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Mat & ErinLanikuhonua Phase 1 - Oahu
Photos by: Karlisch Photography
Erin and Mat got married at Lanikuhonua on Feb 15, 2008. I had the amazing opportunity to work with photographer Stephen Karlisch from beautiful Texas. Erin and Mat met at the University of Hawaii, and Hawaii is the obvious choice for them to wed as it is such a special place to them. Erin is a retail buyer in the fashion industry, so having a fashion forward and FUN wedding is a must for her! Mat McBriar, "the famous Australian punter", all UH fans know him as, is currently the punter for the Dallas Cowboys. His 75 yard punt is the second longest punt in Cowboy's history, how awesome is that? Erin went with a very colorful color scheme for her wedding. Her bridesmaids wore a very young and flowy dress by Thread Social, and the flowers were in hues in pinks, oranges and yellows. Erin’s favorite color is turquoise, so we had used a nice turquoise blue napkin embellished with true green and silver accent for her table setting. All these colors were used and arranged to create a stylish and modern tropical feel. Being the troopers that Erin and Mat are, they even adopted a symbol for their wedding - a Roogle, a blended creature between an American eagle and an Australian Kangaroo. We had a Roogle ice sculpture luge made for the Passion Cosmo Martini they served at the bar. It was hilarious watching the guests trying to figure out what animal the ice luge is. Erin and Mat’s wedding is featured in the Pacific Weddings Summer Fall 2008 issue, go to press on our website to view the article.
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Brian & ChristinaLanikuhonua Phase 1 - Oahu
Photos by: Visionari
Christina and Brian’s wedding has got to be one of my favorite weddings at Lanikuhonua. The weather on their wedding day was absolutely perfect for the beautiful couple - one the kindest and most gracious couple I've ever worked with. Christina wanted her wedding to be a stylish celebration of love, families and friends, and making sure no design details are left out for this wedding was a true mission from day one. From the lush manzanita wishing tree to the custom dining canopies, bold colors of eggplant purple, magenta pink and chartreuse green can be seen everywhere in cohesive fashion. I am also sucker for patterned textile, and I absolutely love the damask table runner used on the guest tables. They were flown in all the way from Spain! I also love that Christina asked her nephew to be her “Flower Boy”, and instead of carrying a traditional basket, he tossed petals from Brian’s Marine Corp hat. What a way to make your wedding personal! Just a little fun fact about this wedding: I started working with Christina the beginning of February, and her wedding was the first week of May! Pulling off a wedding with an enormous amount of details in such short time frame is definitely possible when quality, reputable, and extremely talented vendors are on board. Kudos to Visionari, Studio Red, Yvonne Design, Cater To Me, Catering Connection, Troy Michael Entertainment, Les Saisons, Cake Works and Blue Cheese photo booth for making this wedding a success!
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Paul & EricaThe Kahala Hotel & Resort - Oahu
Photos by: Frank Amodo Photography
Erica and Paul is our lucky couple who got married on 8.8.08. Erica and I started working together in 2006 planning her dream wedding. Erica knew exactly what she wanted for her wedding from the very beginning: a first class event filled with dramatic flair. Erica and Paul started dating their freshman year in college, and you can tell just how comfortable they are with each other and their friendship was the solid backbone of their relationship. Erica's wedding was full of rich textures, bold colors and beautiful design details. I especially love the use of Dahlias in her wedding. Dahlia always makes a stunning statement in any floral arrangement, and they come in such fun shades of colors such as lipstick red, bumble bee yellow, super hot pink and rich plum purple. Given the long courtship of the couple and the many lifetime events they’ve experienced together, the toasts, speeches and video slideshow at the wedding brought everyone to tears. To honor Erica’s Korean heritage, Korean drummers and fan dancers were a part of the exciting reception entertainment. The reception ended with a very packed and busy dance floor, kept up by the energetic DJ Teley Brandon.
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Michael & LoreleiJW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa - Oahu
Photos by: Shawn Starr Photography
Here's a little history of how we got connected with Lorelei and Michael: we had the honor of coordinating Tiana and Warren's wedding in 2005. Tiana referred her friend from college Simmy to us, who got married to Pono in 2007. Simmy then referred her friend Lorelei to us, who married Michael in April 2009; and the story doesn't here. Since then, Lorelei had referred her friends Annette and Jovan to us, who got married in July 2009. It's pure joy and honor to work with brides who are referred to us by former brides because these new brides already know that they can expect nothing less than perfection from us as they have already seen us "in action", and they are well aware of our expectation for each event; they also feel more like "friends" to us rather than clients. Not to mention, it's always fun to see our former brides at weddings with the newest pint sized members of their family. Lorelei and Michael chose a beautiful theme for their wedding - Tuscany. Michael is Italian, and Lorelei had always dreamt of a wedding that is all about family, friends and good food. She wanted to create an ambiance that feels warm, inviting and a bit "vintage-chic" at the same time. There's absolutely no better location to set the tone for this event other than the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa. Lorelei and Michael got married on the ocean front Lagoon Lawn, in front of a curtain of naturally hung strands of roses, suspended from two seaside trees. Their reception was held inside the classically designed Ocean ballroom. The elegant damask wallpaper hung inside the ballroom and the crushed damask linens we brought in were in perfect harmony. I also adore the sweetheart table filled with pillar candles, floating roses with Phalaenopsis and Camilia leaves accents. It's lucky I live Hawaii, but it was a definitely treat to be taken away to Tuscany for an evening.
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Steve & ChristinaSt. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church & Loulu Palm Estate - Oahu
Photos by: Stefanie Riedel of Absolutely Loved
Christina and Steve had a traditional Greek wedding at the St. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church, and their reception was held at Loulu Palm Estate. Loulu Palm Estate is a new venue on the North Shore that can accommodate up to 500 guests. It's a beautiful estate that sits right on the edge of the water, and it offers everything you can ever imagine for a wedding in Hawaii - a great change from the hustle and bustle of Waikiki. I was really excited when Christina asked me to coordinate her wedding because I knew it will be a great party just like the one we all love in the movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”. For her wardrobe, Christina wore a couture Claire Pettibone dress with these killer D&G shoes. Christina wanted to keep the church decor to a minimal in order to showcase the rustic details of the church: beautiful stained glass windows, rustic wooden pews and hanging brass sconces. She selected shades of white as her main color with accents of other earth tone hues such greens and browns. The ambiance Christina wanted to create for her wedding reception was modern elegance with a tropical flair. Yvonne Design did an amazing job of keeping all the decor details to the color white, but with the help of a mix of textures, it was hardly boring: white pintuck linens, white satin chair caps, ceramic white square chargers were balanced out beautifully with a lush and low white floral arrangement set inside a handmade wooden vessel. Mood Events swaged white fabric across the top of the clear top tent to help soften the look of the harsh-looking metal frames; custom white canopies were also set up by the ocean to create a comfortable and cozy conversation space for the cocktail hour. My favorite part of the wedding has got to be witnessing a celebratory event in true Greek fashion for the first time - breaking of the plates! Breaking of plates (or any kind of glassware I’d say!) on the dance floor during dancing is a Greek tradition. It was so much fun to see these broken plates flying across the dance floor for the very first time - good times!
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Michael & JessicaThe Royal Hawaiian Hotel - Oahu
Photos by: Visionari
Jessica and Michael's wedding was held at the beautiful, newly-renovated Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Better known as the "Pink Palace", the Royal had gotten a face lift earlier this year and no details were left out during the design and renovation process. Every single piece of furniture was carefully selected; from the rustic chandelier to the abstract paintings on the wall, everything was so tastefully put together. I was in love with the dramatic Hawaiian print wallpaper the moment I saw it inside Jess’ bridal suite. The hotel has the perfect balance in vintage and contemporary design. Jess and Michael wanted their wedding to feel modern, clean and crisp. Earth tones such as rustic orange linens and mahogany brown chivari chairs were used to set the tone for the reception decor. These colors worked amazingly well with the Moroccan style chandeliers and wall sconces inside the Monarch ballroom. To throw in the balance of contemporary design, crisp white flowers (calla lilies, hydrangeas and tulips) were used throughout the reception, and they were artistically arranged inside various style of glass vessels. The table top design was completed with lots of floating candles to give the ballroom a warm and inviting glow.
