So Happi Together

Happy 100 Days to baby elle

2012-01-20T01:06:00.000-08:00

Okay. So I did something that might be considered a bit sacrilegious for a Korean American party planner... I did not throw a huge, detail-filled party for our baby elle's 100 day celebration. *gasp*

In Korean tradition, the 100th day of life for a baby is a pretty big deal. It is called the "behk il" (literally "100 day") and generally goes back to the fact that a very long time ago, not all babies survived to this point in life. So, when they did, it was celebrated because it was seen as a milestone. Kind of like, if you made it this far, you are in the clear! :) Obviously, life expectancy has improved somewhat over the years, but the 100 Day celebration is still very common and comes with a lot of fun traditions and picture perfect details. I am a lover of tradition, but about a week before her 100 Day, I was overwhelmed with a huge desire to just spend some time alone with my little family for baby elle's 100 day.

Her 100 Day came right after the holidays, which were filled with tons of family, love, laughter, hustle and bustle. I also had 4 of my out-of-town brides IN town during the holidays (since they were on break) so my work schedule was just as packed as my social schedule! I felt like we dove straight into this season right after baby elle's birth, and my body was telling me to slow down and my heart was telling me to take time to take things in... so that is exactly what we did. :) Instead of spending sleepless nights crafting special touches and perfecting final elements for a 100 Day party, Eddie and I said, "Hey! Let's get away, just the three of us and take a mini-vacation with our mini-family." And we did just that and I couldn't be happier!

We went down to San Diego for the weekend because this is where Eddie and I started our courtship! I was finishing up my BA at UCSD and Eddie was still in school at The Art Center in Pasadena at that time, but he made the drive down south at least twice a week to spend time with me to just study, soak up some sun at the beach and eat yummy food. 2012 will mark 10 years together (!!) so it was pretty meaningful to be able to take our baby elle to all the places her father and I used to frequent when we were first dating, when her existence was just a distant hope and dream. We spent the weekend focusing on each other, spoiling ourselves with good food, beautiful sights and thoughtful conversation. We didn't do anything over the top or incredibly spectacular in the traditional sense, but it was oh so perfect. I feel super recharged and ready for 2012. I am reminded of how blessed I am to have my family and the life that I live. I want to thank each of you who visit my humble blog, for stopping by and being a part of the spark that keeps me going. I love each of you, dearly and truly, and look forward to sharing a marvelous 2012 with you!

So, I send each of you a virtual hug and kiss and strongly recommend a mini-vaca to anyone who needs a chance to soak in the thought of all the blessings that are coming your way in 2012. Seriously, whether you are getting married, starting a family, starting a new job or making new friends - this is going to be an unforgettable year! Baby elle says, "Cheers to new years and new beginnings!"

Image courtesy of baby elle's daddy, Up Imagery. This was supposed to go out as holiday cards - but that is another tradition that I love, but decided to let go of just this one year. :)

keep the party going - rollasole

2012-01-17T15:31:00.000-08:00

I am not sure if I am late to the game, but I think these Rollasole ballet flats would be an amazing, upscale alternative to the flips flops that many brides lay out for their guests at the end of the night. You can personalize them and not worry about bringing down the elegance-factor of the evening! I personally also think they are much easier to dance in than flip flops! :)

At ~$10 a pop they aren't the most affordable party favor, but certainly the most useful! And the packaging for weddings is nice too! Check it out!

Sparkle, Shine and Pop!

2011-12-23T16:23:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies! I hope you all have great plans for this weekend and the rest of our holiday season! The holidays are especially exciting when you have a new baby in tow and we feel supremely blessed with and even undeserving of our baby Elle and all the love that she receives from our family and friends. The term "it takes a village to raise a child" is seriously no joke! ;)

On to other festive news - I thought I would revisit the tablescape we designed for the Utterly Engaged New Year's Party last year! It won first place in their challenge and landed us the cover page of their Issue #15! As a part of the first place prize, we were able to bring out tablescape idea to life and have it photographer by the superbly talented and sweet, Jasmine Star! Working with her was a dream and our dream setting was the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. Working with friends is always a delight, so when Jane from Olive Hue Paper Goods, Cindy from Floral Elements and I first discussed the idea of putting together a design in less than a week for the party, we knew that even if we didn't win the design challenge, we would have tons of fun! Of course, it was immensely rewarding to have a panel of our professional peers choose us as the winners, but in the end, playing with a design we rarely get to venture into with our weddings was the true payoff. :)

I am hoping some of these fun colors and ideas can inspire you last-minute party planners! :) I personally love this color combination and usually use shades of pink in lieu of reds for the holidays. Switch the blues we have for some greens and you have instant-holiday-cheer! (Although I think the pink and blue work just as nicely!)

All photos courtesy of Jasmine Star Photography:

The challenge was to fit the party theme of "Snap! Crackle! Pop!" So we came up with a concept around the line of "He Popped the Question. She said Yes!" and incorporated this into the design of the table and the paper goods.

I love our bride and groom chair signs with the fringe flowers and detailing!

Cindy from Floral Elements really brought the vision to life with her floral design and it fit perfectly with these fun linens from La Tavola Linens.

We created a backdrop for the dessert table by stringing popcorn (to go along with the "pop" theme) and spray painting the popcorn garlands gold. We also made hot pink confetti garlands and dusted them with hot pink glitter.

Isn't that cake the cutest! I loved all of the desserts that Melody from My Sweet and Saucy created for us! The custom cookies with the gold leaf embellishment are definitely my fave!

Party blowers served as escort cards and each guest was given a confetti popper, personal "Pop" champagne bottle and popcorn ball.

I love the images Jasmine captured of our bride and groom!

Isn't our bride the cutest? I thought her hair and makeup was perfect for our shoot! Thanks so much to Monica for Theresa Huang Makeup and Design! And thanks to Vivian from Tomato Weddings for supplying the lovely wardrobe attire for the bride and groom!

Love these shots by the rooftop pool at The SLS Hotel.

Happiest Holidays to you all! I hope you all have something amazing planned for the next few days and look forward to seeing you again in the new year! xoxo!!!

Athena & Jonny - Happily Ever After!

2011-12-05T16:36:00.000-08:00

Happiest December, loves! Can you believe 2011 is almost over??

Obviously, I am a bit backed up after the break I took for my pregnancy and have a TON of fantastic wedding to post. I actually still have some from last year (if you can believe it!) that I am dying to share with you all! I am not sure what order I am going to be posting these just yet, but thought I would share Athena and Jonny's wedding for now because it was featured on the fab Rock n' Roll Bride site a few days after baby elle's birth. I love Kat Williams and her features are always so fun and inspiring, so it was quite an honor to be featured on her site right here.

Athena and Jonny, one of the most fun and adorable couples you could ever meet, were married at the Hammersky Vineyard in Paso Robles. I have received so many inquiries for Paso Robles lately that I strongly feel it is becoming the new "Napa" for Southern Californians who desire a destination wedding but can't go very far for a multitude of reasons. Kim at Hammersky is such a delight to work with and you literally feel like you are at home when you book the venue. We were lucky enough to have the beautiful wedding day captured by the fabulous husband and wife duo, Our Labor of Love, with film by Shark Pig. Pretty rad combo, doncha' think?! Please enjoy some of my fave images from their day and check out more on the Rock n' Roll Bride feature! Once again, all images courtesy of Our Labor of Love!

Gorgeous setting!

I love how perfectly the invitations and stationery by Rifle Paper Company complemented the venue and their wedding day. Beautiful calligraphy by my dear friend, Jane, of Olive Hue Paper Goods.

You can rent this home at the vineyard for you and your family or bridal party to stay in the weekend of your wedding. So classic and convenient. A great spot for getting ready on the morning of the big day!

The stunning Athena and her beautiful attendants were made EXTRA beautiful by Cindel for Nicole DeAnne and Associates. Love working with these ladies! They never disappoint!

Delish floral designs by Laurel White at Adornments. She was wonderful to work with and very accommodating!

I hope everyone is this happy to get married on their wedding day! :) I always say, the smiles on the bride and groom's faces are the most important details of the day! Everything else pales in comparison!

I love seeing a venue all set up and ready to go before guests begin bustling in. It naturally releases endorphins for me! ;)

Some sweet and fun moments captured post ceremony!

The DJ (a friend of the bride and groom) ready to get the party started!

DETAILS GALORE!

Athena and her friend made these daisies from a DIY kit sold at Paper Source here. My team assembled them into garlands for the bride and groom chairs and as a backdrop as a part of our styling of the dessert table.

The dessert table also had custom candies including these all natural sea salt caramels. Yum!

LOVE these Fendi heels!

LOVE these lights above the dance floor and dining tables!

LOVE the "kissing booth" they constructed as a backdrop for the photo booth!

LOVE people who know how to have fun! ;)

Athena and Jonny - I had so much fun helping you plan a sweet and memorable wedding and couldn't be happier that our paths crossed in this amazing way. Thank you for letting us share in your intimate and beautiful wedding day. Your friends and family are all too kind and we love you all to bits and pieces. Hope your marriage abounds with as many fun-filled days as your wedding day! xoxo!

Happi Team of vendors:

Planning and Coordination: So Happi Together
Photography: Our Labor of Love
Cinematography: Shark Pig
Floral Design: Adornments
Catering: Chef Charlie
Cake: The Cakery and Cake Cathedral (groom's cake)
Hair and Makeup: Cindel for Nicole DeAnne Associates
Invitations and Stationery: Rifle Paper Company
Calligraphy: Olive Hue Paper Goods
Lighting: The Lighter Side
Rentals: Classic Party Rentals and La Tavola Linens

A&M - Happily Ever After!

2011-12-01T19:19:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays and Happy December! This year was seriously jam packed with all kinds of exciting adventures and fun and I feel like it simply flew by. Can you believe 2012 is just around the corner?? Our home is bustling with holiday spirit and decor and we are planning to go cut our own Christmas tree this weekend, so my excitement is barely containable! Having baby elle around for our festivities this year makes everything that much more warm and cozy and our family fun time is straight out of a holiday story book! Ay. I could literally gush about her all day, but I am sure you all want to hear about some weddings too, right? :)

I figured my first wedding post after my multi-month hiatus should be one that I promised to blog about way back in July. If you remember, A&M's wedding at the Saddlerock Ranch was featured on 100 Layer Cake in two parts that you can check out here and here. They were so much fun to work with and pretty much "game" for any fun details and designs that we could pack into their day! A&M had a ton of great ideas so it was fun helping to narrow those down into a carefully curated and cohesive wedding day. I love that we truly became friends by the end of their planning process and they felt that they could trust my advice on details such as color, design and decor. It is always great to work with a couple that is willing to try something that they never imagined at first, and find that they love it!

Their wedding was filled with too many fun details to count and it is difficult to choose just a few as my favorites. Everyone involved in making the wedding so beautiful and fun was a dream to work with and major props to Gabriel Ryan for capturing it all for us. (He also just had a baby bundle of his own - so big congrats to him and his gorgeous wifey!) Here are a few highlights from the day!

A&M were inspired by our shoot that was featured in Southern Weddings Magazine and decided to commission artist and stationer Megan of Mae Mae Paperie to create a similar design for their wedding day stationery. I love how it turned out in their color scheme!

The CD that you see was their stop motion invite - truly a labor of love and their take on the film 500 Days of Summer. You can watch it here! Stop Motion Wedding Invite 2000 from M and A on Vimeo.

Pre-ceremony refreshments on a table we created utilizing Saddlerock's wine barrels and a vintage door from Found Vintage Rentals.

The enchanting florals were provided by Holly Flora and their lush beauty and soft romantic colors were the perfect reflection of the couple and the venue.

We decided to achieve a rustic elegance by combining vintage items with a bit more modern furniture pieces with clean lines and some luxe furniture pieces as well. Guests were encouraged to mix and mingle but also roam the grounds and we provided plenty of seating for those who wanted to cozy up together and enjoy the pretty view.

If you are familiar with Saddlerock, you know there is no shortage of cute animals on the grounds. Cocktail hour was held right next to the field of horses and when I saw this gypsy cart at Found I just knew we had to use it for something fun! A horse feeding station seemed like the perfect fit and the natural baskets of sugar cubes, leafy carrots and apples were appreciated by horses and guests alike. :) Of course, we had wipes, antibacterial gel and paper towels on hand for a good, clean fun experience!
(please note: the above two images were provided by A&M's friend - Don't you love how the horse is munching away on a carrot? So cute!)

I had so much fun styling this escort card display table, flanked by vintage suitcases thoughtfully filled with flip flops and shawls for the comfort of guests. Escort cards were placed in wine corks and vintage boxes, a riddling rack and pieces of silver (from Found) provided dimension on the table along with beautiful still life flowers and moss balls from Holly Flora.

We also had fun styling the polaroid "photo booth" area for the cocktail hour. Whimsical heart garlands and vintage cameras and clocks held the photo props and guests took pictures on a swing hung from a nearby tree.

The delectable desserts were provided by My Sweet and Saucy Shop. I simply love how they looked on this mirror table and against the gorgeous backdrop provided by Glow Concepts. A&M saw this shoot and was in love with the backdrop design so much that she ordered a similar one for their dessert table!

The gorgeous place settings with specially colored china, gold flatware, linen napkins, macaron favors and calligraphed place cards lent an air of sophistication to the outdoor setting and were highlighted by the twinkle lights and chandeliers hanging from the majestic tree branches above.

Several lounge areas were created with a mixture of vintage and modern luxe furnishings. Throw pillows were added as accents and efforts to make guests feel at home.

Much thought went into the design of the dining tables. A&M initially wanted to keep the colors basic and neutral, but after much encouragement from me, they agreed to luxe it up with some gold chiavari chairs and soft aqua blue linen runners. We were all immensely happy with the result!

I don't know why this image of the sweetheart table makes me feel so warm and fuzzy. Isn't it perfection with the single chandelier placed a bit offset above? And who doesn't love a seamless taupe dance floor?

I think this picture above says it all... as beautiful as this wedding was, I am so happy that it was just the start to an even more beautiful marriage for A&M. I love you both and thank you for already sending so many friends and referrals my way! I can't wait to possibly see you at one of those weddings next year and look forward to a blossoming friendship! xoxo!

And I can't let you go without mentioning the amazing cinematographic skills of Joe Simon Films. Serious magic here. Please enjoy!

