Black & White Done Right: Sonya & Kevin’s Wedding

I was just getting ready to post about why color is so important in wedding design.  For one thing, it gives the finished wedding album a certain otherwise-unattainable pizazz.  (I would like to suggest that it logically also gives the real live wedding that same bit of glamour.)  But I got side-tracked thinking about Sonya and Kevin’s wedding.   Their wedding was black-and-white (and therefore sort of non-colored) but had both important benchmarks of good “color” design: the scheme was unified (black-and-white with apple green accents) and was carried out across all design elements (florals, fashion, linens, furniture, stationery, etc.).

Rebecca Feeney of Custom Event Group set her careful eye to the details of this wedding.  The floral design was one of my favorite of those details.  The arrangements were formal, but still very dreamy. Below are Sonya’s bouquet, centerpieces from the reception, floating floral balls from the reception, and shade tents from near the ceremony area.  Florals by Michael Holmes Design, Napa.

{click any photo to enlarge}

The bride wore a dress by Rivini.  It was perfectly suited for her—and was so perfectly, sweetly sexy. Below, note the bridesmaid’s dresses with a black-and-white floral pattern.  Their bouquets reversed the color scheme.

Love their happy recessional …

Sonya and Kevin really wanted a wedding that was fun and truly memorable for their guests, and so prioritized good food, dancing, and the making of an amazing party.

Elaine Bell Catering created a food station buffet, complete with mini mac ‘n cheese, sliders, sushi, salads, and other yummy treats.

The venue was a private estate in Calistoga, CA, and provided a beautiful backdrop for the party that followed dinner.  Their coaster-shaped save-the-dates by Milkfed Press displayed a favorite drink recipe!

Steal these ideas:

1. Use a cohesive color scheme! Carry it out across all the design elements.
2. Remember your guests!  Sonya says, “Stick to the basics and do them really, really well!  Think of your guests and what makes a wedding memorable to them.”  Another way of thinking about this is to not get hung up on your idea of what makes a wedding fancy or formal, but rather what makes a wedding a wonderful experience to share with your friends and family.  And if that means serving mac ‘n cheese, serve mac ‘n cheese.

photo credit: Gia Canali