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Grayson & SunnyPali Golf Course – Oahu
Photos by: Shawn Starr
Sunny and Grayson are personal friends of mine, and I was thrilled when they asked me to help them with their wedding plans. Just like most couples, budget was a very important factor in planning this affair. Sunny had a small budget to work with, but with a large guest count to entertain. I was ready to take on this challenge because I really wanted to give them an event that will blow all of their guests away. Sunny found the Pali Golf Course (a public municipal golf course in Kaneohe) which allowed us to use their banquet room for free as long as we order event catering from them, and they even let us set up the ceremony site right next to the putting green for free, how sweet is that? Since we are saving a lot of money on food and location, we’ve decided to really splurge on items that will make big visual impacts: lighting, linen and flowers. Yvonne Design did an amazing job with warming up the entire room with a nice blue color to go along with their Masquerade themed reception; the gobo projection over the dance floor really tied the whole room together. Black floor length linens made the table set up so chic, elegant and classic; they also made such stunning contrast with the white chairs popped up against them. White tall feather filled arrangements created by Floral Inspirations made the banquet room feel so grand and mysterious at the same time - perfect for Sunny’s Masquarade themed reception. A lot of guests at the wedding have gone to a few events inside the same banquet room at the Pali Golf Course, but they thought the golf course has recently remodeled the banquet room as Sunny and Grayson’s wedding set up was beyond recognizable. This is probably the most dramatic room transformations Finishing Touch has done, and we are so happy with the end result!
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Jason & ReikoJW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa - Oahu
Photos by: Visionari
I instantly fell in love with Reiko and Jason the moment I met with them at our consultation. Reiko and Jason are all about having a great time, and they truly demonstrate what "work hard and play hard" is all about. I know their wedding is going to be the party of the year after hearing all of their exciting ideas from having a Jewish ceremony with the twist of sharing sake instead of wine, to the unexpected choreographed first dance; and of course, I have to mention about the surprise Jason and I had been working on for months before the wedding – a surprise fireworks show for Reiko to take place on the day of their wedding. It was required by the Ko Olina association that I inform all of the resort residents and hotel guests of the fireworks, so they don't get scared by the loud noise. It was quite challenging to make sure no guests, especially Reiko, receive any notice about the show. With close to 200 out of town guests, you know someone will spill the beans, somehow! All week, I was really looking forward to seeing Reiko's reaction to this amazing (and expensive) surprise. After Jason gave his speech, we fired off the fireworks, and Reiko was completely in shock, and of course, in tears! My staff and I had a blast at their wedding, and Reiko and Jason were truly a joy to work with. Their guests kept the dance floor busy all night. Let's just say that they danced so hard the dance floor moved about 3 - 4 feet away from its original position. I had no idea that's even possible!
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Michael & JenniferLanikuhonua Phase II – Oahu
Photos by: Chrissy Lambert
Your wedding should always be a reflection of your belief and personal style. I love it when a couple really takes time on creating a wedding ceremony that is personal, spiritual and meaningful. Jennifer is a yoga instructor, and Michael is a therapeutic massage therapist. They own a business together in San Francisco that focuses on health and healing. Jennifer is definitely one of my favorite brides to work with. Her presence is so calming, soothing and just simply lovely. Jennifer and Michael included a lot personal elements into their wedding ceremony. A personal friend of theirs acted as the officiant, another friend played a musical instrument while their guests meditated on love, and a young family member sang a song for the couple in her little mermaid outfit! Their ceremony was so touching, and it reminded me again what marriage is all about. After all, flowers will die, candles will melt.... but your marriage is one thing from your wedding that truly last forever. Yvonne Design did an amazing job with the lighting and flowers. They truly exuded beauty and serenity, with a touch of Indian inspiration (given India is the birth place of Yoga). Jennifer's Indian-inspired wedding cake made by Cake Lava also stole the show. It was so colorful and of course, so ono (delicious) at the same time.
