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California Rustic Spring Wedding

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Carly and Kevin exchanged their vows in stunning Huntington Beach, CA for under $9K! We especially adore all of their incredible DIY details and their gorgeous flowers. Make sure to check out that dessert table!  You will love this California Rustic Spring Wedding.
California Rustic Spring Wedding

Carly + Kevin

Huntington Beach, California
- 04/29/2018
Total wedding budget $9,000

Budget Breakdown

Below is an estimated wedding budget breakdown provided by the couple.

  • Hair & Makeup
    4%
    $340
  • Cake/Dessert
    0%
    $43.26
  • Alcohol/Bar
    1%
    $123.12
  • Catering
    10%
    $916.92
  • Favors
    1%
    $59.98
  • Flowers
    4%
    $384.98
  • Music/Entertainment
    %
    $0
  • Honeymoon
    29%
    $2570
  • Stationery
    2%
    $168.89
  • Rings
    6%
    $540.47
  • Officiant
    2%
    $160
  • Bartender/Servers
    7%
    $600
  • Decor
    1%
    $131.99
  • Gifts
    1%
    $103.58
  • Photography
    23%
    $2050
  • Videography
    5%
    $450
  • Coordinator
    9%
    $800
  • Rentals
    8%
    $723.58
  • Venue
    19%
    $1691
  • Total wedding budget
    $9000
CA Rustic Spring Wedding, ring shot
wedding invitation and details
wedding details
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding, wedding signs
DIY wedding details
DIY wedding details
wedding ceremony
wedding altar
diy wedding signs
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
bride and groom
bride and groom
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
dessert table
wedding dessert
wedding cake
diy wedding details
CA Rustic Spring Wedding
CA Rustic Spring Wedding

How did you meet?

We met in high school in 2001 but lost touch after graduation in 2005. We re-connected on Instagram over a photo he had posted. I commented on his photo and from there we just kept talking. Eventually, we met up and began spending every day together for a few months. We went on our first date at Ruby’s Diner and it’s history from there.

What is your proposal story?

We were planning to get married and picked out my ring together. Kevin picked up the ring alone. Later as we were walking into a grocery store he turned to me and said he couldn’t wait and was too excited, then asked me if I wanted to marry him. It was very endearing to have a man so excited to ask that he couldn’t follow through with his original plan of asking me at one of his bands’ shows at House of Blues Anaheim.

Tell us about your wedding vision.

We were both born and raised in Huntington Beach, CA. We had our first date at the Ruby’s on the end of the Pier in Huntington Beach as well. So we knew getting married in HB was the right fit. We checked out Mile Square Park and Seacliff Country Club which were beautiful but way out of our budget. We both knew that the Newland House was a beautiful property and reasonably priced so we booked that.

Originally, I wanted wisteria from Davids Bridal with light gray’s and yellows but once I went with the bridesmaids to their fitting, we found we loved the color oasis more for the spring wedding. So we changed the main color halfway through planning. We picked short dresses as it was an outdoor wedding and those were least expensive. We wanted a very simple yet rustic themed wedding.

Tell us about your attire choices.

We are such a simple couple that we wanted a relaxed, fun, spring, rustic wedding, so we knew the attire needed to match that vibe. We went with knee-length chiffon dresses with the upper bodice in lace for the bridesmaids and full lace for the maid of honor. The groomsmen with coats. They wore white button-ups, bow ties, and vests with light gray slacks. The wedding party all wore classic black and white Converse. We wore all white Converse for our wedding shoes. This allowed everyone to be comfortable and minimize heels sinking in the grass.

What was the most important to you two? Was there anything you chose to splurge on or skip?

Honestly, photography was the most important to us. We wanted to be sure we were able to capture all the important moments of our wedding day. We weren’t sure we could afford a honeymoon but that was another important part of planning. We splurged a lot on photography, videography, and honeymoon. We skipped on having a full event planner.

What were your favorite parts of the day?

Our favorite parts were the ceremony. Saying “I do” was the best moment of our lives. We really liked having our friends and family blow bubbles around us. We played the shoe game and it was a really fun game to play. Also, the toasts from our friends and families. All these things were so touching and really made this day incredible.

Tell us about your wedding flowers.

We were lucky enough to have Kevin’s mother be our florist. We weren’t interested in having fresh flowers so we looked for silk flowers. As neither of us had a flower preference, we decided on wildflowers. That way we could have all the flowers! Tapa Floral Creations was our floral designer and creator. His mother designed the base models for our centerpieces then the groomsmen and bridesmaids along with our parents had a DIY day. So we each created the centerpieces, boutonnieres, bride bouquet, bridesmaids bouquets, mason jars, arbor, and all the floral in between.

Tell us about your wedding cake.

We won’t lie; we wanted a rice krispie wedding cake, but found that no one really did that. So we wanted less frosting and found naked cakes. They fit the rustic yet simple look we were going for. We knew we didn’t want to feed everyone with the wedding cake and wanted something small. So we searched wedding wire for recommended vendors. We reached out to Sweet Traders and they gave us a killer deal for exactly what we wanted. They didn’t do delivery and were closed on Sundays but the cost was what we wanted. We tried 10 different flavors of cake and fillings until we found our perfect match. Coconut cake and buttercream frosting. It was a 6″ round single tier cake.

What did you do for favors?

We are avid Amazon shoppers and we wanted a vintage/rustic looking gift. So, after googling gift ideas we came across skeleton key bottle openers. We felt they were small and useful. They fit our rustic theme very well. They came with the twine, tags, and keys.

Please describe any homemade, DIY, or personal items.

We made the centerpieces with silk flowers so they could be prepped in advance by gluing green Styrofoam to a wooden slab and artificial moss to the green Styrofoam. From there, we arranged the silk flowers around and stuck them in the Styrofoam until each was full. We purchased the blue lanterns from Amazon and placed them in the center of the arrangement with LED tealights inside.

We also purchased burlap, chiffon fabric in blue and purple from Joann Fabric Store, and used a hot glue gun to adhere the fabric to the mason jars. We purchased silk vine ivy from Amazon as well and added additional silk flowers to the vine to bulk up the appearance. We weaved the burlap and two different colors of chiffon with the vine and hung it from the arbor which was also purchased on Amazon. Lastly, we hung the mason jars on the ends of the chairs and arbor.

The groomsmen made their own boutonnieres. They clipped silk flowers and wrapped them with twine and hot glued each end together. Then hot glued the safety pins to the boutonnieres. The bridesmaid bouquets were purchased premade but we added additional silk flowers to fill them out and brighten them up.

We searched Pinterest and came across a pallet wedding program. So Kevin’s father disassembled a pallet, sanded down each piece of wood, primed the wood, applied several coats of white paint, and hand wrote each letter onto the pallet. Kevin’s mother added a simple silk flower design to the pallet as well.  Also, we made our own photo booth and props table, the wooden stands for the wedding cake, and purchased our cake toppers and chalkboards from Amazon.

Do you have any advice for couples planning their wedding now?

Be honest and decide what part of their wedding is most important to them. Don’t let others make your choices. Enjoy the cake tastings. Purchase a lot of the materials yourself as they will get used. Write your own vows. Splurge on the important stuff and try not to control everything. No matter how difficult, it will all come together beautifully.