rad weddings

Stylish Posh Wedding in Long Beach

Monique and Andrew Caldarella’s Stylish Posh Wedding at Recreation Park Golf Course 18 in Long Beach, California

July 23, 2016


Monique and Andrew were definitely the 2016 Kim and Kanye serving us all Hollywood royalty vibes complete with glamorous outfits, chic decor, and a sizzling wedding party. Monique found us in hopes to challenge how ‘Glam’ we could go and with every idea she had we took it on and served up a dazzling wedding in the end.

vogue style wedding party photo

The couple decided to have a first look before the ceremony and in preparation Monique got ready in the gorgeous bridal suite at Recreation Park Golf Course 18 in Long Beach. Her getting ready photos quickly turned into a whole glam photoshoot fit for Vogue Magazine!

Andrew cleaned up well himself, posing while getting ready as if he was shooting for GQ. Once the guys were dressed and ready to go they headed to the venue.

You know what the say about idle hands so in true guy fashion they quickly found the bar and the drinks started flowing! These pre wedding drinks made for some hilarious groomsmen portraits though!

While the guys were goofing off the ladies made use of their time to take more pictures of course! Their photographer Celina Kenyon kicked butt in the photo department delivering awesome shots of every priceless moment.


GETTING READY

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picture perfect bridesmaids
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groomsmen pre drinking before ceremony

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badass wedding party portraits

First look

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romantic portraits

ceremony

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After their first look Monique and Andrew were ready to get married! The ceremony was held in the private garden at the venue that served as the perfect backdrop for their “I Do’s”.

Their couples portraits followed the ceremony and they truly captured how in love the Caldarella’s are. Their sunset session was timed out perfectly.

During the couples session Monique and Andrew’s guests enjoyed cocktail hour. There they had appetizers, drinks and lounge furniture from Striking Elegance.

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Couples portraits

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dark and moody portraits
moody portraits
sunset portraits
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veil shot

cocktail hour

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cocktail hour
lounge furniture

decor

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Their venue is not normally draped this way. Monique hired Glam Event Stylist to drape the entire room to give that touch of elegance. Guests were definitely wowed when they entered the space.

Michael’s Flowers from Downtown Los Angeles provided the centerpieces and the stylish look was completed with a flower wall behind the sweetheart table.

Monique left no detail out! She included napkin ring holders that matched all the decor.

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reception

Guests were not done being treated to an experience just yet. From an epic grand entrance to tear jerking parent dances followed by phenomenal toasts from loved ones the room was filled with laughter and good times.

The couple decided to not just have a regular cake table but to include the cake on a dessert table with the stand provided by Platinum Prop Rentals and desserts by Great Dane Baking Co and Munch Bakery LA.

Andrew surprised his bride with an exciting garter removal and toss in which he showed off his Magic Mike moves to “A Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin.

Friends, family, and the couple ended the night on the dance floor getting down to DJ Ace from Flawless Entertainment.

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Toasts

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Cake cutting

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Garter toss

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garter toss

Dancing

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The End.

newlyweds

We are so thankful that we go to live out our Princess wedding dreams through Monique and Andrew’s wedding. Not to mention we are so proud of all their accomplishments in the past three years since they wed which include purchasing their first house and adding another dog to their family. Monique even referred one of her bridesmaids, Amanda, to us when she was planning her own wedding. We often look back at their gallery and daydream about how much the Caldarella wedding was!


The Dream Team:

Coordination: Rock n’ Willow Events \\ Venue: Recreation Park Golf Course 18 \\ Photography: Celina Kenyon \\ Flowers: Michael’s Flowers Los Angeles \\ DJ: Flawless Entertainment \\ Calligraphy: Ashley Fabrigas \\ Cake: Great Dane Baking Co \\ Desserts: Munch Bakery LA \\ Rentals, Draping, + Flower Wall: Glam Event Stylist \\ Lounge Furniture: Striking Elegance \\ Cake Stand: Platinum Prop Rentals \\ Uplights: DJ Willie Will \\ Officiant: A Moment To Cherish \\ Linen: Dream Decor

Punk Rock & Baseball Influenced Wedding

Holiday + Ruben’s Punk Rock & Baseball Influenced Spring Wedding in Long Beach at Recreation Park Golf Course 18

March 12, 2016

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Holiday (yes, that really is her name!) and Ruben came to us about six months prior to their wedding with mostly everything planned. They just had their finishing touches left on their to-do list. As we sat down and had our initial consultation with them, we realized they were happy to be almost at the finished line with the planning but we could sense something was missing. You know that spark you are supposed to get in your eyes when you talk about your wedding? Yeah, that was missing!

