Welcome To The Blog

••• TELLING STORIES, SHARING LOVE •••

Danny & Vanessa // Great Gatsby inspired wedding // Pasadena Wedding Photographers

A bride and groom kiss during their Great Gatsby inspired wedding at Ambassador Gardens in Pasadena

Danny and Vanessa’s Great Gatsby inspired wedding shined brightly as the couple and all of their guests had an amazing time!

Ambassador Gardens Magic: Danny and Vanessa’s Great Gatsby Wedding Extravaganza

It was such a thrill to work with Danny and Vanessa to make their Great Gatsby inspired wedding dreams come true. We love all of our clients, but Danny and Vanessa are a special couple to us. Over the years since their wedding, they have become great friends to us and Vanessa has even become an amazing photographer. We are so excited to share this wedding and our friendship with the world.

ambassador Garden wedding 1
Ambassador Garden Wedding 2 scaled
Ambassador Garden Wedding 3
Ambassador Garden Wedding 4
Ambassador Garden wedding 5 scaled
Ambassador Garden wedding 6 scaled
Ambassador Garden Wedding 7
Ambassador Garden Wedding 8
Ambassador Garden WEdding 10
Ambassador Garden WEdding 11 scaled
Ambassador Garden Wedding 12 scaled
Ambassador Garden Wedding 13
Ambassador Garden WEdding 14
Ambassador Garden WEdding 15
A bride and groom kiss during their Great Gatsby inspired wedding at Ambassador Gardens in Pasadena
Ambassador Garden Wedding 17

Interview with the Bride: Vanessa’s Inspiration in her own words

WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND YOUR WEDDING? Our venue, Ambassador Mansions and Gardens. Originally, we had booked their tea garden and planned on having an outdoor wedding. But, due to some issues with the city and noise restrictions, we ended up switching to the Merritt Mansion. As soon as we walked in and saw all the wood detail, grand staircase, crystal chandelier, and vintage wallpaper, we knew we had to pay homage to an era in time where women wore pearls and men dressed in tuxes.

We wanted to create an unforgettable night for our guests and we wanted to recreate the feeling of being at a mansion for a grand celebration. The best part was that just a few months before the wedding, “The Great Gatsby” came out in theaters so it created so much enthusiasm with our guests! Several family members showed up in the theme!

WHAT WAS THE MOST MEMORABLE/FAVORITE PART ABOUT YOUR WEDDING DAY?   // My favorite part was when Daniel and I sneaked into the photobooth right before our grand entrance. We could hear the music and our families cheering for our groomsmen and bridesmaids outside, we were minutes away from being announced! It was such a sweet moment to just break away from the schedule, act silly for a few moments, and then quickly parade back as if nothing had happened. No one, except our photo booth attendant Ken, knows we did it!

WHY WAS PHOTOGRAPHY IMPORTANT TO YOU?  //  Daniel and I are a bit photo crazy. We love taking photos. Especially “artistic” photos, or at least, our versions of what we think is artistic. So naturally, we wanted a large portion of our budget to be spent on our photography. The way we see it is -our wedding day can never be recreated, so we needed a team that would capture not only the feeling, but the beauty of our day so that we could magically relive it whenever we saw our photos.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE SUN & SPARROW?  //  Two words. Tiffani and Ellie. We fell in love not only with the photography style but with the girls behind the camera. I think comfort level is important when it comes to photography. I’m a bit awkward myself so I was definitely looking for some directive on what to do. They did a great job in explaining to us how to position ourselves. They had our best interest in mind the entire time. Their hard work and dedication to making us feel like we were their only client was heartwarming.

DID YOU DO ANY DIY PROJECTS? IF SO, WHAT?  //  Yes! I must say, I was pretty hands-on with our wedding – it definitely tested my creativity! It was definitely fun creating so many custom pieces for the wedding. I feel like I branded the wedding. LOL. I even made sure to keep the fonts consistent with all projects. (In case you were wondering, we used Park Lane, Chisel Wide, and Petra Script.)

