I’m a big fan of anything customizable and these cosmetic pouches and mirrors from August Lately fit the bill and are so cute.

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This weekend I had the pleasure of coordinating Angelina & Jeff’s wedding in lovely Pasadena. The wedding was held at the bride’s childhood church (so gorgeous!) with the reception held at the adjacent banquet hall. The bride wanted lots of exuberant spring color and I think she did a great a job pulling together the reception decor. I’ll be getting professional photos in the next few weeks so stay tuned!

Today it’s my pleasure to bring you a feature on another of Santa Barbara’s outstanding wedding photographers. Tim & Cheryl Halberg are a husband and wife team that specialize in wedding photography and portraits. Both graduated from the Brooks Institute of Photography, and both have a passion for providing outstanding customer service and producing images that truly capture a moment in time. Tim’s forte is weddings; he’s excellent at getting those key detail shots that really capture the essence of the day. I particularly love these images:

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I’m constantly searching for new sources for decor and Wild Things has tons of lanterns, beaded curtains, and chandeliers. I particularly love their chandelier selection with tons of styles and colors to chose from. The best part by far are the super reasonable prices.

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I love finding new rental equipment to use for my event designs and these ghost chairs from Resource One fit the bill. Designed by Philippe Starke and produced by Kartell, they are the epitome of a clean, modern style. The chairs come in two styles, the more feminine and smaller option is called “Victoria,” the more masculine version is called “Louis.”

Victoria comes in a plethora of colors whereas Louis comes in more basic colors like white, black, amber and clear.

The chairs can be shipped nationwide, with the LA warehouse serving the west coast and New Jersey the east coast. The rental price isn’t cheap, but if you have to have something more modern than the standard chivari chair this is a cool alternative.

I love Anthropologie and they had some really fun decor letters. They have letters either in a heavy steel look, small or large and a large colorful fabric letter. These letters could be used on the place card table spelling out LOVE or HAPPINESS or the Bride and Groom’s names.

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I love using lanterns and candlelight for decor. There is just something so simple and romantic about candles.

Over at CB2 they have these cool funky lanterns that are called “Recycled Lanterns” and are made from iron sheets that were used for brand packaging. For a hipster, slight kitsch wedding these would be perfect for ceremony decor or even as centerpieces.

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Catering is probably going to be the most expensive line item in your budget. Many brides will try to save money by cutting down on the number of floor staff/bartenders they have. Having worked in catering and events since I was 19, I know this consistently spells disaster. If you cut down on labor that means your servers will work twice as hard and guests will wait twice as long. I always tell my Brides, if you got to a five star restaurant and get great food, but it takes an hour to arrive and the server never brings your glass of wine, will you go back? Probably not. Likewise, even if your tables are beautiful and the food is delicious if service is bad, that is all your guests will remember.

A wedding should make the guest feel warm and welcome, food and drink should magically appear, water glasses should be refilled without asking and wine should be graciously offered when your glass is low. When service is at this level, there is a sense of ease that permeates your event which means your guests will have a great time and the catering staff themselves will be happy. I always say, if the staff are happy, your guests are happy.

I was reading a post on Project Wedding and one bride ran into huge budget issue. She picked Marvimon House which is located in downtown LA and has a very hip, urban, rustic vibe to it. She posted that her rentals were coming in almost 50% more than what she had budgeted and she was, of course, having a heart attack.

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One of my favorite brunch spots in Santa Barbara is Andersen’s, located on State Street. It is both a bakery and a restaurant, and it can accommodate a group of up to 20 in their upstairs room. The decor is very feminine and french country and you just can’t help but feel happy inside.

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Finding a rehearsal dinner location can be hard especially when you don’t live in town. To help destination brides avoid tourist traps I will be featuring local restaurants that have good food and service.

To start this series I have to feature one of my favorite restaurants and actually where I held my rehearsal dinner, Arnoldi’s. It’s off the beaten path on Cota & Olive streets and is known for being a locals hang out. For events Arnoldi’s can accommodate 20 to 100 guests easily. The menu for rehearsal dinners ranges from $28 to $35 per person and included appetizers, salad, and two choices for the entree. Wine starts at $27 per bottle. (more…)

Blurb is a new company that allows you to literally make your own book. Its an easy and great way to give photos to grandparents (who probably won’t log onto to Pictage to look at photos), parents or you could even use them as thank yous to your bridal party.

I love the endless personalizing options plus you can post the books online for guests to buy. There are 4 formats, from a small 7″ x 7″ book starting at $12.95, a 8″ x 10″ (portrait) or 10″ x 8″ (landscape) for $19.95 and a large format book, 13″ x 11″, starting at $54.95 The prices are so reasonable I can’t wait to get mine!