Looking through this STUNNER of a wedding, you might not guess that this was in fact a pre-covid fete! In fact, this intimate 15 person luxe wedding was from back in 2019, before “micro wedding” was even a term. Jaclyn & Yong decided they didn’t want to compromise their style for a big guest list, and so set out to have a wedding that was worthy of their “champagne tastes”. 13 of their immediate family members flew up with them from Chicago to Victoria back in August 2019, and they proceeded to have the most incredible weekend. Set at The View Luxury Property, all the guests stayed on site, and had a long weekend of non stop food, pool time, sunshine, and oh yeah…an epic wedding. It was such a pleasure getting to work with this fun loving and sweet couple, and to bring their vision to life. They gave me (and all their vendors) their full trust, and if you ask me, that’s what always makes for exceptional results. A few of my favourite details?

- The Grooms brother, a world famous cellist, who played them down the aisle

- The 5 course epic meal that Toque Catering created, that basically touched on all their favourite food memories

- The ceremony florals….DROOL worthy!

- When Yong sat down at the piano and surprised everyone with an incredible rendition of “Everlasting Love”

So yeah…it was a pretty great day. Please enjoy these gorgeous photos taken by the incredibly talented Natasha for Myrtle & Moss Photography and thank you again J&Y for having me part of this day!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible ! All photos courtesy of the very talented Natasha for Myrtle & Moss Photography

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Wild Oak Collective for Myrtle and Moss Photography
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - Ingrid Rose Floral Artistry
Venue - The View
Cake - Ruth & Dean
Hair - Heartwood & Co
Makeup - Melanie Baird
Stationery - Emma Allen Design
Rentals - Tabletop Curated Rentals, Faire la Fete, Bash Specialty & Rock Paper Square

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

This was the garden party of my dreams you guys. There. I said it. I think after scrolling through the beautiful photos by Vanessa Lust, you’ll get it. It was truly SUCH an honour to get to plan this 25th wedding anniversary party for some very special clients of mine 2 summers back! It was hosted at their family home, and was a gathering of all the most important people in their lives. Old family friends from the early days, colleagues, friends new and old, and of course, their children. The day kicked off with a vow renewal of sorts (that had everyone, including myself both in stitches and tears), and finished with cocktails under the stars. The food. The music. The flowers. It was all utter perfection!

When planning the design, our clients really wanted to create a space that felt effortless and as though it was just “thrown” together. A blend of french & english influence wove through everything we did, and the food was a farm to table feast! We incorporated vintage china that felt like old family heirlooms and the floral arrangements were created with blooms that are also found in their beautiful garden. Bistro lights were strung, a bar was brought in…what more do you need! It was such a special anniversary, and a big thank you to our clients for entrusting me with your vision!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible ! All photos courtesy of the very talented Vanessa Lust Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Vanessa Lust Photography
Catering - Toque Catering
Bar Service - Lavish Liquid
Floral Design - Ingrid Rose
Music - Eryn Sharpe Trio
Rentals - Trend Decor, Mesa Rentals & Faire la Fete
Lounge - Bash Specialty

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

As I continue to make my way through the past weddings archive, I can’t believe I hadn’t shared this one yet! It was a day filled with some of my favourite people, at a beautiful spot, and I had the honour of being both planner & guest! Kaylee & Shawn are good friends of ours, and getting to help them plan their dream wedding was such. a. TREAT!

Both born and raised on the Island, they wanted a venue that felt like an escape but that was still easily accessible to all of their friends & family. The gorgeous Birds Eye Cove Farm was the perfect spot for them, and I absolutely loved creating an intimate and relaxed space there for them. Modern boho details (perfectly them) were present throughout all the design, starting with natural grasses, succulents and clean typography. Cozy lounges, fun cocktails, and delicious food (shout out to Toque!) kept guests mingling all day and night. And the music. Oh the music. Noah Edwards (the acoustic king of Victoria) played non-stop from the ceremony to first dance, keeping the vibe perfectly chill and romantic. The best part of the day though? Getting to see these guys get married. I love them and both their families so much, and it was honestly just such a privilege to get to be there!

