Our Wedding

On our sixth anniversary, perched upon a cliff in Malibu, we finally tied the knot in front of 150 of our closest family and friends. A slight breeze made the salty air feel cool but a clear sky allowed the sun to warm the surface of your skin. We laughed and cried, ate and drank, held our loved ones close, watched the sun set on the glistening sea, and danced under the stars. A dream day celebrating the love we feel so lucky to share.

Upon our engagement, we felt dead set on eloping in Europe with 15-20 friends and family members. We found a venue, sat down to make a “non-negotiable” list of people we wanted with us on the big day, and ended up with around 180 names… big wedding it was! I don’t really know how we landed on it but after the Italy thing didn’t work out, we never really considered anywhere aside from California. In a perfect world, we’d have an intimate but luxurious backyard wedding boasting luscious natural elements and an amazing view. Only problem? We knew no one with a home meeting all of these criteria.

In October of 2021 we took trip down the coast of California in search of the perfect place. Over the course of a week, we visited about 3-4 venues a day, but still had no luck. Feeling defeated, we packed our bags and hopped on the PCH to head to the airport. As Ryan drove, I stared out the window at the homes that lined the highway and dreamed about the views that were hidden behind the gates and dense greenery. I thought to myself, “if only we could get married here.” Figuring that it was worth a shot, I spent a bit of time googling if that would be possible. About 20 minutes later I came across a very dated website which advertised a stunning Malibu home that was available for filming. I quickly dialed the number listed on the webpage to see it was all about. The owner, who was not home, told us that his mother was there tending to all the plants and was willing to show us around if we could stop by. Coincidentally, we were only a few minutes away.

The moment we stepped foot on the property, we knew it was the spot. We booked it immediately and I got on with the planning.

Let’s just say planning was a doozy… I am very particular and felt so strongly about every little detail that I got a little (okay, maybe a lot) more involved than I should have (I’m talking to scale diagrams of our venue with exactly where I wanted everything placed, days long email exchanges with my florist picking out all of our vessels, hours long meetings with our rental vendor debating over which silverware to use, coordinating handprinted corn hole boards that matched our invitation envelope liners, the list goes on). I give my wedding planner, Heather, and all of our vendors a lot of credit for putting up with me! Especially in the final few months before the day! I was a maniac!

I spent yearsss planning this day and seeing it come to life was more than I could have ever imagined. What’s funny about wedding planning is that you pour your heart and soul into the tiniest of details (at least I did) but, as a bride, there are so many things you don’t get the time to experience on the day of. I’m forever grateful for the team of photographers and videographers we had with us to ensure that I could have a little glimpse at the magic I helped to create.

At the end of the day, all that really mattered to us was that we were finally married. We had waited so long for this moment and thinking about the fact that it’s all said and done makes me a little teary. I’d do it all over again for this perfect day surrounded loved ones who were so eager to celebrate our love!

For those who may be planning their own wedding, here is a list of our phenomenal vendors:

Planning | Table 6 Productions

Venue | Private Estate in Malibu

Photography | Arika Jean & Casey Lui

Videography | Kylie V.

Florals | Wisteria Lane

Rentals & Lighting | Town & Country Event Rentals & Theoni

Linens | BBJ La Tavola

Catering | Made by Meg

Cake | Crush

Signage & Custom Goods | P&P Designs

HMU | Suzie Moldavon & Sarah Combs