Happi Team of Vendors:

Design and Planning: So Happi Together
Photography: Gabriel Ryan

Cinematography: Joe Simon Wedding Films

Venue: Saddlerock Ranch

Catering: Lawry's Prime Rib
Rentals: Classic Party Rentals, Found Vintage Rentals, Chiavari Chair Rentals, Luxe Event Rentals, A Rental Connection, La Tavola Linens

Floral Design: Holly Flora

Hair and Makeup: Kelly Zhang Studio

Paper Goods/stationery design: Mae Mae Paperie

Cake, Desserts, macaron favors: Sweet and Saucy Shop

DJ/MC: Richard Blade

Letterpress printer: Aardvark Letterpress

Calligraphy: Copper Willow Paper Studio

Lighting: Bella Vista Designs

Valet: Premiere Valet Service

Bridal gown: Vera Wang

Baby Elle

2011-11-04T01:09:00.000-07:00

Oh my Lord. I cannot believe how long it has been since I last blogged. So much has happened since then, but the most important of all being - our baby Elle was born on October 6, 2011! She was a beautiful 7lbs, 2oz and 19 inches long! She came after 34 hours of non-(pain)medicated labor that ended with an emergency cesarean and 6 days in the hospital. We are both healthy and happy and our family is transitioning to a life filled with nursing, dirty diapers, spit-up, non-stop laundry and LOTS of love. We couldn't be happier. :)

To get my husband's take on Elle's birth, and some amazing images that document our whole experience, please check out his blog. He is not a man of many words, so I was surprised when he told me he had blogged about our baby Elle's birth. It is really touching to read about it from his perspective and I can't share how amazing the whole pregnancy and birth was.

Many of you who follow me on facebook or twitter (and of course, my brides and grooms) may know that I was on mandatory bed rest for the last two months of my pregnancy. I developed pregnancy induced hypertension, preeclampsia and PUPPPS. Basically, my doctor told me that I needed to be stress-free and stay in bed until Elle was ready to come out. Against his orders, I still managed to work on 3 weddings during my "bedrest" because I found that I would be more stressed to NOT work on them, than to be working on them. :) However, I do have to thank my bride and grooms, truly from the bottom of my heart, for their patience, love and support during this time. Due to the complications listed above, I swelled up like a balloon (you can see some of that in the pictures of our birth and also in our amazing maternity photos shot by our dear friend, Amelia Lyon, and styled by another lovely friend, Jeni Maus from Found Vintage Rentals) and I broke out in a painful and itchy rash all over my entire body (minus my face). I had many emergency trips to the hospital and had three regular appointments per week in the prenatal center to monitor my own body but also the well-being of our baby.

some of my fave images from our maternity session, shot by Amelia and styled by Jeni

During one of these routine visits, we discovered that Elle was under abnormal fetal distress with low vital signs of activity and we had to get her out right away. I was immediately admitted into the hospital for an induction, but nothing seemed to work. We were really hoping for a completely natural, drug-free labor, so being induced was already bumming me out. I still opted for no pain-meds, at the very least, and prayed that we would be able to give birth naturally. However, at about 30 hours into the labor I began to run a fever and simply felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety. I broke down to my husband saying that I didn't think Elle would be able to handle a natural birth and I think we would have to go with the cesarean - which, of course, meant I would need to be administered pain medication. He was so supportive of any decision I wanted to make and in the end, I don't know why I felt so emotional about it. Once the nurses alerted our doctor that I was opting for a cesarean and he saw Elle's vitals, he rushed us into surgery saying that he wished we had gone into it at least 5 hours earlier. It turned out that Elle's head was not completely facing downwards and she was "oblique" meaning her head was in my hip. The fetal distress caused her to expel and ingest some meconium while in my tummy - which freaked us out and led her to be monitored in NICU for a while before we finally received her in our arms. If we had been able to try for a natural birth, it would have ended in an emergency cesarean so I guess it was all just meant to be! Even with all of these complications, I wouldn't change a thing about Elle or her birth, and would do it all again in a heartbeat! We are so in love and I can't even imagine our life before her arrival.

I promise to be back to regular wedding blogging again, very soon! But for this post, I just wanted to share a bit about why I have been so MIA and how excited I am to be a mom! :) So, please indulge me a bit, as I share these images of our baby Elle.All images shot by my husband, Eddie of Up Imagery. :)

2 days old. In the arms of her daddy, in deep thought.

The first "babies" in our lives - Taylor and Benny, my niece and nephew - are so excited to have a little cousin. They pray for her every day and consider her their little sister.

Elle at just 4 days old! I love how her eyes sparkle when she smiles and she has a small dimple!

She was born in the year of the rabbit - our impromptu shoot before leaving the hospital.

Thank you for reading and checking back in after my long hiatus from blogging. I am excited to share all about the weddings we have worked on this year and the many we have in store for next! I can already tell that 2012 is going to be amazing and baby Elle is just the start! :) Happy Friday!

Late Night Surfing and Current Obsessions

2011-07-22T03:05:00.000-07:00

It may be over 2 years since I had my own wedding - but I can still fully relate to and sympathize with brides who can't sleep because they are up until the wee hours of the morning surfing the web for the "perfect" shoes, bridesmaids dresses, head piece, color combination, invitation suite, etc. Not to mention the "perfect" vendors - i.e. venue, photographer, videographer, florist, and don't forget, planner! :) You are NOT alone! You may even be reading this post when you should be in bed, but trust me, many of my brides have confessed to doing the same. So, you are in good company!

However, I am sorry to say ladies, but it doesn't end with the wedding day! eeps! If you haven't done so already, decorating your own home can be just as much of a consuming obsession! For my husband and myself, we knew that our first "home" was not going to be permanent, so I did not spend too much time or money decorating and designing. However, with a baby on the way, I can't even begin to explain the whole new world that has opened up to me with baby gear and nursery decor!

This is not to say that my blog is going to transition into a booming baby product infomercial. But as I was sharing with my husband the different options of cribs, wallpapers, gliders and area rugs that I have been looking at for the nursery, he laughed and told me that this whole scenario vaguely reminds him of our wedding planning days. I couldn't help but agree! And as I find myself unable to sleep because I am obsessively searching for the perfect pantone color for the walls and a rug to match the wall decal and crib, I can't help but wonder how many of you brides are out there, awake and surfing the net with me. ;) Makes me feel a little better knowing that I am not "alone" even if I am not necessarily looking for the same things you are.

In any case, I figured I would share some of my finds that are not just useful for babies and nurseries. I think some of these pieces are just lovely for any home and the bonus is that they can transition into a nursery if you ever need one! Some of my fave finds have to be the area rugs and prints designed by Katherine Yaphe for Oliver Yaphe, Inc. They are totally out of my price range, but oh so lovely. I look at them at least once a day and have developed a major crush on the artist herself. Check out her blog and stuff she loves. I am sure you will love them too! And here are some of her rugs that I drool over - each one hand-tufted with natural New Zealand blend wool and custom made to order:

So, now that I have shared one of my recent obsessions, how about you share yours? What wedding related item are you still searching for? Maybe we can help! ;) Please feel free to leave a comment or even shoot me an email.

In the meantime, maybe you can take weekend off from searching or planning and just enjoy being engaged to the love of your life? I think that is an obsession we can all get behind! Now I am off to sleep because it is way past my baby's bed time... so please excuse any grammatical errors in this post! Have a happi weekend!

The Knot Southern California Feature! Dina & Tai - Happily Ever After!

2011-07-21T02:02:00.000-07:00

Hello lovely readers! I know that I promised a re-cap of that beautiful Saddlerock wedding from last week, but realized that I should first post about our feature in the current Fall/Winter 2011 issue of The Knot, Southern California print magazine while it is still on stands! Please make sure to pick one up because it is chock full of gorgeous real weddings and details!

We were lucky enough to be featured in 4-page spread with Dina and Tai's classic and elegantly homespun wedding at the Athenaeum in Pasadena! I borrowed the image below from dear Dina's facebook! ;)

I still remember my first meeting with Dina at Coffee Bean and the fact that we hit it off right away! I am completely in love with her and Tai and the details they planned for their wedding. We filled the Athenaeum with billows of baby's breath, fresh cut garden flowers spilling out of vintage milk glass vases, lace, doilies, macarons, whispers of blush pink and muted gray, and of course, lots of love.

Here are just a few of my favorite details from their wedding, but really nothing compares to the couple themselves. They are just one of the most beautiful couples, inside and out! You can totally see how much they cherish each other in these images and isn't that what makes for the most lovely wedding?? Special thanks to my dear friend, Amelia Lyon, for capturing them so beautifully. I have a maternity session scheduled with her next month and CANNOT WAIT! ;) Of course, I will share the pictures here. But until then, please enjoy Dina and Tai's special day!

Okay. I know I said that the couple was the most beautiful element of the day, but dang. This dress came very close second! Dina's dress was an amazing strapless lace and tulle Pronovias gown. Dina works in fashion and knew exactly the look she wanted and while the original gown was gorgeous, she made it even more stunning by having it altered to fit her to a tee by the amazing Vivian at Tomato Weddings. Dina paired her gown with a custom, hand-made veil. *swoon*

I told you, so beautiful, right? I love how Dina accessorized on her wedding day. Totally natural and not overly done or fussy. perfection. Nicole Deanne did an amazing job with hair and makeup, as always. :)

Dina made the baby's breath initials that we hung from the main doors to the Athenaeum and hand-screen-printed the tea stained hankies with vintage lace trim. Instead of a traditional program they printed out a beautiful poem, "Why Marriage"

Each menu was paired with a napkin treatment of blush pink astible. Guests were treated with silk and tulle flower pins that were handmade by Dina and her mother with tags calligraphied by Tai's father! Such a talented family, right? Guests clipped the flower to their hair and lapels - loved it!

Tai's great grandmother made these 1000 cranes for his great grandfather and their own wedding day. They have been handed down through each generation and we strung them up between the chandeliers as a nod to tradition and in memory of loved ones passed. It looked amazing in real life.

Hope you are all having a beautiful and meaningful week! The days seriously go by so quickly with weddings nearly every week and a baby on the way! I promise to try to to be better about blogging, but thank you to all of my faithful readers for your encouraging emails and notes. :) I don't know where I would be without my community - you all!! xoxo!!

For a full list of vendors, please check out the feature in The Knot, Southern California magazine!

100 Layer Cake Feature today! Saddlerock Ranch Wedding!

2011-07-13T16:00:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies! Happy Wednesday!

I am so excited to announce that we are featured on 100 Layer Cake today with A&M's wedding at the Saddlerock Ranch in Malibu. I will be writing a more detailed post about it later this week, but for now, please check out the wedding on 100 Layer Cake! Special thanks to Amanda for the two-part feature! You can see Part 1 here and Part 2 here. :)

And another special thanks to Gabriel Ryan for the lovely images from the day. Here are some of my faves:

Isn't Audree a beautifully glowing bride?

loving all the details on their reception tables. Can't wait to share the deets and vendors involved!

The lounge areas were some of favorite pieces from the day. And they got plenty of use! Love that!

Don't these florals just make you melt? Stay tuned for more details and the fab list of vendors! xo!

Style Me Pretty Feature today! - Steampunk Wedding!

2011-07-11T09:51:00.000-07:00

Hello lovely readers! It has been a while but we have an exciting week of posts for you, so please be sure to check back! For now, we are thrilled to share that Janine and Casey's lovely steampunk inspired wedding is featured on Style Me Pretty's California blog today!

special thanks to Brandon Kidd for the awesome photography!

Please be sure to check out the lovely post and leave some love, if you have the time!

Here's to a fabulous week!

xoxo,
nancy

Katie & Nick - Happily Ever After!

2011-06-08T01:21:00.000-07:00

Okay - so you may have already seen this fantabulous wedding featured on Green Wedding Shoes last month, but of course I need to follow up with all the delicious dirt on the details! :) I have had so many inquiries following the great post on GWS and just general emails from brides asking for more information about the wedding, so I knew I had to share more here. Apparently this was the most popular post on their GWS that week that is was featured!

So, without further ado, I present the lovely Katie and Nick Radford! If that name sounds familiar it is because Nick just happens to be an amazing wedding photographer and it was that much more of an honor to work with him. I know that he works with so many great vendors, so when they asked me to be their planner, I was over the moon! And when they told me about their venue and vision, I was in heaven! Please enjoy these images by the uber-talented and fresh Hugh Forte - one of the most humble, easy-going photographers I have had the pleasure of working with. I don't know if he realizes just how incredible his work is! See for yourself!

Aren't they the best looking couple you have ever seen? They're the epitome of beauty (inside & out!)

I love these first look shots - and the hug that they were captured sharing!

And everyone in their bridal party was equally sweet, fun and beautiful! I love how Katie dressed her bridesmaids in dresses from H&M and paired them with the most perfect ankle boots.

Katie and Nick had a vision (rustic, woodsy, casual charm that stayed true to their venue - a nature center), a color scheme (brown, green and cream) and a whole lot of thematic items that they had picked up months prior to the wedding. They were trusting that I would help design a wedding around these items and use them as my heart desired. Dream come true, right! They didn't really have any wedding day stationery, and you know how important I think paper goods are in tying a concept together, so I took on the happy task of creating the programs and other signage for them.

For these programs, I used a free online template and printed them on kraft paper cardstock. I felt that this perfectly complemented their woodsy, rustic theme!

I also created escort card tags using the same font as the used on the programs and attached them with twine to the mason jars that worked triple duty as escort cards, favors and cups for guests. My team also punched out different color leaves (with embossed details) that served as meal indicators for the guest's Chipotle burrito of choice!

The nature center was definitely GORGEOUS, but some aspects were a little too worn down by nature for a wedding. So, my team decided to burlap wrap every bench in the ceremony area and accent them with dainty grosgrain ribbons. It was a time consuming and labor intensive task, but SO worth it!

The other large projects we took on for the ceremony included the pom garlands and altar installation, inspired by the coffee filter poms that can be found in Hello!Lucky's amazing book, "Handmade Weddings." When I first purchased this book, I knew I had to make those fluffy poms for something and was so excited when I realized it could be worked into Katie and Nick's wedding design. My team worked for days on tea staining 2000 coffee filters with 5 different batches of tea in order to create an ombre effect for the poms. We enlisted the help of Jane Jeon from Olive Hue Paper Goods and together we assembled the pom garlands and the installation of the pom altar/arch.

I couldn't be happier with how it turned out and think it was the perfect way to dress up a nature center for a wedding!

We also rented some essential items from Found Vintage Rentals to complete the look of the wedding. This included a table (and chest) for their communion table and a door as the "beginning" of their aisle. The bridal party and bride processed through the door and down the aisle, making quite a grand entrance. We had M's Flowers dress up the communion table by having flowers look as though they were spilling out of the center drawer. We accented it with my Anthropologie cups (used for communion) and one of the many owls that Katie had purchased and given to me to use throughout the wedding.

And you already know how much we like to dress up bride and groom chairs and honeymoon dance pin cushions... :)

Katie and Nick purchased bamboo-plates and bamboo-ware to continue their woodsy theme in the reception. We supplemented these with more bamboo serving pieces from Classic Party Rentals, who recently started to offer such sustainable goods!

