Katie and Ben’s sweet romance started at just 15 years old when they met at a swim practice. They were married this summer in an outdoor wedding on a ranch, which they fell in love with for “the flawless intersection between natural beauty, remote feel, and comfortable elegance,” as the bride says.
Katie chose a muted color palette for the ceremony and bridal party florals, with hints of blush and a golden caramel scheme. At the reception, a deeper color palette was used, with more dusky tones of rust and burgundy worked throughout — perfect for dinner under the stars. An all-night dance party followed, taking place in a nearby wine cave!
Studio Mondine went with a very natural, wildflower-esque style for all of the floral design, using natural grasses, lace-cap hydrangeas, and foraged eucalyptus throughout. One of the bride’s favorite pieces was a champagne glass escort card display: a full table of pre-poured champagne glasses with escort cards attached, a massive arrangement of florals, and tall taper candles in silver candlestick holders that greeted guests as they entered the meadow for dinner.
Read on for more from the wedding planner, Once Wed Premium Vendor Ryder Sloan Events:
“Katie and Ben were the first of their friends to get married, so it was wonderful to witness guests attending the wedding with no preconceived notions of what a wedding should be or should look like. It was clear to see that each space they moved throughout felt magical to them and truly unique to Katie and Ben.
From the bride:
“One of our biggest snafus when planning the wedding was when Ben and I foolishly chose a wedding date both two weeks after US swimming Olympic trials (which many of our guests were competing in) and which also directly coincided with the opening ceremonies of the Rio Olympics (of course, all of our guests who were competing at trials were dying to go to Rio). It felt very strange to wish our friends would be busy on our wedding day…”
As a planner, this provided a few logistical issues as well, but the catering team and other vendors handled the last minute guest count flawlessly. And it was wonderful to see all of their young (and very fit!) guests who had grown up and competed together on swim teams both in high school and at a college level pull together and champion instead their two best friends getting married.”
