Beautiful + Bright Sonoma Wedding: Mia + Kendrick

Mia and Kendrick are an adorable wine country couple who planned their wedding at the bride's parents' spectacular Sonoma home. The estate's stunning architecture and manicured grounds were the perfect canvas for an elegant affair. But the bride's playful personality was ever-present throughout the event, creating the seamless marriage of formal and fun. 

Guests witnessed the couples vows amid a classic palette of pale pink, white and brown. But when they moved to cocktails, the decor was injected with bright bold pink for a punch of colorful fun. Charming escort buttons hung from young maple trees replaced formal seating cards. 

Mia's Italian heritage and love of good food and wine meant the wedding dinner had to be a show-stopper. So the couple enlisted celebrity chef Tyler Florence to create their dream meal. A four-course affair featuring Italian favorites like burrata, carpaccio and lamb (more menu details to come, check back soon!). 

The dancing under the stars was one of the most memorable parts of the night. Mia and Kendrick took their first dance surrounded by sparklers, which continued to burn while Mia danced with her dad. Chef Tyler even came out of the kitchen for a spin around the floor with the bride. 

The crowd then moved inside the home's magnificent foyer for wedding cake by the Perfect Endings. More dancing to a DJ followed, then a late night party in the wine cellar kept things going into the wee hours.

My favorite decor detail from the day were the lovely individual wreaths on the ceremony chairs, so charming and perfect for the setting. But my favorite moment has to be the bride and groom's first dance surrounded by sparklers. Instead of the usual sparkler send-off, the whole wedding encircled them with light in such a romantic, memorable way. 

Photography by: Meg Smith

All-Star Bar Mitzvah

Please forgive my hiatus from the Laurie Arons Blog this summer. I had one very full event season and had to put my brides before the blog for a few months. But fortunately this means I'll have many exciting events to share with you soon. 

With the beloved San Francisco Giants in the NLCS right now, I couldn't miss a chance to post the amazing bar mitzvah I had the pleasure of planning earlier this year. The guest of honor Ashton is a huge Giants fan, so his parents celebrated his right of passage with a blow-out bar mitzvah at AT&T Park in San Francisco.

The Giants-inspired design featured black and orange, and an "AF" logo (his initials) to replicate the Giants' SF logo. We had a great time carrying this throughout every imaginable inch of the event - from the "orange" carpet grand entrance, to the custom hotdog wrappers, to the over-the-top baseball-themed dessert buffet (complete with a spot-on replica World Series Trophy cake).

The night kicked off with cocktails in the dugouts, serving specialty drinks like the Splash Hit, the Ground Rule Double and the No-Hitter. A special surprise awaited the kids in the Giants locker room - their names on lockers stocked with great personalized gear. The Jumbotron then played an ESPN-style profile montage of Ashton, produced by Hart Pictures. It was one of the most spectacularly produced videos I've ever seen.

For dinner, the kids enjoyed ballpark fare straight out of the working Giants concession stands, while the adults were treated to an elegant sit-down dinner on the Club Level of the park. The DJ turned up the music after dinner to get everyone on the dance floor, and the kids enjoyed visiting the graffiti artists, airbrush tattoos, caricaturists and photobooth set up around the stadium.

Photography by Angie Silvy. 

As Seen In: Style Me Pretty

Thanks so much to Abby and the team at Style Me Pretty for the wonderful feature on Jenny & Jordan's September wedding at Durham Ranch. There is so much I love about this wedding, from the beautiful couple to the breezy yet elegant design to the mouth-watering fried chicken served up by Tyler Florence for the wedding dinner.

Meg Smith and her associates captured this special wedding perfectly; I'm so glad Style Me Pretty shared so many wonderful images from the day.

Olive Branches + Modern Touches

My clients looked all over the globe for their wedding location before ultimately realizing there was no place more perfect for them than Napa Valley. They chose my newest exclusive property Z Modern Estate in St. Helena for its sweeping views and clean modern lines.

The bride loved a look that was simple and elegant, so we selected Napa's second most popular plant, the olive tree, to carry as a theme throughout the wedding. Upon a fresh palette of white, Kathleen Deery Design incorporated delicate olive branches and green succulents into the arrangements. I brainstormed with Kathleen and Illusions Lighting to devise a unique lighting fixture for their dinner under the stars. Illusions erected long white poles and draped beautiful string lights wrapped in garlands of olive branches. As the sun went down, the glow from the dinner area was simply magical.

Guests danced the night away to the Durell Coleman Band before moving into a late night after party tent where DJ Dojah spun the groom's favorite music. 

Photography by Meg Smith. Catering by Paula LeDuc Fine Catering. Cake by Perfect Endings. Tabletop and tenting by Classic Party Rentals.