My Boutique Wedding: 5 Questions for Carissa Zarzosa

How did you start creating Bridal Bouquets?

Both Brooch Bouquets and Origami Paper FlowerBouquets are alternative to live flowers. They are created from re-loved, re-cycled or re-used products.  When my husband and I got engaged I turned into a DIY Bride. I instantly fell in love with the concept of carrying a brooch bouquet down the aisle. I loved the idea of carrying something where friends and family could contribute pieces that I could carry with me. We incorporated Origami Paper Flowers into the decorations. I have been creating wedding flowers ever since. 

 

What do you love most about working with Brides?

I love working with Brides and helping them make their big day that much more special. I love being there to help them create their perfect bridal bouquet for their big day. Being able to create something that embodies their personality and that can be put on display or passed down to future generations.

Why Green?

I want to do my part and help reduce the impact of using new materials when sustainable materials can be used instead. I love the idea of helping brides come up with alternatives to live flowers that are often used for a day and tossed away. I not only use post consumed products when possible but I also encourage them to re-love, re-use and re-cycle whenever possible.

Do you only design flowers for weddings?

Wedding flowers are the main focus of my business, however I also create flowers for any occasion including anniversary bouquets (especially for the one year paper anniversary), just because bouquets, get well bouquets, special events etc. I also make bridal jewelry, wedding party jewelry, hair accents, gifts and more.   

What is your role in Locally Grown Weddings?

I love the idea of being able to give the Bride and Groom something they can treasure, something they can take away from the day along with their pictures. We share the same passion for weddings and for the environment. We each have our own creative individual talents and we come together to see to it that the weddings that we help create are unforgettable.

Featured Locally Grown Weddings Partner:

My Boutique Wedding

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Photography by Carissa Zarzosa

5 Questions for Aurora, Photographer

1. How did you become a Photographer?

I have always been fascinated by stories told through images. My dad was an enthusiastic photography hobbyist and he gave me my first camera when I was seven years old. I still remember the first picture I took, it was of my grandfather sitting in our kitchen! At the time, though, it was not easy to learn about film making or photography in Vicenza, Italy, where I am from. So I moved to Los Angeles after high school to learn film making and then to San Francisco to attend the prestigious San Francisco Art Institute where I pursued my interest in fine art photography.

2. What do you love the most about photography?

I like to take time to create one perfect still frame. I still love film making and I just completed a short documentary film that will premiere on PBS this Fall, but I love the challenge of telling a story with just one image, no sound, no music, no motion. I bring a lot of my film making background to my photography: I plan a lot, I like team work and I use some of the skills I learned as a director when working with couples of individuals in order to help them show with movement and expression what they feel inside. Photography is the art of showing instead of telling.

3. Why "green"? 

I don't think we are ever alone and independent of each other. We live in a community and the planet is our shared space. To me being green means taking care of the environment and of other people. Environmental justice goes hand in hand with economic and social justice. I can't imagine being happy and fulfilled and not sharing that with all those near and far.

4. Do you only photograph weddings? 

Wedding photography is my favorite, but I also photograph families and Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. I like to capture love and the relationships that make life meaningful. Some of us have not been blessed with a healthy family of origin, but we found the love and support of friends and partners. I want to celebrate that closeness.

 5. What is your role in Locally Grown Weddings and how do you work with the team? 

I founded Locally Grown Weddings with Sadie and Stephanie almost 2 years ago.  Since then the group has grown to include Madeline, Angela and Pei-Yee. I, of course, take all the pictures and create most of the visual content for our blog and printed material. The entire team works closely together to create a unique event for our couples and to make each wedding sustainable. I feel so lucky to have the support of these incredibly talented women who have expertise and skills so different and  complimentary to mine.

Locally Grown Weddings Featured Member:

Aurora Meneghello, Photographer

 

San Francisco Wedding: Dolores Park, the Mission District and Civic Center

Styling a faux wedding is always a fun adventure! From developing the concept to bringing all the elements together into one cohesive story, it is such a creative process. For our Mission photo shoot, the vision and design stemmed from a real-life couple, Tina and Travis, who just got married in San Francisco this past July. While their actual wedding was a bit different from the shoot, we were excited to collaborate and find ways to incorporate elements of their real wedding plans into our storyline 

As residents of San Francisco’s vibrant Mission District, it was a no-brainer for the team to focus the shoot around key landmarks in this bustling neighborhood. Dolores Park is an integral part of the Mission landscape and where the couple spends a lot of time hanging out with their friends. It was also the perfect setting for a picnic feast of delicious food prepared by Chef Stephanie. The meal was a combination of seasonal favorites including quinoa tabouli with English cucumbers and cherry tomatoes, minted red beets with goat cheese and herb roasted chicken with artichoke heart pesto. And while we couldn’t bring the Ojai Ice Cream shop into the Mission, we had the next best thing - ice cream sundaes from Bi-Rite Creamery. Yum!

 

 

Tina and Travis are avid cyclists and first met through the Mission Cycling Club on a bike trip through the town of Ojai. For their actual wedding, they chose light blue and tangerine as their colors to honor the “Mission blue” of their cycling club and also the renowned “Ojai orange”, which also happens to be the flavor of ice cream Travis enjoyed on that first bike ride together. Madeline wove these two colors into their floral design, as well as those adorable Toms shoes that Tina and Travis were sporting. We’re all big fans of the magical blend of comfort, style, and social responsibility that Tom’s shoes bring to the fashion industry! 

 

 

 

Adele Weschler provided us with a stunning dress from her eco-conscious collection of bridal gowns. In keeping with Tina’s personal style, we chose something that was sporty and fun, the kind of dress where a bride could say her vows and then hop right on to her 10-speed for an epic ride with her new hubby. Travis got to have a test run of the suit he’ll be wearing this month when he says “I do”.

 

And while most of the day’s shoot was a step or two from their real wedding plans, it was a fun adventure for our lovely couple. We chatted with the couple after the photo shoot and both of them remarked on how the shoot was a fun way for them to step outside of their comfort zones and have a little bit of role-playing for the day. 

 

We wrapped up our shoot where they’ll begin this next stage of their lives together - at San Francisco’s City Hall. It’s a landmark in this gorgeous city of ours and provided a stately backdrop to the fun and playful day we’d built as well as a nod to their real wedding plans. 

The highlights of the shoot? Working with a couple who are in love with one another and their home turf and being able to capture that essence in a perfect, sunny day in the neighborhood.

Locally Grown Weddings Members:

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: Dolores Park, the Mission District and Civic Center, San Francisco.

Locally Grown Weddings Partners:

Jewelry: D&H Sustainable Jewelers

Guest Vendors:

Invitations: Cherish

Hair: Chava Nieto

A Special Thank You to Adele Wechsler for lending us a gorgeous dress from her Eco Couture Collection. And to Toms for lending us shoes from their Wedding Collection.