Posts Tagged ‘Wine and Roses’

The Couple:  Brooke and Ryan Coe

Wedding Date:  May 1, 2010

Photography by Shoop’s Photography

Tell us a little about you and your beloved:  Ryan and I met in college in 2005, when we were both attending CSU Stanislaus. We hit it off immediately and have only gone a few days without talking since then. We continued dating and maintained our relationship when Ryan’s life took him to Fresno in pursuit of a master’s degree.

In 2009, when we had both graduated and had steady jobs in Sacramento, Ryan and I visited the CSU Stanislaus campus again, simply to reminisce. It was there that Ryan proposed, in front of one of the many lakes on campus. Afterwards, we celebrated by first picking up some tacos from my favorite taco truck and then with champagne at Ryan’s parents’ house.

What was the most amazing part of your day?  As a surprise, our officiant asked both sets of parents to write a short message to their child on his/her wedding day, and she read them to us as part of the ceremony. It was extremely touching and special.

What else would you like to share about your big day?   The reception was a blast. We had great music, great food and a very fun crowd. Almost everyone was up dancing!

Ceremony & Reception Site:  Wine & Roses

Photographer:  Shoop’s Photography

Cake:  River City Cake Co.

Flowers:  Woodbridge Florist

Favors:  I made small boxes out of the greeting cards that our guests had given to us over the years, filled them with chocolate, and then gave the guests back their own card, now favor. One card dated all the way back to my (the bride’s) fourth birthday! The chocolate inside was the bride’s favorite: milk chocolate buttercream from See’s Candies.

Wedding Dress:  David’s Bridal

Bridesmaid Dresses:  Alfred Angelo

Hair:  Roseanna Sterni from Essentials Day Spa and Salon

Makeup:  Natalia Sitkin from Essentials Day Spa and Salon

Invitations:  DIY from Target

DJ/Entertainment/Band:  Sacramento GoodTimes Show (we loved him — an EXCELLENT DJ)

Honeymoon location:  Disney World and the Bahamas

Any other of your wedding vendor(s) you’d like to call out?  Les Farrington — a great acoustic guitar player for our ceremony and cocktail hour, and special thanks to our family friend, Pat Sterger, for making the centerpieces and bringing them all the way from southern California!

First Dance Song:   “I Get a Kick Out of You” by Frank Sinatra

Any advice you’d give to our readers who are planning their weddings right now?   When you’re feeling overwhelmed, delegate…remember, your friends and family will be happy to help in planning this special day.

Anything that you would have done differently if you were given the chance?  Perhaps provide more beer? Our supply was out very quickly. Otherwise, I wouldn’t change a thing. It was a really great day.

Photos courtesy of Shoop’s Photography.

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The Couple:  Melissa Howell Crawford and Ryan Crawford

Wedding Date:  August 29, 2009

Photography by Lisa Richmond Photography

Tell us a little about you and your beloved: Ryan and I met in December 2006 through a mutual friend…well kind of. A girlfriend and I had always spent our Thursday nights at a particular bar in San Francisco where we knew the bartenders well. On the evening we met Ryan’s friend (whom I had also known) was tending bar (he normally tended bar up the street, at one of Ryan’s regular spots). When Ryan arrived he went in to give Ben an aggressive handshake from across the bar and practically knocked me off my stool. After giving him a not-so-nice look he felt obliged to buy me a drink and it was all up-hill from there. We were engaged on August 31, 2008, and married almost a year-to-date later on August 29. We are best friends and continue to challenge each other every day. I love him with all my heart.

What was the most amazing part of your day? The whole day was amazing but there are a few things that really stand out in my mind:

1. Seeing my dad’s expression seeing me in my dress for the first time. My dad had been very involved in helping with the wedding but one thing he was not involved in was in selecting my dress. It was a surprise to him as it was to Ryan. Sharing that moment with him was very special and a feeling I’ll never forget.

2. Seeing my future husband for the first time as my dad walked me down the aisle and watching him biting his lip to hold back the tears.

3. At the end of the night when Ryan and I danced with all of our guests while the band played Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.” Everyone was dancing along and singing along. It’s something Ryan and I still talk about to this day!

