an indian summer: Shraddha + Hitesh

With all this cold weather, I thought we could use a burst of sunshine from one of our summer weddings that took place at The Darlington House. As promised, here are details from our very first Indian wedding and the sheer beauty of Shraddha and Hitesh, all captured by none other than Hugh Forte.

I definitely think that one of my favorite parts of the traditional Indian wedding is all of the color! All of the women look absolutely stunning in their brightly colored saris.

Before the ceremony, the guests gathered in the street and began dancing and singing for the traditional processional. I love how these pictures have so much energy and movement! Kudos to Hugh for capturing the fun.

Shraddha's flowers were done by Twigg Botanicals. Dahlias, roses, pin cushions and orchids were a fun way to bring in the pinks and oranges that brought this wedding to life! This mandap was also custom made by Twigg. Orchids were flown in from Thailand to drape the sides of the mandap. We learned so much about the traditions and rituals of their culture - the mandap being one of them - while putting this wedding together.

We were terrified about weather all week; it had been as gloomy and rainy as it can get in June in San Diego. But on this day, it turned out to be completely sunny skies and hot, hot, hot! During the two hour long ceremony guests were treated to ice cream and homemade goodie bags of chocolate and nuts done by the bride. Although most of the ceremony wasn't in English, our entire team had so much fun watching the beautiful customs of thier culture. It was evident that their rituals were rich with history and meaning.

Atop each place setting sat a beautiful flower along with another homemade treat from the bride.

All of the paper elements, including this colorful escort cards, were done by Courtney Scowby of Brightly Designed. I loved how bright and colorful they turned out and how the pattern on them mimicked beautiful henna designs.

Elephants are thought to bring good luck...so we decided to add these colorful elephants to the cake, offering a playful element.

After the ceremony, Shraddha changed into another stunning sari. I'm not sure which one I like the most. I am loving this rich custom made purple sari. I'm envious of any bride who gets to do a wardrobe change on her big day. :)

The white elephant vases added so much personality to the tables. We then added colorful tassels to them, and came up with the table number drape which were sewn for us by the always lovely Pin Cushion Princess. Pomander balls made up the other centerpieces which were coupled with canvas table numbers that Courtney created herself. For another touch of color we wrapped candle votives in pink ribbon to contrast the orange linens.

The cake was done by Sweet Cheeks Bakery. It was completely vegan! It was honestly one of the most delicious cakes I've ever tasted...it was so rich and chocolatey! We custom made her cake box and Twig added the flowers to give it a finishing touch.

Thanks to everyone who helped put this wedding together. It was such a lovely learning experience and I really do love the way everything turned out. Shraddha and Hitesh you were such a joy to work with, we wish you nothing but love and happiness.