Hawaiian traditional winery wedding 

Matt and Scott’s love story began in New York, even though Matt’s from Hawaii and Scott’s from the Bay Area in California. Matt, a detail-oriented periodontist, couldn’t be more different than Scott, an art history lover. They came together with close friends and family for a picturesque winery wedding. The love, sunlight and rosé were endless. Matt and Scott incorporated Hawaiian traditions and a wine lover’s winery backdrop. The wedding was familiar, yet unique—one that can be inspirational to future couples.

Tell us about your wedding! What was the inspiration behind your day? Did you have a specific theme, style or color palette? Did you incorporate any cultural or religious traditions in any part of your day?

Scott: For us, our wedding was not about a specific theme or style, it was about capturing a feeling. We wanted the entire wedding to be a celebration of love and we wanted that feeling to be felt by everyone in attendance. Coming into the wedding we wanted the ceremony to be heartfelt, honest, full of love and we wanted the reception to be filled with amazing food, great wine and as much dancing as possible. My husband Matthew was raised in Hawaii so we chose to incorporate a lei exchange as part of our ceremony. Instead of the typical lei necklaces, we used hau-leis (flower crowns).

Let’s talk wedding decor. How did you decorate your space for the ceremony and the reception? Was any part of the decor DIY?

Viansa Winery in Sanoma, California, is the most beautiful venue with amazing views of the surrounding vineyards and landscapes. We did not need an overabundance of decorations since there was already so much natural beauty. We love Sonoma and wanted the wine country feel to be a central theme. We chose simple, rustic table settings and paired it with beautiful jewel-toned flower arrangements by Daisy Rose Floral Design. To create a comfortable, welcoming environment we had festival lighting installed in a zig-zag pattern in the reception hall.

What were the florals like in your wedding? Did you use flowers in any of your design elements like the bridal bouquets, centerpieces or ceremony backdrop? Did they play an important part in the overall style of your wedding?

We wanted the florals for the wedding to be representative of wine country.  We wanted something that looked very local, natural and organic in shape, color, and arrangement. We had all of our pieces done by Daisy Rose Floral Designs—boutinierres, corsages, groomsmaid bouquets, Haku leis, centerpieces, aisle and bar arrangements. Because we do not live in Sonoma we did not get a chance to see any of the arrangements before the wedding and were a little nervous about it. But Daisy Rose exceeded our expectations and took our ideas and made them even better than what we could have imagined. Everyone at the wedding talked about how much they loved the arrangements and that it tied everything together.

Did you personalize the day in any way (food trucks, guest entertainment etc.)? What were some of your favorite parts of your wedding?

One of the more important aspects of the wedding for us was the food. We love food and so do our family and friends. We wanted the caterer to be representative of the type of food that we love. Whenever we are in Sonoma, we love farm-to-table and seasonal food at restaurants. For us, the girl and the fig was the best choice we could have made to tick all of those boxes.

Their menu was amazing and we loved that they also had an option for wood-fired oven pizzas for a late night snack. Another aspect of the wedding that we wanted to highlight was the dancing. AMS entertainment gave us the ability to customize our playlist for the wedding and it made all of the difference. We wanted everyone to dance the night away and that’s exactly what happened. We also gave out personalized wine openers as gifts.

Let’s talk fashion. How did you both choose your wedding day look? Describe the looks in detail.

Our wedding planner, Claire at WedWell, put us into contact with Black Lapel for our custom suits. Working with Black Lapel was fun, easy and affordable; we were able to work one-on-one with a consultant to custom design every element of our suits so they would be absolutely perfect for our wedding day. We wanted to wear suits that fit our own personal style so I went with a more traditional navy suit and Matthew wore a burgundy suit. We wore bow ties from Tie the Knot, which were not only very handsome looking but also each purchase raises money for LGBTQ+ issues in the United States. For our groom’s, maids we chose two beautifully beaded dresses in fog from the BHLDN collection and our groom’s men rented light grey suits from Black Tux.

How did you meet? Tell us about the proposal.

We first met for an afternoon coffee date but coffee lasted hours and turned into dinner which turned into an evening walk: from day one we couldn’t get enough of each other! We were fortunate to fall in love in New York City, the greatest city in the world. With NYC as our playground, together we made a home, wonderful memories and everlasting friendships. Like all great New York love stories, Central Park plays a key role.

On February 18, 2017, a beautiful— it can’t be stressed enough how sunny, warm and absolutely perfect that day was—I convinced Matty to go on a walk through Central Park. On a rustic, wooden bench near The Lake we sat down and I told Matty I loved him (really loved him) and asked him to marry me. Though completely surprised and shocked, Matty happily said yes! We celebrated that night with dinner at Del Posto.

What was the most anticipated or special moment of your wedding day?

We chose to write our own vows for the ceremony and it was something that we both were very anxious about but turned out to be one of the most special parts of the wedding. We both were so excited to have our families and closest friends in one place to celebrate love. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to get people from every period of our lives to come together to eat, drink, dance and celebrate! I remember standing on the dance floor and looking around me and feeling surrounded by such love and happiness; it is something I will never forget!

Do you have any wedding planning or marriage advice that you’d like to share with other couples planning their day?

Most importantly get wedding planners and vendors you like and trust! Working with Claire at WedWell and Teina at Milestone Events Group took all the stress out of the planning process, making it the most relaxed and fun experience. We also trusted our vendors to make the best decisions, instead of micromanaging we gave general opinions about what we were looking for and trusted them fully to carry out our wishes. Daisy Rose Floral Design, Girl and the Fig Caterers and Mariah Smith Photography went above and beyond our expectations and created the best day of our lives. And last, remember to have fun, enjoy yourself and soak up the love!

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Photographer: Mariah Smith Photography

Event Planner: WedWell

Day-Of Coordinator: Milestone Events Group

Caterer: The girl & the fig

Floral Designer: Daisy Rose Floral Design

Reception Venue: Viansa Winery

Suits: Black Lapel