• Real Weddings

You may recognize our next couple Megan and Sean, from Lifetime's Marrying Millions. A reality docuseries that explores whether love and happiness can genuinely exist between the super-rich and us regular folk. In Megan and Sean's story, the answer is "Yes!" The two tied the knot in Malibu, California, at a private estate. 

The entire wedding was planned in less than 7 days. Yes, you read that correctly, their wedding was planned in less than a week by Magnolia Event Design and Planning.

This ultra-glamorous summertime wedding had everything you'd expect a luxury wedding to have- stunning florals, custom dance floor, and a celebrity singer to serenade them at their first dance. The day was truly spectacular! 

Keep scrolling to hear the entire story from Magnolia Event Design and Planning. Owner, Lindsey shares behind the scenes details on how their dream wedding day became a reality. You can view all the photos taken by Michelle Beller in the full gallery here.

You need to watch the entire wedding film taken by Starvo Video Productions. You can see all the gorgeous wedding details up close.

https://youtu.be/bawWrKFocmw

PLanning A Quick Wedding

From  Magnolia Event Design and Planning - Sean and Megan called me after hours on June 30th. We were just walking out the door to dinner and for some reason I answered the phone. Megan and Sean were both on the line. They asked if I was available on July 7th and said they had been referred to me by a hotel I work at often in Santa Barbara. My first question was, July 7, 2020 or 2019? They confirmed 2019, which by my calculations was a week away, but there was a holiday during the week- time was ticking.

After chatting and connecting Megan and Sean told me what they would love their guests to experience and feel on the big day, colors they were leaning towards and a few other items- Megan is a strict vegan, so she wanted both an all vegan menu and a vegan wedding cake. 

They hadn't secured a venue, she didn't have a dress and time was not totally on our side. They loved a venue in Santa Barbara, but the filming logistics were going to be a bit tough given the short amount of time we had- right then and there, as much as we both loved their original venue we knew we would have to find one that was open to filming for TV and could sign off on the paperwork asap. Luckily being a reality junkie we had both seen the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills episode where Denise Richards gets married in Malibu. It was filmed for TV and seemed like it might be the perfect spot!

Finding A Dream Vendor Team

After we hung up the phone and on the way to dinner I texted my dream vendor team. I have sprung a lot of crazy ideas and last minute events on them, but nothing quite like this. I asked if they were free- luckily being a Sunday wedding everyone was!

I then added everyone to Aisle Planner- the software we use in house and began designing the wedding. The team could see everything in real time and Megan and Sean, as part of our agreement, were to be available and to make decisions quickly. We (Megan, Sean and I) would text hundreds of times a day. We would conference call and power plan and true to their word- they made decisions quickly!

Everything else just continued to fall into place- from the perfect musicians- hip hop violin for ceremony and cocktails, Pia Toscana for first dance and grand entrance and Elite Disc Jockeys for the rest of the evening, magical mood lighting from Bella Vista Designs, the tastiest all vegan menu designed by Serves you Right Catering, which left guests asking- "is mine vegan too?", a custom dance floor and wine bottle escort cards with a logo I had designed for the couple a few days into planning, gorgeous linens by BBJ, florals by Rockrose Floral that stunned everyone, Michelle Beller photography capturing all the details perfectly and a wonderful valet team that handled all of the PCH logistics.

I think if I had to sum it up- I am a very very lucky lady to have such an amazing team of event professionals to be able to call/text at any hour and for them to be so willing to jump head in with me into planning someone's most important day.

I have done planning for 18 years now and my best advice is to have a team that you can count on. Have a team that you love working with and it won't feel like work and when the event is over and you have photos and videos to look back on, make sure the team is by your side celebrating with you the success of another wedding. My team and I work well together because we communicate openly and clearly and we are always team players. I think with a vendor team like the one we had for Megan and Sean's wedding anything would have been possible, because we were all in it together and to see each other succeed.

Intimate Ceremony Set up

We created an intimate ceremony filled with roses and a chandelier- bride's must-have. We decided musical components around their style and taste- Josh Vietti a hip hop violinist for ceremony and cocktail hour and American Idol alum Pia Toscano for their special dances. They also had Elite Disc Jockeys to play music the rest of the night. Guest received a custom bottle of rosé as their place card to guide them to their seats.

It was magical to be able to feel the ocean breeze and hear the waves crashing below as guests dined with a ceiling of bistro lights and stars overhead.

Biggest Challenge Of  Planning A Wedding So Quickly

I think the biggest challenge was finding a wedding dress, she ended up wearing a  Winnie Couture wedding gown. It was also difficult getting the roses we needed in time before the holiday, so the floral designer could process them and begin creating the event decor.

We had thousands of roses in a pale blush- Megan's color of choice. Megan had seen a chair installation we had done for a previous wedding and loved it and asked us to recreate for her guests. 

Each chair had a pashmina with a rhinestone broach, which would also act as a favor so guests could stay warm as the ocean air rolled in during the evening. While it sounds like a simple installation it is really rather labor-intensive and we brought in a team to just manage the chair decor. You can see the chairs above with the Pashminas.

Hip Hop Violinist

Hip hop violinist,  Josh Vietti plays at the wedding ceremony. Josh is named one of Los Angeles' Best Breakout Music Acts of 2012 by CBS Los Angeles for his unique talent and contributions to music education. Click here to hear a sample of his music. 

Instagram Wedding Film

  Watch the Instagram wedding film  from  Starvo Video Production. 

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Custom Dance Floor

 had the couple's custom monogram added to the dance floor. You will also see that the design was incorporated into the labels that were hung on the mini bottles of rosé  used as escort cards/wedding favors. 

Custom Bottles of Rose

Guest received a custom bottle of rosé as their place card to guide them to their seats from Taste It. As you can see, the same monogram was used throughout. 

American Idol Singer

American Idol alum Pia Toscano performed for their special dances. You can hear Pia sing here. 

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• Cakes & Catering: Serves You Right Catering
• Cakes & Catering: Fantasy Frostings
• DJs: Elite Disc Jockeys
• Event Planning & Design: Magnolia Event Design and Planning
• Favors & Gifts: Taste It Wines
• Flowers: Rockrose Floral
• Hair, Makeup & Beauty: Team Hair & Makeup
• Lighting, Entertainment & Photo Booth: Bella Vista Designs
• Photographers: Michelle Beller
• Rentals: RCD Dance Floors
• Rentals: Bright
• Rentals: BBJ
• Singer: PIA TOSCANO
• Travel & Transportation: Blue Star Parking
• Venues: Cypress Sea Cove
• Violinist: Josh Vietti
• Wedding Dresses: Winnie Couture
• Wedding Films: Starvo Video Productions