Nick used wood from trees that his friend had cut down and made the table numbers and tree stumps for ceremony accent pieces.

Nick even made the dance floor himself! The night before the wedding!! Impressive, no?

The dessert table used more rentals from Found and displayed delicious treats by Heather Addison from Heaven's Kitchen, with signage by yours truly. :)

We had the fabulous honor of being joined by two more talented artists to help Hugh capture the day in different ways.

The amazing Doug Boutwell joined us to shoot a few 8x10 film portraits of the couple and some of their bridal party. You can see the incredible images here.

The slick and styling Rog from EP Love came to represent Stun Gun and create an amazing Super 8 film of the day. Check it out!

Nick and Katie wedding - super 8mm - stungun from stungun on Vimeo.

And finally, I leave you with one of my favorite images of the lovely couple. It was such an honor to share in their planning and celebration and I feel truly lucky to call them my friends. They are seriously one of the sweetest, loving and considerate couples you could ever meet. Nick and Katie - I love you two to pieces!

Happi Team of Vendors:

Design and Planning: So Happi Together
Digital Photography: Hugh Forte
Film Photography: Doug Boutwell
Cinematography: Stun Gun
Venue: Oak Canyon Nature Center
Rentals: Double D Rentals and Found Vintage Rentals
Catering: Chipotle Mexican Grill
Florals: M's Flowers
Linens: Elegant Designs Specialty Linens
Lighting: Chiavari Chair Rentals
Ceremony arch/garlands design and installation: So Happi Together and Olive Hue Paper Goods
Hair: Dianna Lopez
Makeup: Amy Clarke
Paper goods: Invites by Wedding Paper Divas and wedding day stationery by So Happi Together
Bridal gown: Debra's Bridal
Bridesmaids dresses: H&M

Anne & Jeff - Happily Ever After!

2011-05-18T12:28:00.000-07:00

I was already completely enamored with Anne when I read her first inquiry email. She seemed so completely sweet and excited to be engaged and getting married... and to top it off, she spells her name with an "e" just like one of my favorite characters from the classic Anne of Green Gables! I knew we would be kindred spirits and we really were! Each meeting was filled with genuine conversation and laughs and I have come to respect and love Anne (and Jeff!) like older siblings who are super responsible, wise, kind and unconditionally caring. They both hold such a special place in my heart and I am thrilled to be able to share their gorgeous wedding with you all. They truly are a perfect match and the love and respect that they have for each other simply oozes out of each image, don't you think?

Their fabulous wedding was at The Four Seasons in Beverly Hills. I love the staff there and their service is impeccable! All images are courtesy of the amazing husband and wife duo, Erin Hearts Court. I am so thrilled to be able to work with them again next month! They are truly gems in the industry!!

Anne's bridal bouquet was completely comprised of white English garden roses. Yum.

the lovely flowers on her Poeme gown by Christos are simply dreamy

Isn't Anne such a classic beauty? Anne is all grace and light. :)

One of Anne's close friends designed her stationery and had everything letterpressed.

An old and dear friend of mine creates these beautiful, custom silk gift boxes. Many brides treat the gift box like an after thought and use any cage or box they can find the week before the wedding, but it is one of the first things your guests will see on your wedding day, so I think it is nice to have something a little special on the table. :) Plus! It is a nice keepsake after your special day that can hold all of the lovely memories from your wedding! Right now those items from my wedding (extra programs, menus, our place cards and escort cards, my garter, pressed petals from my bouquet, the locket and ribbon from my bouquet, our wedding day cards to each other, etc.) are all in a Crate and Barrel box. lol. It serves it's function, but is definitely not as nice as the boxes above! ;)

Our team created these petal cones to line the ceremony aisle.

Isn't their arch gorgeous? Commerce Flowers never ceases to amaze me with what they can do on a budget! It was the perfect complement to the clean and understated elegance of their wedding.

LOVE these two images captured by Erin and Courtney! ;)

And of course, the orchid display in the ballroom foyer. It takes my breath away every time! I can barely keep one orchid plant alive in my house, I don't know how they manage to keep these looking so beautiful and fresh all year round! We decided to let the flowers center stage and kept the escort card display simple by placing them in vintage gold frames provided by Found Rentals.

The ballroom was stunning and Anne made these table numbers herself!

The cake provided by the Four Seasons looked too good to eat!

And the waffle and ice cream station that we decided to set up as a midnight snack was a HUGE hit! I am such a fan of breakfast at night.

And I leave you with two images of the gorgeous couple during their first dance.

*I love you, Anne and Jeff! Thank you so much for letting me be a part of your amazing day!

Happi Team of vendors!

Design and Coordination: So Happi Together

Photography: Erin Hearts Court
Hair and Makeup: Nicole DeAnne

Videography/Same Day Edit: Imagique

Ceremony and Reception: Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles, at Beverly Hills

Florals: Commerce Flowers

DJ/MC: Prokreation Productions

Dance Floor, lighting, chiavari chairs: Chiavari Chair Rentals

Linens: Elegant Designs Specialty Linens and Four Seasons

Ceremony Musicians: Fiddlestix String Quartet

Vintage Frame Rentals: Found Vintage Rentals

Photo booth: Cheesy Photobooths

Gift boxes: contact dianabe65@gmail.com

Stationery: friend of the bride

Bridesmaids dresses: Tomato Weddings

Big news and bumps ahead :)

2011-04-07T00:49:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! So, I am a week late with my big news, but I promise it was worth the wait! If you follow me on twitter or facebook, it is not really "new" news, but I thought I would take the time to share with all of my blog readers as well.

My hubby and I are EXPECTING! :) Yup! We are 14 weeks pregnant and now that I am out of my first trimester and we heard the baby's strong heartbeat, I feel comfortable to share this exciting news with all of you! I have to thank all of my current brides (who, of course, already know this news!) for being so happy for us and sweet and patient with me as I battled through my first trimester. It was not the easiest few months, which is evidenced by my lack of posts, but I am already feeling a million times better and more energetic as I enter my second trimester. I am still adjusting to the physical, mental and emotional changes, but it is all such an amazing and beautiful process and we feel truly, TRULY, blessed to be experiencing it all. I am definitely not one of those gorgeous, glowing mama-to-be's at the moment... I am a bit more of a swollen, hot, mess. :) But I am hoping to someday soon look this fabulous!

One of my all-time favorite photographers, Elizabeth Messina, took this image of our friend, Caroline Tran, another out-of-this-world photographer. Too much talent and beauty in one image, right??

My baby bump is starting to show just a teeny bit and it literally makes us giggle each time we rub it. :) I think the pregnant body is so beautiful and feel extra lucky to be sharing this time with so many other lovely ladies who are currently preggers! I know at least 6 other people who are expecting, and two of them have due dates in October, just like us!

So, I share this bit of news with another happy announcement that So Happi Together is completely booked up for 2011 and now beginning to book up our 2012 calendar! We are not booking any weddings between October and December of this year so that I can take some time to nurture our growing family and also work on the 2012 season. :) But rest assured, we already have some January and February 2012 weddings on the books, so we are happily booking weddings for the new year of 2012! And don't forget all the fabulous 2011 weddings we have in store! I am in awe with how much unique loveliness we will be sharing this year and will write more soon about all the great locations we will be visiting! In the meantime, thanks for letting me share this bit of personal information. :) Please be back next week for a post of one of our 2010 weddings at the lovely Four Seasons at Beverly Hills, shot by the ultra-cool, down-to-earth, insanely talented, Erin Hearts Court.

Janine and Casey - Happily Ever After!

2011-03-25T02:01:00.000-07:00

I know it has been woefully silent here on the blog, so thank you SO much if you are still here and reading this! :) Wedding season is officially in full swing, but unofficially, we have been in full swing here at So Happi Together ever since the new year began! We already have three 2011 weddings, 3 photo shoots and 2 engagement sessions under our belt and are hitting the ground running with spring and summer weddings right around the corner. Other personal matters have also been adding to the silence on the blog, but I will be announcing that news next week! ;)

In the meantime, I wanted to drop in and share that one of our fabulous 2010 weddings was featured on The Wedding Chicks a few weeks back! I feel so honored to be featured on such an inspiring site and with such amazing vendors. You may remember Janine and Casey from the sneak peek I blogged a few months ago or their circus-inspired engagement shoot that we styled and had featured on Green Wedding Shoes here. I have been dying to share these images and this creative couple's lovely wedding and am so happy to finally be able to do so!

Brandon Kidd is the insane talent behind these photos and I have to say that he and his wife Kristin make any wedding day 100x better and more beautiful with their presence and their photography. LOVE these two, and feel so fortunate to call them friends. :) So, without further ado, please enjoy some of my favorite images from this steam/gear punk inspired wedding and be sure to check out The Wedding Chicks and Brandon's blog for more yummy eye candy!

I could live in the folds of Janine's delicious Vera Wang gown. heaven.

The ceremony recessional was led by a bag piper. Just one of the many cultural elements included in their wedding day.

Love the vintage steampunk details and pure fun they had with their wedding.

These images taken at the historic Ebell Theatre are so dreamy and perfect. Every newlywed should be so lucky! Aren't Janine and Casey so beautiful and in love??

The reception, fully set and ready for guests to arrive.

A few of the details from the wedding. Yes, that is my own copy of their invitation and save the date, which I kept and brought with me to the wedding to make sure Brandon was able to get a pro pic of Janine and Casey's hard work!! ;)

And I leave you with a picture of So Happi Together and Brandon Kidd Photography hamming it up at the photo booth that Casey (the groom) made with the help of his brother! Isn't it fab?? Yes, we have too much fun doing what we do. :)

Happy Friday!! I hope you all stay dry and healthy and have a love-filled weekend surrounded by the people who you hold dear to your hearts. With so much happening in the world around us, I am constantly reminded to cherish each day and thank God for every moment I have been given to be happy with and near to those I love. Thanks for stopping by! xoxo!!

Fabulous team of vendors:

Design and Coordination: So Happi Together
Photography: Brandon Kidd Photography
Videography: Modern 8 Films
Ceremony Venue : Saint Brendan Catholic Church
Reception Venue: Ebell of Los Angeles
Florist: Commerce Flowers
Hair and Makeup: Kelly Zhang
DJ/MC: Pacific Events
Lounge furniture rentals: Signature Party Rentals
Bagpiper: Scott Walton
Depke Dancers: Stephanie Sullivan
Bride’s gown: Vera Wang
Transportation - Classic Limos
Photobooth coverage - Hollywood Photobooths
Cookie bar - Diddy Riese
Photobooth backdrop – made by the groom and his brother
Invitations – Screen printed by the bride and groom
Cocktail Hour musicians: Events Music 4 You
Cake: Allicakes

Last Chance! Vote for a couple to win free wedding photograpy by the glorious EP LOVE photography duo!!

2011-02-10T23:33:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!!! Today is your last chance to help one lucky, lucky couple win free wedding photography from the fabulous husband and wifey photography team, EP LOVE!

Go to their site and comment on the one couple that you love. It's truly a hard decision, but every vote counts, so I hope you can head on over there and let your voice be heard. :) The giveaway was first announced on the Green Wedding Shoes blog and official rules can be found here! EP Love was kind enough to let me be play a part in choosing the three finalists and I can't tell you how difficult it was. They are all beautiful couples, inside and out, and their stories are worth reading about!

Bonus! The winning couple not only receives outrageously perfect photography for their wedding, but they also get a custom charcoal portrait by the insanely talented Brittany Wood of Lady Bop Creations.

Now, you know you want a hand in this! So do something you will be proud of in the next 24 hours, and head over to their giveaway site and vote!! :)

Happy Friday!

Happily Engaged - Kim and Tom! Llove Aalways!!

2011-02-09T01:34:00.000-08:00

Kim and Tom are one of the cutest, unlikely couples that you will ever meet. Well, they say they are "unlikely" due to their difference in size, but I actually think they are a PERFECT match and the way that they interact with each other is oh so beautiful. They have complete respect and love for each other but still know how to laugh at themselves and just have a general good time. I love hanging out with them and am a bit sad that their wedding is next month because that will be the end of our meetings and crafting sessions. But I guess that is when the post-wedding friendship begins!!

Their wedding is loosely based on a children's poem that Tom once sent to Kim because it reminded him of their relationship. It is entitled, "The Llama and The Aardvark," by Leslie D. Perkins.

The Llama and the Aardvark
Went ambling by the llake;

The llama said, "I llove you

Aas much aas llemon cake."

The lady aardvark aanswered,

"I've lloved you aall aalong,

Aas much as llarks and llovebirds

Aadore aan Aapril song."

The llama said, "How llovely!
Llet's never llive aapart!"

The aalways-aardent aardvark

aagreed with aall her heart.

So, Kim decided that she wanted to go with a "Llove Aalways" theme for their wedding, with a sensible amount of aarvarks and llamas invited to make an appearance at the party. Seriously. Aren't you just dying to be invited?!

Eddie from Up Imagery will be capturing their special day and as both of our clients, we offered them a styled engagement session where we felt like we could run with their "Llove Aalways" concept and play out scenes from the poem itself. I know it sounds a little out there - but just check out the photos! This was one of the most fun shoots to work on because the models were my clients and it was such a joy to be a part of this moment with them.

I have to thank Jane, from Olive Hue Paper Goods, for her great illustration and design of the llama and aardvark. She let us borrow the images, originally created for their invitation suite, and print them poster sized for unique "puppet" signs for the engagement session. She also helped me cut out felt hearts and music notes, which I sewed together for garlands to hang from a beautiful tree. I also sewed together some mini felt heart pillows as a nod to llove. I brought my picnic blanket and Kim supplied a lemon cake and some lemons from their very own backyard, which I decorated with a custom "llove allways" felt letter garland and some felt heart tags!

Hope you enjoy this set! I have another shoot that Eddie and I worked on together to share very soon!! For more images from Kim and Tom's e-session, please check out his blog! xoxo!!

Aren't they the most beautiful couple? Llove Aalways, indeed. :)

We are Featured on Wedding Chicks! Christin & Elbert - Happily Ever After!!

2011-02-03T11:25:00.000-08:00

I am so excited to be able to finally share Christin and Elbert's fun and modern wedding with you all! We are so lucky to have it featured on the fabulous Wedding Chicks blog today, so please head on over there to see some more pictures and the cool post! :) I am over the moon to be able to have this badge on our blog now!!

And for some behind the scenes info:

Christin and Elbert celebrated their love with an intimate wedding at the Smog Shoppe and chose to prioritize the venue and photography in their budget - great choices! So, they booked the uber-fresh and fabulous Image is Found to capture their wedding day and it was a dream working with this husband and wife duo! I will let their stellar pictures speak for themselves!

