Timeless Classic Wedding at The Harper in Costa Mesa, California
A few months ago we were at the Harper in Orange County to document Ryan & Clarice’s wedding. After taking their engagement photos in the desert and hearing about the details they had planned we could not wait to see the setup for their wedding. Here is a look back on their wedding day, and easy to say they nailed every aspect of bringing their vision to life!
Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?
We simply wanted a timeless wedding. After looking at old family wedding photos, including our grandparents and parents, we noted their attire, decorations, look and feel. Everything felt so classic. That is exactly what we wanted for our wedding. A classic look, but also a celebration of our personalities as well. Our venue search took us to places that ranged from an Avocado Farm to a downtown loft. But finally, we fell in love with The Harper venue for its modern and clean interior design. It had everything we wanted: neutral colors, and strong, modern accents. After securing our venue, we took inspiration for the style and colors for our wedding. Our ceremony was a traditional Catholic ceremony in a beautiful church in Orange County. We incorporated Catholic-Filipino traditions for our ceremony. We elected wedding sponsors, selected from our aunts and uncles, whom we look up to and continue to be big parts of our lives. Our sponsors committed themselves to being a source of encouragement and guidance for us throughout our marriage. Other traditional rituals involved the veil and cord blessing during our ceremony. The veil is a symbol of two people being clothed as one. This represents a wish for good health and protection during married life, and also symbolizes the uniting of two families into one. The cord symbolizes the lifelong bond and ties between the bride and groom.
Let's talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?
Our Church was such a beautiful space by itself. It had natural lighting, traditional stainless glass art, and a gorgeous altar. Not wanting to detract from these inherent features, we worked with our florist to provide some minimal flowers and decorations. However, our florist, Rogue and Fox, went above and beyond our dreams for our reception venue. Rogue and Fox designed and constructed a large floral installation placed behind our sweetheart table. Our communal seating set up allowed for our florist to place floral decorations and sculpture art at the centers of each table. All stationary for the wedding was designed and created by us. We took inspiration from our favorite artists and typographers, and were able to design our save the dates, wedding invitation suite, welcome signs, bar signage and seating chart. We placed Thank You cards at each of our guest’s table settings. For our giveaways, we gave out our favorite vanilla waffle scented candles. We added a candle label and tag we designed for each of our candles, and our parents volunteered to decoratively package them individually for our guests.
What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?
The most anticipated moment of our day was seeing each other during the ceremony. We opted for a 'traditional' first look and saw each other for the first time as I walked down the aisle. The intensity of that very moment was quite emotional. Even though we were surrounded by our loved ones, it felt like time stood still, as if it were just us. There was so much anticipation that our focus was solely on each other in that very moment. Several people had advised us that a first look together would allow for a more personal and intimate moment with each other; we felt that seeing each other in a sacred place surrounded by our loved ones was just as intimate, personal and special.
How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.
How we met. Nothing more romantic than a simple flick of the finger to identify true love, right? Well, that's how this love story began back in the Summer of 2015. The online dating phone app, "Bumble," was drawing quite the buzz around town. This crazed app allowed Ryan and Clarice to vigilantly swipe through dating profiles of potential matches. A swipe left meant "thank you, but no." A swipe right meant "hey there, good lookin'!" A corresponding pair of "swipe-right's" creates a match. Following the algorithm down it's path, the eventual match of Ryan & Clarice finally came to be. Ryan asked Clarice to meet for their first date, and they agreed to meet at The Hudson House in Redondo Beach, CA on September 16, 2015. The rest, as they say, is history.About the proposal. Ryan and I celebrated our anniversary together by taking a weekend trip out of town. Celebrating our 3 year anniversary, Ryan had mentioned he wanted to keep our destination a secret. I had my reservations of where he might be taking us, so he gave me a list of what to pack and prepare for. Outdoor activities was vaguely on the list. One quick flight and a rental car later, we found ourselves in South Lake Tahoe. The weather in mid-September was perfect, and the lake views were stunning. Finally, when pressed about the “outdoor activity,” Ryan revealed that we would be doing a hike to Mount Tallac, the highest summit in South Lake Tahoe. Just some minor details about this hike. One – the trail is 10.2 miles round trip. Two – the trail has a 3,290 feet elevation gain. We packed some lunches in our day packs, filled up our hydration packs, and prepared for our journey. Along the trial, there were gorgeous views and serene landscapes with undisturbed lakes. The journey to the summit was certainly taxing due to some patches of steep inclines, rocky terrains, and the high altitude. At one moment, I even asked Ryan if we could cut the hike short. He immediately offered some support and encouragement, urging that we continue to the top. After finally reaching the top, we stood in awe of all the beauty Mother Nature had to offer. We sat and gazed as we ate our lunches and took plenty of pictures. Ryan suggested we move to a secluded area for additional photos. He asked that I turn around, so that he could take an ‘Instagram-worthy’ photo of me. Feeling silly, I quickly turned back around, only to find him down on one knee, with a ring box in his hand. He had planned everything to that exact moment and location of where he was going to propose. Of course, my answer was “yes!”
