We wanted our guests to feel like they were on a vacation punctuated by a party.
Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…
Jake is a healthcare consultant from New Hampshire. He enjoys hiking, experimenting with new recipes (Cheez-its from scratch, or fine French cuisine), playing video and board games with friends, being the very best Uncle ever, and greeting every dog he encounters.
Callie is a political campaign strategist from Southern California. Callie can enjoy a documentary about just about anything, is a boba tea aficionado, and enjoys painting, photography, and scream-singing songs in the car.
Together they enjoy traveling, white water rafting, music festivals, half marathons, trying new restaurants, and hosting bi-weekly open-invitation supper clubs for 20+ people — but nothing brings them as much joy as their Australian Shepherd mix, Goose.
How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?
We met, as modern couples do, on the Internet.
Jake had been mindlessly swiping (yes) and then saw Callie’s profile and was caught by her dry humor, political activism, and love of cooking. