Honey and Beekeeper Inspired Wedding at Rancho Valencia

Back in winter, I dreamt of creating a beekeeper editorial. That editorial, a honey inspired wedding at Rancho Valencia, was published last week on Ruffled. To give more background on my inspiration: I was rummaging through my closet and found a miniature honey dipper. Suddenly, I was inspired to create an editorial based around a beekeeper and honey without being too on the nose.

Themes can be done beautifully and with sophisticated, so a great deal of our editorial elements are simply a nod to patterns inspired by honeycombs and shapes mimicking a beehive. As soon as I found the Marchesa gown with golden patterns, I knew the theme could be woven throughout the wedding beautifully.

I enlisted Kayla of Southern House Events to create a full design that would honor my vision of a female beekeeper and her relationship to honey and bees. And I couldn’t end this without mentioning that the venue we chose had a bee infestation on the day of our shoot. I managed to sneak a few film images of the bees nesting within the flowers. How perfectly timed is that!?

The Details

 

Rancho Valencia Ceremony

Utilizing the fireplace as the backdrop, the ceremony was designed on the Sunrise Terrace Patio.

 

Rancho Valencia Reception

So that we could fully make use of the gorgeous beehive-inspired lanterns, we hung them from the trellis on the sunrise patio. One set hung behind the reception table, while the other hung behind the warm, inviting lounge. Our bar also had a few lanterns in the back and featured bold lines on its facade. These evoke the pattern of the honeycomb without being too obvious.

 
This bar might be one of the prettiest I’ve ever photographed!

 

Romantic Portraits

My love for Marchesa still holds strong. As soon as I knew I wanted to do a beekeeper shoot, I immediately set my sights on this couture gown. Its golden lines also nod to the patterns of a honeycomb. I adore the movement and texture in this piece – a true Marchesa masterpiece perfectly fit for this wedding at Rancho Valencia.