Pizza and Champagne Gave This Wedding at Cordiano Winery in Escondido, California, Tuscan Flair

For their wedding, Shae and Ryan took their guests on a trip to Italy without even leaving California. The couple tied the knot at Cordiano Winery in Escondido, California, and celebrated with a Tuscan-inspired microwedding complete with pizza, Champagne and olive oil favors for guests. "Our vision for an intimate wedding included a romantic, sunset ceremony surrounded by our nearest and dearest. We wanted to have a private, dinner reception to follow and as many traditional wedding elements incorporated as possible. The outdoor view was an added bonus. For a color palette, we chose romantic mauve, golden terracotta, and olive accented with classic eggshell. Our theme was classic, timeless, yet a hint daring," says Shae of the inspiration for their romantic wedding overlooking the sweeping hillsides of California. 

Although the event took place on the west coast, many of the details were inspired by Italy, in part as an homage to the vineyard venue's owners. "I wanted to make sure that we represented the winery authentically since the owners are Italian, so I thought using seasonal hops and heuchera (coral bells) would be a beautiful way to tie in the beginning of the harvest season (the winery was actually harvesting grapes that day), with the eventual fall colors of the heuchera. European cities are always lined with window boxes full of flowers, and I thought that would be another way to add a European touch to the ceremony," shares Shae of the microwedding's floral design.  In addition to weaving Italian nods into the celebration, Shae and Ryan also filled their wedding with plenty of personalization. Notably, wax seals with cat motifs accented the olive oil favor bottles and a nod to their feline pets. Looking back on their intimate microwedding, the couple shares that three of the highlights for them included the evening's sunset, the beautiful floral arrangements and "the fact that we all had the ability to forget we were in a global pandemic, just for a few hours."

Despite the pandemic-imposed roadblocks the couple encountered while wedding planning, they hope that current to-be-weds in the throes of wedding planning will remember that "the current climate of our world right now may make things seem hopeless, but remember to hold on to the important things you have, such as your significant other and loved ones. It can be devastating to have to reschedule a wedding or start from scratch, but what I have learned is that love transcends all obstacles. Everything will fall into place one way or another," says Shae.