April 20, 2007

• October 14, 2006 - Monterey, CA Wedding

   Last fall, I was blessed to watch my cousin and his wife get married in an intimate Monterey ceremony located at the beautiful Monterey Memory Garden (I loved their ceremony location and would definitely recommend it to anyone planning a central coast wedding). After we the ceremony, we walked over to the reception, which was was held on the top floor of the lovely Monterey Marriott a few blocks away. The reception venue was gorgeous as well, with windows surrounding the entire room so that guests would have a breathtaking view of the city.

  I know you brides-to-be appreciate seeing real weddings in the real world with real budgets, so here are some pictures below:
  
  

  

  Walking to the ceremony... I always need my Peet's in the morning!
  
  
  

  When we got there, fresh lemonade and coffee were waiting for us.
  
  
  

  

  The lovely bride escorted by her mother.
  
  
  

  A picture of the rose petals strewn over the aisle. I love the red against the muted colors of the garden!
  
  
  

  To match the Monterey theme, my cousin and his wife performed a sand ceremony.
  
  
  

  Red bridesmaid dresses and simple bouquets of gerber daisies. The red looked REALLY good against the white sand and stone.
  
  
  

  These were our seating cards. The red leaf was for steak and yellow for fish.
  
  
  

  Very simple centerpieces that were DIY. It was a glass bowl with water and a floating stargazer lily, gerber daisy, and rose.
  
  
  

  A picture of the table. That's me and Mr. Eggplant plus my brother and his GF.
  
  
  

  In lieu of a cake, they had a chocolate fountain. For the "cake cutting," they fed each other chocolate covered strawberries. Sweet!
  
  
  

  After lunch, guests could access the balcony to take pictures against the backdrop of Monterey.

  I know this wedding was one on a budget, but it was still gorgeous and fun! Some money saving tips: My cousin and his wife had a lunch reception which was less expensive, but allowed the guests to take advantage of the lovely view. Both ceremony and reception venues were already both so beautiful that they looked great with minimal decorations. The color palette was chosen well because the deep red accented the stark whites of Monterey; nothing more than a few rose petals were needed. Also, they also minimized all the unecessary "wedding stuff" (e.g. no favors, simple flowers, DIY centerpieces, simple DIY invitations, no cake). One nice touch: in memory of the parents on both the bride and groom's side that had passed away, my cousin and his wife placed framed pictures of their parents' weddings at the reception check-in table.

  The best part of the day? I didn't just go home thinking, "What a beautiful wedding!" Instead, the impression that was left was, "What a beautiful marriage!" 

  • 2:12 pm
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