We asked, well what made you two fall in love? What interests did you both have that led to dating? When the wedding is all done and you go back to normal weekends, what do you plan on doing? And that is when it hit them! They were planning a wedding keeping in mind what they thought their families and friends wanted and not what they wanted.


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Holiday and Ruben thought about it and they mentioned they love going to punk rock shows and baseball games and it was all uphill from there! Our creative juices started flowing and we got to thinking what do we love when we go to punk shows. Handmade made flyers, custom pins, cool artwork. The same thought process went into pulling ideas from baseball games. A fly ball, catchers mitt, jerseys, rally towels.

The couple decided to make flyer type invitations, custom pins as favors, and instead of table numbers they put the names of their favorite albums to show off their punk influences. To highlight the baseball aspect they got an Angels jersey with their last name on the back for guests to sign and Ruben got some really cool cuff links. Now they were all ready to get the show on the road!


Holiday got to get ready in the upstairs bridal suite at Recreation Park Golf Course 18, and let me tell you, it is fit for a queen!

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Ruben didn’t do too bad himself and cleaned up very well. A really touching moment was when Holiday wrote her groom-to-be a heart felt letter and Ruben teared up while reading it! Awww!

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Angels baseball cufflinks

As it became time for the ceremony to begin all the vendors and guests arriving could not help but realize what a beautiful Spring day it was. The colors Holiday and Ruben chose really complimented the season too.

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wedding processional
You can see Silvia and my hand poking out from behind the bush! Silvia is laying out the veil and I am trying to crack a smile out of the Bride.

You can see Silvia and my hand poking out from behind the bush! Silvia is laying out the veil and I am trying to crack a smile out of the Bride.

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It is easy to see why a lot of Angelinos choose Spring as the season for their wedding. The couple had their portrait session done with a gorgeous sunset in the background.

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Their wedding party was pretty hilarious! What started off as a nice posed photo session quickly turned into a high energy, off the ground (literally) experience!

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For Cocktail Hour the couple had simple vases with photos from their childhood and from various moments in their relationship over the years.

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cocktail hour
cocktail hour

Ruben got to take over the seating chart project and executed it beyond belief! He took inspiration from our first conversation when we mentioned to them to find ways to bring out their interests through their wedding. Instead of plain table numbers, he named each table after his favorite rock albums saving his favorite for the Sweetheart Table of course. Paying homage to their hometown of Long Beach, Ruben had the Queen Mary in the back of the chart. He even had a great idea to have the actual table numbers be mini records! How cool!

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table numbers

As the reception was under way Holiday and Ruben started off with their grand entrance and moved into their first dance and a couple of toasts.

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toast

After dinner Holiday participated in the Father-Daughter dance while Ruben had the opportunity to dance with his Mother.

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father daughter dance
father daughter dance
mother son dance
mother son dance
mother son dance
They paid tribute to a family member who had passed

They paid tribute to a family member who had passed


Holiday’s bouquet toss proved to be super exciting!

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bouquet toss
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bouquet toss fight
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Before heading on the dance floor they cut and served their first slice of cake as a married couple.

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Holiday’s Mother had the extreme honor of putting together the candy table and it was definitely a hit with a the guests!

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candy table
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The couple welcomed guests on to the dance floor with the traditional Money Dance in which some of the guests totally had a blast participating in.

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happily ever after

Three years later Holiday + Ruben have moved in to their own place, adopted a dog named Otto, and Ruben has started his own brewing company Burning Bridge Brewing! We are always so proud of each and every accomplishment our couples accumulate and we know the future is bright for these two right here! Congrats Mr and Mrs Leon and Happy Anniversary!!


The dream team

Coordinator: Rock n’ Willow Events // Photography: LA Digital Photo // Venue: Recreation Park Golf Course 18 // DJ: DJ Tempoe // Flowers: Christina’s Flowers // Cake: Rossmoor Bakery