What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?
The florals for our wedding were absolutely stunning! The floral décor, most especially the sweetheart table backdrop installation, was such a highlight within the reception space. The floral design and colors tied in with the venue and reception seamlessly. Our florals were light and earthy with varied modern textures. Working with a professional as talented and creative as Rogue and Fox, we wanted to give the team freedom to design and create. The floral design gave the classic, neutral reception space the modern touch we were looking for. Rogue and Fox captured our vision and gave us a cohesive design that complemented the space, and also represented our personalities and style. The bridal bouquet and bridesmaid bouquets was designed beautifully and incorporated dried florals, beautiful white flowers and pops of taupe/brown shades.
Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?
Ever since the first day of our wedding planning, we always knew what our number one priority of the wedding day would be…the music. We love music and have always connected music we enjoy to having a good time. We were extremely blessed to have secured a beautiful church and stunning venue. Both locations related to us and told so much of our story. But, the true bow on top of our special day was the music and our DJ, DJ Kara. Our DJ asked us to curate playlists that we wanted to listen to. We truly took this request to heart as a way to personalize our reception experience. We spent months and months putting together all the songs that told our story. This is what made our day so special. During cocktail hour, we enjoyed music that our parents love. During dinner, we heard some of our first love songs that we danced to together. The vibes of the evening all took shape because of the music that filtrated the venue. This was the perfect way for us to personalize our special day.
Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you'd like to share with other couples planning their day?
First and foremost, we would say that it's important throughout the process to keep in mind that the big day is about you two. There can be so much involved in planning a wedding that it’s always a good idea to take a step back and remind yourselves the real reason and meaning behind this special day.If we can pass on wedding planning advice it would simply be to act together as a team throughout the process. A team is comprised of individuals who each have his/her own strengths and weaknesses. What makes a team successful is the empowerment of team members to excel where his/her strengths lie. For us, not every decision needed to be a joint decision. Not every task needed to be a joint effort. We split up tasks and decisions based on the strengths and weaknesses we knew each other possessed. This made the planning go as efficiently as possible, and helped make the final product be something that we can both be extremely proud of.
Let's talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.
-Ryan. After deciding that we wanted a classic and traditional look, it became obvious that I need to wear a tuxedo and bowtie. Being that black is my favorite color, I immediately knew the look that I wanted. I had the experience of renting tuxedos before from various rental companies. Every time I rented a tuxedo, I was also unhappy with the way it fit; too baggy, too long. For my wedding, I knew that I wanted a true bespoke tuxedo that was made perfect for me. I was able to work with a professional bespoke suit designer, Ton Chookhare from Chookhare & Sons. We worked together to craft a tuxedo to every detail. We selected the thread count for the black jacket and pants. We selected a subtle metallic grey polkadot silk liner for the inside of the jacket. My white tuxedo shirt was personalized with my initials on my left sleeve. We determined the exact width and shape of my black silk lapel. Lastly, I found the perfect patent leather shoe to bring the look together. I found a patent leather derby shoe with a crepe sole. I loved that it had the look of a classic shoe, but the design of a sneaker. Knowing I would be dancing all night long, it was the perfect shoe!The bride. I have always gravitated to a more classic, simple and clean bridal dress look. Although I had this in mind, I was open to all dress styles knowing that I could possibly end up with a look completely different than what I envisioned. I wanted a dress that fit my body shape, that was comfortable and, of course, would allow me to have a good time on the dance floor. I tried on various dress silhouettes and styles from boho, traditional, to high fashion. Ultimately, I fell in love with the very look that I envisioned, a clean and classic look that was totally my style. Chloe at Bella Bridal in Los Angeles helped me find the perfect dress. I chose a crepe Pronovias dress. I fell in love with this dress for its timeless and classic look and the subtle feminine details that made it uniquely modern. The dress had a beautiful sheer lace panel design under the arms on each side that emphasized the feminine silhouette. There was beautiful beading design at the shoulders and down the side that opened to chiffon godets at the bottom of the dress. The cathedral veil really tied in the bridal look and complimented the side lace panels on the dress. I wore classic jewelry on our wedding day. My husband gifted me with Tiffany pearl drop earrings and my "something borrowed" was my mom's silver bracelet with dangling pearls.