What else would you like to share about your big day? S ome people would probably say that I was a bit anal when it came to the wedding — specifically about what I did and didn’t want — but with it being something I had dreamed about for a long time. I wanted it to be perfect. Although the flowers and a lot of the décor was done by my fabulous floral designer, Emily, I did a lot of DIY projects along with the help of my family and dear friends.

Anything paper related I did myself including the ceremony programs, seating cards, menus, and table numbers, etc. I bought all my paper products at Paper Source and my mom and I hand stamped and embossed them all. I found a menu stamp (yes we stamped and embossed 150 menus) and little stamps with a cow, fish, chicken and carrot to determine each individual’s dish which appeared on their seating cards. My dad cut all the paper goods to perfection to put together the table numbers and even made my cake stand!

I purchased all the ribbon used in our wedding at an amazing ribbon store in San Francisco called the Ribbonaire and I also turned to Anthropologie for the cake stand feet and the hanging lanterns that were used in the entry way display to our reception.

I found “my something blue” a small laced handkerchief at a local antique store and attached my “something borrowed” a locket from my grandmother (my dad’s mom) that was given to her by my grandfather on their wedding day with the picture still inside to my bouquet in honor of her.

Ceremony Site:  Wine & Roses Hotel Restaurant & Spa

Reception Venue:  Wine & Roses Hotel Restaurant & Spa

Photographer: Lisa Richmond Photography

Wedding Planner: Erin Hoops with  Wine & Roses Hotel Restaurant & Spa

Cake:  River City Cake Co.

Flowers:  Embellish Floral Design

Favors: After finally coming to a decision on favors, we decided to make homemade caramels with sea salt. I have no idea how that came to mind but it did and it was a project! My mom, dad, myself, and a very close family friend spent 12 hours in the kitchen a couple days before the wedding (on probably the hottest day of summer) to make them. With burns and blistered fingers; they were definitely made with love! We wrapped them in parchment and boxed them in mini boxes, wrapped in decorative ribbon and embossed with a “Thank You” stamp.

Wedding Dress:  Wtoo Brides by Watters & Watters purchased at The Unique Bride

Bridesmaid Dresses:  Jim Hjelm purchased at The Unique Bride

Hair: Jessica at  Wine & Roses Hotel Restaurant & Spa

Makeup: Wendy at  Wine & Roses Hotel Restaurant & Spa

Invitations: Papyrus

DJ/Entertainment: Larry Lynch and the Mob (Band)

Honeymoon location: Rosewood Mayakoba, Playa del Carmen, Mexico

Any other of your wedding vendor(s) you’d like to call out?  She’s not a vendor, but Mrs. Mary Turcotte, my pseudo-grandma and day-of helper! If it weren’t for her I don’t know how I would have stayed calm.

First Dance Song:  “You Are The Best Thing” by Ray Lamontange

Any advice you’d give to our readers who are planning their weddings right now? Take it all in. Take a few minutes to look at everything from your cake, to your flowers, to your guests. The night goes by SO fast and you’ll want those images in your head to reflect back on. And secondly, just come to the realization that you are going to go over budget. It’s bound to happen!

Anything that you would have done differently if you were given the chance? My family will give me a hard time about this but I would have ordered the Chiavari chairs!

Photos courtesy of Lisa Richmond Photography.

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Last weekend, I had the privilege of being a part of Wine & Roses’ bridal event, A Decadent Affair.

Wine & Roses (http://www.winerose.com/) is one of the most beautiful wedding venues in the Sacramento area. In fact, XSiGHT Photography (http://www.xsightusa.com/) shot our cover model photo shoot for our second issue at this gorgeous location, and we were certainly spoiled. Not only did Wine & Roses provide an idyllic background for our gorgeous cover model finalists, but the team at Wine & Roses couldn’t have been more gracious and helpful.

Back to A Decadent Affair last weekend…What a wonderful event! With top wedding professionals including The Memory Journalists (http://www.memoryjournalists.com/), Flourish (http://www.flourishdesigns.com/), Bella Vita Invitations (http://www.bellavitainvitations.com/) and many others, the event provided brides with many different ideas to make their wedding truly spectacular.

Thank you so much to the team at Wine & Roses for letting us be a part of your event!

Congrats to my friend Jeanette Miller on opening her new bridal gown store, Dreamnette Bridal, in Roseville!