Moody romantic ranch styled shoot turned proposal

Today’s feature by OLIVIA RICHARDS might have started as an inspiration shoot but it ended on the most romantic note with a surprise proposal – well a surprise for the bride-to-be who thought she was simply modeling for the day!

Inspired by the natural ebb & flows of the rolling hills at REINSTEIN RANCH in Livermore, stylist BARI ELEXA EVENTS designed an abstract styled shoot with a lot of movement, texture, and organic elements. The main inspiration was a black and white marble pattern paired with a dusty rose pop to bring in the rustic feel of the ranch. “Texture played a big role in our design aesthetic, and was brought to life through our velvet table linen and our grooms velvet jacket from THE BLACK TUX. We wanted the shoot to have an edgy undertone to it that incorporated unique pieces such as our custom laser cut chargers from BLUSH TYPE DESIGN and in the lounge area, a cascading waterfall flower arrangement by Aubriana Kasper with THE BLOOMERY CO. Aubriana also designed the bride’s bouquet and the tablescape centerpiece to incorporate lots of dusty rose coloured florals and a very organic, natural flowing shape. Elements of black tied into the shoot with the flatware, our grooms tux, and our invitation suite. ELBOWGREASE DESIGN created a custom floral abstract painted backdrop for our ceremony that tied everything together. The colours, the floral pattern, the natural movement in the wind, it was a perfect scene as the sun was setting and our couple said their “I dos”.”

When Eric, our “groom”, reached out to Olivia, our photographer, to tell her that he wanted to propose at the shoot, we just knew that we had to make this extra special! Lorraine was already anxious about their first “modeling” gig as our “bride and groom”, so it was easy to quickly throw her into hair & makeup and act like nothing was up. Meanwhile, Olivia and Bari swept Eric away to discuss the perfect moment for him to propose, while all of the other vendors were kept in the dark and had no idea what was about to happen!

When the time came, the sun was slowly starting to make it’s way around the mountain side, and we knew it was the perfect moment. We grabbed our models, and jetted off into the middle of the field, isolated from the rest of the shoot. Olivia had them pose with their backs to one another, but little did Lorraine know, Eric was actually behind her, down on one knee, ring in hand, heart beating out of his chest.

The pictures speak for themselves as you see the look of true surprise and shock on Lorraine’s face. It was an unbelievably breathtakingly beautiful moment to witness, that we will all be reliving for years and years to come. This shoot is truly a perfect combination of rustic and romantic through the overall design and the amazing story of this couple!