Occasions at Laguna Village
577 South
Coast Highway
Laguna Beach, California (Southern) 92651, USA
Tel. (866) 321-9876 Fax (661) 664-0211
http://www.occasionsatlagunavillage.com
Event Overview:
As part of her training for the FBI, little Annette had to
spar with another agent. He was over six feet tall, and though he thought
it would be easy he soon found himself kissing the ground. Again and
again she took the big guys down. Annette is a graduate of Texas A&M, and
the Bureau found her accounting degree enticing, but their plans for her soon
changed when she they saw how she could handle herself. What was her
secret? Four older brothers!
Instead of a d esk job, Annette found herself in the field,
busting down crack houses. So the stress or pressure of a wedding
day was a picnic for her. Annette is a fitness workout queen, and she was
in prime shape for her wedding day. She basked in the glory of the
day and enjoyed every moment of it. So, what kinda guy is lucky
enough to land Annette? It would have to be someone equally dynamic.
Annette found her mate in Randy. Not only do they look great together,
they are great together.
Annette planned a destination wedding from Northern
California. She fell into a category that a lot of brides fall into,
on the one hand she was excited about her wedding, and loved looking forward to
the big day, but she wasn't one to dwell over the details. She made
good decisions without much agonizing. Like many of our brides she was
busy, she had a career, and a workout schedule, a new home, etc.
It's neat to see how it all came together, and how smooth it ran. We
feature her wedding because how beautiful it was, and how well it came together.
Let's let Annette tell you.....
Wedding Date:
October 8, 2005. It was exactly two years after our first date!
Ceremony Location:
Occasions at Laguna Village, Laguna
Beach, CA
I wanted to get married outdoors,
near sunset, where we could see the ocean. I saw the site and I knew that this
was the place where Randy and I would become husband and wife. The location is
set on the hills above Laguna Beach. The view is spectacular. I wanted the
location we choose to be simple, uncomplicated but stunning and impressive. We
found it!
Reception Location
Where was it?
Occasions at
Laguna Village, Laguna Beach, CA
What attracted you to this location?
I wanted the view to be the focus; not huge overdone tables or flower
arrangements. This has to be one of the most beautiful sites in all of
California. I wanted a dramatic view.
How did it go with the theme of your day? It was
better then I ever imagined!
Bridal Dress:
Some brides buy the first dress they try on, others
spend months looking for the right one. What was it about this dress that you
liked? In most cases once the engage ment ring is on the bride’s finger the
first thing a bride does is look for a wedding dress. It sets the pace for the
day. The styles of dresses have evolved over the years to be a bit more form
fitting. The lace up corset dress really caught on a couple of years ago. Some
dresses are a bit more ornate, with more beading and patterns, while others are
a bit more simple. What did you like? What type of fabric was it?
Mine was a Maggie Sottero
“Regency” – it is a beaded, strapless dress with a corset back and an empire
waist. I wanted to exaggerate my curves and the moment I tried on this dress, I
knew it was the one! It was sexy, beautiful and elegant. I also bought the
matching bolero jacket because I thought it was modern and the jacket did not
take away form the dress because of it’s cut. The Maggie Sottero website
describes the dress as “Regency - One-piece gown with innovative empire waist
and inverted pleats placed throughout the skirt. Embellished with embroidery,
Swarovski crystals, seed beads, sequins and bugle beads. Train length is 74”
from the waist.”. I chose the diamond white and pewter combination because the
pure white made me look too pale. I loved the fact that the back was a corset –
so I new it would fit perfectly for the wedding – and I never fidgeted with it –
it stayed in place! The train was a perfect length – chapel – not too
long and not to short. The dress really made me feel like a princess; in fact
one of our 4-year-old cousins kept hugging me calling me princess – it was
adorable!
Bridesmaids’ Dresses
This is one of the more exciting changes in the wedding
industry. Just a few years ago bridesmaids dresses came in a few very boring
styles. Today the dresses are more exciting. Some are skirts instead of
dresses, and the newer trend is for the dresses to be of the same color and
manufacture but of different styles to better fit each bridesmaid.
