Finishing Touch

I had a great time working with Tiffany and John last year designing their Tiffany inspired wedding. Tiffany and John’s ceremony was held at the gorgeous St. Paul’s Parke Church. We kept the ceremony decor simple and classic so we can showcase the amazing architectural features at this historic church. Their wedding reception was held at The Pacific Club, a private club in downtown Honolulu. In keeping with the classic Tiffany theme, we draped the entire room in white so we will have a clean canvas to work with. Besides just using Tiffany blue as the wedding color, we also made sure all her wedding day stationery is printed in Tiffany’s Ecru paper with Tiffany typeface. Her favors were also presented in classic Tiffany boxes with white satin bow on top. We also named each guest table after an Andrey Hepburn’s movie. How cute is that? I just love it when a theme of a wedding is carried throughout the entire event! What I love most about this wedding is the stunning centerpieces created by Yvonne Design. I love that minimal flowers were used (only a few blooms of white Phalaenopsis orchids per table as accents), and candlelight (floating candles at different heights) was really the star of the table scape. Many brides choose to spend 90 to 100% of their decor budget on flowers, but I highly suggest spending more on lighting, including candlelight. Lighting really changes the mood of an event, and it stirs up a warm emotion inside your guests when attending a wedding. Although we only had 3 weeks to plan this wedding (yes, 3 weeks from start to finish!), but I thought everything turned out quite nicely. Thank you to all the vendors for making this wedding possible! All images by Visionari. ~ Sandra

Jessica and Patrik’s wedding has got to be one of my favorite weddings this year. This is our first time working at Kualoa Ranch Hale Moli’i, and I just LOVE it there! The big grass lawn sits right next to a serene lake (well, it’s really a fishpond) with the majestic Ko’olau mountains right behind. It’s such a gorgeous venue! Jessica and Patrik had a beach ceremony at Kualoa Ranch’s Secret Island. Since it is a private island / beach, we were able to set up a ceremony arch and seating benches which are usually not allowed on a public beach. After the ceremony, their guests took a quick 3 minute boat ride back to Hale Moli’i for the open air reception under the stars! Jessica and Patrik are both architects, and they came into the planning process with a defined style in mind: rustic and natural with a touch of whimsy. I love all the details we used in this wedding: bare wooden tables, succulents, yellow Billy Balls, vintage glass vases…etc. These elements definitely pull together a rustic, eclectic and fun look! Thank you to Green Honolulu for doing such an amazing job with the flowers! Images by Shawn Starr. ~ Sandra

Sheena and Eric were a dream to work with! They are such a fun and relaxed couple, not to mention the sophisticated taste Sheena has. Sheena and Eric got married at The Westin Moana Surfrider hotel Diamond Lawn, and their reception was held inside the Beachhouse restaurant at the hotel. The restaurant is such a amazing space to work with! Unlike a standard ballroom wedding, there are some challenges we often face when we design and coordinate a wedding at a restaurant. For example: we have to work with odd size tables that are designed for restaurant dining, we must use the restaurant’s chairs because there’s no room at the location for storage if we bring in our own, lighting can sometimes be an issue…. however, we were able to work with what we got and put together a chic wedding for the couple. I was actually pretty excited about using the restaurant’s loveseat sofa as part of the guest seating. The mix of different types of seating really gives the space a cozy feel. Yvonne Design did it again with their beautiful and vibrant floral arrangements, the space was absolutely lovely! It was also a joy working with Los Angeles based photographer Steven Lam. Thank you Steven for capturing all the wonderful images, and I hope to work with you again soon! ~ Sandra

Marina and Craig got married at the beautiful Lanikuhonua estate. They chose Phase I of the estate and utilized the existing pavilion for their ceremony. Through fabric, Mood did a wonderful job transforming the pavilion into a romantic ceremony space. I definitely look forward to utilizing this space more often for future wedding ceremonies. Marina’s family crest was used as the inspiration for her wedding. The family crest motif was used in various day of wedding stationery pieces carried throughout the wedding. Our designer Stacey (owner of Bradley & Lily Fine Stationery) did an amazing job incorporating this motif in the stationery design; keeping the style simple, chic and modern. Alot of couples underestimate the “power” of stationery and how they can really pull together the look of an event. For Marina’s wedding, I think the day of wedding stationery is really the star of the wedding! From the ceremony program and straw flags, to the escort cards and menu layout; guests were in awe of how a family crest motif can play such a crucial role in the overall wedding design! I hope you will enjoy these little details as much as I do. Mahalo to Shawn Starr for capturing all the gorgeous images! ~ Sandra