Get married in a medieval castle

My mind was blown when I recently learned about an actual castle not far from where I live where you can hold parties and — of course — weddings. Now, you can indulge your fantasies about being queen on your wedding day or playing Catherine Middleton without having to get your passport updated.

Flickr photo by Lobo Castle

The castle is located in Calabasas, and no, its not one of the houses belonging to the Kardashian clan. (ba rump bump!) The owner of the home is Denise Antico-Donlon, and she was inspired to build Lobo Castle after a trip to Scotland.

Continue reading

Wedding Venue: Cal State Fullerton’s Alumni House

I’ve known forĀ  quite a while what a lovely campus Cal State Fullerton students enjoy, and I never even got out to the Arboretum! I was a student at Fullerton for about two and a half years, and while I didn’t actually live on campus, I did spend a good deal of time there, especially during my semesters on the Daily Titan staff. So when a tidbit about a wedding at the Alumni House came across my Facebook newsfeed not too long ago, it piqued my interest.

Photos by Karlos Ramirez, Courtesy of Cal State Fullerton Alumni House

Continue reading

Chelsea Clinton’s wedding venue?

When it comes to wedding news, there’s nothing bigger than former First Daughter Chelsea Clinton’s right now. Because she is notoriously publicity shy, and is keeping her wedding details secret — of course everyone wants to know every little detail.

Flickr photo by headshotphoto

For the record, Chelsea Clinton is a full blown hottie now. I remember, when her parents were in the White House, adults around me (I was a teenager) talked about how good looking parents often produced ugly kids, in reference to her. I was myself an awkward teenager, so I didn’t see what everyone was talking about. However, if she didn’t want this feeding frenzy about her wedding, then she probably should have done as Jenna Bush did and give the public a little taste.
Continue reading

Wedding Venue: Pelican Hill Resort

Looking for an exclusive, ocean-view spot to get married? Then you probably want to check out Pelican Hill in Orange County.

Pelican Hill Resort sits above a huge, swanky golf course in south Orange County. I’ve not had the fortune of ever attending or decorating a wedding here, but I do have friends in swanky places. And my friend says that one of the nice things about Pelican Hill is that they only schedule one wedding a day, unlike other venues that try to squeeze at least three weddings into a room or facility per day. From a decorator’s point of view, that is a huge help. But there is a drawback to such an amazing venue — simple decorations won’t cut it against an amazing rotunda overlooking the ocean.
Continue reading

Wedding on a New York street

No, I didn’t actually go to New York recently for a wedding. But, technically, this was a wedding on a New York Street. In fact, the name of the street is New York Street — on a TV studio lot.

Let me just make it clear that I did not decorate this wedding. The seat covers did not come from me or anyone I work with, nor did the flowers, table linens or any of that stuff. I could probably get you a very similar look, but this particular wedding — I had nothing to do with. But these are my pictures.

Continue reading

Well-loved wedding vendors

A friend I met through my friend Belinda got married on July 4 in a cloud of hot pink flowers and decorations, and when I mentioned I’d love to do a blog post on her wedding, she sent me a huge list of testimonials for her wedding vendors. LOL. If only all brides were so enthusiastic!

Villa del Sol D’Oro in Sierra Madre, gussied up for a wedding

Susie and Chris had a beautiful, all-in-one location wedding in Sierra Madre. Most of the pictures I will include here will be from my friend Belinda, but I did lift one from Susie’s Facebook page, which features her (now) husband. After the jump, the following is all Susie, with a few formatting and copy editing changes from me.

Continue reading

Want a Southern California winery wedding?

As I mentioned before, my coworker and fellow blogger Bryan Frank has been looking into a budget-friendly wedding venue for his daughter. Last week, he came by to report that his family had chosen a place after carefully evaluating i.e. eliminating costly wedding venues. After briefly contemplating a trip to Napa Valley to check out some wineries, they checked out Wilson Creek Winery and Vineyard in Temecula and were sold.

Photos courtesy of the inimitable Bryan Frank

Bryan and his family visited the winery sometime last month — you know, amid the gorgeous weather we were having all May — and decided this venue would give them the most bang for their buck. And for Bryan to say that, you know that’s gotta be true.

Continue reading