Real Weddings: Lubena & Mustafa
Once upon a time, Lubena and Mustafa met through mutual friends in San Diego. Unfortunately, soon after they met Mustafa had to move to the Bay Area, but they still kept in touch. Fast forward three years, Lubena was in for a magical surprise. Mustafa drove down to visit Lubena again in San Diego, and while they were having a nice walk in Del Mar Beach, Lubena noticed a beautiful sitting area under a canopy. Little did she know, Mustafa had set the whole thing up just for her. They spent a romantic evening under that canopy which ended with a very important question to which Lubena answered ‘yes’!
Before the wedding, Lubena felt a little stressed about all the details to keep track of for her various events. She almost couldn’t believe she was planning her own wedding. She met So Cal Event Planners at another event and they proved extremely helpful and very friendly. There were many months of planning. Slowly but surely the big day was coming closer.
Lubena’s favorite part of the whole process was getting ready on the morning of her wedding day. It was finally time for her to relax and allow herself to be pampered. Her hair and makeup team did a fantastic job! Just see the pictures below! Not to mention her gorgeous dress!
They planned a gorgeous wedding with lovely details including sparkly linens topped with elegant centerpieces and a breath-taking stage. A delicious white cake had disappeared by the end of the night. But the most important part of the wedding was celebrating this day with family and friends.
Mustafa and Lubena are truly a perfect match. She is a vision of beauty and his eyes light up at the sight of her. So Cal Event Planners would like to wish them both a lifetime of happiness and love. And so, their wedding day came to a close and they lived happily ever after.
Real Weddings: Afra & Saad Part 1
Hotel Irvine was blessed to hold Afra and Saad’s mehndi reception. Vibrant colors on a gorgeous sunny California day stood as a good omen for the happy vibes that were destined to happen. A huge audience of guests and a lovely walkway of flower petals led up to the stage for the Mr. and Mrs. Check out the photos below for sneak peeks at their charming event, and to read about how the couple met.
Afra was MC’ing the mosque’s fundraiser a little over a year ago. Saad had seen her for the first time and was immediately mesmerized. About a month later, coincidentally, Afra and her family were accidentally invited to the “family only” dinner party at one of Saad’s relative’s homes. Afra and Saad were introduced. He realized she was the same girl of his dreams, so they arranged to meet up and get to know each other. The rest is history.
Before the wedding Afra was very worried about what needed to be done logistically. Planning was definitely fun, but she first she had to come up with a checklist which proved very stressful with no guidance!
Afra was introduced to Shumaila through family friends. Immediately, she noticed Shumaila’s friendly personality and determination to plan this wedding perfectly.
Afra explained her expectations for the wedding. With Shumaila’s help and assistance, her instructions were executed excellently. She trusted Shumaila and her team and was confident the details would be taken care of properly.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of Afra and Saad’s wedding!
Picking out your ring
Whether he popped the question with the ring of your dreams or you picked the ring yourself and he ‘surprised’ you with a proposal, we have everything you need to know about choosing your engagement ring.
First, get excited! Ring shopping may be the most luxurious and expensive shopping trip you will have.
Secondly, have patience. Like you’ll soon learn with wedding dress shopping, chances are you may not find your perfect ring on the first try. In fact, we encourage you to shop around before making your final decision. There are so many gorgeous settings and many unique styles ranging from $500 to $500,000. Together, let’s begin the quest for your perfect engagement ring. (more…)
Real Weddings: Hiba and Asif
Date: November 27, 2015
It was our pleasure to work with this couple. Hiba contacted SCEP towards the middle of their planning process and we helped put a framework around their event with vendor management, timeline and script. Her calm demeanor made planning process a snap. Hiba looked beautiful in a custom-made Pakistani designer outfit with makeup by talented Nida Gazi from BeautybyNG. Hiba & Asif wanted an elegant, romantic event and they got just that with the help of 2CreateDesigns! A one-of-a-kind couple, they shined on their special day. Check out their pictures below!
Photo credit: Samson Productions.
Vendor Love:
Event Coordination l So Cal Event Planners
Décor l 2 Create Designs
Make-up l Beauty By NG
Photography l Samson Productions
DJ l Dhamaka
Real Weddings: Anas and Bushra
Venue: Doubletree by Hilton Anaheim
Date: August 16 2015
We had the pleasure of meeting Bushra and Anas at another client’s wedding. Bushra mentioned how her own event was coming up quickly and she was “looking for a friend with experience and creative insight to help with [her] wedding”. We quickly became friends with Bushra’s easygoing personality and Anas’ charming demeanor and gained their trust as clients. We met with Bushra and reviewed décor ideas and timelines.
Essentially, we organized two separate wedding events— one for the men and one for the women, a common occurrence in many Arab weddings. Each banquet hall needed our full attention, décor, two separate DJs, two photographers, (and dance floors of course). Imagine how much planning goes into one event – now imagine two simultaneous events!
Together we created a stunning wedding tailored to Bushra’s every need. Her Arab background and modern American twist gave way to a wedding filled with great people, an amazing program and an exciting night of fun and laughter. Check out sneak peeks of Bushra and Anas’ remarkable wedding!
Wedding Day Essentials
Let’s begin by saying, the SCEP team already thought of everything you could never think of. They are ready for battle with the purpose of making your wedding day effortless. But in case you would like to pack a few items in your fancy makeup bags (see our favorites below!), we’ve compiled a list of our Top Wedding Day Essentials. (more…)
Happy 2016!
We would like to welcome a couple things. First, the New Year! This year –2016— is a brand new year filled with new weddings, new trends, new ideas and new goals for us which brings us to our next point: our new intern! Heading into the new year, we knew we needed to add a new member to the team to support our growing company. Working with past bride, Bushra, was the beginning of a beautiful relationship unbeknown to either party that we would be working together again in the future. Check out the post below of our new social media content creator and intern!
~Three months into wedding planning, I realized I had more anxiety than the TLC brides always showed. The vision I had of planning my wedding gave me a headache and every time I sat down at my computer somehow I would wander over to YouTube and find a way to distract myself from the countdown to my wedding day. My cousin, who had planned her own wedding a year prior, was reprimanding me for being so ‘lazy’. Truth is, laziness had nothing to do with it. I slowly hated the whole process more and more. I fantasized and pinned many other beautiful weddings I thought I could never have while avoided planning my own wedding altogether. (more…)
Bedazzle Your Heels!
“One good pair of shoes can change your life”
-Cinderella
Every woman should feel like Cinderella on her wedding day. Afterall, that’s the day she and her prince charming begin their “happily ever after.”
This adorable DIY project, helps bring out the princess in you!! Grab your adorable pair of wedding heels and bedazzle them with “I Do”, you and your beau’s initials, your wedding date-anything to give it a personal touch! Missing your something blue?? Blue rhinestones are perfect!
Want to make your bridesmaids feel special too? Add a personalized heartfelt message on the bottom of their shoes!
Love the idea, but strapped (shoe pun intended) for time? Order a Mindy Weiss self adhesive shoe applique starting at just $6.00!
Remember to have your photographer snatch a picture of your hard work before the wedding begins!! Send us your DIY bedazzled pictures to be featured on our blog! Till next time,
xoxo