I have known Matt for many years, and he introduced Kris to me at a party a few years ago. But I didn’t realize just how perfect these two were for each other until they asked me to work with them on their wedding. What sums up their wedding/relationship the best to me was what they told me about their vision when we first sat down to talk about their wedding. They wanted it to be “pretty and nice but also fun and weird.” After all was said and done, I’d say mission accomplished. Let’s break it down.
Pretty – Matt and Kris picked the Morgan Run Club and Resort near San Diego as their venue. The resort is gorgeous and the perfect place to hold a destination wedding. The resort includes a 69-room boutique style resort along with a charming ballroom, patio, and lawn that was ideal for this type of wedding and weather. The only concern Kris had was the walls of the ballroom were a little too plain for her taste. The wedding party and Kecia Kelly (the venue coordinator), along with her amazing staff, kicked some serious butt in decorating the room to match their taste. I added 24 LED up lights which were enough to really make the room pop with the perfect shade of purple that Kris, and Matt loved. (Blue spectrum, not pink!)
Nice – This is a word that can mean a lot of things to a lot of people, but I would say what was nice about this weekend was a combination of the vendors working together and the guests who traveled to celebrate with Kris and Matt. Their photographer, Brienne Michelle, (who also happened to be a friend of Kris and Matt), came out on Friday night to capture photos of their rehearsal dinner hosted by some other good friends who owned a house in nearby Poway. Another friend, Melanie, got herself ordained and officiated their wedding. (And rocked the ceremony, I must say!) Combine all of this with a bridal party who worked tirelessly up to and all the way through the end of the night to make every detail just perfect, you can’t help but have the nicest wedding anyone can imagine.
Fun – I knew I’d have fun covered but with such a unique atmosphere and gorgeous setting, my part of the fun in getting everyone up on the dance floor was only one small part of the overall vibe. The guests knew they were in for a good time from the moment they signed Kris and Matt’s guestbook filled with photos of the two of them and several dinosaurs. From the joyous ceremony, to the cocktail hour, which Kris and Matt got to enjoy thanks in part to Brienne’s ability to take ALL of the formal photos before the ceremony, to the ballroom dancing Kris and a few of her friends got to enjoy, to the adjoining patio which included a photo booth, a fire pit, and of course, a bar. The guests had their choice to dance, drink, eat cake, and sliders brought out later in the night, or just hang out and talk. I didn’t see a guest without a huge smile on their face.
Weird – Combining Matt’s lifelong love of all things Star Wars and Kris’ admiration for the entire pre-historic world sounds like an impossible feat. Not at this wedding! Just the table settings alone spoke volumes about how perfectly these two could combine their weirdness. Aside from the pretty flowers, there was a Star Wars Pop Funko figurine at each centerpiece holding the table number, and a mini dinosaur holding the place cards. Their rings were tied to a stuffed brontosaurus. Their cake topper was the two of them riding a T-Rex. Every bridal party member was given a custom made, battle ready light saber. (They even had friends designated as “dinosaur” and “light saber” wranglers.) Overall, this was one of the most creative weddings I have ever been a part of, and you can tell how hard Kris and Matt worked to make it that way. I think if Kris had one more sleepless night making sure every detail was just right, she wouldn’t have made it through the wedding! But she did, and their love of the weird was proudly on display for all of their friends and families to enjoy. Bravo!
Dave’s recommended vendors for this wedding are:
- Morgan Run Club and Resort – An ideal spot for a nearby destination wedding. Make sure you ask for Kecia Kelly! – www.clubcorp.com/Clubs/Morgan-Run-Club-Resort
- Brienne Michelle Photography – www.briennemichelle.com