Casual Glam Wedding in Paradise Valley

No matter what, you can’t go wrong with a bit of gold, pink, and sequins. Add in an adorable flower girl, inspired wedding signs, and flowers from The Flower Studio AZ, and you’ve got an absolute winner on your hands! Thank you Pinkerton Photography and A Day to Cherish for your work on this one – we have no doubt it’s a day that newlyweds Ainslee and Christian will remember for decades to come.

From the bride, Ainslee: I envisioned something romantic and elegant while still having a laid back vibe. I wanted our guests to feel comfortable and to have fun throughout the night, not just after dinner. These factors really helped drive my decisions – from food to the DJ and everything in between. We served sliders, fries, tacos, and chips and guacamole; a menu that is casual and included something that everybody loved.

Flower recipe: We stuck mainly to roses — spray roses, garden roses, etc. My bouquet had some dahlias as well, and the centerpieces had some hydrangeas. I originally wanted peonies, but they weren’t in season. Sometimes you just have to compromise, and the flowers turned out beautiful!

I am girl who loves pink, sparkles, and all things pretty, and my husband is a sports fan — he played college golf and spent most of his life as a baseball player. I loved the challenge of incorporating these two very opposite interests. The boutonnieres were golf tees with spray roses, and my cousin made is some beautiful gold and pink corn hole boards that we set out for guests to use. It was important for me to have things that he loved, it was Christian’s day just as much as it was mine. I always describe our wedding as “rustic elegance”. It was outdoors and had a few rustic elements but also had lots of sequins and flowers. Our color scheme was blush/ight pink, silver, gold, and ivory. I wanted a color scheme and “theme” that would be timeless; I wanted to be able to look back at photos in 30 years and have done it all over again the same way. As much as I love a good DIY, I didn’t want to stress myself out with too many projects. The few things we did were collect picture frames for the reception, spray paint a few small pieces of decor, rhinestoned the menu cards, and tied ribbons on the programs for some added color. I know that everything would have looked amazing without any of that, but I wanted a few personal touches.

Any advice for couples planning their weddings now? My biggest piece of advice is to make time for each other outside of planning. We tended to get so caught up in planning that we wouldn’t set aside time for a date night. At the end of the day, the wedding is about being with the person you love, not about how many flowers will be on the table. I would also tell couples to enjoy this time, although it’s stressful, it’s such a fun experience for you, your families, and your friends. P.S. If you could spend money on one thing, make it a day-of wedding planner. I don’t know what I would’ve done without Cara. She created timelines for us and the vendors, let us know when payments were due, set up everything on the day of the wedding, and made sure everything ran smoothly. I would have paid her twice as much for how wonderful she was. It really helped me relax and enjoy the wedding day getting ready with my girlfriends instead of running around like crazy.

View all images from this wedding in the gallery

Wedding Music:
Bride’s Processional: “Marry Me,” Train
Ceremony: “Then,” Brad Paisley
Recessional: “All You Need is Love,” The Beatles
First Dance: “Memories of Us,” Keith Urban

Wedding Location: Paradise Valley, AZ / Photographer: Pinkerton Photography / Event Planning: A Day to Cherish / Flowers: The Flower Studio AZ / Venue and Caterer: El Chorro / Wedding Dress: Lillian Lottie Couture / Wedding Shoes: Valentino / Clutch: BHLDN / Jewelry: Great Grandmother’s / Hair: Kora Rogers / Makeup: Julie Koeth / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Bill Levkoff / Robes: Wedding Prep Gals / Groom’s Suit: J.Crew / Groomsmen Attire: Men’s Wearhouse / Wedding Cake: Robert’s Catering / Cookies: Favorz / DJ: Ray the DJ / Linens: La Tavola / Signs: The Paper Walrus / Menus and Programs: Magnet Street / Wedding Invitations: William Arthur via Paper Source / Calligraphy: Olive Ink Designs / Videographer: Simply Cinema