Christina & Rei’s wedding!!!

Last weekend, I had the honor of coordinating Christina & Rei’s wedding at The Athenaeum. The venue itself is a gorgeous testament to architecture. But fill it with love, laughter, friends, and family, the venue shined ever more brightly. Thank you Jay and Peggy from Jay Tsai Photography for capturing these shining moments. Christina and Rei are really a match made in heaven.

Beautiful shot of the rings in the folds of Christina’s gorgeous Paloma Blanca wedding dress

Family and friends looked on as Christina finished her makeup

This is why I love this girl! As Christina’s heading down the archway for their ‘first look,’ she throws out the ‘piece sign.’ I love how happy and excited she was!



One of my favorite shots from Christina’s portrait session. It looks like a framed picture ready to go on the wall.

Another amazing shot from the couple’s portrait session around the campus.

My FAVORITE picture of the day! This really captures the spunk and fun-loving nature of this wedding. Christina with her sister Amanda the MOH and Rei with his brother Joe who is the Best Man.

These beautiful manzanita trees were at the top of the steps creating a beautiful backdrop to the ceremony. Eddie really outdid himself this time!

The table were dressed in champagne linens and chocolate brown napkins. Each place setting adorn with menus made by the bride (on her Gocco no less!) and a cookie favor packaged in yellow with gold thread. The breathtaking centerpieces were the creation of Eddie from Commerce Flowers.

Christina and Rei practiced their first dance which was a fox trot to ‘The way you look tonight’ by Frank Sinatra.

The day was filled with touching moments. One that stood out especially in my mind was the BM and MOH toasts ~ funny but still brought tears to your eyes, the best kind!!

Jay captured this tender moment amiss the partying going around them.

I know Christina and Rei are going to have a wonderful life together. They just complement each other so well! They have the love and support of amazing family and friends and I feel so blessed to have been there to witness their love and happiness. They’re currently on their FIVE week honeymoon in Italy and Greece! I know! FIVE WEEKS! I already asked if they could pack me in their bags…sadly, it was a no. For more pictures and an amazing slideshow, visit Jay’s blog.

A beautiful day at the Villa…

This past Saturday…Briana & David got married at the beautiful Villa Del Sol D’Oro. It was a beautiful day full of love and laughter. The weather cooperated by staying sunny and breezy. We had an amazing team working along side us. Everything was perfection. Briana was GORGEOUS and David…not too shabby either. I ’stole’ the following images from their awesome photographer Marlin Munoz ~ go to his blog to view more!

Gorgeous shot of Briana’s shoe

The bird cage veil was for pre-ceremony pictures

The bridal suite had these vivid blue walls

Briana and her girls ~ I have to say, Briana’s MOH Rachel is the BEST!

The dashing groom and groomsmen

Briana is full of spunk and laughs

The bride’s bouquet was luscious ~ soft full peonies with orchids and green coffee berries

This looks like a magazine shot ~ one of my favorites of the day (who am I kidding, all the shots are amazing!)

Tender moment between father and daughter

The string of crystal and orchids swayed lightly in the wind – courtesy of great needle work by Michelle Brue

The mood in this picture can not be expressed ~ so soft, so romantic

After the sun set, the villa came alive with all the twinkling lights

It was a wedding filled with love, laughter, and happiness. I know Briana and David have a bright and beautiful future ahead of them.

My last wedding of 2007

Another excuse for not blogging (really) was because I was doing my job! Very funny, I know. =) My last wedding for 2007 ~cutting it close~ was Ing & David’s nuptial on the 29th. They had a beautiful ceremony and lunch reception at the famous prime rib restaurant Lawry’s Beverly Hills. 

The beautiful flowers were the creation of Bernie from Creative Floral Designs.

With Lawry’s Christmas decoration in full force, the bride opted for simple and elegant red roses and green hydrangeas. Here’s the sweet heart table ~ still missing it’s center arrangement.

The delicious cake was from Rosebud Cakes.

Beautiful candy roses and silver beads adorn the cake.

The bride being avid reader presented her guests with wooden leaf bookmarks.

Centerpieces and table number

Sign in table 

Ceremony took place in front of the mantle. The wedding was officiated by the groom’s childhood pastor (the pastor’s wife went to high school with the groom’s mother!). The ceremony was so personal and touching. Instead of the unity candle, the couple did a water ceremony ~ when the two clear liquid combined, the combined water burst into this vibrant fuchsia ~ such a surprise for the guests!

And here’s the bride right before she started down the aisle

My pictures didn’t turn out very well due to the dimness. Hopefully I’ll get the professional pictures from the photographers and will post the better pictures then. I wish Ing and David the best life has to offer. I really enjoy getting to know the couple and their families (the groom’s parents were ‘prom dates!). Have fun in Indonesia!

Ing & David

I don’ think I ever met a nicer couple. Ing is an accountant and currently going to school to be a pastry chef at the well-known California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena. How amazing is that?! She’s very sweet and soft spoken. During our initial meeting, I think David (the groom) talked more about what they wanted for their wedding! =) It’s always a nice surprise when a groom decides to meet during the beginning. Usually, I meet the groom late in the game ~ at rehearsal. So coming to the coordinator meeting with his sweet fiancée already says a lot about David. He’s very outgoing and direct, almost the opposite of Ing. But like I always said, opposites attract, Ing and David balance each other out making them a perfect couple. I can’t wait to work with them on their wedding!

Nita & Nat’s Wedding (part one)

I’m sure I’ll be getting much prettier pictures from Nita’s professional photog Michael Norwood. But for now, you guys are stuck with what hubs was able to snap. =)

The day started off with a traditional Thai ceremony where three monks blessed Nita & Nat for a long and happy marriage. Then it was off to the Cerritos Sheraton where the girls got beautify by the famous Sherry of On Location Beauty. After making sure the girls are settled, I dashed off to Los Coyotes Country Club to make sure everything is going according to plan.

