Rustic Barn Wedding at Blackberry Creek Farm

How did you choose your wedding venue?
It was VERY hard to find the rustic/romantic feel we were looking for within our budget, that included all the details we were looking for as well.  Our venue (Blackberry Creek Farm at Kelly Gulch) was a private residence located in Topanga Canyon which was much closer to the church than having to go all the way out to Malibu.  It also had the right feel to it where we could really make it our own. The owner was also SO sweet and excited for all the ideas we had and really worked with us to make it exactly what we wanted.

Tell us a little a bit about your wedding (your vision, color, style, and location choices).
Betsy grew up in Southern California and it was important to have their wedding locally so that all of her large family would be able to attend.  We knew we wanted to get married in Betsy's parish church, St. Paul the Apostle because she went to elementary school there, and now is a teacher there. We also knew we wanted an outside reception in order to showcase the beauty of Los Angeles for all the Canadian guests that would be coming. We wanted something romantic, beautiful, and intimate, where we could put our own stamp on the space.

Tell us about your attire choices.
We opted to keep our attire mostly traditional but with a modern feel. Andrew chose to wear a navy blue suit with a black lapel and bow tie, while his groomsmen wore the same colors but with black ties.I wanted to wear something romantic, that would go well with the church and reception venue. I also wanted something that wasn't exactly what you see at most weddings. I opted for a high neck, flattering fit, beautiful lace pattern, and beautiful but modest train that could be nicely bustled. I gave my bridesmaids the option to choose their own gowns but gave them some direction.  I wanted the colors to be in the beige to blush realm, wanted them long, and wanted a mix of prints/textures.
What was the most important to the two of you while planning? Was there anything that you chose to splurge on or skip?
Betsy wanted a beautiful setting that guests could enjoy the beauty of SoCal. We both wanted to make sure it was a fun party for the guests more than anything, so it had to be an open bar with enough time to enjoy (there are a lot of outdoor locations with early time restrictions). We opted to skip the bouquet, and garter toss in order to keep the dancing going. We also wanted to be sure all our friends could come, we even picked our date around hockey season so that Andrew's Canadian hockey player friends and families would be able to join us.

We splurged on: flowers, food, open bar, and a last-minute golf cart to take people back and forth to the bathroom (it was a bit of a walk).

We saved on: decor by doing most DIY, rentals by making the tables and using our own china, picked affordable suits/dresses, we did all the invitations, programs, menus etc. ourselves by picking a design from Etsy and taking them to a printer ourselves, choosing a "month-of" coordinator package instead of full service.

Photography: Molly + Co | Venue: Blackberry Creek Farm at Kelly Gilch | Event Planning: Simply Natural Events | Floral: The Little Branch | Wedding Cake: Mother of the Bride | Rentals: A Rental Connection | Tableware: Fern and Bone | Hair: Amie Speckman | Makeup: Lorena Jorge | DJ: Vox DJs | Catering: Command Performance Catering | Wedding Dress: BHLDN | Bride's Shoes: Badgley Mischka | Bridesmaid Dresses: Picked by bridesmaids | Veil: Etsy | Headpiece: The Little Branch | Submitted via: Matchology