Now its time to get down to the nitty gritty, those little details that make a huge difference, the hairs that protect our eyes- EYELASHES!

 While they are small, they make a HUGE difference on our appearance!

Yes, we are talking about EYELASH EXTENSIONS for your wedding day, honeymoon, or just your everyday  love life! I had always been afraid of lash extensions because of the horror stories I have heard. That was until I met Cynthia, she is such a sweetheart. When she first contact me to tell us about lashes for our clients I have to admit I was skeptical. She convinced me to give them try, I went to her cute spa room and really enjoyed the next 2 hours… as she individually glued an extension lash to each of my lashes… I chatted for a bit, took a nap, organized life in my head, and had some peaceful moments of reflection… at the end I had about 60 lash extensions on each lid. She was so patient and caring with each and every move she made.

STYLE MY LASHES

(I will now recommend her to everyone who is looking for lash extensions). 

We have already had one of our brides go to her and she also had an incredible experience and loved her lashes for her big day! It’s a natural glam look!

Here is my before and after :) (yes I am showing you my face without makeup, eeekkkk…).

I got the Hollywood Glam look (60 lashes) and it still looked natural and beautiful!! Thanks Cynthia! Now I can say from personal experience that I would recommend Cynthia for lash extensions, she is FABULOUS!!!!

♥ Krystel

XO, Couture Events

 Walking in a Winter Wedding Wonderland!

Sam, a former NFL player, 6’9″, and creative genius and Elin our gorgeous bride, 5’9″, and such a sweetheart are a perfect match… and we were so honored to be able to coordinate an amazing white wedding for this awesome couple! Photographs by the amazing Bryan N. Miller and Florals by Jennifer Cole!

Vendors:

Coordination: Couture Events 

Photography: Bryan Miller Photography

Venue: La Costa Resort

Florist: Jennifer Cole

DJ: Mike Hogan

XO, Couture Events

Photo Credit: Heirloom-LA

 We are so excited to introduce you to Heirloom LA!! The amazing duo that makes up Heirloom LA, Matt & Tara, had us hooked from the moment we discovered their infamous Lasagna Cupcake (yes that’s right..Lasagna. Cupcake.)

We spoke with Tara recently about Heirloom LA, their signature dish, and their very popular food truck!

♥

Q: How Heirloom LA got started…

A: Matt and I come from restaurant culture but we both always had a desire to do more, to expand beyond the limitations of a brick and mortar. By opening Heirloom LA we get to make restaurants in many different capacities: a food truck, a private tasting room (The Salon), a taco cart, and many different types of venues and menu styles for full service catering.

♥

Q: What trends do you see in catering styles and preferences this wedding season?

A: We are really fortunate to be receiving more and more brides and grooms who really care about where their food is coming from. They see our website and come to us already knowing that we work very closely with small, organic farmers. They know we source our meats from humane farms. Brides and grooms are excited to say the salad they are served during their tasting will likely be different from the salad served at their wedding six months later because they know we are cooking by the season and use what our small farmers bring in. It makes our job so much fun to cook for people who are as enthusiastic about food as we are!

Photo Credit: Heirloom-LA

Q: Does the food truck make an appearance at catering events?

A: YES! It’s very popular at weddings! It also stops at Silverlake Wine on Mondays for dinner, Yamashiro Farmers Market on Thursdays, & Bar Covell in Los Feliz for brunch on the weekends!

♥

Photo Credit: Heirloom-LA

 Q: Most popular dish on the Heirloom menu is…

A: Well it’s gotta be the lasagna cupcake!

Photo Credit: Heirloom-LA

♥

Thanks Tara! Check out Heirloom LA – we are ecstatic to work with them!

