Earthy Hues Complemented The Ranch Venue This Duo Chose for Their Palm Springs Nuptials

For their neutral-hued wedding at Smoke Tree Ranch in Palm Springs, California, it was paramount for Natalie and Cameron that the day feel unique to them. As such, they nixed traditions that didn't feel true to them and instead filled the day with personalized details that reflected their relationship. For example, Natalie and Cameron did away with dividing the wedding party by gender and instead had their closest pals in the wedding party. "We also knew our wedding would be a little untraditional and our bridal party would be mixed gender since so many of our friends were mutual," recalls the couple. 

Fashion was another area that the couple focused on while personalizing their day. "I didn't want white, which made shopping a little unusual," recalls Natalie. "The bridal industry has come a long way in terms of alternative options but it definitely still feels like a sea of white depending on the store. Vera Wang wasn’t even initially on my radar but when I was dress hunting in San Francisco (and starting to feel defeated) I called that day to see if they had any cancellations. Turns out they had one, and I was in the Union Square store by the end of the hour. It was the best possible place I could have picked out my gown. Vera has loads of styles that are all somewhere between unusual and classic, and her team really knows how to tailor to short women. I loved all the different blush tones that my dress had, it really felt like wearing a work of art." As for Cameron, his "goal of our suits was to find something classic yet modern that went with the aesthetic of our venue. We ended up finding that with shawl lapel tuxedos with non-black jackets. The colors of the groomsmen jackets were a perfect complement to the natural desert environment and the woods and materials in the venue buildings. I loved the white coat that I wore with my tuxedo since it was retro-modern, fitting the Palm Sprints aesthetic, and was an interesting juxtaposition with Natalie’s non-white dress." 

Another part of bringing their personalized wedding to life included a few special DIY projects. One project that was fun for her to make was their tile escort cards. To pay tribute to their home state and DIY passions, they took leftover scrap tiles in different glazes from a small business in their hometown of Portland, Oregon. "It was really cool to turn what was essentially scrap tile into something personal for our wedding."

Natalie and Cameron are huge Disney fans, a fact that played a key role in their wedding venue decision. They were led to Smoke Tree Ranch since it was Walt Disney's home away from Hollywood and included Disney-related details in the celebration. "We are big Disney fans, which is what led us to Smoke Tree Ranch the first time. We had a few nods to the ranch's Disney history in our wedding like the Frontierland names of the tables and holding our rehearsal dinner at Walt Disney Hall."

Looking back on their wedding, Natalie hopes current to-be-weds will remember that although "people will tell you 'it’s your wedding' but it really is so make it what you want! Evaluate traditions and decide what you want to keep and what doesn’t suit you as a couple." Cameron, meanwhile, encourages engaged couples to "try to keep the wedding planning in perspective and remember the real goal: getting married. We were fortunate to have amazing professionals like our planner and photographer working with us. It even managed to rain in the desert right before our first look and throughout the day, so we had to make some unanticipated decisions about moving our entire reception inside last minute after it was already set up outside. It’s important to not stress every minor detail and to trust the people you’re working with when you’re either not sure what to do or have never thought about it before."