster, yellow button poms, and small white bunches of daisy mums to line
the fourteen rows of chairs that created the aisle. Following the ceremony
these mason jar arrangements were hung from the posts on the gate to add
a little beauty & character.
The table centerpieces & arrangements on
the cocktail & gift tables also included the yellow aster, bright green
button poms, & white chrysanthemums, but also had two-toned pink roses,
peach roses, red hypercum berries, wax flower, mini sunflowers, peach mini
carnations, small bulb baby’s breath, and purple & white statice flowers.
We made 17 table centerpieces and 5 large arrangements for the food/gift
tables. We also created the two tall/ full arrangements seen on the sides of
the gazebo in the hanging mailbox style buckets and also the small arrangements
in the mason jar sign attached to the overhead beam of the gazebo for the
ceremony.
When it came to getting all reception vendors for the day on the same
page, an effective communication tool I used, and especially most DJs I have worked with consider
it a nice courtesy, is to always print out a schedule of need to know
information that includes the entire Bridal party broken down by name and
position (mother of the bride, best man, flower girls, etc), a working time
frame of when the Bride and Groom have decided to execute their reception
activities, and and a list of every vendor by name and their employee's names working the event- if possible. Mike “Gonzo” Gonzales was the DJ
at the Metz event and commented that in the almost 10 years he has been working
wedding receptions, two2wed was the first coordinating business to provide him
a list like that.
For the reception Stone-Fire Grill catered BBQ chicken, tri-tip steak,
garlic mashed potatoes, mac-n-cheese, two types of pasta, a mixed green salad,
and dinner rolls. It was the perfect food pairing for this country wedding…and
delicious! In addition to the wonderful food, the catering service also included three
servers for the event (determined based on the number of guests) who set up,
served, and boxed up all the leftovers. I will definitely recommend Stone-Fire
Grill in the future for any barbeque loving couple!
The cake was purchased from French’s Bakery in Costa Mesa. This bakery
produces beautiful cakes with many flavor and filling options. They have a
great assortment of styles and tiers to choose from; and above all else, they
deliver to your site at the time you designate. What I really like about this
bakery is that a full wedding cake can be completed if ordered in less than
seven days from the event. Although not recommended!
Day of coordination for this
event included ceremony direction, site contact for all deliveries: which included
tables, chairs, linens, and heaters from Apex (as well as layout & set up),
Stone-Fire Grill set up & direction, wedding cake delivery & set up
from French’s Bakery, presentation of the self-serve cocktail hour buffet table with food trays, floral arrangements, and adding drinks/ice into galvanized tins; as well as
establishing communication and time frames for the reception events with the DJ.
Other contacts throughout the day included timely arrival of the Pastor, set up
and direction of the pianist for the ceremony, designating & reserved
seating for the ceremony singer and couple who delivered the Bride to the
ceremony, and point person for the photographer and her assistant. In addition
to the above mentioned, prior to the ceremony starting I ensured that all
tables were set, the gazebo had all the specified décor up, the guestbook table
and programs were in their assigned place, delegated hot beverage and
kitchen/bar set up, and ensured all areas were clean and clear of clutter.
During the ceremony I directed the procession and set up the cocktail hour food
and drinks, instructed assistants on tasks to perform as soon as cocktail hour
began, and ensured the house was ready for photos as soon as the ceremony
ended. During the reception I had assistance running the bar, refilling drinks
& ice in galvanized tins, preparing and handing out toast glasses,
conducted clean up as each activity of the reception ended, and most
importantly checked on my Bride and Groom throughout the night to make sure
they knew what was happening next, answered any questions, and confirmed that the
evening was going to their specifications.
It was truly a privilege and
honor to work with this creative and loving family to help produce a flawless
dream day for Chris & Julia. The best compliments two2wed received from the day
came from Bride & Groom. The first came from the Groom during set up when
another couple came by to see the venue for consideration for their own wedding. Chris’ first suggestion was “talk to her
(pointing at me, Bethany), she made all of this happen”. The second one came towards the
end of the evening when the Bride came up to me, hugged me and gave me a big
kiss on the cheek and exclaimed “Thank you Bethany! None of this could have
happened without you”. Based on those responses I think it’s safe to say
that two2wed has accomplished another successful event, and sent another happy
Bride and Groom on their way to the start of their “happily ever after”……
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