XO,

Danielle

Couture Events LA

]]> http://coutureeventssd.com/blog/la-vendor-love-heirloom-la/feed/ 0 http://coutureeventssd.com/blog/julianwedding/ http://coutureeventssd.com/blog/julianwedding/#comments Sat, 21 Apr 2012 08:03:07 +0000 krystel http://coutureeventssd.com/blog/?p=4606

It was a rainy day in a log cabin, the perfect venue for a cozy, intimate, lovely wedding. This venue sits in the middle of the Julian, a small tourist town known for it’s famous Apple Pie! This wedding was everything you want a good sweater to be: warm, inviting, soft, and delicate with tons of hand stitched details. From the hand made sign with their last name over the sweetheart table to the sewn programs to the lovely little cake topper, everything was the brides dreams come true!
XO, Couture Events

Kris and Carianne Hein, November 12, 2011 at the Pine Hills Lodge, Julian California

From the Bride:

Our little love story began in 2005 when Kris and I first met. I guess I can’t truly say our “love story” began right when we first met, but it was shortly after because when we met we were both in other relationships, so even though I thought he was extremely attractive and funny I figured Kris and I would never become more than just friends. We ran into each other the following weeks and each time I saw him I felt like a giddy little girl, becoming nervous when I talked to him. I like to think that it was fate that allowed us take the next step because we both ended up being single within days of each other. When Kris heard that I was newly single he called to ask if I was doing ok and also to see if I would go to the movies with him. Our first date is when you could say our love story began. The next five years of dating were filled with many ups and downs. We enjoyed our time together taking mini vacations, going out with friends, and adopting a little puppy we named Bella. It was also in those five years we experienced the worst heartaches imaginable. I lost my grandmother who I loved and adored on Mother’s Day in 2010 and Kris lost his father in a tragic car accident two months later in July. Both of our families were morning the loss of these two incredible people who were the pillars in each of our families. Experiencing such a tremendous loss in both of our lives really brought Kris and I closer because it showed us that we shouldn’t take life or each other for granted and we knew that we wanted to take the next step and get married.
When Kris proposed to me it was truly a surprise. Even though I had shown Kris the exact engagement ring I wanted (and even provided my ring size) I didn’t think he was planning anything since he was still getting over the shock of losing his dad. We knew we wanted to celebrate our 5 year anniversary that was coming up in August, so I planned a weekend trip to Palm Springs, CA. Kris and I arrived in Palm Springs on Friday afternoon to what seemed to be the hottest day on the planet. After driving 3 hours all I wanted to do was take a nap in the air conditioned room. Kris practically had to beg me to get out of the room and after offering to buy me ice cream in town I finally caved in. After driving around the town of Palm Springs Kris pulled over by a park and asks me to take a walk with him so he can give me my anniversary present. As Kris and I were walking around the park I kept hearing a buzzing noise coming from the trees, so when Kris and I stop underneath one of the trees I find myself too busy searching for what insect could be making such a noise that I didn’t realize Kris was holding a gray little box. I also failed to realize that he was on one knee, but after seeing that the gray box was not a ring box I didn’t think anything of it. I opened the box and to my surprise there was a silver cuff bracelet that had the words “Will you marry me?” engraved on it. After reading those four little words I looked to Kris and there he was kneeling on one knee with the engagement ring of my dreams! Kris said the most perfect, romantic words a girl could imagine and after asking those four little words I said YES!! I was in shock and just filled with extreme happiness and love that I couldn’t wait to tell the whole world.

Our wedding was something that I had secretly been envisioning for years. I knew that we wanted our wedding to be an intimate occasion with only the people that were the most important to us. Having our family and our closest friends there was honestly the first thing that we talked about; especially with the losses we had both endured we knew that we didn’t want our wedding to be just about us but about the union of our families coming together as well. We wanted to incorporate as many little things we could into our wedding day that reminded us of our family who we had lost and those who were still with us.