As with my last blog post, I’m going to leave it at that. The stunning photos from our friends AMERIS tell the day perfectly, and you can literally feel the happiness from both Kaylee & Shawn in these photos. Enjoy!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible ! All photos courtesy of the power duo, AMERIS.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - AMERIS
Venue - Birds Eye Cove Farm
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - Cartref Gardens
Paper Goods - French Kiss Events
Music - Noah Edwards Music
Cake - Ruth & Dean
Hair - Curls by Kimberly
Makeup - Melanie Baird
Lounge Furniture - Bash Specialty
Linens - Faire la Fete

Brittany & Mike’s multi-day wedding weekend took place 2 years ago (blogging back log is real right now guys lol!) and is hands down one of the most memorable weddings I’ve had the honour of being part of. 3 days of events. 250 guests. 2 weddings. 2 amazing families. And oh yeah…a surprise performance by one of my long time favourite musicians (anyone else’s parents bring them to a Colin James concert and have it be instant music love?).

Brittany & Mike met at UVic years before, and wanted to return to Victoria (Mike’s hometown) for their wedding. I am so so glad that they did! We were brought on to be part of the western ceremony & fusion reception, taking place on the final day of the weekend. The palette was fresh summer, and the entire day was overflowing with flowers (hello flower chandelier!!). And after 2 days of ceremonies already, everyone brought their A-game to Sunday. It all came together with a huge party, filled with love, music & soooo much good food. I could honestly talk about this wedding for hours, but I’m not going to. The photos & videos tell the story so much better than I every could. Thank you so so much Brittany & Mike for having me be part of this incredible day!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible ! All photos courtesy of the genius, Erin Wallis Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Memento Films
Floral Design - Rook & Rose
Ceremony venue - Starling Lane Vineyards
Ceremony catering - Toque Catering
Reception venue - Victoria Conference Centre
Reception catering - The Fairmont Empress
Cake - The Fairmont Empress
Drapery - Decorate Victoria
Linens - Faire la Fete
Furniture rentals - Bash Specialty
Photo booth - Four Frames Photo Booth
Makeup - Melanie Baird
Hair - Travis Mercer, Hunt & Gather

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

If you look closely enough on the first photo below, you’ll see that this lovely couple just celebrated their 2nd wedding anniversary (happy anniversary you guys!!!). Yup. I'm that far behind in blogging. Oh well! Nothing like a pandemic to get caught up, right?! lol! As things have been rapidly changing these past few weeks though, I have been thinking a lot about what this year will look like for weddings. We all know that things are going to be looking small (elopement anyone?), and there have been a handful of incredibly special weddings over the past decade with FKE that fit this bill. Madeline & Ben are exactly that, and for this reason, I thought that they would be the perfect wedding to share right now!

How to start…oh man guys…this was a GOOD one! It had literally everything. An intimate legal ceremony with just the parents (which ended up probably being the most emotional part of the day), a really special personalized ceremony in front of their closest family & friends, followed by an EPIC brunch (should out to Toque). In the evening, 100 guests took over the large private property, and they celebrated late into the night. And the palette.… oh man! Can we talk about drama?!!! The couple loves all things art nouveau, which we used as a jumping off point for inspiration. The florals, textiles, gold foil, custom invitation… just to name a few. The whole thing was absolutely incredible, and I feel like my words just don’t do it justice. So, I hope you have some time to scroll through the beautiful photos below (thanks Berkley) and start dreaming of how incredible an intimate ceremony & celebration can be (then of course, with a kick ass party to follow!!!).

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible ! All photos courtesy of Berkley Voonfjörd.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Berkley Voonfjörd
Venue - The View
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - Thorn & Thistle
Linens - Faire la Fete
Cake - Passion for Cakes
Pies - Ruth & Dean
Stationery - Emma Allen Design
Invitation Art - Margaret Hansen
Furniture Rentals - Bash Specialty

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

Happy New Year everyone! What a blur the holidays were, eh?! We spent lots of time with family and friends relaxing, and may have overindulged once (or twice) on some delicious wine and savoury treats… but that’s what the holidays are for, right?! I’m currently working on my annual end of year blog post, which should be live next week (stay tuned), but I wanted to kick the new year off with a very happy, bright and fresh wedding from Summer 2017! I did a MAJOR happy dance on Christmas Eve when it was published over on Wedding Chicks (check it out here!), and just loved getting to relive this day through the images below.

