The La Valencia Hotel is truly one of my most favorite destination wedding venues! I love that it is located in the heart of downtown La Jolla (and being a native La Jolla gal, there pretty much isn’t a better place to be!) because not only is it in a gorgeous location, but it creates a great guest experience.
Liz was sure that not more than 50 guests would come, but in typical La Jolla style, 85 made the trip. It’s hard to turn down a trip to La Jolla! Liz wanted to create an event that would just be a super fun family gathering with simple but elegant décor. With the help of her cousin and aunt (the planning team!), she decided to use tones of ivory, blush pink, and gold, and brought in a touch of a beach motif with the starfish escort cards. And for a nostalgic whim, they felt like The Beatles “All You Need is Love” would be the theme of the day. Check out the adorable ring bearer below, the nephew of the groom.
Ice cold Pellegrino greeted the guests as they arrived for the ceremony on the hot August afternoon (above). Liz created two focal points of bright white flowers on clear pedestals for the ceremony. The backdrop of the Pacific Ocean provided the rest of the ceremony décor! Below, the starfish escort cards welcomed the guests into the ballroom for cocktail hour. Then for the dining room, a simple yet stunning décor of ivory and blush pink linens and flowers, complimented by the gold chivari chairs, created a clean and romantic look. Love this sweet cake by Michele Coulon! We put blush pink linens on the cocktail tables and belly bars and ivory dotted linens on the guest tables. I love using a look of white on white as long as you create interest with variation of tone and texture.
Liz and Rob were such a wonderful couple and the whole family was so fun that it was truly a treat to work with all of them!
Steal this idea:
Use the location of your venue to create the décor for your wedding! Pink tones, as well as ocean and beach colors (since you pretty much stare at the beach during the wedding) work really well at the La Valencia. As do romantic, nostalgic, and particularly Old Hollywood nuances. If you use the sense the venue exudes, you can actually get away with less décor as you are simply accenting what is already there. I wouldn’t do “rustic” at the La Valencia and I wouldn’t do “beachy” at the Inn at Rancho Santa Fe. Perfect décor compliments it’s space.
Cynthia Zatkin Events 
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