The color palette consisted of neutral hues of grays and bamboo browns with white and pops of fuchsia pink. While they wanted to maintain the eco-friendly, succulent love of the Smog Shoppe in their wedding, they were careful to stay true to a clean and modern aesthetic. I was excited to do so since I feel that so many people choose to go with a more rustic styling at this venue. Christin is an architect and Elbert is a musician, so the wedding naturally reflected their backgrounds in art and design. Christin and Elbert were one of my couples planning their wedding from out of town, so they entrusted me with a lot of the details and design aspects of their wedding - which was SO much fun!!

Christin decided to keep the tables bare with no linens and considered using paper placemats but followed my suggestion and ended up sewing fabric placemats with the help of her friends. Aren't they the perfect accent on the tables?! I love how they complemented the colors in her simple, yet sophisticated, arrangements - provided by the talented Cindy Park of Floral Elements. Cindy and I met several times to go over the vision for their florals, and she could not have done a better job at bringing that vision to life! It is hard to imagine that she didn't even meet the bride and groom once before the wedding, because the flowers were just that perfect!

I could seriously cry over how beautiful his bouquet is. The lush ranunculus (which Christin loved) and hints of silvery dusty miller are a sure fire swoonfest!

The Bridesmaids bouquets were such understated elegance and FUN and I love how they pop against the different color dresses!

Since Elbert is a musician, there was no shortage of talented musicians and beautiful music at the wedding. As a truly special touch, the couple rented a piano and it sounded amazing in the outdoor space.

My team individually wrapped small golf pencils in one of her theme colors (fuchsia pink!) and assembled reception "programs" that included everything from a fun quiz about the couple, mad libs, a space for drawing a picture of the couple and a crossword puzzle, created by Elbert's father who loves puzzles! We even perforated one of the pages so that guests could leave their mad libs and drawings for the newlywed couple to enjoy. The cover design was based on her amazing invitations by Hello! Lucky.

Miniature potted succulents doubled as escort "cards" and favors for guests and were a nod to the succulent wall in front of which they were married. Our team designed and created each card tag, potted each succulent and spray painted the terra cotta pots white to lend a more modern feel.

Guests dined on a casual dinner of street tacos topped off with a delicious Southern chocolate and banana cream cake from Vanilla Bakeshop. Yum!

Aren't they the cutest couple?! Christin's lovely hair and makeup were provided by the talented Nicole DeAnne! The Image is Found seriously captured so many crazy good images of Christin and Elbert, but this is one of my faves! I feel like their love is simply oozing out of the picture, right?!

All images by the radical duo The Image is Found!

And a round-up of the amazing team of vendors:

Event Design and Coordination: So Happi Together

Photographer: The Image is Found
Venue: The Smog Shoppe
Hair and Makeup: Nicole DeAnne
Cake/Desserts: Vanilla Bakeshop
Caterer: Jalisco's Mobile Taco Grill and Huntington Catering
Cinematography: Safflare
DJ: ipod
Stationery: Hello Lucky
Dress designer, veil and hair accessories: Tomato Weddings

Utterly Engaged Design Challenge +Brides Choice Award 2011!!

2011-01-31T01:44:00.000-08:00

The past two weeks have been quite eventful for So Happi Together! Booking season is in full force so I am meeting with new brides and grooms at least twice a week and also meeting and catching up with many of my current couples, so I couldn't be happier!

To top off all that loveliness, we had two very exciting accomplishments that I am so excited to share with you all! (This is the big news I was referring to before!)

EXCITING NEWS #1:
We entered the Utterly Engaged "Snap, Crackle, Pop" New Year's Party Design Challenge with two other fabulous vendors - Jane from Olive Hue Paper Goods and Cindy from Floral Elements and won FIRST PLACE in the challenge! There were 9 teams/entries total and the judges were fab and fierce ladies in the industry so it was quite a thrilling moment when they announced us as the winners!! I am not allowed to share images of our table yet - because they will be in an upcoming issue of the Utterly Engaged Magazine - but I thought I might just share a sneak peek and our inspiration board. :)

image by Up Imagery

I am in love with our inspiration board. Jane and I worked really hard to find all the images and tweak the layout and I feel that it beautifully exudes the feel of our tablescape. yay!

In addition to bragging rights, we won $900 and - wait for it - a personal photo shoot with Jasmine Star (the photographer judge from the challenge), which will also be featured in the upcoming issue of Utterly Engaged!!! We only had two weeks to come up with the design of our tablescape for the actual party, so it is nice that we get another chance to revamp our design and also place it within the larger context of a wedding. Which means we will not just be working on a table design, but the design of the event that this table belongs in. If you know me, you know I always design based on a story, so we included a story with our table entry and it is going to be so much fun bringing this story to life!! I love working on creative projects like this because I truly feel that it keeps me inspired and thinking fresh for the real weddings I am working on. :)

I have to say that the final result was a true collaborative effort and my teammates were the absolute BEST!! It was also such an honor to have our work reviewed by the amazing judges, who I will be sure to list when I can show you the pictures from our shoot and challenge!

EXCITING NEWS #2:
WeddingWire awarded us with a Bride's Choice Award for 2011!!! This means that we are in the top 5% of local wedding professionals from the WeddingWire network. This is award is determined by "recent reviews and extensive surveys from over 750,000 newlyweds from the WeddingWire community" so we are over the moon about this. It means so much that our previous brides, grooms and their families think this highly of our services and we will be working hard to continue to provide this level of excellence. :)

How you like them apples? ;)

Our first wedding of the year is this week and we are pumped to kick off the season with some serious Happi! Hope you are all just as excited for your week! ;) xoxo!!

Esther & Kevin - Happily Ever After and featured on Ever Ours!

2011-01-24T12:23:00.000-08:00

I am SO excited to finally share some lovely images from my bestie's wedding this past summer! Esther and I were college roomies and have since shared many great memories, laughs and tears. We have seen each other through a lot of difficult times and I know that I can trust her with anything. She is seriously one of the most loyal people you will ever meet! I love this girlie to pieces and it is so fun to now share the experience of being married women together. Also, she comes as an associate to many of my weddings, so if you are one of my brides, you may even be able to meet her on your wedding day!

Here is Esther in all her bridal glory! Isn't she gorgeous?!

And here she is with her new hubs! Kevin is totally genuine and loves Esther with all of his heart, you can totally tell. :) Aren't they the most good looking couple?!

images by Jean Tsai Photography

You can see more gorgeous details from their wedding on the amazing Ever Ours blog today. You know how much I love Lydia and her blog, so please head on over to catch more of this wedding and others! But I do want to include one thing that you won't find in her blog post because Esther spent countless hours creating her photobooth backdrop and it deserves to be shown!

This amazing tree was inspired by a much smaller version that I saw at an antique shop. I took pictures of it on my iPhone and showed Esther because I thought it would be a perfect addition to her wedding that had a loose tree and nature theme. Each of the yellow and gray flowers that you see on the tree are actually fabric flowers that Esther (with a little help from us bridesmaids) made! Isn't that insanely beautiful?! The trunk and branches are decoupaged with newspapers and the "Love Is..." comics. We rented the yellow button-tufted, micro-check and gingham chairs from Found Rentals and I think they were the perfect accent to the dreamy tree, which is now a lovely piece of art in their home.

Happi Monday! I have some exciting news that I will be sharing later this week! For now, I am trying to kick a cold and may just crawl back into bed with my medicine head. xoxo!!

So Happi Together Favorite Details from 2010

2011-01-07T01:17:00.000-08:00

It has been a busy, fabulous and completely thrilling year for So Happi Together. I have met so many genuinely talented and interesting people (vendors, bloggers, brides and grooms!) who have each impacted my life in unspeakable ways.

It has not always been easy, but I honestly feel that I am a better person for this past year. It has been a year of trial and error, taking leaps of faith, not always succeeding, but always picking myself up, learning and trying again, only better. Most importantly, I did not do any of it alone. I have the most amazing support group of family and friends. People who believe in me, pray for me and work with me, even through long nights of crafting or crying. Yes. There have been tears, but we always remain hopeful and positive. And being in this industry, it is easy to do so with so much beauty around us at all times. I consider myself truly blessed to work with people during one of the most special, memorable and love-filled periods of their lives. Every wedding amazes me and I am still brought to tears during each ceremony and first dance (seriously, without fail!). So, I thought I would take a moment to share some of the beauty that I have been inspired by this past year. You know I am a complete sucker for details and these are some of my favorite details that we have been lucky enough to be a part of this past year. I am still waiting for images from some of our weddings, so this is just a small sampling of our work this past year, but I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

love this bouquet, locket and nail color! Image by Amelia Lyon Photography

"i choo-choo-choose you" is a perfect backdrop for this Union station couple who loves a certain American family :) Image by EP Love

The dessert display I designed for my sister's wedding. Image by Up Imagery.

delicious garden rose from my sister's bridal shower, featured here. Image by Up Imagery.

This yellow gingham chair from Found was PERFECT for this butter-yellow and gray themed wedding. Iamge by Jean Tsai Photography.

"One Show Can Change Your Life" sign with bridal shoes. Image by Jean Tsai Photography.

escort "cards" that doubled as favors at a Smog Shoppe wedding. Image by The Image is Found.

a Vanilla Bakeshop cake that is equally beautiful and delish! My clever assistant placed an extra peony in a low vase and made the impromptu cake stand! Image by The Image is Found.

custom placemats, soda pop labels and vibrant tulips for the Utterly Engaged New Year's party. Image by Jasmine Star Photography.

Amazing cake designed by Sweet and Saucy Shop for our Love. It's the Big Idea. tablescape. Image by Jasmine Star Photography.

one of my favorite flowers and friend. :) From our Black, White and Pink All Over Valentine's Day Shoot, featured here. Image by Connie M Chung Photography.

Bride and Groom chair signs designed by Olive Hue Paper Goods. Image by Connie M Chung Photography.

tablescape from our Southern Weddings Magazine photoshoot. I love the settee at the table. Image by Amelia Lyon Photography.

the horse, the flowers, the dress... need I say more? From our Southern Weddings Magazine shoot. Image by Amelia Lyon Photography.

Trees like this get me every.time. Image by Chaz Cruz.

quilled paper filigree cake topper I made for an Utterly Engaged shoot. Two brides have already ordered custom versions for their own weddings! Image by Connie M Chung Photography.

centerpiece with a fun but sophisticated color palette for Utterly Engaged shoot. Image by Connie M Chung.

framed cake table. Image by Amelia Lyon Photography

parasols and pretties. Image by Steve Koo Photography.

dessert display at a tiffany blue bridal shower, featured here. Image by Connie M Chung Photography.

apples and moleskin notebook favors at a teacher's bridal shower. Image by Connie M Chung Photography.

This ceremony shot by EP Love makes my heart race. I literally teared up when all the 400+ guests began to sing the song together during the candlelighting. Heaven on earth.

more delicious details and desserts by Sweet and Saucy. Image by Amelia Lyon Photography.

ribbons hung from the altar. Image by Amelia Lyon Photography.

a vintage circuz inspired e-session I styled for one of my lovely clients. Featured here. Image by Brandon Kidd Photography.

Above two images of my sister and new brother in law's exclusive engagement session styled and shot at the airport to represent all their traveling and long distance relationship. Images by Up Imagery.

Which brings me to one of the most exciting details of 2011 - working with my husband and Up Imagery on weddings and shoots. We are so blessed to work together in the same industry and offer special packages to bride and grooms who book both of us for their special day. Because, quite frankly, we are in love and love to work together! :) Give either of us a shout if you would like to learn more!

Here's to another fabulous year filled with amazing details and love. I hope we can all take the time to recognize both in our lives, everyday. xoxo!!

Recycle. Reduce. Reuse.

2011-01-05T03:01:00.000-08:00

One of my beautiful brides, Dina, has set up a blog to sell some of the lovely items from her very special wedding day. If you are on the look out for milk glass, mercury glass or any other vintage pieces for your wedding, bridal shower or home decor, do yourself a favor and check out her site! Flea Market Frills
Here are just a few of the lovely pieces she has available!

I am dying to share all of the juicy details from this amazing wedding, but it has been submitted for publication so I have to wait a bit. However, I promise to come back with a post later this week that recaps some of my favorite details from 2010 So Happi Together events - including a few from weddings and showers you have not seen here yet! ;)

In the meantime, I hope you are all enjoying the first week of 2011! Happi Shopping! :)

DIY Project - Preserving your Bridal Bouquet

2010-12-29T12:44:00.000-08:00

Many of my brides, even if they are on a tight budget, spend a good chunk of moola on their personal bridal bouquet - with good reason! Since you will be holding your bridal bouquet in many of the pictures taken on your wedding day (usually couple portraits, bridal party/family portraits and much of the ceremony shots), consider it a very important accessory... maybe just as important as your shoes! And like your shoes, there are ways that you can "keep" your bouquet for years to come, as a special keepsake from your special day.

With my bridal bouquet, I chose to press some flower petals to showcase in a frame. Originally I was thinking I could press enough petals to "make" a bouquet of dried flowers and frame that... however after the flurry of our wedding, I completely forgot to press the petals! It wasn't until after I came back from my honeymoon (2 weeks after the wedding date) that I was finally able to press some petals and I did not have that many to choose from since many of the flowers had already died or simply become too gross too press. ;) If you plan to press your flowers, it is best to do so within two days after your wedding. I was obviously a little late! I tried to press one of each flower and it wasn't until recently that I finally pulled those dried flowers out of hiding and arranged them into a memorable frame.

Here are some "before" pictures of my bouquet.

side view of the bouquet, image by Amelia Lyon

top view of the bouquet, image by Amelia Lyon

My main tool for flower petal pressing was a gift from a past student! I am sure you can find a similar one from Michael's. They are super easy to use. Just make sure your flowers are not too "wet" and not too bulky when you place them in to press them. If a flower is bulky, I try to flatten it a bit with my fingers before placing it in the press. Just to be safe, I usually leave my flowers in the press for 2-3 weeks, depending on how many full flowers, versus petals, I have.

After you press your desired petals, leaves and flowers, you should have something like this:

Please note that if I had pressed these flowers sooner, some of them would have more color than they do here. boo.

Above are items that were needed to complete this project (I took these pictures along with the two other ones above, so please disregard the low quality!). I purchased a simple white frame from Ikea for $7, used my angled tweezers for picking up the delicate petals and used white and pink papers from our wedding. For this and many other projects, I use the PVA bookbinding glue from Paper Source. I LOVE this glue because it is pH neutral and lasts a really, really long time. I take it out of the original packaging and pour it into mason jars because the lid on the plastic tub sometimes gets stuck (with the glue) and placing it in mason jars is just prettier. :) I love how it looks like a yummy glass of milk!

