Trial Wedding by wildfire

This is a small tidbit, that really has nothing to do with decorating weddings. It was a great read I found on LA Observed this afternoon -- freelance writer Adam Baer blogged how his wedding plans literally went up in smoke because of the California Wildfires. That was some bad luck, lemme tell ya -- not only did the city where he was to be married go up in flames, he sliced his wedding figure in three places and had to go to the hospital.

It's just an interesting story in how one couple had to abandon their probably long-standing plans and get flexible thanks to something they couldn't control. It makes me wonder how flexible most brides are when it comes to their wedding day -- many brides dream and dream about their wedding, spending thousands one that one day.

It sounds like Adam Baer's bride Lina rolled with the punches though:

Then it was just a matter of calling the officiant, Judge Fried, and our photog Michael, and asking them to stay tuned for some more info. I decided we would have to leave Malibu despite Lina's despair about the death of our beach wedding plans. Maybe we could have a wedding at a scenic outpost on Mulholland Drive, I posited aloud. Maybe we can use a beach in Santa Monica. Quickly, Judge Fried got back to us and offered some amazing news: His private Hollywood Hills tennis club --a historic spot serving recently as the site of ironic-prepster celeb parties--would let him let us use their skyline veranda with the best views in the city.

It was a good thing they left Malibu that day -- nothing puts a damper on a wedding like guests in face masks and the bride and groom hacking on ashes as they try to say their vows.

And it sounds like everything turned out as it should anyway. They got married, it was pretty, and everyone has a great story. Talk about a happy ending.

I would imagine, with the growing frequency of these wildfires, that more and more weddings are being disrupted the same way. Not only Adam Baer, but also myself (decorating for my buddy Moonie, not my own wedding), plus at least one other couple, judging from this video I cut from work. Anyone else know how many others have been affected?

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Wedding at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute in Simi Valley

I cannot for the life of me remember all the places I've decorated for weddings, which spans all the way from Santa Barbara County to San Diego County -- no kidding. So when my buddies Josh and Nicole said their wedding was going to be at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute, my interest was piqued -- a place I've never been for a wedding? Incidentally, those geekier than myself might recognize the spot -- its been the site of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, one Star Trek: Next Generation episode and as the power chamber for the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, according to Wikipedia. Shamefully, I think I remember this building from the Power Rangers.

But the place is AMAZ-ZA-ZING. (Sorry, Benchwarmers reference there.) Driving up to the place was an adventure in itself -- the road up to the institute is a barely two-lane meandering dirt road along the sides of a hill. At night, on the way down, there were no lights. It was much like our drive up Mt. Haleakala in Maui last year. Except this one isn't 10,000 feet up and a dormant volcano. The day was perfect for a wedding. The sky, which had just been cloudy a day before, was perfectly clear, and the place had an amazing view of Simi Valley's hills. In this spot, it was hard to believe we were in metropolitan Los Angeles.

Inside, the layout was actually quite cozy -- there weren't too many tables that you felt lost, and everything was very laid back. Each of the tables was named after a tree and the colors brown and purple surprisingly went well together. (It so happens I was wearing a plum dress while my husband wore a brown shirt and tie -- go figure!)

Tall centerpieces are always nice -- they help keep the flowers above the heads of the seated guests, so as not to impede on conversations. I liked these arrangements -- the colors, the flower choices and the stands themselves. I knew Nicole would not disappoint me in this department. Heheh. Nicole's flowers were done by Ginny G Floral Design in North Hollywood.

The cake table, carrying precious cargo. That was some yummy cake, yo. Not too elaborate, although, I think that's a petal stuck to the side, there.

The requisite sweetheart table. ^_^ I don't think my mom or myself can take credit for the sweetheart table concept, but it sure has caught on.

For more pictures on this wedding, see my Flickr stream.

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