I remember meeting with Mio & Dave for coffee on a cozy winter evening in Brentwood. It wasn’t our first time meeting – her sister-in-law (hi Joyce!) is one of my closest friends and Mio and I were bridesmaids together in Joyce’s wedding. Knowing how awesome Mio & Dave are, I walked into the meeting with all my mental fingers crossed – as they described their dreamy venue {Ponte Winery in Temecula} and vision for the day {an elegant “French country” theme}, I crossed my fingers a little tighter, when she expressed that her mom would be doing the flowers and that the wedding would be a labor of love, I was practically bouncing off the cafe walls in hopes they would book me.

At the end of the meeting, Mio and Dave smiled widely and finally exclaimed, “okay the meeting was just a formality, we knew we wanted to book you from the beginning!” Insert lots of laughter and cheering and happy coffee toasting :)

Their wedding truly was as lovely as they described to me. Mio & her mother worked closely to pull together the rustic theme with bird cages, mossy letters, and opulent florals. They utilized a red and green color scheme that was impressively non-Christmas-y (which I love – you can see another geniusly executed red-and-green wedding here!). They incorporated cultural traditions (like a sake ceremony), but also threw in their own traditions, like having a pie bar (PIE! BAR! THAT’S A BAR OF PIES!) in lieu of traditional wedding cake.

It was a beautiful day and I felt so honored to be there to document it!

{ Thank you to Elizabeth Anne Designs for featuring this wedding! }

Jasmin & Huy booked me for their July wedding through email, and though we hadn’t met at the time, I had an inkling that they would be amazing to work with. My Jasmin-and-Huy-must-be-awesome theory was supported by the fact that:

(a) they live in Portland, one of my favorite hip/lovely/artsy cities,
(b) they were getting married at the historic Greystone Mansion, &
(c) we were hooked up by planner extraordinaire Uyen of Sassy Girl Weddings.

When we finally did meet over coffee on one of their visits to LA, I was so excited to see my theory proven wildly true – they were all kinds of warm, laidback & fun and their wedding plans, which they shared with me excitedly, sounded phenomenal.

And how perfect it all was! The day was intimate and filled to the brim with love – shared between Jasmin & Huy, and between all the guests there celebrating… an intermingling, blending of families, hugs-all-around type of love. The wedding had a simple vintage French theme that fit in perfectly with the venue, with bright summery accents of color. Love that the bridesmaids all wore different dresses & shoes.. added so much brightness to every photo! And while we’re on the topic of dresses, is Jasmin’s not the most wonderful whimsical beautiful thing you’ve ever seen? I’m pretty sure my jaw dropped completely to the floor when I waltzed in that morning and saw it hanging all flowy & ethereal-like by the window.

But on with the photos – enjoy this peek into their day!

I generally take an inordinate number of shoe shots, but I may have gone especially overboard in this case… so dreamy!

I always love first looks, and this one was one of the most sweet & tender ones I’ve witnessed…

I love this moment.. before Jasmin had been handed her bouquet we snapped just a few and on cue, they all held hands. So sweet!

After wedding party portraits, Jasmin waited in the shade for the ceremony to begin & I couldn’t resist snapping a few (bajillion) shots… love the pastel tones in these!

A quick hairstyle change {complete with the perfect pink rose} before the reception…

And the details! Lush & elegant arrangements, gold vases, a dainty cake topper…

Jasmin & Huy’s perfectly choreographed first dance was amazing! They spun & trotted all the way around the fountain…

And if that wasn’t enough, Huy’s nephew followed it up with a fantastic rendition of Train’s “Hey Soul Sister”. He knew ALL THE WORDS!