California Hangar Wedding

When two pilots get married, celebrating their union in a California air hangar with photographs by Yuliya M. Photography seems like the natural thing to do. This couple’s special day was filled with nothing but love, kisses and clear skies. Oh, and hundreds of really cool paper planes, too! We even spotted one of our favorite projects – the paper cone installation!

From the photographer, Yuliya: It might have been love at first sight if it weren’t for a bad experience with her first flight instructor. After seeing an amazing aerobatics show, Sophia signed up for classes. Her second instructor seemed nice, but she was only looking for detailed instructions on how to fly and preferably the sooner without his help the better. Bradley, on the other hand, was in for more than just flying. After landing, he would occasionally invite her to lunch. He intended to keep her longer than just instruction time, and she slowly warmed up to him. When the classes were over, it was now her turn to invite him to dinner. Somewhere between their talks, the times spent flying, and enjoying a lunch after, she fell in love, too hard to turn back. Their wedding had clear blue skies ideal for pilots, and their recessional song, “Come Fly With Me,” was a perfect fit to start their married life.

Bradley’s father is a pastor and they held the first part of the wedding at a church and the second part at the airplane hanger. The decorations were inspired by nature, olive green color, Sophia’s love for Anthropologie and flying! Many of Bradley’s friends are extremely talented musicians and they had a live Jazz band and many soloists creating background music for ceremony and reception. Here’s a list of vendors involved plus some more details you might want! ;). Sophia’s bridemaids and friends contributed to many DIY projects throughout the day including paper goods, paper airplanes decorating reception area, table numbers, paper installation above entry way to reception (find tutorial here), ceremony backdrop. The bride also designed her bridesmaid dressed and alterations to her own wedding dress, to create something different and unique.

What style and feel did you envision for your wedding day? I’d say the style was vintage chic. The feel of it was classy, and the food was a delicious taqueria fare which made a lovely and comfortable contrast to the formal attire and spacious seating. Having the reception in the evening created a warm, intimate atmosphere in the aircraft hangar. Overall, our desire was to create an environment for our guests that was both conventional and creative.

Were there any DIY projects involved? We did create three DIY projects. One included chicken wire, card stock paper, kabob sticks and airplane navigation maps. And another consisted of receipt paper, staples and a wooden structure. The last one was definitely the easiest: 300 hundred paper airplanes and twine. These were strung up in the hanger rafters. All projects were done with lots of friends for many hours.

See Also

A Bold Berry-Colored Vallejo Wedding

What advice do you have for brides planning their wedding day now? Invest in a good coordinator! Their attention to every single detail not only made the wedding planning process go smoothly, but relieved me of becoming a dreaded bridezilla.

Wedding Music:
Processional: “Fly Me to the Moon,” Frank Sinatra
Recessional: “Everything,” Michael Bublé
First Dance: “Come Fly with Me,” Frank Sinatra

Location: Livermore, CA / Photographer: Yuliya M. Photography / Wedding Coordination: Rebecca Salters / Wedding Flowers: Petals of Love / Ceremony Venue: Valley Community Church / Reception Venue: Attitude Aviation / Wedding Dress: Trudy’s Brides / Wedding Shoes: Anthropologie / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Designed by Bride / Music: Mike Hernandez and Band / Paper Goods: Bride