Sabrina & Dylan’s wedding took place in the middle of August, at the gorgeous Affinity Guesthouse property. And guys. This wedding was so. much. fun! I can’t remember ever seeing a Bride so relaxed and ready to party on her wedding day! Both Sabrina & Dylan had a smile from ear to ear all day long, and the entire wedding was filled with so many heartwarming moments. Planning began about a year and half in advance (it is never too early to start planning everyone!) , and their main goal was to throw the biggest party of the summer. Mission accomplished. Through the cheerful palette, lawn games, insane boho lounge, family style feast (thanks Toque Catering!) and The County Line band, guests felt comfortable and “at home” all day long. The Bride, who has a very bohemian style, wanted to make sure that her personal style was infused throughout the elegant setting. Moroccan lanterns and persian rugs lined the ceremony aisle, and the couple shared their vows on a Moroccan wedding blanket. We fully raped the tent and added twinkle lights above. Bright and happy florals, designed by FLEURtacious, lined the 4 long-long tables, and fresh lavender was placed on each place setting.

One of the most fun moments of the night happened right before the band took over: Sabrina surprised Dylan by switching her wedding skirt for a full tiered skirt. It was PERFECT for the dance floor, so definitely make sure to check out those photos below as well! This was just such a fun day filled with so much joy, and I am so grateful to have had a chance to work with this lovely couple!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Blush Wedding Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Blush Photography
Venue - Affinity Guesthouse
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - FLEURtacious
Band - The County Line
Decor rentals - Trend Decor
Lounge - Bash Specialty
Tent & rentals - Black & White
Stationery - Emma Allen
Makeup - Melanie Baird

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

I often find myself stumped for ways to start these posts, as I worry that I come off repetitive. I seem to always be saying how special the wedding was, how gorgeously it all came together etc. etc. But the truth is, EVERY wedding I am a part of is special! One of the things I love most about doing what I do, and the boutique nature of FKE, is that I get to know my couples so intimately. So by the time of the wedding, I usually feel like one of the family (you know…like that second cousin you only see at really important events, but knows how to boss everyone around when the time is right haha!). It makes me fall head over heels in love with my job every.single.time., and is the reason why every wedding is so incredible to me! But this one guys…this one you can feel it in the photos (thanks to the genius of Taylor Roades). The day was filled with so much laughter and joy, and a whole lotta love.

When I first met Alexei & Bob, I instantly fell in love and knew I had to work with them (thanks guys for hiring me!). Their love for each other was obvious from the first second, but they also were hilarious, talked about a mile a minute, and knew exactly what they wanted. Alexei is originally from France, and Bob is from the Praries. They met in Quebec while both at school, and the rest is history as they say. The coming together of their 2 families was at the core of this very authentic, relaxed and elegant al fresco soiree.

The design was inspired by the gorgeous gardens of The English Inn and its classic tudor building, and we made sure to keep a masculine undertone and “harmonious chaos” throughout. We designed all the spaces to flow naturally from one into another, and the unique palette of purples, greys & oranges mixed together with organic elements, helped to keep the spaces feeling perfectly unkept.

But what this wedding was really all about (other than the couple…doh!) was the food. Oh the food. It was non stop flowing all throughout the night, and Toque Catering absolutely hit this one out of the park. The family style feast, set at those 2 gorgeous long tables, combined both the Parisian and Prairie influences. Picture a meal that is never ending, with platters of charcuterie, gourmet cheeses, farm fresh veggies & flavourful mains. Guests drank copious amounts of wine, shared lots of stories and partied the night away. It was perfection. But if you don’t believe me, scroll through the photos to see for yourself. xo

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Taylor Roades Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Taylor Roades Photography
Venue - The English Inn
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - Verbena Floral Design
Cakes - Ruth & Dean
Garden Duo - Simone & The Good Intentions
Band - The New Souls
Lounge Furniture - Bash Specialty
Tent & Rentals - Black & White Event Rentals, Pedersens, Party Mood
Beauty - Karley Reynolds & Cristina Woods

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

Let's talk about the importance of having a really, truly, fun wedding, shall we?  That was the goal from the start for Betsy & Ryan, and we had a blast doing so!  Now don't get me wrong...we also set out to have a gorgeous wedding filled with metallics, geometric splashes, and a whole lotta marble; all of which we also totally succeeded at, if I do say so myself.  Set at the gorgeous Affinity Guesthouse property (one of my favs!), the couple, their family and close friends, spent the day playing games, eating delicious food (thanks Toque!), dancing the night away, and even singing a song (or 2).  It was perfect.  