Logo: I made a custom logo for our wedding that was inspired by the Jay Gatsby monogram. I wanted to create something fun, classy, and inspired by Art Deco. And of course, I wanted to include our initials; V, D, and M. Project achieved! I hand-drew the idea first then used Photoshop to digitize it. It served as the recurring motif in our wedding. It was first introduced to our guests on our invitations. I ended up using it on just about everything I designed for the wedding.

//  Paper Goods: I designed and printed our programs, table numbers, and dinner menus. This was definitely fun but challenging. I wanted to design a program that would not require a lot of work (half page with info on front and back). After several drafts, I finally made a version that I was satisfied with. It wasn’t too cluttered and I managed to add personal notes regarding the events happening that day for our guests to read. I purchased the paper from Paper Source (if you’ve never been, you are missing out!) and printed the programs at Staples. Although time-consuming, this project costs less than $75!

//  Beer Labels: I also designed and placed custom labels on our beer favors. We used 3 of our engagement photos, one for each type of beer. We had an Almond Joy Stout which we named “Love is like…,” we had a Hefeweizen with banana and tropical flavor, we called it “Honeymoon Bound,” and last but not least, we had a Tripel with floral notes which we named, “Meet the Mestas’ (pronounced Mes-ta-sess).” The beer labels were printed and cut by my dad as well and the beer was brewed by a local brewing team. (Ambitious Ales)

//  Cake Topper: I drew, painted, and assembled our cake topper. This was not an original idea, I came across a picture of it on Pinterest and thought, “I could do that!” It was an “all day” project that I worked on during the 4th of July weekend.

WHAT WAS YOUR SOMETHING OLD, NEW, BORROWED, BLUE?  //  Old: A vintage rabbit fur clutch. It’s one of my favorite items that I own. Although I would normally go for faux fur, I couldn’t pass up the $4 deal I found at our local Vintage festival.  

//  New: My something new was my crystal headband, custom-made and styled! Thank you, Etsy!  // Borrowed: My mother-in-law let me borrow her darling silver “ring to wrist” bracelet.   

Blue: Daniel bought me a vintage ring with a blue stone while at Oktoberfest a few years ago. It was a lovely reminder of the fun times we’ve had and will continue to have.

DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE FOR BRIDES WHO ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PLANNING PROCESS?  //  Do what makes you happy. There will always be criticism no matter what. It’s true what they say, you can’t please everyone. Don’t be afraid to ask for help, friends and family want to be a part of your big day.  Also, don’t be afraid to try DIY projects. You might be surprised at what you can accomplish.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF BEING MARRIED NOW?  //  Hearing him call me his wife when talking to others and seeing his Instagram and Facebook posts start with “My beautiful wife and I…”. It’s the cherry on top.

©2013 Sun & Sparrow Photographers // Great Gatsby inspired wedding

©2103 Sun & Sparrow Photography & Videography // Great Gatsby inspired wedding // Ambasador Mansions, Pasadena

Great Wedding Vendors for your Ambassador Gardens Wedding

 Hair & Makeup: Soreya Yann  // Headband: ETSY SHOP Vintage HeadDresses //  Garter & Bouquet //  Wedding Signs, Beer Labels & Other: Sticker Creations –  stickercreations@gmail.com // Custom Beer: Ambitious Ales –  garrett@ambitiousales.com  //  Florist: The Flower Garden –  Mattcduran@yahoo.com  //  Officiate: Elysia Skye, elysia@laweddingwoman.com  //   Cake: Cake Sensations  //  Photobooth: Viral Booth – vanessa@viralbooth.com  //  Magician: Danny Magic – danny.magic@verizon.net   //  Invitations: Invitation Design Studio  //  

Book Your Ambassador Gardens Wedding or your Great Gatsby Themed wedding today!

GET IN TOUCH

Schedule a Call

Check out Some of Our Other Pasadena Weddings and Photoshoots!

Chad and Emily’s Dreamy Garden Wedding in Pasadena

Descanso Gardens wedding 0001

Pasadena Fairytale Newborn Photography // Little Maizie

Los Angeles newborn photographer 0001
0 comments
Add a comment...

Your email is never published or shared.

    Follow Our Adventures On Instagram