Black and White Northern California Wedding at the Menlo Circus Club

In our humble opinion you simply can't go wrong with a timeless and classic style as seen in this beautiful wedding of Madelyn & Matthew's captured by Northern California wedding photographers THE GANEYS. Held at MENLO CIRCUS CLUB in Atherton, California, it was a black tie event with an elegant colour palette of blues, black, white and grey. With planning by RILEY AND LULU, the day featured stunning florals by VO FLORAL and a gorgeous CAROLINA HERRERA wedding gown.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS LOCATION? The Menlo Circus Club has always been a very special place for my family. It is where I spent my summers growing up. I learned to swim and play tennis there as a young girl. My parents wedding reception was hosted at the club and countless other family events over the years were hosted there. I loved the idea of planning a local wedding and getting married at a place that meant so much to me. I also really wanted to have an outdoor, tented reception and the polo field gave us the blank canvas we needed to bring our vision to life.

HOW DID YOU MEET? Matt and I were introduced by a few mutual friends at the bar at The Olympic Club in San Francisco. After a few cocktails, we bonded over being from the Bay Area, playing sports at ACC schools and our dear college friendships. After that first night, we were inseparable.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR PROPOSAL: After four years of dating, a few apartment moves and a doodle named George, Matt popped the question. He planned a skiing weekend at Lake Tahoe with a few friends. Matt proposed to kick off the weekend on a doc overlooking the lake. We spent the rest of the weekend skiing and celebrating with our friends!

TELL US ABOUT FINDING YOUR WEDDING DRESS/ATTIRE: I knew I wanted my dress to be simple and classic – mirroring our vision for the day. I knew I wanted to find something that was comfortable so I could move comfortably on the dance floor. I ended up trying on far too many dresses as I had a really hard time figuring out what I wanted. After countless dress appointments, Jin Wang helped me find the perfect dress that felt timeless, elegant and made me feel like me! Matt and I ended up having a micro wedding in 2020, and finding out we were expecting in summer 2021 – and luckily my dress was able to be altered to accommodate the new addition!

DESCRIBE YOUR WEDDING FLOWERS: Our wedding florals were one of my favourite parts of the day. Trang at Vo Flora helped us create the reception of my dreams. Our tent was perfect! It had a beautiful floral entrance and each table was filled with lush, organic blooms that Trang grows herself! Our wedding took place during the “white flower shortage of 2021” and we were so grateful that Trang had so many blooms in her garden that we were able to use. I requested a petite bouquet and I love how delicate it was while still having shape and texture.

FAVOURITE DETAIL OF THE DAY: I loved our escort display. It felt like such a fun statement piece for the reception – and the words rang true! “Together, at last!” After waiting a whole extra year because of Covid (we had a micro wedding in 2020 – and were excited to find out we were expecting in the summer of 2021!), we were thrilled to finally celebrate – and dance – with all of our friends.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU
GIVE OUT TO A COUPLE PLANNING THEIR WEDDING? Having a wedding planner during the two-year planning process was incredibly helpful. All of the 'Covid brides' out there know how much we went through to finally make it to the wedding day, but our planners, Lisa and Jess from RILEY LOVES LULU made it much easier on us. They facilitated so much of the heavy lifting with the date changes (and all that went with that). They also provided an incredible design that took our vision and elevated it to the next level. Originally, I wasn’t sure I wanted to go the “black and white” route thinking the palette might be too severe, but after waiting so long for this day – we wanted to do something bold! I’m so glad we did! I still love the chairs and how it all came together.

WHAT ASPECT OF THE WEDDING WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT TO YOU BOTH? While the ceremony was important, we had exchanged our vows in the most heartfelt ceremony the year prior, and now we were ready to celebrate with our friends and family. We hired an incredible band and our dance floor was packed the entire evening! At one point my Matt and and I hopped up on stage with the band – it was surreal looking out at everyone – after waiting for this moment for more than two years. Our families know how to have a good time!

ANY OTHER DETAILS THAT HELP TELL THE STORY OF YOUR DAY? During our vows, Matt mentioned thinking about their future – and hoped that a vintage Porsche would be a part of that. A family friend had recently purchased a vintage Porsche and drove it up to the tent during cocktail hour – offering it to us as our getaway car for the end of the night! It was such a fun surprise and all of the guests loved seeing it parked outside the tent throughout the evening.

Thank you to Northern California wedding photographers THE GANEYS for sharing this gorgeous wedding with us today. As a husband and wife team, Emily & Thomas are driven by capturing real moments and documenting love stories in an organic way. "Some of the favourite aspects of our job are hearing unique stories, meeting amazing people and capturing love that can move mountains. We seek out couples whose weddings embody these ideas. We’re inspired by authenticity and adventure, and as your photographers we’ll rejoice in celebrated moments and tear up during emotional ones." You can see more of their work in the MAGNOLIA ROUGE VENDOR GUIDE and you might also want to check out this Intimate 15 person wedding at Chateau Lill.