A French Garden Party Wedding at Harper’s Rest Winery

Carlie and Aaron knew exactly how they wanted their Harper’s Rest Winery wedding to feel…

“We wanted it to be a party. We wanted the guests to come away saying they had a fun experience, not ‘it was a lovely or nice wedding.’ French Garden party was the aesthetic inspiration, but we also wanted there to be super fun aspects.” YES.

They chose Harper’s Rest Winery in Healdsburg because they loved the nature and scenery of California Wine Country and wanted to let the venue do a lot of the talking. Their original vision was beautifully simple: “We think Winery is beautiful and want to capitalize on that natural beauty. In general we do not prefer a lot of fussiness so more minimalist. We like to travel, eat great food, and have fun.”

The result was this gorgeous mix of relaxed French garden party and really, really good party. A ceremony tucked beneath the oak trees overlooking the vines, colorful flowers, caviar and tequila at cocktail hour, dinner outside, disco balls floating over the dance floor and, instead of cutting a cake, a CHAMPAGNE SABER 🥂

It won’t hurt our feelings if you scroll to the end to see that epic reception moment!

What Is a Wedding at Harper’s Rest Winery Like?

Harper’s Rest is one of those venues where you really don’t need to compete with the surroundings. The 36-acre estate sits in the Russian River Valley, with vineyards, huge oak trees and several different outdoor spaces woven throughout the property.

For Carlie and Aaron, that natural setting was a huge part of choosing it.

Their ceremony took place beneath the trees with rows of vines stretching behind them. Even the ceremony florals were designed with the setting, and what would happen after the wedding, in mind.

“My mom did a lot of research to find the perfect vases and flowers for the ceremony ‘altar.’ They were live plants so that we could repurpose them in family member backyards after the wedding.”

GAHHH. We love a detail that is beautiful AND gets to have another life afterward.

The ceremony music was just as personal. Their wedding party entered to an acoustic version of “Better Not” by Louis the Child, a song connected to seeing the band together at Coachella, which Carlie said was “the weekend Aaron knew he loved me.”

Aaron and his parents walked down the aisle to “Hermoso Cariño,” which he chose in Spanish to represent his Latin heritage.

“As a Swiftie, I walked down the aisle to Mary’s Song, it was a niche choice, but I love her first album.”

There’s a reason our couples say, “That felt easy!”… peek behind the scenes to see why.

How Do You Plan a Colorful Wedding Without Making It Feel Too Busy?

This is such a good example of letting a venue guide the design rather than covering every inch of it in decor.

“Aaron is drawn to traditional neutrals, but I wanted to add in some pops of color. We stuck to neutrals for table cloths and dinnerware, but I snuck in color with our napkins and florals.”

Vanda Floral Design brought in orange, coral, blue, white and soft pink, while all that green from the surrounding vines and trees became part of the palette naturally.

“Vanda put together the perfect floral arrangements that included both neutrals and pops of orange, coral, and blue.”

Carlie’s parents even DIYed the seating chart themselves, and planner Ali DiLuvio had one more surprise waiting overhead.

“Ali heard my love of disco balls and surprised us with a plan to incorporate them above the dance floor.”

Greenery, string lights and disco balls suspended over an outdoor Wine Country dance floor… YES PLEASE.

This is also exactly why we love natural wedding photography in a setting like Harper’s Rest. Instead of manufacturing a backdrop, we can work with what’s already there: gorgeous light filtering through the trees, vineyard rows, movement, color and all the little things the couple chose because they actually mean something to them.

Get lost in these dreamy weddings

How Can You Make Your Wedding Food Feel Like Part of the Experience?

If there was one place Carlie and Aaron were absolutely NOT interested in playing it safe, it was the food.

“We love food and enjoy exploring new restaurants. We wanted our guests to have a full culinary experience, so a local legend like The Girl and the Fig (and their cookies) was a natural choice.”

And cocktail hour was not just cocktails.

