Wedding | Brianna & Jess

Tell us a little about yourselves!

Brianna grew up in West Palm Beach, FL and moved to New York City to pursue a career in news and entertainment. Currently she works in the original content division at ESPN.

Jess grew up in Ojai, CA and moved to New York City to pursue a career as a theater director. Currently she is Head of Artistic Planning at The Public Theater.

We matched on Bumble and met for a first date at The Immigrant wine bar in the East Village in 2022. We’ve been inseparable since. We enjoy baking together, seeing theater, and visiting NYC’s incredible museums and parks.

We adopted our first kitty, Bobby, just before moving in together, and have since added his sister Lucy to the family. We’re definitely homebodies and love curling up with our cats to watch an episode or two of Law & Order.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

Jess grew up in Ojai and always dreamed of getting married surrounded by the Topa Topa mountains and orange groves. Ojai has certainly changed for the trendier since Jess moved away in 2012 but remains one of the couples’ favorite places to visit for scenic walks and childhood reminiscing - it has such a special energy.

How many guests did you have?

25.

What was your budget?

$45,000.

Tell us about your outfits.

Brianna wore a two-piece bodice and skirt set from Willowby by Waters and shoes from LifeStride. Brianna went to several salons and tried on maybe 70 dresses but on a trip to CA with our moms, she put on this particular dress and immediately knew it was the one. She had the train removed to fit the relaxed vibe of the day and so she could move around more freely.

Jess wore a blazer and pants from Polo Ralph Lauren and a shirt from M.M. LaFleur. She wanted to feel clean and classic but relaxed.

We wore the same scent - Orpheon Eau de toilette by Diptyque Paris.

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?

We really wanted to focus on our families coming together and welcoming Brianna’s siblings and friends who were all visiting Ojai for the first time.

We rented the stunning Airbnb property for the wedding and hosted her family there for the entire weekend, a little retreat in the mountains. The night everyone arrived, Jess’ mom and stepdad came up to the house for a BBQ and s’mores in the backyard. The next day everyone pitched in to help tidy up and prepare the yard for the wedding - it really felt like a family affair.

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

We wanted to give our guests a glimpse into our life together so we read personal vows and had a dear friend perform the ceremony. She did an incredible job and drew from so many personal stories. For readings, we both chose works by the incredible queer poet Andrea Gibson.

We also wanted each guest to feel special and part of our story so we wrote individual notes and photos for everyone to find at their dinner seats.

Jess spent a lot of time curating custom playlists for the evening with all of our favorite songs. I love that we can revisit them anytime.

Any tips for couples getting married?

Do all the things (cake tasting, dress shopping etc) and soak in this special season of your life. We planned a mothers/daughters trip last spring to tour some venues and that was the first time our moms really got to know each other - they became fast friends!

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

All of our vendors were incredible but Katherine Knowlton really went above and beyond with the food! Brianna is vegan and she worked with us to design a custom entree, a caramelized onion and mushroom tart, that everyone loved.

Nikki Strekowski also went out of her way to meet us in NYC last Fall for an engagement shoot in our neighborhood. I love that we have photos by her in our two favorite places.

Photographer: Nikki Strekowski @nikkistrekowski_photo | Coordinator: Make It Atorible Wedding Planning @makeitatorible | Floral: Alexis Ireland Florals @alexisirelandflorals | Ceremony & Reception Location: Airbnb | Celebrant: Friend Dela Meskienyar | Hire: Party Pleasers @partypleasers | Hair Stylist: Taty Marie @tresses_bymarie | Catering & Beverages: Katherine Knowlton @katherineknowlton | Cake: Baked by Tallulah @bakedbytallulah | Stationery: Minted @minted | Brianna's Dress: Willowby by Waters @willowbywatters | Jess' Suit & Shirt: Polo Ralph Lauren @poloralphlauren; M.M. LaFleur @mmlafleur | Engagement Rings: Custom SHW Jewelry @shw_jewelry | Wedding Rings: (Jess) Catbird @catbirdnyc; (Brianna) SHW Jewelry | Shoes: Beckett Simonon @beckettsimonon (Jess); (Brianna) LifeStride @lifestrideshoe | Jess' Broach: Etsy @etsy | Brianna's Earrings: Madewell @madewell