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Joel & MikiLanikuhonua Phase II – Oahu
Photos by: Ray Soemarsono of Apertura Photo
Miki and Joel were a really fun and down to earth couple to work with. They had a very nice theme for their wedding, modern chic Caribbean beach, which was carried through from the ceremony to the reception. Miki wore a wedding dress by Jin Wang and looked stunning and so comfortable in it. Her cute little shell sandals were also perfect for her beach ceremony. Miki and I share a common past – we were both in a sorority when we were in college (a secret I avoid to discuss or you can say, I am still in denial!); therefore, it is understandable that presentation and appearance are always on top of our priority list. Miki’s did an amazing job making sure no wedding details were left out. Form the burlap wrapped invitation and the use of driftwood in her ceremony décor, to the giant capiz shell chandeliers hung below her tent and the succulent embellishments on her table top, all the wedding details were absolutely perfect! Miki and Joel’s wedding felt so comfortable and earthy, but chic and refined at the same time. Miki and Joel’s perfect wedding day was completed with great families, friends, food and of course – beautiful décor.
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Adam & Renee Lanikuhonua Phase II - Oahu
Photos by: Frank Amodo Photography
True surfers at heart, Adam and Renee, chose Lanikuhonua Phase II to be close to the ocean when they tied the knot. Adam and Renee were high school sweethearts, and they had been together for more than 10 years when they married in November 2007. Renee’s personal style can be described as beachy and relaxed, and her style has definitely exuded through her wedding. Seashell adorned place setting, soft green and champagne accents plus Adam’s and Renee’s optimism created a comfortable and soothing ambiance for their wedding. Check out their beautiful wedding photos and, of course, the amazing Lanikuhonua sunset!
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Brian & Katie Hale Koa Hotel - Oahu
Photos by: Marcia Campbell Photography
Brian and Katie got married a year ago in an intimate beach ceremony attended only by their families. Katie loved the outdoors and she said her barefoot wedding was truly her “dream wedding”. Katie came from a large family, so she decided to host another wedding reception that would allow more of her friends and family to attend. What can we do when a bride has already had her “dream wedding?” Instead of focusing on creating another wedding affair, we were determined to create this event based on true celebration style and design based solely on Katie’s outgoing and fun personality. We wanted to make this a fun and lively celebration to remember. To help create a lively ambiance, we utilized all types of fun, colorful and unique tropical flowers for her wedding. Beautiful kissing balls, hung throughout the ceremony site, helped set the tone for the event. We removed all ballroom banquet chairs and replaced them with modern black folding chairs to avoid the ballroom looking too “stuffy.” We also utilized beautiful Capri blue linens and chocolate brown napkins to create a young, spontaneous and a little “mismatched” feel to the wedding. The liveliness of the event allowed the guests to relax and feel “belonged” to a space where Brian and Katie’s personalities truly exuded.
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Sam & Kathleen White Rock Beach & Spago at the Four Seasons Resort - Maui
Photos by: Mark Nomura Photography
Sam and Kathleen got married at White Rock Beach in Maui and had an intimate reception at the edgy Four Season’s Spago restaurant. Kathleen has always envisioned getting married on the beach, but a fashion junkie at heart, she LOVES her shoes! In order for Kathleen to wear heels on sand, we constructed a hard surfaced runway style aisle for her. We also set up an all white chuppah on top of the hard surface. The mesh between this modern all white ceremony set up on a rustic Maui beach was the perfect setting for these two New Yorkers’ wedding getaway in paradise.
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Kenneth & Roxanna Lanikuhonua Phase I - Oahu
Photos by: Mark Nomura Photography
Roxanna and Kenneth got married in 2005 when the Army brought them to Hawaii. On their first wedding anniversary, Roxanna knew that she would not let this day go by without making it a celebration of their love for each other and, more importantly, having a ceremony and dinner reception she wasn’t able to have a year ago. With Roxanna’s Spanish background and Kenneth’s humble roots, the couple wanted this day to be romantic, festive, comfortable and sexy! With the help of Fong Tagawa of Floral Inspirations, Lanikuhonua was transformed into an exotic and festive Spanish retreat. A luxurious fabric-draped arch adorned with colorful flowers created the perfect backdrop for the vow renewal ceremony. Spanish influenced floral hanging baskets and romantic red mood lighting created the perfect setting for the reception tent. Guest tables were draped with fine linen provided by Les Saisons, and each place setting was beautifully embellished with 24K gold chinaware and flatware, mango essence napkin and a single gold long-stemmed mini calla lily. The ambiance was perfect and no details were left unnoticed.
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Jeff & AmyLanikuhonua Phase I – Oahu
Photos by: Frank Amodo Photography