Weddings and Events
Jeff and Anita’s coastal wedding was the perfect start to wedding season. The light, enticing ocean breeze and misty view of the San Clemente Pier created a perfect backdrop for this couple’s colorful wedding. The couple curated every detail of their wedding to reflect their outgoing and playful personalities, and we can’t help but be inspired in every possible way.
The Story
Jeff and Anita met in 2012 at a pub trivia game in Atlanta, GA. Anita is a California girl who relocated to the east coast after law school, and Jeff, hailing from Illinois, ventured to Florida — also for law school. Both eventually found their way to Atlanta, and each other, after relocating there for their careers. In her free time, Anita served as captain of a local pub trivia team. Jeff, himself a trivia buff, submit his candidacy to join the team after seeing them compete at his neighborhood bar. Anita accepted Jeff onto the team, but “on a trial basis,” she remembers slyly “to be sure that he was up to the challenge of being on the best team in the city.” Several months after Jeff his proved his skill in trivia competitions, he mustered up the courage to ask Anita out to dinner alone. Since that evening, they haven’t looked back!
The Proposal
Four years after that first date, on a chilly February morning, Jeff and Anita were visiting one of their favorite places in Atlanta, The Goat Farm Arts Center. The center, located on the west side of Atlanta, consists of creative studios and performance spaces for artists and musicians in the community. It was where they had one of their first dates and a place they visited often throughout their relationship. That morning, as the sun rose over the edge of The Goat Farm, Jeff asked for Anita’s hand in marriage. She happily accepted.
The Big Day
From the moment they were engaged, Jeff and Anita knew that they wanted to marry close to the ocean. They traveled to Orange County, where Anita grew up, that May to find the perfect destination. Both refused to settle on a typical ballroom or hotel, and wanted both indoor and outdoor spaces for their guests to enjoy.
“When we came across the Casa, we both knew we were home,” recalls Anita of their search. “The beautiful, warm architecture of this Spanish-style historic house blends seamlessly in hues of tan and green down to the cliff, which melts into the majestic Pacific, creating an intimate, yet breathtaking venue.”
After finding the perfect location, they enlisted the help of wedding coordinator Cortney Helaine to guide them through the planning process from across the country. She helped them every step of the way, ensuring that their ceremony and reception was executed exactly as they envisioned it. They knew that they wanted their wedding to be, in Jeff’s words: “Cali-Spanish rustic and not too formal.” The couple decided to have an intimate ceremony with only 20 guests. The ceremony, officiated by a close family friend, was held in the stunning Story Circle patio, where flagstone steps descend from exotic gardens to a secluded vista overlooking the Pier. In the days leading up to the wedding, the forecast had called for rain. When Sunday arrived, however, the clouds parted just in time for Anita to walk down the aisle. She walked, aptly, to Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles.
The sun pushed away the clouds as the remaining 80 guests arrived for the reception, and everyone enjoyed cocktail hour with a stunning sunset on the Ocean Terrace.
Jeff and Anita chose décor that was richly romantic and playful. Their whimsical welcome table featured records from their favorite bands for guests to sign in lieu of a guest book. The floral arrangements, provided by Lynne Lucente Floral Designs, were simple, elegant bursts of color. They ordered custom table numbers named after the cities that Jeff and Anita have lived in, which highlighted their love of travel. For party favors, they purchased hand-painted Spanish tile coasters and stamped the couple’s initials and wedding date on the back.
The couple’s striking wedding cake, made by Victoria’s Bakery, integrated the multi-colored Spanish motifs of Casa Romantica’s tiled corridors. They paid homage to their ‘adopted city’ of Atlanta by including a tradition popular at Southern weddings: the Groom’s Cake. The cake is a gift from the bride to the groom. The Groom’s Cake is displayed next to the wedding cake, and traditionally, it would later be cut and put into boxes for guests to take home. Jeff”s Groom’s Cake was a shaped and decorated like a cactus, playfully echoing his love of the succulents that dot the Casa Romantica landscape. Guests dined on delicious, bite-sized comfort foods such as mini grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, as well as destination-appropriate fare such as ceviche. The artful dinner, created by 24 Carrots Catering and Events, received endless compliments.
At the end of the evening, they integrated a tea ceremony in order to pay respect to Anita’s Chinese heritage and to honor both of their parents… a thank you for the support and love shown throughout their lives. Anita switched from her Western-style wedding dress into a traditional Chinese wedding dress called a qi pao for the special ceremony.
The photos from Anna Delores Photography truly capture the beauty of Jeff and Anita’s coastal wedding at Casa Romantica. Cheers to a couple who made their big day as special and unique as their love!
To learn more about planning your wedding at Casa Romantica, contact us at [email protected].
–
Coordinator: Weddings by Cortney Helaine / Catering: 24 Carrots Catering and Events / Florist: Lynne Lucente Floral Designs / Music: Epic DJ / Photography: Anna Delores Photography / Cake: Victoria’s Bakery / Makeup: Kelly Zhang Makeup / Wedding Dress: Melissa Sweet for David’s Bridal