I wanted to make a frame that looked like the vintage collections that name the scientific species term of plants, insects, etc. So, I printed the scientific name of each flower onto the white linen paper and placed that label next to each corresponding flower. I adhered both flowers and labels to the blush pink paper with the PVA glue. The flowers only need small dabs of glue on key points, you don 't have to worry about covering the entire backside of the flower with a layer of glue. Since I was not able to press the flowers right away, I did not have good examples of a peony or tulip, but I still wanted to name them in the frame since they were in my bouquet. So, I used two sweet pea petals in lieu of the actual missing flowers and placed them in the corner with the names of the missing flowers. This way, even if my children or grand children see this frame later, they will know exactly what flowers were in my bouquet. :) I know, I am a sentimental sap.

And here is the final result! These following images are by my sweet hubby, Up Imagery, and they are his contribution to this project of preserving my bridal bouquet! ;)

close-ups of each flower:

ranunculus

sweet pea

lily of the valley

lisianthus

missing peony and tulip, represented by sweet pea petals :)

I didn't have much color in my flowers to begin with, but if you do have a colorful bouquet and press your flowers early, you should be able to capture a lot of the beauty of their original hues. There are also companies that will press your flowers for you and professionally arrange them into the shape of your bouquet. Even if this is not something you would consider, you should still check it out because the results are pretty amazing! Here is an example of one place (in the UK) that does a pretty fantastic job!

Hope this is helpful for all of your engaged ladies who are beginning to think about flowers and such. I would love to hear if any of you have other ideas or tips on preserving your bridal bouquet!

Sharon & Jerry - Happily Ever After!

2010-12-27T02:32:00.000-08:00

Hello Web-loves!!! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas holiday blessed with lots of love, family, laughter and renewal. Lord knows I needed it! :)

I can't believe it has been over a month since my last post. I think that is a record here. So much has been going on with my sister's wedding, Thanksgiving and Christmas, family in from out of town and dealing with both of my sisters moving! With our own move just two months ago, I am basically a professional mover now. ;)

I have a ton of weddings and projects in queue, but thought I would start off with a lovely sunshine-y wedding from this past summer! I think it is the perfect antidote for the endless rain we have been dealing with lately. Not that I don't like the rain! I actually LOVE rain - the sound, the smell of the wet asphalt, the way everything looks so fresh the day after a good shower. But it can become a bit tedious for those of us who live in Southern California since we are so accustomed to beaches, sun and surf. :)

I also chose to share this wedding now because it has some details that I think are actually perfect for winter get-togethers! A smore's bar and favor boxes worked well for this June wedding with our outdoor fire pit and cozy lounge area. But I think they could work just as well for a winter holiday get together by the fireplace. What do you think?

Sharon and Jerry were one of the first clients to book So Happi Together services and they will always hold a very special place in my heart. They were married in June 2010 at the Temecula Creek Inn where we managed to fight wind and heat and come out with one of the most beautiful weddings ever! I actually knew Jerry through some friends in high school so the wedding day was extra fun because it was a reunion with many of my high school buddies (who comprised at least half of Jerry's groomsmen!). I did not meet Sharon until our very first consultation, but was smitten from the first minute. She is beautiful inside and out and a complete delight to work with! Sharon wanted her wedding day to have a feminine rustic feel that was not too stuffy because having fun with their guests was a main priority, and I think this was definitely achieved! :) When a wedding reception ends and the bride and groom, bridal party and friends go back to the hotel to finish celebrating the night away - you know you did something right. Sharon and Jerry were the ultimate hosts and the love for them and their union was overflowing that night. Despite the rain outside, revisiting their special day through these images as I put together this post make me feel warm and fuzzy all over. Hope they warm your heart as well!

Sharon's gown was a gorgeous Melissa Sweet creation purchased at a sample sale. She had it altered to fit and flatter her beautiful shape at Tomato Weddings!

Isn't she a gorgeous bride??! I love the detail of the bow on her gown.

And our dapper groom, Jerry. I love how happy he looks here as he gets ready to see his bride for the first time.

You know I love me a good and fluffy peony bouquet!

Above, we have the beautiful couple and below, the whole bridal party. The trees at this venue are simply awe-inspiring. Another example below!

Now on to some details! I love that her centerpieces were in galvanized tin buckets and each guest was given a s'mores "kit" as a favor. Each package held graham crackers, chocolates and marshmallows. Skewers were provided with each escort "card".

I made their bride and groom chair signs and other signage for their wedding day in order to create a cohesive look.

Sharon made the escort "cards" by placing tags on s'mores skewers, which we then placed into rustic wooden trays filled with moss. I brought some of my own items, such as this bird cage and apothecary jars for her s'mores station. I love when a bride and I have a similar aesthetic and I can "re-purpose" items from my own collection for her special day!

And finally, a shot of the outdoor evening celebration by the Stone Lodge. Once again, love those trees!

I LOVE the Christmas season, but admittedly cannot wait for the weather to warm up a bit so we can revisit enjoying signature So Cal outdoor soirees, like this one! Sharon and Jerry, I love you both and cannot wait to see you two soon!! xoxo!

Fabulous Team of Vendors:

Design and Coordination: So Happi Together

Photography: Tauran Photography

Venue: Temecula Creek Inn

DJ/MC: Ken from Adagio Entertainment

Florist: Commerce Flowers

Gown: Melissa Sweet, alterations by Vivian at Tomato Weddings in koreatown

Ceremony Musician: Charles Morales

Wedding Cake: Elegance on Display

Oh Amelia, How I Love You. :)

2010-11-23T19:46:00.000-08:00

As you all know, this week is super insanely busy, but I just had to take a moment to post a few images from three of our recent weddings that were shot by the infinitely fabulous Amelia Lyon. After working with her for my own wedding day, I am a fan for life, and thrilled about any opportunity to work with her. I love that she went from being one of my own wedding day vendors, to a colleague and now a friend.

I love all of my brides and grooms and really love when they choose fabulous vendors that we have fun working with all day long. I have been lucky enough to work with Amelia three times this past year and have some more fantastic weddings coming up together next year as well! Amelia has posted the past three weddings we had together on her blog within the last month and the images are all so stunning that it is going to take me forever to choose my faves and put together some informative blog posts for you all. In the meantime, here are some sneak peeks from all three happi days. Please check out her blog for more, and check back here for full posts with vendors, details and stories behind the scenes of each day!

Cassie and Eugene wed at the Skirball Cultural Center's Taper Courtyard!

Dina and Tai wed at the Athenaeum in Pasadena!

Viv and Lloyd wed at Cafe Pinot in front of the LA Public Library!

Have a Happi Thanksgiving everyone!

Best Friends, Birthdays and Bridal Showers

2010-11-18T03:05:00.000-08:00

Hello lovely readers! I know that it has been a while since my last post but I have so much goodness coming up and promise I have a good excuse for delaying much of my blogging. The biggest one of all? My big sister is getting married next week! eeks!! She is my best friend and it is with excitement and a tinge of sadness that we approach the big day because after the wedding she will be moving to San Francisco - far, far away from me. Okay, I know it is not that far away, but this is my sister and we have never lived more than an hour away from each other. We actually grew up sharing a room and many times a bed. Don't even get me started on how we are going to separate our wardrobes for her move... we have yet to try to tackle that issue. I think both of us are hoping it will solve itself! ;)

Here are two of my fave pictures of us when we were little. Don't you like how she is eating the huge snicker's bar all by herself! And then riding the trike as I walk alongside her? ;)

And the three of us together. I can't believe that in a little over a week, we will all be married women! These two women are seriously my best friends, my role models and my biggest fans. I am who I am today because of their love, support and friendship. Nothing is stronger than the bond between us Park sisters!! :)

It has been so much fun planning for her wedding together, but also a pretty emotional process. I think it has helped me to better relate to my brides and their families. Not that it has been that long since I was a bride myself, but I am always reminded that every moment in your planning process is so special and a precious memory in the making. It makes me so grateful for my job and the relationships I have made in this line of "work" :) I love that a wedding is not just about a bride and groom but also their families and friends and I get to share in those amazing moments. There is nothing more rewarding than bonding with a bride and groom along with their family members. Some family members of a recent bride and groom even left sweet reviews for me and I couldn't be more grateful!

I am also a bit emotional because my birthday is this week and I am turning the big 3-0! I didn't think it would really affect me, but it kind of hit me this week. I don't have anything big planned - but have already started the week off with some shave snow from a few lovely ladies in the industry, so things are definitely looking up!! ;) I will keep you all posted on how I feel after this Sunday!

Finally, my sister's bridal shower was featured on the every-so-lovely site, Ever Ours. Lydia, the blogger behind all the beauty, was kind enough to showcase the hard work that we put into my sister's bridal shower. Since her name is Alice, we had a loose Alice in Wonderland concpet that you can read all about here! This was another fun project that Eddie from Up Imagery and I were able to work on together and another reason why I feel so lucky to be in this industry. I can't wait for more opportunities to work together!! :) I will be writing a more comprehensive post about the event and the sweet vendors involved, along with the amazing venue - a true gem in the heart of Tustin! But for now, I just wanted to share a few of my favorite images from the day.

Florals by the amazingly talented Cindy at Floral Elements.

Delectable desserts by sweet Melody at My Sweet and Saucy Shop!

Paper goods and calligraphy by Jane at Olive Hue Paper Goods

Fabulous bridal hair pieces loaned by the uber-talented Tessa Kim Bridal Adornments

And dreamy venue - The McCharles Tea House in Tustin! I honestly fell in love with this location and cannot wait to host another event here! I will be writing a post about just the venue itself very soon for all of you brides looking for a venue for an intimate wedding or other party!

Thank you, again, to Ever-Ours for the sweet feature!!! If you haven't been to this gorgeous site yet, please come out of your cave and visit it today for some unforgettable inspiration! Have a wonderful week!!!

Fabulous Team of Vendors:

Design and Coordination - So Happi Together

Photography - Up Imagery
Venue - The McCharles House
Florals - Floral Elements
Desserts - Sweet and Saucy Shop
Hair Accessories - Tessa Kim Bridal Adornments
Paper Goods - Olive Hue Paper Goods
Chiavari chairs, tables and chargers - Chiavari Chair Rentals
Linens - Elegant Designs Specialty Linens
Additional Rentals - Classic Party Rentals

Janine and Casey sneak peek of their Happily Ever After!

2010-10-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

Janine and Casey were such a delight to work with! I still remember our first meeting where everything just seemed to fall into place and it felt like we had already been friends forever! I just happened to be wearing my favorite robot necklace by Oh, Hello Friend! which was perfect as they began to describe their vision for their steam/gear punk wedding complete with screen printed details, Lebanese dancers, a hand-made photo booth backdrop, cookie buffet and robot cake toppers. I knew we were a match made in heaven. :)

You may recognize Janine and Casey from their circus-inspired engagement shoot, which was featured on Green Wedding Shoes. Brandon Kidd was their amazing photographer and I had SO much fun styling and coordinating this shoot. I spent nearly a whole day at the circus arranging details, choosing props and possible costumes and think I barely made a dent in the inventory! Janine and Casey, who are experienced aerialists, totally rocked their engagement session and made it personal - which is what makes it so special! You can check out the pictures from the session on Green Wedding Shoes and Brandon's blog, but here are some of my favorites as well!

All images courtesy of the fabulous Brandon Kidd

So, now that you have a glimpse of what a fun couple Janine and Casey are, here is a glimpse of their wedding day through the beautiful cinematographic work of Modern 8 Films. Alanna and Ted are a fabulous husband and wife duo and true gems in the industry. They are super fun and real and you can tell how unique they are as people and artists through their music choice and cool shots. I am in LOVE with how they captured the sweet glances that Janine and Casey give each other and the smiles they have on their wedding day. I am also gaga over the shot of the bridesmaids shoes walking down the processional, filmed between the pews. genius! Without further ado, here is the awe-inspiring film of Janine and Casey's wedding day as captured by Modern 8 films!

Casey & Janine from Modern 8 Films on Vimeo.

I will be sharing more about this beautiful day once I receive all of the images from Brandon Kidd. In the meantime, if you value film as much as I do, you simply HAVE to check out Modern 8 Films. And be sure to look into their Honeymoon Package! This is totally something Eddie and I wished we had during our own honeymoon. We literally talked about how we would have loved if a videographer offered something like this while we were in Maui! And Modern 8 does!! If only I knew then, what I know now. ;) Well, I guess we can always use their "honeymoon package" during our anniversary trip! It can be our second honeymoon!

Real Brides and Real Reviews

2010-10-19T02:55:00.000-07:00

The wedding season is winding down for So Happi Together with only two more weddings left for this year and then a relaxing few months filled with family and a fun 30th birthday celebration for Eddie. we already have an amazing photo shoot in the works for January/February and some more great projects to help keep us fresh and fabulous as we re-charge for 2011... which is quickly booking up!

I can't tell you all how amazing this past year has been with the best brides and grooms who I can honestly now call my friends. I want to thank each of you for continuing to read my blog and follow our work. I am also hoping to get our website up and running by the end of the year - now that I have the time to focus my energy and time in this area. So, please be on the look out!

In the meantime, here is another peek at some of the weddings we worked on this year. Stereo Waltz Films created a Fall 2010 re-cap film and two of my lovely brides are featured in the film! You can see them here:

Stereo Waltz Films - Fall 2010 from One Small Instrument Pictures on Vimeo.

This is one of my favorite shots from this wedding featured in the film.
Image by Brandon Kidd

One of my favorite moments of Dina's processional as captured by Stereo Waltz Films

On the day of Dina and Tai's wedding, this moment above totally made me cry because she walked down the aisle to a "Can't Help Falling in Love With You" cover by Ingrid Michaelson. This song was a touching choice because she walked the first half of her processional "alone" but with the memory of her father who was a BIG Elvis fan and honored in this song choice. Then she met her mother halfway through the processional. This meeting was exactly at the point in the song where she sings, "Take my hand..." and it could not have been a more perfect moment! It still gives me chills to think about it. Obviously, I cannot wait to share more from both of these weddings when the images are ready!

While we are on the subject of our real weddings and real brides, I would love to share some of the real reviews we have earned on WeddingWire and Project Wedding! Thank you a million times over to my brides who took the time out of their busy schedules to write these sweet reviews. I LOVE you ladies!!! And now, we are officially Wedding Wire rated with a perfect 5 stars!! Woot!! ;) You can see my reviews here!

Thank you all for your support. I promise to only keep working harder to earn those stars, your readership and kind reviews. Have a beautiful week!

Catherine and Eric - Happily Ever After!

