Wedding | Grace & Deven

Tell us a little about yourselves!

Deven and I met at the end of 2019 and instantly hit it off. We were set up by friends who were together at the time. I had just moved back home to Minnesota at the time and my best friend was hell bent on setting me up with Deven. We both went in with no expectations but one date turned into three the next week, then five the next - and soon we were inseparable.

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

We always knew we would be together forever, and we even tossed around the idea of eloping a few times. However, I think the thought of having essentially one big party with all our loved ones sounded so magical. It feels so lucky to have found someone so special, and to be loved and cared for by another person and if love isn't worth celebrating, I guess I'm not sure what is!

How many guests did you have?

Just over 90 and Kindred captured our day. This was somewhat of a destination wedding for us. We live in Minnesota, but travel frequently out west. My parents have a house in West Hollywood, and the theatrics of LA seemed like such an amazing place to have an event, so we did!

Tell us about your outfits.

Deven was pretty straight forward, he wore head to toe Paul Smith. He tried on a handful of Tuxes but something about Paul Smith felt very balanced and classic.

For Friday night's Welcome Dinner at Stella's in West Hollywood, I wore a vintage 1920s candle light silk dress that I got at Andrea's Vintage Bridal here in Minneapolis. Its always feels so serendipitous to find something vintage that fits your exact measurements! I'll forever wonder what the woman who wore it first looked like and where she herself wore it. I wear a lot of vintage clothing in my day to day life, so it was important for me to at some point put something from the past on. My shoes were also a pair of vintage Manolo Blahnik's that I found on the real real.

My ceremony dress is from the designer Netta Benshabu. It is actually a mashup of two different dresses she designed. The dress felt a little retro, yet modern and a hint of Morticia Adams. I wore a simple pair of custom silk Jimmy Choo's, and some family heirloom earrings. I had a very long veil for the ceremony and then changed into a short veil for the rest of the day. I did have an outfit change for dancing, which was actually once an 80s prom dress also from Andrea's Vintage Bridal that I made into a mini. My earrings were Simon Rocha, another pair of Manolo Blahnik's and one of my good friends made my garter.

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

I think when we realized we wanted to have a formal wedding, we thought if we were going to do it let's do it! I think we have lost a lot of traditions and rituals (for better or worse) as a culture, sometimes weddings seem like one of the last ones we all collectively recognize, and I feel very grateful I got to experience it first hand. We wanted to lean into the pageantry and camp-ness that weddings tend to have. I think having a strong clear vision was important for us and I knew I needed the wedding planner who understood my creative vision right off the bat. When I saw some of Studio Sully's work I knew they were it.

The elements that we played with were, romantic, camp, vintage and a little gothic. All of those words I think reflect both our relationship and who we are as individuals. I think from our save the date, to the elaborate draping we put up in the ballroom, to the spiderweb tablecloths at cocktail hour, to the rose bush garden, or the velvet heart shaped candy box our invites came in. We had a clear vision and I am so proud of the creative collaboration that took place for it to happen. Of course we also wanted our guests to feel comfortable so there was lots of food, plenty of different functioning spaces and activities to explore around the estate.

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

I think I was influenced by weddings from the 60s-80s, as well as vintage Valentine's day cards. Our cake was made in reference to both of my grandparents' wedding cakes. However the water fountain and stair cases were my own personal choices!

Our table seating was scratchers, that you scratched with vintage lockets. Deven's grandma loved scratchers and that was something they did. We had old church pews brought in for the ceremony which was something we both on our own came up with, but also nodded to the fact I was brought up catholic even though I'm not practicing anymore. 

I say all of that to note there were so many personal touches that reflect our families, and the relationships and love that came before us. We really wanted to acknowledge that in both big and small ways.

Any tips for couples getting married?

What worked for us was establishing some words of what our love story felt like. Whether it was hobbies, how we connect, shared interests or just the way we interact with the world together. We created some thread lines that we could lean on for the many many choices that wedding planning has you make. I think this took pressure off of us in terms of making the “right choice” and we could just say well this feels the most like us, lets go with that.

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

We had a Lipologist which was very fun! She analyzed your kiss print (almost like a palm reading), we also had a photobooth form the 50s, and a flambé station.

All of the vendors we worked with were so kind and creative and really made every aspect of planning and the day go smoothly. We just feel so incredibly grateful to have had such a beautiful wedding.

Photographer: Kindred @kindredweddings | Planning: Studio Sully @studiosully | Flora: Brrch Floral @brrch_floral | Videographer: Jaden Cole Films @jadencolefilms | Ceremony & Reception Location: The Paramour Estate | Makeup Artist: Dennese Rodriguez @denneserodriguez | Catering & Beverages: Little Fish @littlefish_echopark & Mamas Medicine @mamasmedicine.cocktails | Entertainment: Dart Collective @dartcollective | Ceremony Dress: Netta Benshabu @nettabenshabu.official | Welcome Dinner & Party Dresses: Andrea's Vintage Bridal @andreasvintagebirdal | Suit: Paul Smith | Veil: Toni Federici @tonifedericiveils | Wedding Rings: Filigree Jewelers @filigreejewelers | Shoes: Manolo Blahnik's @manoloblahnik & Jimmy Choo @jimmychoo | Earrings: Grace's Aunts, made from Grandmothers engagement ring