One of the major decisions was where our wedding was going to take place. We knew that with the intimate wedding we were striving for we needed a venue that was going to be cozy, inviting, and would be conducive to the theme of rustic elegance I was going for. My sister emailed me the website to The Pine Hills Lodge in Julian, CA. After looking at just a few of the pictures and finding out that it was originally built as a romantic hideaway in 1912 I knew that we had to check it out. Inside the lodge the walls are lined with pinewood that gave it the warm and cozy feeling I was going for and with a floor to ceiling stone fireplace we could get married in front of I was sold. Not only did this venue fit our criteria perfectly but it also had enough cabins on the property for our immediate family and bridal party to have a place to stay.
The inspiration for our wedding décor came about by mixing the themes that I loved the most, a nice little combination of rustic, vintage, with a little touch of elegance. I knew that I wanted most of our colors to be creamy and white with just a pop of plum for an accent color. I chose to have my flowers reflect the color scheme of light colors so I chose to have creams, whites, and soft pink flowers with a touch of greenery. I wanted my flowers to have a soft feel about them and also wanted to have a little bit of a wildflower look to them as well to tie into the rustic theme. The one thing I was adamant about incorporating into my flowers was the Dusty Miller (a plant with lacy, silvery-green foliage) because it reminded me of my grandmother, if I couldn’t have her there with me on my wedding day I wanted to be reminded of her when I looked at my flowers.

For the pop of color we chose plum. This was the perfect color that complimented our main color scheme of creams and whites. We chose to carry the accent color to the bridesmaid dresses and to the groomsmen’s ties because it is a beautiful deep and rich fall color. The only other hint of plum that we had on the actual day was the plum string we used to tie the escort cards onto our chicken wire frames and the plum ribbon we used on our wedding wands. The plum color was used throughout all of the stationary from the save the dates to the invitations to the wedding programs.

The thing that I loved most about our wedding was the décor that was handmade by either one of my family members or by myself. I can’t thank my brother enough for the beautiful ‘Save the Date’ cards and invitations that he designed from scratch. The burlap and lace table runners were a labor of love that my sister-in-law helped me with, along with showing me how to sew lace pieces together so they would perfectly fit over the glass vases we were using for our flowers. One of my favorite items was the pair of love birds that I hand sewn together to make for our cake topper. I laugh when I look at the birds because not knowingly I made them to resemble myself and Kris, one with short little legs and the other with tall legs. The other handmade item that I love and now have hanging in my house is the “Hein” sign that my brother-in-law made. He used old reclaimed wood to make the sign and then used rope to spell our last name. We hung it above our sweetheart table and it was the perfect addition to the décor.
One of my favorite traditions I carried through on our wedding day was having something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. My something old was a long strip of tatting that my great-grandmother handmade. I had my florist incorporate it into my bouquet by tucking a piece into the flowers and also by wrapping the stems with it as well. Since I decided not to wear a veil my sister surprised me with a beautiful headband that she made which had a lace flower and long strands of ribbon and lace that were actually incorporated into my updo and then tied into a sweet little bow that sat at the nape of my neck. The something borrowed was from my mother who let me wear a pair of diamond earrings that had belong to my grandmother. And last but not least was the tiny little blue bow that was tied onto my undergarments.

There are a lot of little moments that I still vividly remember that make me smile. One of them being the little adventure Kris and I took along with our photographer’s right before the wedding. It had been raining the whole day and most of our pictures had been either inside or under the awnings outside. Our photographer had the brilliant idea to jump in his car and drive to the spots he had been thinking about. So that is exactly what we did. Prepared with an umbrella for Kris and myself the four of us hopped in his car then hopped out when we found a perfect spot and took many pictures outside in the pouring rain. I still remember laughing at how drenched our poor photographers got because of this adventure. That was such a fun and surreal moment for us because there we were standing in the middle of the road in the pouring rain taking our wedding pictures. You would think that I would have been nervous about getting my make-up or hair ruined but I didn’t care because I knew that these pictures were going to turn out amazing.

Another special moment that I can vividly remember is getting this overwhelming feeling of love and joy as Kris and I stood there holding hands just listening to our officiant and then getting that giddy little feeling again just before he pronounced us as husband and wife. I just remember looking at Kris and thinking “this is the moment I have been waiting for my entire life.” I couldn’t imagine saying those special vows with anyone but Kris and in front of our loved ones was just an amazing moment I will never forget.

To incorporate what the town of Julian is known for, apples, we decided that our wedding favors were going to be a mixture of chocolate, caramel, and candy covered apples. They were wrapped up and tied with cute little ribbons, displayed on the sideboard; sitting on white cake stands and lace doilies, which my great -grandmother made, for our guests to take and enjoy.

