Planning a Wedding: Temecula, CA
Planning a wedding in Temecula wine country? This guide highlights eight of the most beautiful vineyard venues including ones that we explored. From European inspired estates to classic California vineyard views, discover each venue’s style, guest capacity feel, and realistic cost expectations to help you choose the perfect setting for your wine country wedding in Southern California.
This guide includes: Europa Village, Villa de Amore, Leoness Cellars, Truffle Pig Winery, Callaway Vineyard, Falkner Winery, Lake Oak Meadows and The Morgan Estate
10 Personal Touches We Added to Our Wedding Day
When we look back on our wedding, the things that stand out most are not the big production pieces. It is the personal details that made the day feel like ours. The moments that carried family history, inside stories, and little pieces of who we are. If you are planning your wedding and wondering where to focus your energy, I truly believe personal touches go further than over the top extras. These are the details our guests may not have noticed, but is something that we treasure and meant a lot for us to have, even if no one else knew they were there or the significance behind it.
Here are a few of the meaningful touches we added to our wedding day.
What to Wear to a Palm Springs Bachelorette: Desert‑Chic Style Guide (Featuring My ThredUp Picks)
After sharing the details of planning my Palm Springs bachelorette, I wanted to create a companion style guide for brides heading to the desert. Palm Springs has such a distinct vibe with equal parts retro glam, effortless resort wear, and sun‑soaked minimalism. Packing for it is honestly half the fun, so if you’re anything like me, choosing the outfits becomes part of the celebration itself.
I also wanted this guide to be budget‑friendly and sustainable, which is why I curated a style board on ThredUp. It’s the perfect place to find beautiful white pieces, designer resort wear, and unique items that feel special without the one‑time price tag. Bachelorette wardrobes can get expensive quickly, especially when many pieces are worn once, so shopping secondhand felt like a smart and intentional choice.
10 DIYs to Add to Your Wedding to Make It Special
When we started planning our wedding, I knew I wanted the day to feel personal without turning the process into a full time craft project. DIY can easily become overwhelming if you try to do everything. What worked best for us was choosing a handful of projects that would make a visible impact and actually mean something to us.
If you are considering adding DIY elements to your wedding, focus on the pieces that guests will interact with or that will show up in your photos for years to come. Below are ten DIY projects that added real value to our day and felt worth the time we invested.
Planning a Wedding: Palm Springs Unique and Estate Venues
Palm Springs holds a special place in the hearts of so many couples. The sunshine, the desert light, the mid century cool factor, and the way the landscape feels both dramatic and intimate make it incredibly appealing. We almost had our own wedding here, and during the planning process we discovered some truly unforgettable venues that feel personal, beautiful, and far from the generic hotel ballroom experience. If you are planning a Palm Springs wedding or simply dreaming about one, these venues are worth bookmarking. We investigated a lot of Estates because I have always loved the idea of staying on-site at a wedding, and the idea of an estate means you get to enjoy waking up the morning after still at your beautiful venue, and can hang with your wedding party leading up until. Here are some favourites (with pricing!) if you’re in planning mode.
Lessons Learned from DIY-ing Our Wedding Decor
When we first started planning our wedding, I knew I wanted it to feel personal. Not just “pretty venue, pretty flowers” personal – but a wedding where you could see us in every single detail.
We dove in headfirst. And when I say “headfirst,” I mean our list was long. We stained own table runners, built a ceremony/reception backdrop, created a seating chart with custom limewash columns, put together a folding coffee bar, made signage, embossed napkins, designed menus, and even did custom name tags for our guests.
Looking back, it was a mix of wins, pivots, stressful late-night painting sessions, and so much pride when I finally saw it all come together. Here’s what I learned from DIY-ing our wedding decor — the highs, the lows, and the advice I wish I’d had when we started.
The 90 Day Wedding Checklist
If your brain is spinning trying to keep track of all the small wedding details — you’re not alone. This list helped me lay everything out and calm the chaos a little, and I hope it helps you too. Whether you’re DIYing your signage, sorting out songs for your first dance, or remembering things like packing a cake knife (so easy to forget!) — this checklist has your back.
Planning a Bachelorette: As the Bride in Palm Springs
Palm Springs is the perfect spot for a bachelorette party with its mix of relaxation, adventure, and nightlife. My MOH planned out a weekend of fun for a few of my girlfriends and we had the best time. We ended up spending a few more days in Joshua Tree after the weekend and went on hikes, day-tripped into Palm Springs again, hung out by the pool and had such a good time relaxing. Let’s be honest, the trip was go go go, but we certainly built in a lot of time to connect with nature.
Keeping in mind my bach weekend trip was all planned out by my MOH, here are a few other things that you can do when you’re in PS for your bachelorette if you’re more inclined for outdoors, going for drinks or just relaxing.
Planning a Wedding: Packing for a Bachelorette
Palm Springs is the perfect spot for a bachelorette party with its mix of relaxation, adventure, and nightlife. My MOH planned out a weekend of fun for a few of my girlfriends and I am so excited to head for California this weekend. Palm Springs is a dream destination for a bachelorette party, combining relaxation, adventure, and nightlife into one unforgettable getaway. I’ve put together all the fun bride things I’m packing for the trip and the variety of weather we are going to experience down there between LA, Palm Springs and Joshua Tree.
Planning a Wedding: Choosing our Theme
Choosing the theme and colors for our wedding was one of the first big steps in making our vision come to life. For us, it wasn’t just about picking pretty colors; it was about finding inspiration that emulated the wedding we wanted. It’s no secret we love Italy, and we would have loved to get married there as well. Even though it would have been cheaper for us to get married in Italy, it would have limited us in people and we would have had a very small guest list. We decided to get married in Alberta to make sure that as many of our friends and family were able to attend.
Planning a Wedding: Post-Engagement
When my partner and I got engaged, after the shellshock wore off (it’s real) I was incredibly happy to get to move into the next stage of our journey. I’ll never forget the proposal in Italy —the joy, the nerves, and the love that surrounded us when we told people. For us, this was the beginning of a journey not just to plan a wedding, but to celebrate our story.
Our Engagement Story
This past summer, I was lucky enough to travel to Europe with my dad and brother. We managed to take two weeks off and explore Italy—more on that later—and visited all the must-see spots. Toward the end of our trip, my partner Alan flew out to meet us in Rome so that him and I could start a trip just the two of us. After a few hints had been dropped, little did I know that Alan had planned a surprise for us.