I wanted them to have and
elegant, strapless gown that had some embroidery and beading,. I chose
Impression Bridal #1152 in Claret, which is a deep red color. I chose this color
because it matched the Black Magic Roses that would be in my bouquet and used at
the ceremony and reception. The color was rich. I wanted the bridesmaid’s
dresses to have the same shape and feel as mine; their dresses were in an
A-Line cut with an Empire waist, similar to my dress The dress did not need
huge accessories, as I think it could stand on its own. For the bridesmaids gift
I got them each a fresh water pearl three piece set (necklace, earrings and
bracelet).
For the flower girl’s dresses, I
found the cutest dresses on Ebay for $30. The dresses were embroidered with red
flowers and had scalloped edges. The main part of the dress was white. I thought
that the flower girls dresses would lend and be a combination of my wedding
dress color and the bridesmaid’s color. I think it worked out pretty well!
Floral Strategy
The strategy a few years ago from a floral point of view
was to get the flowers as close to white as possible. The thinking was that
they didn’t want the flowers to stand out over the bride’s face. My thinking
is that if you have a nice face, it don’t matter what’s in front of you. I think
it caught on, now colors are used more than ever before. I’ve also noticed that
the floral arrangements are getting smaller and lighter. There was a strategy
for your floral arrangement. Please do share. What did you want to convey
with your flowers.
I wanted the floral
arrangements to me simple but elegant and classy. I brought examples of what I
liked to my florist Melia so she would know exactly what I was imagining.
For my bouquet, I wanted a
full, luscious, uniform Black Magic bouquet tied by a white satin ribbon. The
color matched the bridesmaids’ dresses perfectly so it looked great in pictures.
I couldn’t believe it!
I had the bridesmaids carry a
smaller white rose bouquet to mimic mine; it looks really simple, elegant and
uniform!
For the ceremony, we had roman
columns and a huge arch decora ted with black magic roses, white roses and
greenery. We also lined the isle runner with black magic and white rose petals.
We had white tulle flowing down the isle with an arrangement of black magic
roses every other row.
For the reception tables, we
did a simple centerpiece arrangement of a dozen black magic roses, with a bit of
greenery, in a round vase. Black magic rode petals were sprinkled around the
vases and illuminated with votive candles. Again, I thought this would be
simple, elegant and stunning.
My relatives surprised us with
an AMAZING vase ice sculpture, which was the centerpiece for the buffet table.
It was stunning. The ice vase had two dozen (at least!) black magic and white
roses with greenery blooming from the top.
Hair Style Strategy:
Since the people reading won’t know what you look like
on a day to day basis you may need to describe your hair and how you normally
wear it. What did you decide to do about your hair on your wedding day? Did
you have someone come to your room or did you go somewhere to get your hair
done?
First, I want to say that I was lucky enough to have the
best makeup artist and hair stylist, John and Jillian Anaya, as friends. They
are a married duo from Fresno with tons of professional experience: fashion week
in NY, weddings, print ads, TV, movies. I am so lucky!
I wanted to have my hair half up and half down and it had
to work with the tiara and veil. We did a few trials in the weeks before the
wedding. John strained it and then worked his magic! :D
Makeup Strategies
Jillian knew exactly what I wanted! I wanted my makeup
to look natural but emphasize my eyes. We put on a set of false eyelashes for a
glamorous look! We used some sparkley glitter near the inner parts of my eyelids
to add some drama and pazzaz. For my lips we used MAC extended wear lipgloss and
added a glittery shine on top.
Ideas from the bride:
One of the things I really wanted to do was to have the
formal pictures done before the wedding. I am so glad I did! It gave us extra
time to enjoy the reception !
I wanted my wedding to stand out. We incorporated the sand
ceremony and hand ceremony into the wedding. I think it made the ceremony more
personal and a little bit different then other wedding ceremonies.
For the wedding, I wanted everything to be simple, yet
elegant. I didn’t want too many colors or overblown floral arrangements. I
choose my dress first and then picked a similar style for the bridesmaids’
dresses.
For favors, I put seashell wine charms in a white organza
bag that had dots of silver and claret on it.