Vendors:

Coordination & Styling: Couture Events, http://www.CoutureEventsSD.com
Photographer: Sean Walker Photography, http://www.seanwalkerphotography.com/
DJ: Sound Prodigy, http://www.soundprodigy.com/
Flowers: Allen’s Flowers, http://www.allensflowers.com/
Hair: Hair by Kendra, http://hairstylesbykendra.com/about_us
Makeup: Katie Joyner, http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1404513685
Venue: Pine Hills Lodge, Julian, CA , http://www.pinehillslodge.com/
Invitation Designer: Jordan Cordova
Cake/Desserts: Flour Power, http://flourpower.com/
Wedding Gown Designer: Demetrios, http://www.demetriosbride.com/
Bridesmaid’s Dress Designer: Bill Levkoff, http://www.billlevkoff.com/
Officiant: Craig Knudsen, http://www.craigdoesweddings.com/

 This amazing couple had 2 weddings in 2 days ! Day 1 was an Indian wedding planned by the grooms mother and family. Day 2 was the Catholic traditional American wedding planned by Couture Events at the Prado in Balboa Park! We just had to share both days because they are each INCREDIBLE!

Photography by 828 Studios

We adore this couple and their vibrant love!

  ♥ Day 1 ♥

 ♥ Day 2 ♥

 XO, Couture Events

We had so much fun planning this vintage vegan wedding! Veronica and Mack are one of the sweetest most caring california couples we have ever met! They are vegan and were introduced to each other by a mutual friend because they were vegan, little did they know they would end up getting married! They wanted their entire wedding to be vegan from the appetizers to dessert and we were able to make it happen. We also had a wonderful time with the styling of this wedding. Most of the decor was DIY and the rest was vintage! Every detail was carefully considered from the lace runners to hand made fabric yo-yo’s that covered every inch of the wedding to the the sock monkey pie toppers, it was a California DIY Dream.

Photography by Teale Photography

This lovely wedding was featured on Postcards and Pretties!

Vendors:

Photographer: Teale Photography
Coordination & Styling: Couture Events
Venue: Ole Hanson Beach Club
Florist: Sweet Blossom Designs
Catering: Rose Wade Events
Vintage Plates and teacups: Verity Jane Vintage
Vintage Furniture: Archive Vintage Rentals
Vegan Pies: Avanti Cafe
DJ: Just Made Custom Events
Ceremony Music: Brandon Ummel
Gown: Allure Bridal

♥

Q & A with the Bride :

*What was your inspiration for your wedding? Or where did you get inspiration from?

Mack and I are both fortunate enough to have enormous families that are tightly-knit, which often results in wonderful family gatherings with tons
of people, amazing food, and lots of love. We wanted our wedding to be just like another relaxed family party, only difference being that I’d be walking around in a big ol’ white dress. At the same time, we both love the ocean, so we knew we wanted to hold the celebration near the beach; this was an extra bonus for my out-of-town families who don’t get to see the ocean as often as we Californians do. Finally, I wanted the entire event to reflect our design aesthetic, which tends toward a antique, handmade, eclectic feel. Some of our ideas didn’t seem like they would pair together well at first, but to my delight everything came together beautifully!

*Tell us about your ceremony decor.

We wanted to keep the entire ceremony on the simple side, and this was reflected in the decor as well. When we first saw the tree on the lawn of our venue, we knew it needed to be a focal point. It was Krystel’s wonderful idea to hang pretty things from the tree, and I think it worked out beautifully! For seating, we chose to rent simple white benches from our florist, Tara Wheaton. The benches were crafted by her husband for their daughter’s wedding, which coincidentally was also held on the lawn of the Ole Hanson Beach Club. They were lovely, and added a country feel to the ceremony. Finally, Tara had placed hanging mason jars full of lovely blooms down the aisle, which added a pop of color.

*How did it feel to walk down the aisle?