“We were so excited to hear that the venue got the permit to allow for a full bar, because as much as we love wine, we also love tequila. Caviar is one of our favorite special occasion splurge items, so had to incorporate it into the day.”

Which led to possibly one of our favorite cocktail-hour ideas ever: caviar bumps + tequila.

“It was epic to have a big tin of caviar that we could take bumps of together.”

This is also such a good example of making a wedding feel personal without needing a million decorative details. Their personalities came through in what their guests actually experienced.

And for dessert, there was a gelato cart waiting. Because obviously.

How Do You Get Candid Wedding Photos That Actually Feel Like the Party?

Carlie and Aaron’s favorite memories weren’t elaborate photo setups. They were the things happening around them.

“We had the best time on the dance floor surrounded by our friends. I got up on a chair and orchestrated everyone singing along to ‘Sweet Caroline’ towards the end of the night.”

This is where candid wedding photography and documentary-style wedding photography really shine. We’ll guide you into gorgeous light for those vineyard portraits and help you when you need direction, but once Carlie is standing on a chair conducting a room full of people screaming Sweet Caroline… our job is to WATCH. 😂

And their quieter moments mattered just as much.

“The moments leading up to the first look and walk down the aisle were emotional.”

That combination is what we always want the full gallery to feel like. The gorgeous California light, the beautiful portraits, the carefully chosen details… but also the nerves before seeing each other, caviar bumps at cocktail hour, champagne flying from a saber and the completely unplanned expressions that happen when everyone forgets about the cameras.

For two people who told us they wanted guests to leave saying that was FUN, I’d say mission very much accomplished.

Getting married in Wine Country? We’d love to capture it for you! Check our availability here.

Do You Have to Cut a Wedding Cake?

Absolutely not, and Carlie and Aaron came up with something WAY more them.

“We considered the champagne saber to be in lieu of a cake cutting. Aaron doesn’t really like cake but loves wine, so this felt more ‘us’.”

After slipping away for sunset portraits among the vineyards, they returned to the reception, sabered the bottle together and officially kicked the party back into gear.

They even had a custom saber engraved with their wedding date, which now lives above their wine fridge at home.

And this was not an activity they were willing to attempt for the first time in front of everybody.

“His first time sabering was after our first look at the pavilion, figured we should get a practice run in.” 😂

Wondering how we go from “we’re so awkward” to “these are our favorite photos ever”? Let us show you.

Should You Change Into a Second Wedding Dress for the Reception?

Carlie’s two dresses were basically the fashion version of the entire wedding… “I love sequins and sparkles, but I picked a clean white dress as a better reflection of the beauty of the venue.”

But once dinner was over and the dance floor started calling, Carlie changed into a short white reception dress covered in lace and sparkle.

“I changed into the short white dress with some lace and sequins to have more movement as the dance party heated up!”

Your Healdsburg Wedding Photographer

Whether you’re planning a garden-party wedding at Harper’s Rest Winery too, or celebrating at another gorgeous Sonoma or Napa wedding venue, we’d love to capture your day!

After 15+ years photographing weddings throughout California, our approach is all about giving you enough direction to feel confident while leaving plenty of room for the real stuff to happen. The giant laughs. The emotional parents. The slightly chaotic dance floor. The champagne saber you practiced exactly once. 😂

We blend candid wedding photography with beautiful, natural portraits so that your photos don’t just show what everything looked like, they bring you right back to what it actually felt like.

Check out some of our other California weddings to get inspired, then reach out to us to check availability and tell us all about what you’re planning!

Carlie + Aaron’s Healdsburg Wedding Pros

Venue: Harper’s Rest Winery
Planning + Coordination: Ali DiLuvio Events
Wedding Photographer: onelove photography
Florals: Vanda Floral Design
Catering: the girl & the fig CATERS!
Rentals: Bright Event Rentals
Hair + Makeup: Contour Bridal
DJ: AMS Entertainment