2010-10-14T04:04:00.000-07:00

Catherine and Eric are two of the most cool, calm and collected individuals you will ever meet. I am a pretty bubbly and energetic person, but on the wedding day, my brides are always commenting how relaxed they feel around me because I am able to remain calm regardless of any and all circumstances. But Catherine and Eric really take the cake! Even when Catherine realized she had left her grandmother's ring back in the hotel safe just moments before her ceremony at the historic Old Mission Santa Ines, she simply asked me if there might be something I could do about it. Of course, our team was able to get the lovely heirloom in time to have her "something old" for her walk down the aisle (and still remain on schedule!), but even before she had it back in her possession, Catherine was still all smiles. It was so evident that they really had their marriage in mind over the wedding itself and their guests' comfort in mind over their own. Everyone had such a wonderful time and their wedding weekend was truly a celebration of love and family. And by the end of the weekend, we really felt like a part of that special family!

Their semi-destination wedding took place in Solvang, California and it was the perfect backdrop for their culturally-rich and fun-filled wedding. This quirky little town was chosen because they happened to be passing through one day and were so charmed that they decided to get married there! I love that!

None of their guests were local to Solvang, which meant everyone either flew or drove into town. With that in mind, Catherine and Eric hosted nearly all of their wedding guests at their reception dinner since most of them were arriving in town that night before the wedding. The rehearsal dinner was an intimate-feeling fete for over 100 people, held in the romantic Barrel Room at the Firestone Vineyard and catered by Plemmons Catering. Guests dined over amber candlelight, flanked by enormous oak wine casks. The feel of that room is something you have to experience in person! The venue is such a statement in itself that you really don't need much in terms of decor, which can be nice. ;) Here's just a glimpse of that first day, as captured by the super fun and talented Chaz Cruz! Chaz shot Catherine's brother's wedding exactly one year earlier - so you know he's good if a family keeps coming back for more!

images courtesy of the ultra-hip Chaz Cruz

The ceremony took place at the Old Mission Santa Ines, which is a beautiful, historic mission and church with delicious gardens and breezeways. I love the fact that Catherine chose to walk down the aisle with both of her parents.

something about this shot makes my heart flutter

But before we move on, can we just take a moment to appreciate her gown?! Oh, her gown. This masterpiece fit Catherine perfectly and was a work of art! le swoon.

And her shoes!

And rings! Yes. That is plural. That's the way to roll!

She obviously has a lot of reasons for looking this happy and radiant. :) Don't you love the light in this shot? So soft and dreamy. yum.

Eric was pretty happy too! This was taken immediately after the ceremony. Such a fun bridal party!

Here are some lovely detail shots of the personal flowers for the day - just because I am so in love with them. Camille from Modern Day Design brought to life the vision we had for Catherine and Eric's flowers. Camille and I spent a lot of time going over every detail for these florals and I even mailed her the exact ribbon we wanted to use for wrapping all of our vases and bouquets, which Camille took care of ever so lovingly. I can't wait to do another wedding in the area so that I can work with her again!

If this flower below looks familiar to you - it's because you've seen it on me before! ;) This is actually the floral hair piece that I wore on my wedding day and Catherine couldn't find one that she liked so I loaned her mine as her "something borrowed" - I think it coordinated with her look so well, don't you?

Their reception was held at Hotel Corque, Solvang's hot spot and only luxury boutique hotel.

Guests were escorted to their tables with cards that were placed inside two wine corks tied together with pink ribbon. Eric personally cut the slit in each of these corks and tied the ribbon. I love grooms who lend a helping hand and aren't too cool to tie bows!

The centerpieces were another stunning example of Camille's work and I especially loved the dinner plate dahlias, garden roses, peonies and dusty miller - some of my favorite flowers all together!!

Here is another fun example of how we like to decorate the bride and groom chairs. I asked their stationer, Jane from Olive Hue Paper Goods, to calligraphy custom bride and groom chair signs and we tied these elegant bows to the back of the chairs and nestled the signs perfectly in place.

Jane also created their beautiful letterpressed and die-cut invitations as well as the design for their ceremony and reception programs. Both of their programs were designed by Jane and then sent to me to DIY print and assemble. Their reception program included some fun games and trivia and a wedding mad libs page that I was able to perforate so that guests could tear it off and leave it for the bride and groom. So fun!

Their wedding cake was from Solvang Bakery but inspired by a design that Catherine found online. Solvang Bakery also provided an assortment of their famous shortbread cookies, which my assistant and I picked up early the morning of the wedding in order to bag them up as favors for guests. We also created the stickers for these favor bags. The idea was to give their guests a "taste of Solvang" for their trip home. But I have a strong feeling that few if any of those cookies even made it out the door - they were SO good!! I dream about them! We displayed the favor bags around the cake and placed a few in little domed stands that I brought from home. :)

One of my favorite things about Catherine and Eric's wedding was the way that they infused elements of both their Filipino and Chinese traditions without exotifying their cultures in any way, but simply sharing the beauty of their traditions and incorporating them in to the natural flow of their evening festivities. There was seriously never a dull moment for guests!

And finally, I leave you with some amazing photography of this beautiful couple by Chaz Cruz. The beauty of Solvang and this particular tree doesn't hurt either.

Catherine and Eric - you know I love you both so very much and have only the best things to say about you as individuals and as a couple. I know your marriage is going to be unique and joyful and the world will be a better place for it. With all my love... xoxo!!

The fabulous team of vendors:

Event Design and Coordination - So Happi Together!
Photography - Chaz Cruz

Stationery - Jane Jeon of Olive Hue Paper Goods

Rehearsal Dinner location - Firestone Winery

Rehearsal Dinner catering - Plemmons Catering

Hair and Makeup - Nicole Deanne

Florist - Modern Day Design

Ceremony Venue - Old Mission Santa Ines

Ceremony guitarist - Chris Judge

Reception Venue - Hotel Corque

Cake and cookies - Solvang Bakery

MC/DJ and uplighting - John Villa of The Dance Syndicate

Linens - BBJ Linens

Rentals - Classic Party Rentals in Buellton, Thank you, Kate! You are another reason why I would love to work in the area again!!

Filipino Folk Dancers - Kayamanan Ng Lahi

Lion Dancers - Camarillo Kung Fu and Lion Dance Association

We've been published!! Sweet Love in Southern Weddings Magazine!

2010-10-07T01:26:00.000-07:00

Hello, dear readers!! I have many, many beautiful weddings in queue to share, but have to wait because some are being submitted for publication. In the meantime, I wanted to share our shoot from earlier this year. YAY!! It's finally here!! Now that the V3 issue of Southern Weddings Magazine is out and available to the public, we are able to share our story behind the gorgeous images and inspiration.

First, here is a peek at two of the three and a half spreads we were given in the magazine! I couldn't be more thankful to the beautiful editors over at Southern Weddings Magazine. Emily and Lara are so sweet and it was such a pleasure to work with Amelia Lyon again! I can't think of any photographer who could have better captured the details of our shoot. She really outdid herself!

Photography by Amelia Lyon, as featured in Southern Weddings Magazine V3!

These are a few of my favorite shots from the day. It was a long time coming, but designing and styling the shoot along with Melissa Huber from The Loveliest Day was too much fun. No joke. We totally vibe and make such a great team! Plus, the other vendors that we hand-picked and asked to be a part of the shoot were just PERFECT for capturing our vision and bringing it to life.

This shot below, along with the one featured above of the couple (sitting in the custom-upholstered settee from FOUND vintage rentals) are my absolute favoritest from the shoot. Aren't they simply amazing? Isn't the blue just perfection? Jeni from FOUND searched high and low for the perfect blue textured fabric for our settee. There was plenty of picture/text messaging back and forth with Jeni in order to get the exact fabric colors we were looking for. I can't thank her enough! She also custom-made the table runner and napkins for us. She is amazing and if you have not already been to her studio, stop what you are doing and go right now. Seriously. Right now. This post will be here when you get back. The inspiration you will gather just from visiting her shop will be invaluable!!

The gown above was custom-made by Vivian from Tomato Weddings, just for our shoot! We had a very specific style in mind and I can't tell you how many times I visited Vivian's shop to make sure this was juuust right. Aren't the puffed sleeves gorg?! And the way it flows?? I melt... It kind of reminds me of Anne of Green Gables - anyone know what I am talking about? ;)

The two projects above were total labors of love. I have to give a BIG shout out to my assistant, Bonny. She worked on that peach flower garland for two days straight! It may not look like much, but it takes a lot of flowers to make a substantial garland. :)

Melissa and I made the chrysanthemum poms (while watching South Park on Netflix!), which served as escort cards. There was yarn fuzz all over my living room floor, but it was so worth it, don't you think?! I will definitely have to post a tutorial soon. They were time-consuming but so simple to make!

We collected tin cans for months and those two vases are from my own collection. Eddie spray painted all the cans and we covered some with beautiful lace to add texture. The picture of these against that sky line makes me feel so happy. Amelia is seriously a rock star! I love her unique and artistic take on everyday things! Sometimes I wonder what the world would look like through her eyes!

Sweet, sweet Melody from My Sweet and Saucy provided us with the lovely desserts and baked goods. How she got the macarons so perfectly peach tinted is beyond me, but they were also delish! The custom logo sugar cookies with the couples monogram was also a special treat. I am DYING for one of my brides to order them for their wedding dessert bar or as favors!

And the FLOWERS!! Megan from Honey and Poppies was a dream to work with. She is a great collaborator and is spot on about capturing the essence of what you might be envisioning. We provided her with a list of flowers we love, inspirational images and storyboards and her result blew me away. I was fixated on the idea of having a lush, floral headpiece that incorporated peach garden roses and other romantic flowers, and she went above and beyond my expectations. She also showed up with the berries to fill some of our tin cans because we wanted to incorporate some fruits and berries - I love that we didn't use typical peaches even though they would have been the obvious choice for our peach and navy blue color scheme. :)

Obviously, I can't post the picture above and not mention the spectacular hair and makeup job done by the oh-so-talented Nicole Deanne. Okay, so you may be noticing that several of these vendors are from my own wedding. ;) What can I say? I love these ladies and they are my go-to gals when I know I want something fah-bu-lous! I work with Nicole so often, but she never ceases to amaze me. Don't you love the color lipstick she chose for our model?! Genius!!

And last but definitely not least! The lovely Megan from Mae Mae Paperie. If you know my work, you already know that I have collaborated with Megan before for this project. Megan and I totally click and she just "gets me" - there is really no other way to explain it! For both projects, we never even had to meet in person! Everything was accomplished online or over the phone and our conversations are entirely filled with excited gushing of ideas, squealing and ooh and aahs! I love how she translates the ideas in my brain into real-live paper goods that are even more beautiful than anything I could imagine on my own! ;)

I have to give another shout out to Bonny here because while Megan did the design, Bonny worked tirelessly on the printing, cutting and assembly of all these paper pieces. The large signs, as held by the flower girl above, are another idea that I have been dying to use for a wedding. Bonny is the crafty-bee who assembled these signs and she added the yummy peach silk ribbon for that special added touch. Melissa found the ribbon online and I have to say, she is the queen of online research/purchasing!! If there was ever an item we couldn't find, Melissa would find it!

Finally, I have to include these two images above because the first really shows how amazingly talented Amelia is. That is some legit photo-journalism because the model wasn't posing for a shot, she was crouching on the ground as I was changing her head piece for a different shot. She had to crouch because she is waaay taller than me! ;) But that is besides the point. Anyways, the birdcage veil and millinery flowers are two separate items, so I was placing and pinning them when Amelia snuck in and grabbed this shot. Isn't she magical? And the second one of the couple with the horse is SO exactly what I was hoping we would be able to take away from this shoot. I love everything about it - the draping of the dress, the flower head piece, the boots peeking out and the flower hills against the great expanse of the sky. ah. I'm in love.

I can't believe this all started with Melissa and I randomly meeting over coffee to chat (since we had been following each other's blogs) and me buying some mercury glass hurricane jars from her... they have already SO come in handy in 3 of my weddings this year! Melissa - I love you! You were the perfect partner in crime for this shoot. I miss our chats, emails and flea market shopping excursions. I miss Mamasita and your sweet hubs. You know what this may mean... I think we need to work on another shoot together!! ;) LOVE all of these ladies to pieces!

In case you need a round-up after all of the information overload above, here are the awesome people who made up our team. Thank you for being you!

So Happi Together, Nancy Park – Event Design and Coordination

The Loveliest Day, Melissa Huber – Event Design and Styling
Amelia Lyon Photography – Photography

Honey and Poppies, Megan Gray - Florals

My Sweet and Saucy Shop, Melody Brandon – Baked goods

Maemae Paperie, Megan Gonzalez – Stationery and Paper Goods

Tomato Weddings, Vivian Lee – Bride’s wardrobe

H&M – Groom’s Suit, Hugo Boss – shirt, Burberry - tie

The Ruby Closet – Flower Girl’s wardrobe

Nicole DeAnne – Hair and Makeup

Found Vintage Rentals, Jeni Maus – Furniture and rentals

Classic Party Rentals – tabletop rentals

Love Takes Flight with Up Imagery!

2010-09-27T14:23:00.000-07:00

Here is a sneak peek of an engagement session that I styled for my dear sister and her fiance - my soon-to-be brother-in-law! (Whew! That's a lot of hyphens!) We just had her beautiful bridal shower this past weekend and I cannot wait to share the details with you all.

In the meantime, please enjoy the cool feel of this shot by Up Imagery on this hot autumn day! Seriously. It's over 100 degrees outside. Taking flight to somewhere tropical sounds very nice, indeed!

image courtesy of Up Imagery

They travel so much for work and their long-distance relationship that we were able to use my future- brother-in-law's special pass to get through the boarding gates and capture some really amazing shots. Cannot wait to share some more!!

* Vintage luggage provided by the lovely Found Vintage Rentals. It's amazing what a few stellar props will do for a shoot!

Sharon and Austin - Happily Ever After!

2010-09-23T05:07:00.000-07:00

Sharon and Austin were wed this past August and I am so happy to share some of the details from their day with you! I actually have a flurry of weddings to share with you all now so please come back soon for more!

Sharon was the sweetest bride, from day one. I still remember our first consultation meeting, when she and Austin brought me gourmet white chocolate doggie biscuits for my Molly! She said that she could tell from my blog that I loved my dog very much (now we have two!) so she thought I would enjoy these special treats. She was SO right! ;) I never knew that dogs could safely eat white chocolate - did you? It's funny because Molly loves chocolate, of course she never tried it before, but I know she loves it! Whenever I peel open a kit-kat she runs into my lap and sniffs at the air with her cute little bunny-rabbit nose. So, when she got some white chocolate she was in doggie heaven! Ever since then, it has become a frequent treat!