Walking down the aisle was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. We were lucky enough to have a friend drive us to the ceremony in a pristine 1930 navy blue Cadillac. My dad and I were driven directly to the site, so I walked right out of the car and down the aisle. It must have
een unexpected, as we were given a standing ovation! What was most incredible to me, though, was how overwhelmingly happy I was – I felt as if I could burst! Seeing the faces of so many loved ones who had traveled so far was amazing, trumped only by the sight of Mack, standing there waiting. It was unbelievable!

*Tell us a bit about your reception decor/style.

For reception decor, we wanted to capture a vintage eclectic style that also warm, homey, and casual. We knew we wanted to incorporate lots of handmade items as well, as well as old family photographs. I’m very nostalgic, and wanted to make sure that our family histories were reflected
in some way. We decided to create a memory table, which gave us the chance to display our favorite family photos. It was a charming way to introduce
our backgrounds to the guests and help our close family members to feel included. Meanwhile, I had been dreaming of having fabric yo-yos everywhere
throughout the wedding. Unfortunately, yo-yos are very time consuming, and I found myself biting off more than I could chew. Luckily, I have incredible (and talented) family and friends – so many of them spent hours sewing them for us, and some of them even traveled across the country to be a part of our wedding! My cousin Lauren sewed our ring bearer pillow for us just days before the event, and my mom glued silk flowers and pink tulle to our paper umbrellas. My maid-of-honor Gwen, however, truly took the cake when it came to craft projects: she created the guest book, the place cards, zillions of yo-yos, and some truly amazing sock monkey cake toppers.

*Tell us about your vegan menu.

For the meal, we searched far and wide for the perfect vegan caterer. We knew we wanted food that was fresh, seasonal, and creative; and something that didn’t scream “vegan” (i.e. Tofurkey). Luckily, Rose Wade Events stepped up to the plate, and really did an incredible job. Their chef had grown up with two vegans in his life, and learned to cook great vegan food at an early age. He created some truly unique and delicious flavors that
didn’t disappoint. It was a hit for sure.

*Why did you choose a Vegan menu for all of your guests?

As much guff as we got along the way about choosing to serve a vegan meal to our guests, I wouldn’t have done it any other way. Mack and I met in the first place because we’re both vegan, so this lifestyle is something that’s deeply ingrained in our relationship. At the same time, we both feel that vegan food is *just food* – it just so happens not to have any animal products present. It would have been a disservice to our beliefs and our way of life to serve meat at our wedding, so we chose not to. And you know what? Everyone loved it.

*What was your favorite part of your wedding?

My favorite part of our wedding was how seamlessly our families joined together. We were worried that a group as varied as ours wouldn’t blend well, but to our delight, they did. My relatives from Louisville, Kentucky danced alongside Mack’s Lebanese family to foot-stomping Arabic music, and our friends from Philadelphia do-si-doed with the Venezuelan side of the family. It was amazing, and everyone had *so* much fun.

*What was your favorite decor detail at your wedding?

Hands down, my favorite detail were Gwen’s amazing sock monkey cake toppers. Just a short time before our wedding, she had asked what other things we could use help with. I explained that we had wanted a cake topper of some sort, but between being burned out from work and wedding planning, I just couldn’t come up with anything that could be done in any reasonable amount of time. Gwen, clearly not willing to let my secret monkey cake topper dreams die, took over the project, and within a few short days had created two insanely adorable sock monkeys dressed like Mack & me. They even have wire inside them so they’re completely poseable. Amazing. I’m still in awe of the whole thing.

XO, Couture Events

This proposal was featured on Disney Fairytale Weddings Blog!

♥

Lovely Vendors:

Coordination: Couture Events

Photography: Sara France

Videography: Joe Parks 

Venue: Valentino Estate, Estate Weddings and Events

Florist: Rae Florae

Vintage Rentals: Pow Wow

Gowns: Here Comes The Bride

Paper Goods: Nic. Roc. Designs

Linens: La Tavola Linens

Jewelry: Liz Law Jewelry,  Mimi & Lu

Hair: Andrea Duggon

Makeup: Faces Of California

♥

Tale as old as time
True as it can be
Barely even friends
Then somebody bends
Unexpectedly

Just a little change
Small to say the least
Both a little scared
Neither one prepared
Beauty and the Beast

Ever just the same
Ever a surprise
Ever as before
Ever just as sure
As the sun will rise

***Little did she know that her ring was sitting right next to her during the whole shoot hidden inside of the bottom book! While she used the top book as a prop to read, she would have never guessed the velvet bookmark on the book below marked the spot  where her ring laid in carved out pages.