We were also completely tickled to see that Wedding Bells loved this wedding as much as we did, and featured it back in May.  You can check it all out here!.  And so, without further adieu, here is Betsy & Ryan.  aka: #finallylynch.

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Amee Nijjar Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Amee Nijjar Photography
Videography - Kismet Creative
Venue - Affinity Guesthouse
Caterer - Toque Catering
Florals - Verbena Floral Design and Thorn & Thistle
Lounge - Bash Specialty
Linens - Faire la Fete
DJ - DJ Pro
Hair - Hairpins
Makeup - Artistry by Alexa
 

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

To say that I loved working with this couple, would be the understatement of the year.  I first met Emilie at Kelsey & Colin's wedding, back in 2015, and was so flattered when she reached out to me about her own wedding the next year!  We hit it off right away, and thus began such a fun planning year!  And to add the cherry on top of an already great day, their wedding was recently featured on Rocky Mountain Bride! 

Taking place on Greg's parents property, their wedding was as true family celebration!  The couple, who split their time between Russia (where Greg plays professional hockey) and Canada, couldn’t wait to throw a celebration back home with all their closest friends and family, hailing from all around the world.  Food from around the globe was served up (thanks Toque!), a nod to the couples travels and eccentric palette. Think fish taco's, thai salads & tandori prawns...  We filled the rest of the day with all of their favourite things: ice cream, great music, indigo details and tropical plants.  The drinks flowed, the band rocked all night long, and the couple couldn’t stop grinning ear to ear. It was just the perfect day!

So, without further adieu, Emilie & Greg!

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Katrina Massey Photography.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Katrina Massey
Catering - Toque Catering
Florals - Cartref Gardens
Beauty - Heartwood & Co.
Band - The Broken Strings
Furniture - Bash Specialty

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48

We're diving a bit into the archives today, but I couldn't resist blogging this charming soiree from back in September 2016!  And to be honest, I'm not sure why I haven't shared it already! Where does the time go?! lol!  This wedding was filled with a ton of my favourite things: gorgeous outdoor spaces, a fantastic band, intimate candlelight, and a group of people that are filled with a whole lotta love!  

The day was filled with vintage touches, lots of music and a ton of fun!  We drew inspiration from both the prohibition jazz age and British post-war garden parties (a combo of both Tara & Matt's personal styles!), and created the perfect atmosphere to celebrate the couples new marriage!  Taking many cues from the garden setting at Starling Lane, the games, decor and food was a modern take on a vintage garden party.  And the music and drinks, featured all night long, had a fun throw back to the prohibition days! Our light and fresh colour palette of peach, apricot, blush & grey was tied throughout both Starling Lane and Fireside Grill, and the formal components found in Britain during the 20’s will be highlighted through the vintage place settings and elegant paper goods. 

And as always, so many vendors came together, to make the day as truly spectacular as it was!  It was our first time working with the fantastic husband/wife duo, Sambajoy, and they are as awesome as they are talented!  The band, Good Co. Music, came up from Seattle, and treated everyone to true jazz age entertainment.  And the food....oh the food...both Toque Catering & Fireside Grill hit it out of the park on this one!  Thank you, Tara & Matt, for having us be a part of your truly fun day!  And I hope that you all enjoy the photos below.  xo 

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Sambajoy.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Sambajoy
Florals - Thorn & Thistle
Ceremony Venue - Starling Lane Winery
Cocktail Reception Catering - Toque Catering
Reception Venue - Fireside Grill
Band - Good Co.
Makeup - Melanie Baird
Hair - Mandy Rogers, Hunt & Gather
Cake - Ruth & Dean
Invitations - Minted

• FKE Featured 24
• FKE Living 7
• Office Talk 55
• Planning Tips 13
• Real Weddings 48