But back to the wedding! :) Sharon and Austin are one of those couples you meet and you just know they are perfect for each other. The way that they look at each other with love and respect is truly a sight to see. They made my job way too easy and fun and I truly enjoyed filling their day with little details that spoke to them as a couple. I have to thank Steve Koo for capturing their wedding so beautifully. He is a Chicago-based wedding photographer and I was so happi for this opportunity to meet and work with him!

Details from getting ready, including the custom hanger tags I made for the bride and her bridesmaids.

Flower girl properly prepping for the day while a bridesmaid performs wardrobe check. I love that my hefty emergency kit is in the foreground of this image!

Dramatic first look at the Pasadena Westin. Her gorgeous gown was rented from Vivian at Tomato Weddings - Yes! The same place I got my own gown!

LOVE this image of Sharon and her bridesmaids! The colors make me happy!

Isn't she the cutest flower girl?! And thank you wind for kicking up Sharon's veil and making this kiss perfection.

Such a touching first dance. Isn't Sharon a beautiful bride?

Custom bride and groom chair signs made with So Happi Together love! ;)

And Pinkberry catering! A perfect ending to a very sweet day.

The fabulous team of vendors -

Venue: The historical Lindley-Scott House of Azusa

Photography: Steve Koo Photography

Hair and Makeup: Nicole Deanne

Florist: Creative Floral Design in San Gabriel
Cake: Some Crust Bakery

Wedding gown, Bridal party attire: Vivian at Tomato Weddings
Emcee: Hosted by Johan

Dessert: Pinkberry Catering
Wedding Programs: Peak a Boo Design
Bride and Groom chair signs: So Happi Together

Meet Bonny - My right-hand gal!!

2010-09-16T05:23:00.000-07:00

All of my brides hear about Bonny throughout their planning process, but don't meet her until the day of their wedding. She is my assistant for every wedding, but she is also my dear, sweet cousin! We actually have over four years of experience working together with several non-profit organizations and I love working with her because she knows what I am thinking before I say a word. She understands how I like things done (paying attention to details, thinking quick on your feet, anticipating/addressing potential problems before they happen and service with a smile) and with a degree in Interior Design from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, she has a perfect eye for styling and design. I lurve her very much and am happy to finally share some images of her so that people can put a face to the name! :) Isn't she the cutest?!

These pictures were taken of her and her love, Carlos - her beau of over 8 years! Yes. He is family! And he has helped out with So Happi Together projects on more than one occasion. These two are so precious to me, I cherish these pictures of them because it totally shows their personalities.

Plus, these images are extra special to me because they were taken by MY love and hubby, Eddie, aka Up Imagery! Many of you already know of Eddie's background in design as a graduate from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. He earned his degree in Automobile Design but photography has always been a passion and he also took photography classes at Art Center to fuel his love. Recently, God has opened up so many doors for him/us (while closing others), and we have come to realize that he should pursue this passion as I am pursuing my own in planning. Life really is funny and I can't tell you all how lucky we feel to have found careers that we truly love and the courage to pursue them. It means a lot to have each other's support and hopefully we can have yours too! :)

So, without further ado - here is Bonny, Carlos and Eddie's debut on So Happi Together! Enjoy!

All photos courtesy of Up Imagery - check out more on his blog! It's still under construction but not too shabby! ;)

Happily Engaged!

2010-09-15T01:18:00.000-07:00

So, I spent two whole afternoons last week putting together a fantabulous post for you all - filled with over 20 different links and oodles of gorgeous images. When I clicked to "publish post" an error message appeared and I frantically clicked "save now" as I tried to hastily "select all" and "copy" but rather managed to "select all" and "delete" Argh! Of course, it deleted right as the computer was applying "save now" and I brilliantly managed to save my empty screen and lose every bit of my precious post. Defeated, I have been hiding from blogging, but come back now refreshed and renewed and ready to share some images with you all! This is not the post that I loved and lost that day, but seeing one of my bride's engagement session pictures today inspired me to get back on this blog and share. Because seriously, I cannot NOT share such lovely images of my incredible brides and grooms in LOVE! I really am blessed to be doing what I am doing and I thank God every day for blessing me with the opportunity to work with such amazing people during such a special time in their lives. Truly. It is a blessing. Also, it allows me to work with amazing and talented people like these photographers below!

So, the images that inspired me today are of Dina and Tai - two of the sweetest, most thoughtful, beautiful-inside-and-out people you will ever meet. Working with them is more like meeting friends for coffee and laughs. That is, meeting with beautiful, model-esque, flawless friends! And you all already know how much I love Amelia Lyon, so consider me in a state of pure bliss on their wedding day, at the dream location of the Athenaeum!

all images courtesy of Amelia Lyon Photography - check out her blog here!

Viv and Lloyd are another one of my out-of-town couples and they make my job way too easy. You can probably tell from their pictures, but their laid-back, fun attitudes only enhances their stylish young love! I can't wait for their upcoming wedding at Cafe Pinot. It will be my first time working with Sean Flanigan and I am super excited because this Washington based photographer seems like one of the most down-to-earth, modest, but uber-talented photogs around. Don't believe me? Check out his work on his blog and the about me page on his website!

all images courtesy of Sean Flanigan

And what can I say about Lydia and Jimmy... they are SO cute! Everytime I get a text or phone call from Lydia I smile and when I see her I just want to pick her up and give her a bear hug! we are transforming a church reception hall into a completely different space for their wedding and the challenge has been great fun to tackle together! Expect a ton of cute touches from their big day - all captured by the fun and talented EP Love. I have the honor of working with this crazy-cool team twice in the month of October and can't wait! Check out the hotness on their blog!

Finally, Anne and Jeff I hold dear to my heart because they have been nothing but sweet, encouraging, thoughtful and appreciative for every part of their planning process. Their wedding is actually this weekend and the venue is ah-mah-zing with one of the kindest and handsomnest catering managers around! ;) (I will share once the weekend is over and I have some of their images to share!) This is another exciting day because it will be my first time working with Erin Hearts Court - a husband and wife photography team that I have been following like a freaky fan ever since this wedding. The stars aligned, making Erin and Courtney available for Anne and Jeff's wedding day and I could not be more thankful! Their blog is filled with all kinds of juicy eye candy, so don't forget to stop on by! This first image of Anne and Jeff just melts my heart...

all images courtesy of Erin Hearts Court Photography

That's it for now but stay tuned for some amazing wedding re-caps filled with touching details and lots of love! Have a wonderful day!!

p.s. I know I promised a file/tutorial on how to create a handy dandy guest list - but cannot for the life of me figure out how to get a file to be "downloadable" so in the meantime, please feel free to email me and I can send you a template of one! ;) Happi day!

Sneak Peeks of some Happi Weddings!

2010-08-16T16:49:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to share all the gorgeous details from the weddings we have been a part of these past few months. Waiting for these pictures remind me of how hard it was to wait for my own wedding pictures! :)

Sorry for the lack of posting, but once you see all the loveliness we have been putting together for our weddings, you will understand that my efforts have definitely been put to good use! In the meantime, here is a small sampling of sneak peeks as provided by some of the amazing photographers we have had the pleasure of working with!

1) Catherine and Eric's wedding weekend in Solvang, California! Chaz Cruz was SO much fun to work with. He actually shot the bride's brother's wedding one year earlier and the family loved him so much they asked him to be part of this special day as well. Now you know that kind of referral speaks volumes about a photographer's service and style. Chaz is young, hip and all around fun. Make sure to check out his work on his blog!

image via Chaz Thoughts

2) Christin and Elbert's wedding at the Smog Shoppe! This wedding was filled with a lot of fun details that spoke to the space, the couple and the guests. Christin and Elbert entrusted me with many of their wedding elements because they were one of my many couples long-distance planning from San Francisco. Planning was so much fun and the day itself turned out to be an intimate, relaxed and modern celebration for everyone involved. If you have been following my blog for a while now, you know that The Image is Found was one of the top choices as my own wedding photographer. So, when I heard that Christin and Elbert had booked this radical husband-wife duo, I could hardly contain my excitement! They are two of the most fun and stylish people you will meet. It is almost not fair for them to be this talented as well! I present you with one of the freshest images that I think has ever been taken at a Smog Shoppe wedding:

image via The Blog is Found

3) Finally, Esther and David at The Fairmont in Newport Beach! Being the planner and matron of honor for this wedding was not the easiest thing, but certainly enjoyable with this lovely couple and their team of vendors. The fun and fabulous Brandon Kidd helped capture the many beautiful details of this special day. Brandon and Kristin (another gorgeous husband-wife duo) are seriously too much fun to work with and I promise they are two of the nicest people you will meet in this industry. I have several fun weddings with Brandon this year and can't recommend him enough! Since I already shared some bride and groom pictures from their e-session, I thought I would leave you with a detail shot from their custom dessert bar that we designed - cake and desserts provided by the uber-talented Melody at My Sweet and Saucy. We created the frame and backdrop with the "Sweet Love" banner and "Esther & David" mini banner. We also made the custom cake and dessert stands by silk wrapping boxes and then covering the tops with blush pink card stock and the fronts with bunches of fully bloomed blush pink carnations. This was a time consuming but rewarding job. :) Can't wait to show you the coordinating details from this day!

image via Brandon Kidd's online slideshow for Esther and David

check out his spankin' new blog and site! You know I am sucker for those exposed lightbulbs!

We have four more weddings before my next weekend off and then another 6 weddings in a row! Yes, wedding season is in full gear and I couldn't be happier!! Have a wonderful week! Later this week - a post about how to organize your guest list so that you don't drive yourself, your fiance or your planner crazy! :) xoxo!!

Balloon Save the Dates!

2010-08-01T22:11:00.000-07:00

This ultra-cool take on balloons and save the dates is my new fave! How cool would it be to receive this in the mail? And honestly, it isn't limited to weddings. I actually think it would be perfect for a little girl or boy's birthday party invite or maybe just a nice way to brighten a friend's day?

via Jordan Ferney's Oh Happy Day!

Cool, right? It reminds me of the other balloon save the date that I recently fell in love with... created by Jennifer Lopardo of L'office Optimist for her wedding in oh-so lovely Paris!

Hope you all are in for an uplifting, balloon-floating kind of week! xoxo!!

Utterly Engaged Turns 1 and easy way to dress up bottled water

2010-07-28T04:10:00.000-07:00

Many of my brides and readers discovered So Happi Together through The Dream is in the Details shoot that was featured in Issue 8 of the Utterly Engaged Magazine. Hello, UE readers!! ;)

Well, Utterly Engaged is celebrating one year of inspiring brides, grooms and really anyone who interested in weddings and I can't wait to help them ring in a second creative and successful year! How will I be doing this? By attending the fantabulous event below!

If you have not already heard about their "Ultimate Hoedown, BBQ Throwdown" be sure to check out their site pronto because it is going down this Thursday! I will be there with an empty stomach and wet-naps in tow and decided to sponsor the water bottles for their swag bag for several reasons, not limited to:

1. I love the girls at Utterly Engaged (Eva, Lucia and Henny). They really welcomed me into the wedding industry with open arms and are some of the most down-to-earth people you will meet. They have always been supportive of my work and I feel it more than necessary to return the favor!

2. I think everyone who receives a swag bag will be "happi" to find water inside to wash down BBQ and keep them refreshed in the warm So Cal weather.

3. I have been wanting to try my hand at making labels for water bottles for a while now, and this gave me the perfect excuse!

I enlisted the help of my dear assistant, Bonny, her boyfriend and my hubby and we spent the evening printing, cutting and adhering labels to 300 (THREE HUNDRED!) water bottles.

It took me a little while to actually design a label I liked, but once that was done, it took us less than two hours to complete the job. I used paper I had at home, tombo double sided tape (which I use for nearly every craft project) and bottled water that was $2.99 per 24 pack! All in all, I think this was a very affordable way to show my support for the lovely ladies at Utterly Engaged and also spread some happi water cheer to 300 party guests. Especially during the summer, I think this is a really simple way to make your mark for your own wedding, bridal shower or even bachelor/bachelorette party.

My hubby kindly took some pictures for me to share with you all, but if you would like to see one in person, come on out to the party this Thursday! You can buy your tickets here... hope to see you there!

images by my Eddie Kim :)

a tiny obsession with Kate Spade

2010-07-20T05:41:00.000-07:00

Are you lacking color inspiration? Take a gander at some snippets from Kate Spade's previous ad campaigns and you are sure to be inspired to fill your wedding with some lovely color. I LOVE the use of a wide palette of colors. And with summer here - these bright colors pack the perfect punch!

Yes, I am a bit obsessed. When I come across a lovely Kate Spade ad online or in print, I save it! But I am pretty sure it is a healthy obsession because this much color has to be good for you, right?

Have a Happy Tuesday, loverlies!!

My Brides around the Blogosphere

2010-07-07T14:14:00.000-07:00

There is a lot going on here at So Happi Together! I am up to my eyeballs with satin ribbons, luxe fino white papers, cutting, hole punching, perforating and more. But today, I am getting out of my home-office to work with one of my wonderful couples and Brandon Kidd on a very special, very fun engagement shoot! This weekend is a three-day wedding celebration in Solvang with one of my other beautiful couples and I cannot wait to share details and images from both the e-session and wedding with you all! In the meantime, here are some of my cool brides around the net.

As you can see, I have the pleasure of working with Brandon Kidd a few times this year. He is amazing and if you ever meet him and his wifey, you will want to cry because they are so genuinely sweet! This e-session is of my dear friend, Esther, and her fiance David. I have known Esther since junior high and have the pleasure of being her matron of honor and planner. Lots of fun planned for this storybook romance, fairy-tale wedding. Think: more Princess Bride, less Cinderella. :)

All images via Brandon Kidd's blog. Check it out!

You all already know about the insane girl-crush I have on Amelia Lyon and her work. She is one talented, gorgeous lady and her family is just as beautiful! This bride and groom, Cassie and Eugene, hold a very special place in my heart. They are getting married at the Skirball Cultural Center and having their day captured by Amelia! Does this formula sound familiar? ;) I have a feeling I am going to be ona nostalgic high all-day on their wedding day. Can't wait!

all images via Amelia Lyon's blog.

Another bonus with Amelia Lyon - we just wrapped a lovely photo shoot, which we just found out will be published by a very popular wedding print magazine. eeks! There were a ton of great vendors involved, but Melissa from The Loveliest Day and I spent months planning and designing the shoot and it is going to knock your socks off! Of course, I will share more when I can!

Have a fabulous day!! xoxo!

Calling all Calligraphy Lovers!

2010-06-29T05:18:00.000-07:00

I mean, seriously, who doesn't love good calligraphy? It can instantly make anything a wee-bit classier and with all of the modern, whimsical styles that are now available, it is easy to personalize calligraphy to match any wedding or event. A boring piece of paper instantly becomes a work of art with the right calligrapher!

