A Colorful Waterfront Wedding at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort in California

Bursting with bright cheerful colors, Gabi Baetti and RJ Rico’s waterfront wedding in Santa Barbara, California, perfectly captured the day’s feel-good vibes.

With their venue boasting ocean views, swaying palm trees and a rose garden at their disposal, Gabi and RJ decided to keep the extras to a minimum and instead looked to bundles of bold blooms to bring their vision to life. Garden roses, dahlias, poppies, ranunculus and sweet peas in eye-catching shades of red, pink, orange, yellow and fuchsia popped against the crisp white reception table linens. “The flowers were the main event,” Gabi says. “Our florist did an incredible job taking our vision and turning it into reality. I loved the bright flowers and varying textures in my bouquet, the centerpieces, the flower girl’s crown and the boutonnieres.”

The vibrant color palette wasn’t the only element that spoke to the couple’s fun-loving personalities. Gabi and RJ incorporated plenty of personalized details throughout to put a playful twist on the fete. Instead of assigning tables by numbers, the pair used the names of eight places they had traveled to together (including Iceland, where RJ popped the question!) and matched each with corresponding photos. For the favors, guests were gifted special vintage hotel keychains designed by Gabi’s sister. The couple even added a custom twist to the colorful watercolor stationery. Gabi put her calligraphy skills to work and hand-lettered the envelopes and place cards herself!

“The most anticipated moment of our wedding day was our first dance!” Gabi says. “I have been a dancer my whole life, but my husband had never taken dance lessons before. We took some classes and learned a great swing dance to Ray Charles’s ‘Hallelujah, I Love Her So.’ He was so nervous, but we went out there and nailed it. I was so proud of him!”