This Wedding at Tehama Golf Club in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California, Had a Chic, Modern Color Palette

To complement their venue, Tehama Golf Club in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California, Nicole and Danny went with a wedding aesthetic that was "romantic yet moody, organic and a little wild," paired with a color palette of gray, black and white with "pops of blush to soften the look, and shiny disco balls incorporated throughout to make things a little more fun," explains Nicole of the celebration's design. Beyond creating a beautiful day, it was paramount that Nicole and Danny's day feel unique to them and reflect their relationship and their heritage. "We are a pretty laid-back couple and wanted the wedding to reflect that, from the ceremony (short and sweet) to music selection (eclectic mix of 70s rock, reggae, tropical house and Justin Bieber) to the decor. We did incorporate a traditional Chinese tea ceremony earlier in the day, which is a common wedding tradition in the Chinese culture where the bride and groom pay their respects towards their parents, in-laws and elders by serving them tea. Typically the tea ceremony is a larger production with several family members and friends of the family that participate, but due to COVID restrictions and a smaller guest count, only our immediate families were invited. Though my husband Danny is Caucasian and Armenian, his family also participated in the tea ceremony, signifying a blending and unification of our families before the western ceremony took place," says Nicole. 

When it came to decor, the couple was intentional about showcasing "the beautiful natural scenery of our venue, Tehama Golf Club, which is located on a nature preserve in Carmel. Our ceremony took place on an outdoor terrace with views of mountain vistas and the Pacific Ocean in the background. We kept the ceremony decor minimal: natural cross-back vineyard chairs and clusters of white pillar candles lining the aisle. We didn’t want to block the ocean view with a floral arch, so we went with simple, modern white pedestals (built by my handy brother-in-law) topped with floral arrangements. We wanted petal cones for guests to throw petals down the aisle in the recessional, but I didn’t like any of the cones I saw online. Instead, we found DIY matte black french fry boxes (anyone who knows me knows french fries are my favorite food) on Etsy and created custom stickers (also from Etsy) that said 'I only have fries for you' to put on the boxes. We filled these with white petals and placed one on each seat for guests," recalls Nicole of the personalized touch. "The reception took place in the outdoor courtyard. There was a Spanish-style fountain in the center of the courtyard and we set the tables around the fountain. Due to COVID restrictions, we had to seat families together which made for an interesting mix of long tables and smaller tables; it actually made the reception feel like an intimate dinner party instead of a traditional banquet. In keeping with the moody romantic theme, we chose gray table linens with stone white ceramic plates and black silverware. To add some femininity, we used blush napkins and cut crystal glassware. Dinner tables were decorated with floral arrangements, a mix of white pillar candles and floating candles, and shiny disco balls of various sizes tucked into the florals and candles throughout. We also purchased laser-cut wooden nameplates on Etsy for each guest instead of the usual paper name cards (our guests loved these and took them home as souvenirs). Lastly, lighting is everything so we had tented fairy lights installed above and around the courtyard to give guests the feeling that they were dining within a starry canopy. Even though the reception was outdoors, being surrounded by the lights made you feel as if you were indoors!" 

Although Nicole and Danny's wedding at Tehama Golf Club in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California, ended up being beautiful, the planning process was not without a few roadblocks caused by the pandemic. "When COVID began, we paused wedding planning since we weren’t sure if we would even be able to have a wedding this year. When we finally decided to do a micro wedding, we only had two months to plan everything. I had only purchased my wedding dress but nothing else (veil, shoes, jewelry), so it was a last-minute scramble to get everything done and I didn’t have the time or energy to try it all on. I hadn’t even tried on my wedding dress since I bought it - it seemed too depressing to try it on without knowing if and when I would actually get to wear it. The first time I tried on my outfit was on my actual wedding day, so that was definitely the most anticipated moment, and luckily everything fit!"