I would have loved to have all of our invitations addressed by a calligrapher, but this was out of our budget and I ended up hand-addressing all of them. I vowed that one day I would learn calligraphy (hoping to find the time to take a class one day!) so that I could have prettier envelopes with all of my snail mail. I LOVE snail mail and find every excuse to send some. I think I might be keeping USPS in business! :) In any case, I have not found the time to take a calligraphy class, so in the meantime I may just have to snag a few of these awesome stamps by Primele on etsy.

She also provides custom calligraphy, and offers several adorable styles. Make sure to give her a holla if you are in the market!

All images from the Primele etsy site

I would only have one request from her and other custom stamp designers on etsy... please, please, please start providing these as acrylic stamps. I appreciate the classic beauty of wood body and red rubber stamps, but in terms of practicality and ease of use, you simply cannot beat acrylic stamps. From all my scrapbookers and card-makers out there, can I get an, "Amen?!"

Thank you, Everything Fabulous, for the fab find and heads up!

The Wedding Pantry and One-Ten Trunk Show

2010-06-25T04:24:00.000-07:00

This Saturday is a very special day! Not only do I have a wonderful wedding with one of my sweetest, cutest couples, but it is also the OneTen Trunk Show at the Wedding Pantry.

OneTen is the jewelry line started by the lovely artist behind Olive Hue Paper Goods. Her fine jewelry can be purchased through her etsy store, but is only available to view, try-on and admire in person at the Wedding Pantry. If you have not visited the Wedding Pantry yet, this is a perfect time to do so because all of the OneTen jewelry will be 10% off and you will be able to check out the vast array of other great wedding goods they have. The Wedding Pantry also has some amazing classes and workshops, so be sure to hop on over to their event calendar to see what's coming up!

If you aren't in the market to buy, but you are in need of a workspace to DIY - the Wedding Pantry is still the place for you! They have some wide-open work spaces available for you, your bridal party and friends.

In fact, I already have a few such DIY and craft meetings scheduled with a few of my brides. So, I know I have been MIA on my blog lately, but this is just a sign of all the fun and beautiful things we are crafting and planning for our wedding season here at So Happi Together. Crafting is actually one of my favorite parts of wedding planning. I truly enjoy all the DIY aspects of putting together a wedding and coordinating the different elements that not only speak with each other but also speak about the couple.

I also have a few other items that I have been creating for brides around the globe and will be sure to share a few pictures next week! In the meantime, I will send you over the The Loveliest Day and Jean Tsai's blog to see some gorgeous pictures of Esther and Kevin's engagements session. I am sure you remember my friend and bride, Esther, from her bridal shower a few weeks ago. But do you also remember the dress she's wearing? ;)

Happi Weekend!

More Cowbell - More Trucks and Trailers

2010-06-09T05:19:00.000-07:00

Normally, trucks and trailers may seem like they have nothing to do with weddings but these four-wheeled friends are quickly outshining your typical limos, rolls royces and stretch hummers. We need more trucks and trailers, like we need More Cowbell.

They are not only used for (1) fun modes of transportation, but also provide (2) great catering options, and in my opinion, can function as (3) a unique "changing/waiting" area. This is especially true if you are having a wedding at a venue (usually outdoors) with no set space for down-time for the bride, groom and bridal party.

Probably my favorite example of a fun mode of transportation would have to be the old SWAT van that this couple purchased from Property Room and used on their wedding day. Check out the rest of this cool wedding on Snippet and Ink.

images by Ira Lippke

And old VWs like this would make a great entrance or exit for a vintage-inspired wedding and also serve as a great prop!

image by Stephanie Williams via Ruffled Blog

As for food trucks, where do I begin? Of course, the ever-popular In-N-Out truck is a personal favorite. It is also great for weddings with lots of out-of-town guests so that they can experience Cali food at it's best!

image via {un}veiled vows

Or maybe the trendy and tasty Kogi truck featuring Korean tacos? YUM!

images via flickr

And if you already have a great caterer, but want a delightful dessert on wheels, you might consider any of these great options.

Cool Haus ice cream, images by the lovely Jean Tsai

The Get Shaved Ice Truck, image by Audrey Ma

If you're like me and enjoy breakfast foods for dessert, you may be interested in the Buttermilk Truck.

images via the Buttermilk site.

And finally, if you're like anybody who has a heart and taste buds, you will enjoy the Sprinkles truck!

As for trucks/trailers that function as changing or waiting rooms - I know teardrop caravans won't necessarily provide much space, but I am pretty obsessed with this pink one and thought that I would end this way-too-long-Cowbell post with it. :) Happy Hump Day!

via Old Fashioned Pretty

* And if you are in the LA area - a semi-comprehensive list of food trucks can be found here. Enjoy!

Grey Likes Weddings - Bridal Shower Feature

2010-06-04T05:01:00.000-07:00

One of the three bridal showers I am helping to plan this year took place this past weekend and I am happy to say that the lovely Summer of Grey Likes Weddings felt that it was nice enough to feature on her gorgeous blog! Please head over there to check it out! :)

I have to give a HUGE shout out and "Thank you!" to Connie M Chung Photography for coming to capture images of our shower and taking pictures of the bride and each guest at our "photobooth"!

We worked with a sophisticated palette that focused on tiffany blue accented with other soft colors like butter cream yellow and peach, blush pink.

Jane of Olive Hue Paper Goods helped to create the designs for all of the stationery and paper goods and I printed and assembled them at home, which definitely saved on costs.

The bride wanted a dessert bar for her wedding but it was not in her budget, so we decided to splurge on one for her bridal shower. We ordered some delicious mini lemon cupcakes, red velvet cake pops and tiffany blue macaroons from Melody at My Sweet and Saucy, and guests loved them. We also packaged a single macaroon for each guest to take home as a favor and personalized them with individual name tags.

I hand-made some paper-rosettes to hang above our food table and can't wait to use these for other events in the future. I feel like they make a huge statement on a small budget! You can find a tutorial by Posh Paperie here on Style Me Pretty.

The bride, Esther, was my college roommate and it has been so fun being her bridesmaid and wedding planner. We have so many fun details planned for her BIG day and I cannot wait to share with everyone, but most importantly, I have had so much fun sharing this journey with her. Thank you, Esther, for being such a great friend. I love you to bits and pieces and I am so happy for you and Kevin. Soon, we can talk the night away with married-women conversations! ;) xoxo!!

And thank you, dear readers, for coming along for the ride! This weekend is my first official wedding of the year. I am so excited that I get butterflies in my stomach every time I think about it. The bride and groom are the sweetest and I have friends in the bridal party, so I have a feeling the day is going to be fun-filled and amazing. Of course, I will share the lovely details with you all soon. Until then, have a Happi Weekend!

warm weather clothes and HOT hats

2010-06-03T02:39:00.000-07:00

Southern California weather can't seem to make up it's mind. One day it will be need-a-big-stick-from-the-gas-station HOT and I will excitedly pack up my beach bag for the next day, only to wake up the following morning to gray clouds and cold winds. Fellow So Calers, you know exactly what I am talking about. It has made for some very disappointing mornings for me these past few weeks! Yes. I could easily avoid this disappointment by simply checking the weather report, but what's the fun in that? I like the element of surprise. Other than on the date of a wedding, of course! :)

In any case, the weather is warming up, slowly but surely and although I always have difficulty knowing when exactly to let go and pack up my winter coats and sweaters, I am always eager to start shopping for new spring and summer items. It's funny how most of my cold weather clothes can be recycled for a few years, but my warm weather ones are always needing to be replaced and replenished. If I lived in Europe, I would SO be replacing everything in my closet with items from Noa Noa. (found via Priscilla Ahn's Girl in a Tree blog).

I know these items may not be available here in the United States, but thought they were too lovely to not share. Also, perhaps you can draw inspiration for your e-sessions and other outings? I know parasols are pretty common, but maybe these cloche-flapper-style hats are making a come back? They always make me think of fabulous swim or bathing caps. I LOVE it! :)

images via Noa Noa

Maybe it's time to replace the flowery/feathery hairbands with some stylish 1920's style cloches? Christian Dior seemed to think so way back in 2008!

images via Old Fashioned Pretty. LOVE this site - check it out!

I know these cloches aren't necessarily warm-weather friendly, but if some Californians can rock UGGs with shorts and shirts in 80-degree weather (please stop with this), who's to say a cloche can't catch on too?

Bridal Showers bring May Flowers

2010-05-27T04:27:00.000-07:00

Among the weddings that I am planning and coordinating, I am actually in three (3!) weddings this year.... two of them as a matron of honor. Yes. I am also planning the weddings, but of course, leaving the day-of-coordination up to my trusty assistants! :)

The first bridal shower is this weekend and I could not be happier for my sweet friend, the bride-to-be. I don't want to reveal too many of the details for these parties because Connie M Chung will be providing some fantabulous images for me to post and write about later, but for now, I will share a favor idea that we have for one of the parties.

I love journals and notebooks and thought this was such a great idea, via this awesome post on Orange Beautiful's amazing blog, The Scoop.

Isnt' that gorgeous? So, we have quite a large guest list at this particular party, so I thought we could replace these thicker notebooks, with the Moleskin Cahier Soft Cover Notebooks. I love these little things. They come in a pack of three and are super handy dandy because they are on the smaller and thinner side and can fit in just about any purse, clutch or glove compartment. I have one in all three of those places! :)

We plan to put our own twist on them and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

And as for May flowers... it is that time of year when we can buy peonies at Trader Joe's!! May-June my home is always filled with lovely and affordable peonies from Trader Joe's. I usually place them in vases and cups throughout the home, but this year, I think I will try to make some arrangements with other flowers as well. Wish me luck! I will be starting with this great tutorial via Apartment Therapy. Jessica - from Frequently Full, Seldom Satisfied - aren't you proud of me? :)

image via Design *Sponge

I will be a very happy planner if I can create something like the arrangement above! But where oh where to find such precious garden roses? Maybe I need to write a letter to Trader Joe's. :)

My Brides around the Blogosphere

2010-05-17T19:16:00.000-07:00

Whew! Things have been very busy around here lately, but I am so happi to share these times with my lovely brides. I have honestly been blessed with brides and grooms who are so sweet, creative and stylish! A few of them have been making different "appearances" around the blogosphere and I thought I would share with you all.

First off, meet Robyn and Stephen! They are getting married at the Casa Del Mar and Brandon Kidd will be shooting their special day! He recently shot their amazing engagement session and if this is any indication of the loveliness to come, be still my heart! Aren't they the cutest? They are seriously perfect for each other and such a delight to work with. I love them to bits and pieces!!

I LOVE Brandon's use of light. Plus, he is just such a nice guy. Seriously. If you are looking for photographers, please do yourself a favor and check him out!

Now, meet Esther and Kevin, through their invitations suite! :)

Esther and Kevin chose to book Mae Mae Paperie for their paper goods and went with her "print-at-home" option. This way, they end up with an amazing design that they can choose to print at their own price. Esther and I met with Megan and discussed some design options as well as Esther's vision and Megan came up with some beautiful results. She blogged about a version of Esther and Kevin's invitation suite on her blog. Be sure to check out the rest of the blog for more goodies and inspiration!

Finally, one of my other fun and stylish couples, Janine and Casey, have their own blog and they have kindly shared the process of the Save the Date creation. Their wedding is going to be amazing. Really. I am not just saying that. Every little details has been accounted for and I am so excited to be a part of their day! And their save the date is the perfect precursor to it all. They hand-made, silk-screened each poster-sized piece in several shades of purple and with several fun images that hint at things to come for their wedding! We are currently working on making their engagement session absolutely incredible, so I will be sure to share those deets as soon as they are available, but in the meantime, please enjoy this!

This is their digital file of the piece. I wanted to take a picture of the one I received in the mail - nicely rolled and wrapped in twine and a matching die-cute gear tag - but my images are horrible and do not do it justice. I didn't want to ruin it. :)

So, this is a small glimpse at some of the couples I am working with this year. Aren't I so lucky? Thank you all for reading and encouraging me to do what I do. My heart overflows... ;)

So Happi Together stationery

2010-05-10T12:45:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to make a quick post about the lovely stationery that my dear friend, Jane Jeon from Olive Hue Paper Goods, created for me. I have known Jane since high school and she really understands my style and what I was envisioning for these pieces. I LOVE how thick they are and the fact that my notecards are letterpressed and die-cut shapes. I think it makes them really unique and have to thank Jane for the loverly design!

I have a few more pieces in the works with her right now and will share them as soon as they are completed and printed. One is something special for my future brides and I get happi everytime I think about them! :)

Have a Happy Monday! xoxo!!

Dress

2010-05-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

This is super short, but I just had to post this dress because I wish I had a reason to buy/wear it. But seeing as I am usually at weddings, I try not to buy white dresses. :)

However, if I was a bride, I think I would snatch this pretty little number up for a bridal shower, bachelorette party or reception dress! The textured, applique material is perfectly accented with the black grosgrain ribbon and the on-seam pockets. You can buy it here.

Happi shopping!

FOUND inspiration for our photo shoot!

2010-05-05T03:29:00.000-07:00

I have been alluding to the photo shoot Melissa and I are working on, and do not want to reveal too much because we are submitting it for publication. However, I will mention one of the lovely vendors we are working with for the shoot because she is just that amazing. Her work and new business have been making rapid waves in the wedding world, but I wanted to put my two cents into the mix because it has been such a pleasure working with her on this shoot and for some of my upcoming weddings (as well as a few e-sessions and bridal showers!). Who am I talking about? Well, Jeni Maus, the beauty and brains behind FOUND vintage rentals, of course!

Let me start by saying that I have a girl crush on Jeni. She has that effortless beauty and sense of style that is simply magnetic. If you see her and her studio, you will find a way to work her goods into your event because there is no doubt she will make it 100 times better! She has such a true passion for what she is doing that I am surprised she didn't start doing it sooner! Actually, I take that back. She has always had a heart for finding and collecting lovely vintage goods, it is just recently that she is making a career out of it and blessing others (like me and my brides!) in the process. I mean, why look for 100+ vintage books, 20 or so vintage frames, a dozen vintage furniture pieces yourself when you have Jeni who can do it for you? And she does it so well!

Once again, I do not want to share too much about what she is working on for our shoot, but I will share a partial list of items I am getting from her for a few of my brides! Including the things above, she is providing some of my lucky brides and grooms with throw pillows, table overlays, upholstered chairs, bottles, books, trunks and a whole slew of frames! Ooh! I am SO excited to see it all come together!

Until then, YOU can see some of it together on her blog and website. Here are a few of my fave pieces from her ever-growing collection!

All images courtesy of Studio EMP Photography via the Found website

Hope you let Jeni help you find some lovely items for your own event! Happy Wednesday!