Elvis’ Blue Hawaii mixed with a little Endless Summer and a touch of Mad Men inspired Candice and Charlie’s San Diego wedding. They wanted their wedding to feel like a retro beach party and their venue, The Pearl Hotel, was the perfect setting for this.
“Our intention the entire time was to throw the best celebration of love, ever“, said Candice. “We wanted it to be a party, not some stuffy wedding. People ate, drank, danced, laughed, and partied all night. We aren’t really the type to follow the typical wedding do’s and don’ts, so we had a surfboard for a guest book, the flower vases on the tables were made from pineapples, and of course the Mr. and Mrs. Signature drinks. We had the movies Blue Hawaii and Endless Summer playing throughout the night for fun. Oh and a hula-hoop came out at some point!”
“The day was perfect from the start. We took our time getting ready and seeing family and friends as they popped in and out of the hotel rooms that we were getting ready in. About an hour or so before the wedding, we had some time to ourselves and did our first look. Those moments and the pictures that came out of that are by far some of my favourites. My dad officiated the ceremony, so after the walk down the aisle with him, my brothers then took over and technically were the ones to give me away. My dad had the entire crowd crying tears of happiness and love at one moment, then the next cracked a joke and everyone would be laughing.”
“One of the most memorable moments was at the end of the night when we both jumped in the pool!”, she laughed. “Wedding dress, and all! Oh, the funniest thing ever, we had wedding crashers! That right there is proof that we had such a great party, that strangers wanted to be a part of it.”
“The best thing about planning the wedding was knowing that it was our day, our party, and we could do anything we wanted (within budget of course). We knew that we didn’t have to conform to any social norms, we didn’t have to worry about pleasing anyone else, and the fact that we did it together. We also started planning really early, so that made it really nice to be able to take our time and not really stress about it.”
“Our wedding was the best day ever”, she concluded. “We didn’t let drama or stress get us down and we really enjoyed OUR party with our friends and family. Looking at our pictures and hearing about the day from our guest’s perspective has been so fun. However, our marriage is what we really cherish and are proud of. Being married to your best friend for life and hosting the most epic party to brag about our love…priceless.”