The floral design by Lindy at Commerce Flowers was fantastic. Lindy really prefected Nita’s vision of pink fantasy. The arch was breathtaking and the centerpieces were ginormous! During reception, I had guests from the country club peaking in and asked if those balls of flowers were real! =)

Brady from Propsfx came early with his crew to set up the lighting. We had floodlights around the ballroom, intelligent lights, party lights, custom gobo, and 4-6 lights outside in the terrace. Everything looked amazing! The intelligent lights were glittering and shimmering on the ceiling during dinner and once the party got started, it was glazing the dance floor creating a very loungy feel. And the lighting outside on the terrace extended the ballroom.

Nita and Nat’s wedding was very touching. From their ‘first look’ where Nat pulled out tissue when Nita started tearing, to their very sweet personalized vows, to the Best man and Maid of Honor serenading the couple during their toasts, their wedding couldn’t have been more prefect. I am so honored to be a part of their day.

Here are the flowers getting delivered

They were huge!

Nita wanted shades of pink ~ blush, pink, fuchsia

White orchids with pink center decorated the cylinders

Isn’t this arch amazing?! Lindy specially ordered the fabric to match

Nita’s DIY fan programs

Gift table decoration – orchids tucked behind green pebbles and ribbon wrapped votives. Also a generous sprinkle of petals.

Good picture of the centerpieces completed. Notice Nita’s DIY table number and once again, ribbon wrapped votives. All that’s left to finish the table was petals.

To create a different vibe during cocktail, Nita opted for lime green table linen. The table was decorated with green ribbon wrapped votives and personalized coasters & napkins.

DIY placecards ~ green for filet mignon, pink for halibut, and white for vegetarian.

Toss bouquet ~ still missing the cake. Vera Wang cake cutting set and Waterford toasting flutes.

Nita and her fabulous bridesmaid (and a few groomsmen) wrapped the candy apple two nights prior.

Beautiful branch display greeted the guests as they entered.

Here’s the cake! Decorated with ribbon and brooches.

This is how the room looked with the lighting. See the shimmering lights on the ceiling? You can also see the flood lights outside on the terrace through the windows.

The arch was moved inside behind the sweetheart table. It was a perfect backdrop to take pictures.

All of Nita’s vendors were top notch. Michael from MNorwood photography presented a slideshow on his Mac towards the end of the evening. It was amazing to see photos from your wedding during your wedding! And the photos were already touched up! Another neat idea of Michael’s was to present his couples with an engraved video iPod filled with pictures they can take with them on their honeymoon. Amazing!
And not to be outdone, Dirk from Studio West stayed late to finish the ’same day edit’ as a surprise to the wedding couple. Nita & Nat were amazed and all the guests were treated to glimpse of the video taped from earlier in the day. Dirk…you’re the BOMB! Here’s the link to Dirk’s blog to view the video.

Nita and Nat, I wish you two the best life has to offer. You two are the best!

O Happy day!

We have a wedding today! Weddings always make me happy. I love everything about weddings. Yamashiro…here we come!

It’s funny I was never the little girl who knew exactly how she wanted her wedding. I assume I would want a big white dress but that’s about as far as I got in imagining. I thought more about the actual proposal. I used to drive from downtown LA to Westwood on the 10 fwy. Right b/f you get on the 405 by National, there’s a huge billboard to the right of the freeway, almost eye level. I use to think how cute it would be for a guy to propose to his gf on the billboard. Or maybe in a hot air balloon overlooking green valleys. Or in Paris with the Eiffel Tower in the background. I LOVE Paris. Let’s just say my proposal didn’t really go that way. Maybe I’ll share how it actually happened sometimes in the future. I love my hubs to death and know he had every good intention, but he’s not the one for surprises. He can never hold on to a gift too long. Almost every present he ever got me was ripped open the day it was bought. He’s a BIG kid…and that’s why I love him. =)

I’ve always been a planner. Every trip (3 days to 3 weeks) I have to plan. I feel you get the most out of the trip that way. I’ll read up on the history, the economy, sometimes even about the real estate (hubs love looking at houses). I’ll then list all the activities and sites per city. Narrow down to stuff we HAVE to due vs. stuff we can do. Cities are broken down into packages of how to get from the airport to the hotel, hotel contact info, how to get from city to city, all the activities, sites, restaurants, etc. With the amount of people asking for my BIG binder, I should sell my vacation itineraries! =)

So when planning the wedding came along…I was in my prime. I went from marrying in a castle in Scotland, to a mansion in England, to my favorite city in France, to a villa in Italy, and finally Stone Manor in Malibu. I’m slightly disappointed I didn’t have my destination wedding, but I still LOVE my wedding. It was different from the usual hotel ballroom, all our friends and family were there to share the day with us, we had good food, good drinks and it was the best day of my life. And even though planning can be stressful (all those DETAILS) but it was also a part of my life I’ll never forget. And I want that experience for all the brides out there…to enjoy the planning process and years from now, think back with fond memories.

Here’s the castle in Scotland…maybe we can renew our vows there in 10 years…

I can’t describe how being a wedding coordinator makes me sooo happy. It’s instant gratification (well, almost instant after a year of planning). I feel honor to be a part of something so monumental. People at their best! All the love and emotions floating through the air, it’s almost tangible. And to see the hard work we put in through the year come to reality. Nothing feels as good as the expression on a brides’ face or a family member thanking you profusely. It humbles me and makes me want to do better.