I first met Mai over the sweetest email.. she wrote that she had been following my blog for awhile and as it would soon be her turn to tie the knot, she was excited to chat about wedding photography. She also wrote how she had recently started a floral business, Bunch Studio, and upon first glance at her website I was speechless. She created some of the most lush & creative designs I had ever seen, especially for someone who was only months (MONTHS!) into ever picking up a flower to arrange.

As the year before her wedding unfolded, I hung out with Mai (and Nick!) at various events & through mutual friends, we worked together on shoots and weddings, and by the time their own wedding (at the beautiful Strawberry Farms) came around, I felt I was definitely shooting the wedding of not clients, but dear friends. Which makes writing this entry almost more difficult.. because how to even describe such a day? A wedding where the bride is one of the most talented floral designers I’ve ever met? A ceremony arch of air plants; homegrown, picked, and potted succulents as favors; bouquets {each one unique!} that Mai handcrafted herself; every rustic & organic detail infused with Mai & Nick and their story..

But even moreso, how to describe the beautiful intangible side of things? A ceremony, officiated by a friend {my favorite type!}, that brought everyone present to tears, music & dance performances by friends at the reception, all the fathers/daughters & mothers/sons being invited out to dance during those respective moments & seeing all the various generations.. And a love between Mai and Nick that is all the right things – warm, silly, confident, and filled with that undeniable feeling of “home”.

A million thank yous to Mai & Nick for giving me the opportunity to document all of this!

This wedding is featured on one of my most favorite wedding blogs today… Green Wedding Shoes! Thank you Jen for the feature! Be sure to head over to GWS to see the post and a lovely description of the details of the wedding by Mai herself!

My favorite kinds of bouquets – whimsical, eclectic, and filled with unique not-your-typical-floral finds…

Nick asked all his groomsmen to grow out their mustaches for the wedding… love it!!

A shave ice truck was on hand providing endless refreshment, such a genius (and delicious) idea!

The most perfect photobooth setup…

And the cake! Laurie of I Believe It’s Cake! is a true artist and quite possibly outdid herself on this one… so elegant and beautiful…

Venue, Catering, Coordination: Strawberry Farms
Florals: Bunch Studio & Floral Elements
Cake: I Believe Its Cake
Shave Ice Truck: Tropical Shave Ice
DJ & MC: Playtime Attractions, Andy & Daphne Felicitas