I wanted something different for the cake. I loved the look
of the mirrored monogram (RHA) on top – clean, simple and elegant…. The bottom
of my cake was square, the next layer was round and the top was hexagonal. Each
cake had a different flavor. I also did a groom’s cake (I am from Texas where
they are very popular) with my fiancé’ golfing… It turned out great!
Instead of spending money on fake jewelry I would never
were again, I got my earrings and necklace from Overstock.com; I got 60-70% off
and I wear them out all the time!
USE EBAY. I got my favors, my wedding programs, my shoes,
my cameras, my Things Remembered goblets and serving pieces, my cake topper, off
EBAY. All new and perfect at a fraction of the price!
Vendors:
My dress: I loved my dress! I felt beautiful, sexy and like a
princess! My dress was the from Maggie Sottero called “Regency”. Here is the
link: maggiesottero.com
Hair and Makeup: John and Jillian Anaya, doing
business as “Asteria”: they are in Fresno but will travel: 559/277-1441. They
bring out your inner beauty and make you feel amazing. They are such wonderful
people!
My location for the ceremony and reception AND
rehearsal dinner: Occasions at Laguna Village; 577 South Coast Highway, Laguna
Beach. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of people to make my wedding
day PERFECT. It was better then I had dreamt of and it is because of them! The
phone number is (866) 321-9876. Website:
http://www.weddinglocation.com/page.phtml/lid/10536
Dayna Lewis was our wedding coordinator and
is the exclusive coordinator at Occasions at Laguna Village. She took care of
EVERYTHING! I had nothing to worry about. She has a crew of people that
communicate with earpieces so that everything is perfect! She set up everything
exactly as we requested. She brought us our food and even got us drinks. She
gets a 15 on a scale of 10!
For the string quartet and trumpet, we picked the El Real
Chamber Players. They were FABULOUS! I played the cello for 10 years and I love
the sound of strings and the trumpet added a little extra something. Here is
their web address:
www.elrealchamberplayers.com
Our Officiant was Reverend Paul Uhlar. HE was
wonderful – everyone commented on what a fabulous ceremony he performed. He was
so touching that people who had never cried at weddings were crying!
http://www.wedding-ceremonies-officiants.com/celebrities.htm
The flowers were stunning! We used Wedding’s by
Melia in Laguna Canyon. Her website is http://www.weddingsbymelia.com/ and her
phone number is 949-494-9491.
The cake was from Rossmoor’s Pastries in Signal
Hill. They can do ANYTHING and are very reasonable. Everyone commented on how
well the cake was! http://www.rossmoorpastries.com/
At Your Service Caterers (Pricilla) did the
appetizers and the food. The food was by far the best food I have ever had at a
wedding. My guest commented on how delicious the food was! http://www.atyourservicecaters.com/
or phone 714-960-2091
One last thing:
Annette never met us before signing up with us. She talked to Steve on the
phone numerous times and went on her gut instincts. They engaged in
many long conversations. The week before the wedding Steve was at another
wedding. After the ceremony the bridal party went to a huge party bus and
started drinking, and drinking, and drinking. The photo session
happened over at The Claremont Colleges. The session was nearly over
when a modified golf cart pulled up. Everybody assumed it was a gardener
and ignored it. As it approached an obese man who made the cart tilt
due to his weight started talking. It turned out to be campus
security. Not a real police department, more like a rent a cop police
department. He asked everybody to leave, and they complied.
And then, for no apparent reason, the guy snapped, and turned into an
overly macho wannabee cop. The groom, who was by this point
intoxicated started yelling at the rent-a-cop and then they started screaming at
each other. The rent-a-cop started calling for the Claremont Police
Department to come and Steve said "Are you planning to arrest the bride and
groom on their wedding day? This this through for a moment." The
rent a cop didn't back down, the situation escalated. What the rent-a-cop
didn't know was the second photographer was actually a 20 year veteran of
the Associated Press. If things got ugly, she would have documented it,
and was able to upload it to her contacts at the New York Post within a
few minutes.
With the help of a groomsman, Steve was able to deflate the
situation. It was bad, but it could have been worse. Steve was
telling the story to Annette a few days before the wedding and said "I nearly
had to call you to spring me from the pokey so I could photograph your
wedding."
| 
