I don’t think I’ve ever seen as such brilliant sunshine at a wedding like I see at Julia and Javier’s 11 am ceremony. And Julia says their lunch reception was “easy, simple and fun.” Two great reasons to consider having a midday wedding….
Julia & Javier | March 21, 2009 |The Wrigley Mansion, Phoenix, Arizona
How he proposed
Javier and I met at work, our first job after college then were good friends for 3 years before we started dating. We dated for 4 years before he finally proposed. In February, 2008 we went to Telluride, Colorado for a ski trip for my 30th birthday. I love to ski and he had recently started learning. The day after my birthday we skied together for the first time and had a blast. We dropped off our skis at the end of the day and were headed back to our room when he suggested that we “take a walk”. There was a light snowfall at the time, which was beautiful. We walked to a nearby park that was completely empty and he proposed over a bridge, in the snow.
The ceremony
We had an 11am ceremony outside in the garden at the Wrigley Mansion. The mansion is on a hill and there was a huge flight of stairs off the side of the Mansion leading to the garden. It was a fabulous entrance. The colors were green and brown, which were appropriate since the wedding was on the first day of spring. The flowers were white and green orchids with moss and a few dangling jewels that coordinated with the antique light fixtures in the Mansion. My father is a minister and performed the ceremony for us. We both have big families with lots of kids so we decided the mid-day wedding was the perfect solution. We had about 120 guests, all family and a few very close friends. We had two live spanish guitars that played for the wedding as well as the reception. They were phenomenal. We had two of the most adorable flower-girls, his niece and my niece. I think they pretended to be brides for the day as well.
The moment Julia will never forget
We opted to take pictures before the ceremony. Probably the most unexpected moment for me of the whole day was when I saw my fiance for the first time at pictures. My makeup was done and hair was perfect, yet when I saw him I totally lost it. I was very emotional and the moment was so special. It was just the two of us and the photographers. They captured the moment perfectly on film. I was so happy to be marrying a man I love so much!
The reception
Immediately after the ceremony we had a lunch/brunch reception inside the Mansion. The food was great and everyone had a wonderful time, but it was short and sweet. We ate, visited with guests, served the cake and headed out. It was beautiful, easy, fun and simple. It was exactly as we planned it and we loved it. Guests also appreciated that it was over in the early afternoon.
How she knew her wedding dress was “The One”
I’m a fairly pragmatic person and was determined not to make a big ordeal out of the wedding dress. I had every intent of buying a used one or perhaps renting one. However, my mom and sister came into town shortly after we got engaged and I planned a dress shopping day. We visited 3 shops in total. I made an appointment at the first shop because I had been there before with friends and it was such a fun place. It was a fancy shop and I had no intention of buying one there. I will admit that I’m extremely picky, have been a bridesmaid probably 10 times and didn’t think it was possible for me to find a wedding dress that was really me. Hence the reason I didn’t think it was a big deal. However, I did see one picture in a magazine while at my hairdresser the week before I got engaged that I liked. I described to the attendant at the first shop what I liked, which I learned was called ruching and the first dress she picked for me was the one out of the magazine. I was pretty shocked. I proceeded to try on a number of dresses, but tried on the first dress twice. I loved it, but wasn’t pleased with the price tag. Two months later, after I had purchased another wedding dress (which was a good price) with some ruching, I was having significant buyers remorse. I couldn’t get the other dress out of my head. I think my sweet husband and my wonderful, yet practical cousin actually convinced me that if I really loved the dress, I should get it. I was mortified that firstly, I was buying 2 wedding dresses and secondly, I was paying more than I thought was appropriate. Apparently I got over it. I bought the dress and it was absolutely the best decision I made for the entire wedding. I’m still in love with the dress. It’s extremely silly and you only wear it for a matter of hours, but if you find a dress that you love, it’s absolutely worth the cost. You’ll have the memories for the rest of your life. A few months after I got the dress, I had the pleasure of meeting the designer, Romona Keveza. She was in town for a truck show. She also expressed to me how much she loved the RK 830 dress.
Her advice for other brides
My advice is to make the day about you and your fiance. Don’t worry about your family, the wedding party or your guest’s expectations. The day is really about you. Do what works for you and if it’s a reflection of you, your guests will love it.
