Elaine and Jeff married on Valentine’s Day at Mission Inn Resort, and the day could not have been more romantic! The theme of Elaine and Jeff’s wedding was “A Journey of Love,” an idea that came from the couple’s love of travel and their adventures together. We love the way that this theme was carried through each aspect of this special day, from the decor to the food and drink. Rhodes Studios took so many beautiful photos that we had trouble choosing which ones to feature here!
Elaine and Jeff had the most personal wedding of any we’ve ever seen! Every single element of their paper goods – from the invitation to table numbers to signage – carried a personal and meaningful story from their “journey of love.” They met as coworkers, and as their relationship grew, their time was dotted with trips throughout the US, most notably to Vegas, Hawaii, and finally Alaska, where Jeff proposed to Elaine atop a glacier.
We loved that Carly Ane’s Floral Studio created centerpieces that coordinated with each table’s theme: tropical floral for Hawaii, soaring vases of blue-tinted water topped with white hydrangea for Alaska, and vases of floating candles full of blingy crystals for Las Vegas. Each centerpiece even featured fun figurines like hula girls, miniature bears and moose, and poker chips and dice. To top everything off, Party Flavors Custom Cakes made five (yes, FIVE!) unique cakes for Elaine and Jeff: a volcano, a gambler’s fantasy cake, a traditional wedding cake with pretty purple details, a representation of an Alaskan cruise (including a glacier on top), and a Notre Dame cake for the groom!
Jeff and Elaine had previously designed their own luggage tag save-the-date before we met with them. So to continue in their style of travel-themed papers, they asked us to design a passport-style invitation–somewhat realistic in appearance, but using their purple and champagne color scheme (with tiny pops of red). On the photo page of their passport, we used a photo from one of their cruises. On the arrivals/departures pages, we created custom stamps of locations they had visited on their trips–volcanoes, glaciers, parks, casinos, and historical places–and then included “handwritten” memories and notes next to each stamp. The stamp pages of their passport invitation were ultra-personal; it was as if they had invited their guests on the trips along with them and were reliving the fun.
We carried the watermark-style patterns from the passport into their day-of papers, wedding programs, and signage. Our absolute favorite piece was a two-part “Here comes the Bride” sign that was tied onto the back of a custom princess carriage created to roll Elaine’s niece (the flower girl) down the aisle. On their way to the reception, guests picked up their escort cards, attached to a key with a purple satin ribbon, and could match their assigned table by name AND corresponding photo of the couple at that location (“Kona,” “MGM Grand,” and “Fairbanks” were just a few). These photos matched those on table cards. To show that they wanted their guests to have a great time, Elaine and Jeff supplied flip-flops and silly dance floor props in baskets with our “Dance like no one’s watching” sign. And rather than a typical guestbook, they had a custom garden bench made for all guests to sign, which they have now placed in their backyard.
This wedding truly had so many ultra-personal details, it would take a book to share them all. For certain, Elaine and Jeff’s guests had a fabulous time and will remember this wedding forever!
Elaine gave us a great, 5-star review on WeddingWire! Here are a few of her impressions from working with us:
“Denise was superb!! Our wedding guests are still raving about her creativity and attention to detail from our passport invitations to our menus and signage throughout our venue. Denise was extremely responsive as we worked with her to create these unique items for our wedding. She was the utmost professional and it was obvious to us how passionate she is about her work. Because of Denise’s vision, we were able to pull together all the travel themes in our wedding (Hawaii, Las Vegas, Alaska) seamlessly. Thank you Denise for making our wedding day so special.”
Elaine and Jeff, thank you so much for choosing to work with Dogwood Blossom Stationery to create you custom invitations and paper goods! It was a blast to work with you and an honor to help you share your “journey of love!”
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Thank you, as always, to the talented wedding professionals who helped this fairy tale come true:
Venue: Mission Inn Resort
Photog: Rhodes Studios
Planner: Busy Bride Wedding Design
Cakes: Party Flavors Custom Cakes
Florals: Carly Ane’s Floral Studio
DJ/Lighting/Cloud: Our DJ Rocks
Photobooth: Photobooth Rocks
Dresses: L.A. Bridal Boutique
Calligraphy on sweetheart table key: Embrace Calligraphy
Paper Goods: Dogwood Blossom Stationery
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