Cool New Year's Eve Wedding (With Lots of Lights and Sequins)

Gorgeous New Year’s Eve Wedding by Logan Cole Photography and Seven Stems 4

Photo by Logan Cole Photography via Bridal Musings

You’re going to get so many ideas from today’s real wedding. Whether it’s from the style, the decor, the DIYs or even, the wedding date itself.

Angela & Wesley tied the knot with a twinkling New Year’s Eve wedding at the beach – and it was all kinds of gorgeous.

Meeting for a romantic sunset photo session on the sand with Logan Cole Photography, the couple then headed back to the Ocean Institute for their intimate and meaningful candlelit ceremony (I love it when couples exchange vows after dark!).

They joined their guests inside for a huge party to ring in the new year, with giant DIY marquee lights, beautifully decorated tables, an epic oceanic backdrop, and of course all the usual NYE hats and horns. All of which was executed with the help of Marisa Lara of Seven Stems Floral Design & Event Planning.

From the killer style (ALL the sequins!), to the mesmerising decor, to the guaranteed party atmosphere, I think this one is going to convince a lot of couples to book January 31st for their big day…

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Our Love Story

We met the old fashioned way. At a bar.

His friend was hitting on my maid of honor when we were out at an old dive bar for drinks and live band karaoke. I thought he was pretty cute and we hit it off and ended up falling in love over the summer.

We spent a lot of our early relationship at the beach, so it was only natural that he proposed on a regular old Sunday in the middle of our beach ride.

Of course, the same maid of honour was there to capture the moment. Naturally, we found our way back to the water for our big day.

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Gorgeous New Year’s Eve Wedding by Logan Cole Photography and Seven Stems 28

Photo by Logan Cole Photography via Bridal Musings

Our Wedding

We had known for years that when we finally got married it had to be on New Year’s Eve. Is there any thing more romantic than becoming husband and wife in the last moments of the year and ushering in the next as newly weds?

Plus there’s the fact that it’s virtually impossible to forget our anniversary!

All kidding aside we wanted our guests to have an excuse to get all gussied up enjoy an amazing night by the sparkling ocean. The weather was stunning and we had one of the most beautiful sunsets to start off the festivities.

My brother married us and was able to make are ceremony so personal, so fun, so us!

I’m a creative at heart so I took the time leading up to the wedding to dig deep into DIYs. With the help of our family we built giant marquee letters that were a true labor of love and became the centerpiece of our reception.

I handmade most of the details from the signage, to the escort cards and because food is my expression of love…the CAKE.

From yoga with my girls in the morning, to our vows we wrote together in a hot dog shop in Manhattan, the day was perfection.

The only disappointing part is that we can’t play the night on repeat every New Year’s Eve!

Gorgeous New Year’s Eve Wedding by Logan Cole Photography and Seven Stems 25

Photo by Logan Cole Photography via Bridal Musings

Gorgeous New Year’s Eve Wedding by Logan Cole Photography and Seven Stems 31

The Photography

We chose Logan Cole Photography because of his special ability to capture people. Sure, the place, the dress, the party were all very important to us, but at the end of the day, friends and family mater most to us.

Logan Cole was just the person to capture our party. When we look at the photos again we get to experience the joy, emotion and love all over again.

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Advice for Other Couples

Pinterest and a wedding planner. Pinterest is a wonderful tool. And Seven Stems is a fantastic wedding planner.

It can really help you hone in on what you like and what you are imagining and will make it much easier for you to communicate that through the event. BUT, knowing who you and your partner are and what you want from your big day is crucial.

Your planner will really help you see through the vision to the whole picture. Marisa was always there to bounce ideas, inspirations and help make it a reality.

There are so many great ideas floating out there, stick with the ones that feel the most you. That way in twenty years, you won’t look back at a trend mash up, but a day that was truly you.

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Gorgeous New Year’s Eve Wedding by Logan Cole Photography and Seven Stems 45

The Ceremony

Our ceremony was truly special. It was a sparkling, personal event next to the water.

The Ocean Institute courtyard over looking the Dana Point Harbor was illuminated with twinkling lanterns, hundreds of candles, a canvas of market lights and XOXO marquee letters we hand built together with the help of our family.

My brother officiated a fun, heartfelt ceremony that was so uniquely us. All of our guests joined us in a deep yoga breath and full belly laughs as my brother recounted stories of our relationship and his time with us as individuals and as a couple.

We exchanged vows we wrote together in a hot dog shop in New York and it all felt exactly how it should.

Down to the moment he dipped me during our first kiss like he does when we are cooking at home. The whole night was extraordinary, but we will never forget holding hands, looking into each others eyes and saying, I DO.

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The Vendors

While we did a lot ourselves our night would not have been the same without our amazing team of vendors.

24 Carrots Catering was a joy to work with from the first tasting to the last bites of Kobe sliders we had for late night snacks.

Spring Austin from Skyline Entertainment kept the dance floor hopping well into the new year.

But really Marisa of Seven Stems Floral and Design helped us execute our vision perfectly. Not only did she help me balance all of my crazy ideas for the day, she found the perfect accents like mirrored barstools from Revelry Event Designers and stunning string lighting from Social Lights.

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The Honeymoon

We are California babies and there is no better place in our minds than our own back yards.

Wes and I headed up the California coast with stops in Santa Barbara, Solvang, Los Olivos, Santa Ynez and San Louis Obispo.

We wine tasted our way through the central coast and enjoyed amazing rainy days in our hotel room (we honeymooned the first week of January).

I highly recommend the Landsby Hotel in Solvang and The Granada Hotel in San Louis Obispo. Both are honeymooner’s dreams. Stunning rooms. Great restaurants on site. Wine EVERYWHERE.

The perfect reasons to spend the night IN.