THE FAIRYTALE PROPOSAL

He grabbed the red book and dropped to one knee.

She smiles, oh what could this be…

This is the moment she realizes this is a real proposal ( not just for the photo shoot) !

She said YES !!!

IT’S A FAIRYTALE DREAM COME TRUE!

Tale as old as time
Song as old as rhyme
Bitter sweet and strange
Finding you can change
Learning you were wrong

Highlight Video by : Joe Park

Couture Events Beauty and The Beast Shoot from Joe Park on Vimeo.

Certain as the sun
Rising in the East
Tale as old as time
Song as old as rhyme
Beauty and the Beast

Tale as old as time
Song as old as rhyme
Beauty and the beast

XO, Couture Events

This year we were invited to participate in the US Grant Wedding Showcase! We were so honored and beyond excited to participate in this amazing luxury bridal event! We patterned with Blush Botanicals & Concepts Event Design to make our Springtime in Paris inspiration come to life! With beautiful shades of pink, peach, and orange!

Blush Botanicals did such an incredible job with the florals, their crystal candelabras are so incredible and we also adore their new gold candelabras, so we decided to use both! They accented each plate with a gorgeous pink peony, it was the perfect detail! Love these girls and love their work! We are always so honored when we have the chance to work with them!

Concepts Event Design provided the gorgeous white glossy table as well as the shabby chic couches, coffee table, and draping! We absolutely adore this furniture! INCREDIBLE in every way! We can’t wait to work with them again at our next event! Haydee and Federico are amazing to work with, they make sure to take care of their client- customer service is excellent and they have a great eye for event design and spacing, they make sure the event always looks PERFECT!

♥

Photography by Bryan N. Miller Photography! He is awesome and always captures every detail perfectly! Thank you Bryan!!!

XO, Couture Events

We have officially launched Couture Events LA!! That means more fabulous vendors to work with, fall in love with and blog about : )

Foodies and dessert lovers alike will absolutely love this gem that I recently found. Their mini-cupcakes come in all sorts of unique flavors and their cakes are almost too beautiful to eat!

Amy and Jeremy Berman are the owners of Vanilla Bake Shop and we had the privilege of speaking with Amy about their boutique bakery, dessert trends this wedding season, and her favorite treats from the shop!

Q: What separates the Vanilla Bake Shop from other bakeries here in LA?

A: What makes Vanilla Bake Shop special and unique is our attention to detail with our desserts and our high quality ingredients. We craft each dessert with real vanilla beans and use rich, oak barrel whiskey in our chocolate cakes. The hint of whiskey leaves an amazing flavor combination with the chocolate. We put a lot of consideration into the taste of our menu.

Image Credit: Vanilla Bake Shop

 Q: What is your favorite Vanilla Bake Shop dessert?

A: Currently I am addicted to our ‘Matzo Crunch’ which we will be offering during Passover April 6th-14th. We call them “Crack-ers”
because you seriously can’t put them down. They are made with brown sugar toffee, toasted pecans, milk chocolate and French sea salt. Anything that is salty and sweet I can’t resist. My all time favorite dessert is our ‘Mom’s Birthday’ cake cupcake. It reminds me of my childhood and its my “go to” when I need a sweet fix.

Image Credit: Vanilla Bake Shop

Q: What is the wedding trend this season: traditional cakes or oodles of cupcakes?

A: We are doing both! We have a lot of wedding cakes on the books for this season – many that lean towards a laid back, glamourous vibe. For wedding cupcakes, we make our “cupcake baby” size treats which are displayed on a cute dessert bar. Small bites definitely create a sense of fun and gives everyone some variety to chose from which is great.

♥

Thanks Amy! We can’t wait to work with the Vanilla Bake Shop!

XO, Danielle

Couture Events LA