Generra, School Librarian and artist & Nicole, school psychologist
Sum-up of the wedding vibe: An evening full of love and laughter that a guest kindly described as a nice warm hug.
Planned budget: $25,000
Actual budget: $35,000
Number of guests: 60
LOCATION: San Diego, California
Where we allocated the most funds:
Toward food! We both love food a lot and wanted to make sure we had exactly what we wanted, we sampled multiple options and landed on an amazing farm to table food truck. We also wanted to make sure that our guests enjoyed it too. We love all the compliments we have gotten on our food selection.
Where we allocated the least funds:
Surprisingly, the open bar was what we spent the least amount of money on. We were able to purchase our alcohol at wholesale pricing, and then create a personalized menu with a cocktail company. It was amazing. We had enough alcohol to last the whole night, and we had cases leftover!
What was totally worth it:
Hiring a wedding coordinator was completely worth it! We live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and our wedding was in San Diego. Planning a wedding from a distance has its challenges, but we had the best coordinator ever! Ashleigh Glod took the time to get to know us, our interests, and our needs. Because of her incredible attention to detail, we were able to really enjoy the planning process. She was also able to give us lots of great suggestions for which direction to go to find the rest of our wonderful vendors.
What was totally not worth it:
We were really selective and handpicked everything. We spent a lot of time evaluating and reevaluating each purchase. Therefore, everything was completely worth it.
A few things that helped us along the way:
Our florist Casey from Ruffle Effects! We had a last minute hiccup with our flowers, a week before the wedding we learned that we didn’t have flowers. Our wonderful coordinator suggested a florist who was able to create a masterpiece while staying in what little budget we had left at that point. Also, our extremely patient wedding coordinator, supportive friends, family, and of course, wine. Reach out to your friends with special talents or resources that can add a personal touch (and maybe save some money!). Nicole’s sister, Lisa, helped with all of our liquor and wine selecting (and mini celebrations along the way). Our friend Lizzy and her wife Kerry made all of our signs, and even special t-shirts for the evening before, brunch morning after, and even shirts to wear to Disneyland!
Nicole’s other sister, Emily, was able to provide salad ingredients from her farm to our food truck caterer as well!
My best practical advice for my planning self:
Take your time making decisions and enjoy the process. Pay attention to the details: it may seem small, but they will have an impact on the wedding day. If you love it, do it!
Favorite thing about the wedding:
Sharing our love with our amazing family and friends! It may seem small with only sixty people, but those that were there have had an enormous impact on who Generra and I are individually as well as how we have grown together, and it meant so much that each and every one of them were a part of our day.
We love a good adventure, good food, good wine, and the great outdoors! The wedding venue was an urban loft and the decor reflected those interests. The color scheme was focused around the idea of copper mugs being wedding favors and it featured a Moscow Mule Bar. With Generra being a school librarian, the table settings included numerous children’s books and library checkout cards as the table numbers. In lieu of a traditional reading, we read parts of the children’s book I Like You by Sandol Stoddard Warburg.
Something else we’d like to share:
It was really important to us that our officiant was someone who knows us well, so having Generra’s brother, Morgan, perform the ceremony was extremely special. Instead of a traditional bouquet toss, Generra dedicated her bouquet to her grandmother and uncle who have passed away.
