We just went out to Santa Barbara again the other day, strolled State Street, sucked in the vibe. It always feels like a mini vacation to me... Such a sweet place. Living just 20 min away, my husband and I decided we needed to do that a lot more.
It really isn't surprising that people want to get married here. So many great spots, be it the court house downtown or some winery off the beaten track, its bound to be special.

The first rain this Season for us here in Southern California... and what does the bride to be married this week do? She shivers because she most likely planned a beautiful lawn or beach wedding somewhere - no shelter, no ballroom, no roof, just clear sky, or cloudy sky.
Do not panic but call your rental company right away and reserve the cover (tents, gazebos, etc.) that is needed to keep the guests dry. Do it right away as there will be a few parties this weekend looking for some portable shelter...
According to the rental companies, they can tent almost anything, any size in any shape - the rental companies to the rescue!!

Location of the week - Hartley Botanica

When we went there to look at the place we were stunned! It is so beautiful and although right of the main road it feels like you enter a fairy tale land, as soon as you drive down the tree lined driveway.
We talked to the grounds keeper who told us that the owner of this plant nursery originally designed this wedding venue for their own daughter wedding.
Now they have 2 locations on sight, one tucked away little area for a smaller group and one grand lawn area for big groups.
Why did we not go with this place? They have a 100 people minimum for Saturday night weddings, however our wedding was a lot less then a 100 people ... we could have paid for 100 or we could have had it on a sunday afternoon, but both those things were out of question for us.
But, if you do have a wedding planned for 100 or more guest, this place is affordable and beautiful and the wedding pictures are bound to turn out magical.

Coming up...

Location of the week... we will be looking at Hartley Botancica - a wimsical place that we looked at ourselves when we were searching for our perfect location.

Inspiration we love

The Style Me Pretty Blog has a beautiful feature where brides post their inspiration on a board. I love to cruise through those. This one specifically really touched me:




















That field of lavender in the sunset, it is so beautiful!! Jose Villa Photography shot this wedding.
Just beautiful!

Find an officiant

Next on my list for this month: find an officiant

This was one of very last things I did when I planned my big day last year. I was so late, I was getting nervous to the point where I was wondering what we could do if we don't find anybody. Make a friend or family member do it? Who do we know that is a good speaker?

Anyways, we found our man I think 3 weeks before the wedding and he couldn't have been more perfect - we got so lucky!! But Santa Barbara offers SO many officiants, the Santa Barbara bride is spoiled for choice.
How to pick one? We just liked our guy... He was calm, collected, friendly and sweet and we imagined him to be capable of doing a heartfelt ceremony... we wanted it short and sweet and that's what we got. But it felt like to me that the officiants out there that have done it for a while and have gathered good references in the forums are versatile and can almost adjust to any ceremony still one could imagine...
Once you know what you'd like your ceremony to be like go out and meet them, as many as you can and explain what you have in mind. Their answers will tell you if they are right for you.

Fire Season in Southern California

It is still hot and sunny out here in Southern California - perfect for year round weddings. If it wasn't for this dang fire season! It has started, I smelled it last night, being woken up by smells of smoldering wood. I am crossing my fingers for all you couples out here that the fires won't bother you on your special day!