Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Sadie and Pei-Yee, Happy Maternity Leave!

Sadie and Pei-Yee are due to give birth a few days from each other and will go on maternity leave starting tomorrow. We can't wait to visit them and to post pictures of the little ones. We will miss you two (but will visit, of course!).


We are all waiting to meet the two little babies on the way...



Here are a couple of images from our last field trip together to Pie Ranch, a sustainable farm in the shape of a slice of pie, whose mission is to help create a healthy sustainable food system. One of the best things about Locally Grown Weddings is that we are building a community of creative experts who share the same values: a strong passion for the environment and a love of romance.


When together, we can do so much more than we can as individuals: we are in sync with each other and that helps us relax and think outside the box.


And of course, one of the perks of being in the same group with Pei-Yee and Chef Stephanie is not only to visit local organic farms on a work day...but the chance to take yummy fresh vegetables home!



Event Planning: Sadie Waddington
Catering: Chef Stephanie
Photography: Aurora Meneghello
Flowers and Design: Madeline Trait
Wedding Desserts: Pei-Yee Woo
Make Up Artistry: Angela LaFlamme

Venue: Pie Ranch

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Meet D&H Sustainable Jewelers

We absolutely love D&H Sustainable Jewelers, the greenest jewellery store in San Francisco (and the country, we suspect). They are hosting an event to meet Anne Sportun from Toronto, Canada. Her line has a heavy focus on bridal/engagement but she will also be showing her complete collection. Her work could be described as contemporary classic. The show dates are September 23rd 11am-8pm, 24th 11am-8pm, and 25th 11am-5pm. We are going to check it out, join us!


We asked Lindsay to tell us a bit about her company. 

1. How did D&H Sustainable Jewelers start? 

Shawn and I have both worked many years in the jewelry industry. After working together for several years at another company, we began to see a demand from our clients for jewelry that's sourced and made in an ethical manner-- conflict free diamonds and precious metals that were not mined in a way that negatively impacts the environment and social climate.  This was a concept that he and I had both already felt strongly about, so we began to talk about opening as sustainable jewelry store.  We began planning and one year later it all fell into place. D&H Sustainable Jewelers opened its doors in January 2011.





2. What do you love most about working with jewelry?

The obvious answer is being able to design and work in a creative environment. The not so obvious answer is that it gives us great joy to be part of significant moments in people's lives. Jewelry often commemorates an anniversary, an engagement, a wedding and so on.




3. Why green?

Over 20 tons of toxic waste is generated in order to mine enough gold to make one simple wedding band. The technology and resources exist today for us to recycle and re-use precious metals without any sacrifice to quality and design. So, why not?

4. Do you only sell engagement and wedding rings?

Though our business focuses largely on bridal jewelry, we also carry necklaces, earrings, and bracelets in a variety of styles. We feature the work of fifteen different jewelry artists as well as pieces that we design and make in house. All items are carefully crafted using recycled precious metals and ethically sourced gemstones. 80% of our designers are local artists.
 

5. How do you work with the team of Locally Grown Weddings?


Both the wedding and jewelry industries traditionally come with a certain level of environmental impact. I see the partnership between Locally Grown Weddings and D&H as a way to expand the new philosophy of sustainability in business. Both companies work hand in hand to promote our ideals in fun and meaningful ways. Be it through photo shoots, happy hours, or wedding workshops, we all work to get our message out to as many people as possible.



Featured Locally Grown Weddings Members:

Photography: Aurora Meneghello
Flowers and Design: Madeline Trait

Featured Locally Grown Weddings Partner:

Jewelry: D&H Sustainable Jewelers

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Leah's Bat Mitzvah

Did you know we don't just do weddings? In fact we love other events that are meaningful to families and individuals. This summer, we had the pleasure of working on Leah's Bat Mitzvah.

Aurora spent the day with Leah's family, starting at Or Shalom where the service took place. As soon as they all arrived, she set up to take pictures of the details, as everybody was busy getting ready and greeting guests.


Here's Sam, Leah's brother, getting ready with the candies. If you don't know what these candies are for, wait and see...


A year of study and preparation goes into a Bat Mizvah's talk and it often tackles serious and contemporary issues.


Right before the cut off time for the use of flash, Aurora took a few family portraits at the bimah.


Some synagogues do not let photographers in during the ceremony at all. Or Shalom required Aurora to stand in the back, without moving. So right before the actual ceremony, she worked with Rabbi Katie to be able to take a few close ups of Leah reading from the Torah.

Aurora documented the entire ceremony. She chose to share with us only a couple of pictures from her favorite part, the parents' blessings. So moving! This reminded us all why we work with families and couples: these are the people and the moments that make a difference in our lives.
And here are the candies: at the end of the ceremony, Leah and Rabbi Katie got to ran as everybody threw candies at them. Fun! Can we do this at weddings too, please?

And this is the very last part of the ceremony, the blessing and sharing of the bread, or kiddush.



After the service, everybody headed to Forest Hill Clubhouse for Leah's party!


Chef Stephanie started out the evening serving a strawberry coconut elixir as the signature mocktail and the appetizers included stuffed cremini mushrooms with truffled white beans, polenta wedges with Fontina and fresh chives, kalamata olive crostini with sundried tomatoes and chickpea puree.


Leah wanted the florals to be white and incorporate lilies so Madeline came up with a simple and elegant combination of florals that incorporated decorative cabbage, dusty miller and white lilies. To add more ambiance and drama to the venue, she added string lights to the interior railing, votive candles on the tables and lanterns to illuminate the courtyard.




Dinner was an updated and seasonal pasta bar featuring penne and rotelli pasta and three sauces, including a simple red homemade sauce, Tuscan beef ragu and a cheesy butternut squash sauce. The baby spinach salad with pink lady apples, walnuts, berry vinaigrette and artisan bread were the delicious side dishes.


For Leah's cake, Pei-Yee prepared two tiers of delicious cakes covered in a sweet cream cheese frosting. At Leah's request, one of the cakes was chocolate, and the other a tangy lemon, and they were decorated with some of Madeline's florals, as well as some fresh strawberries and golden raspberries from Pie Ranch.



And after dinner, Joe Nelson Productions started the music and the dancing!


 He brought fun props, including glowing sticks, sunglasses and tiaras.



The party came to a close with a game of hula hoops, after fun games, catchy songs and lots of laughs and hugs.


We all left feeling this was the best party ever. Congratulations, Leah!


 Locally Grown Weddings Featured Members:

Catering: Chef Stephanie
Photography: Aurora Meneghello
Flowers and Design: Madeline Trait
Wedding Desserts: Pei-Yee Woo


Venues: Or Shalom Jewish Community and Forest Hill Clubhouse

Guest Vendors:

DJ: Joel Nelson Productions

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Renee and Sean's Engagement

We are getting ready for Renee and Sean's wedding at the end of the month at Campovida in Hopland, we can't wait!

While each and every wedding is unique (of course!), this wedding is particularly special because of a personal connection we have to the couple.  Renee and Sean are longtime friends with Chef Stephanie. In fact, it was working in the kitchen at Millennium Restaurant that the 3 chefs met each other and 2 of them fell in love! Sean is now the award winning executive chef at Gather in Berkeley and Renee is the personal chef to one very lucky Bay Area family.

This wedding promises to be really really cool! The theme is healthy, luscious, organic, yummy wedding, but we won't say anything more about it. Sadie, Madeline and Pei-Yee are working hard to make this a very special day. You will have to wait and look for the pictures on this blog some time in the Fall.

In the meantime, Aurora went to Ben Lomond, near Santa Cruz, to take pictures at Lindencroft Farm, a special place for Sean and Renee both.











Featured Locally Grown Weddings Member:

Photography: Aurora Meneghello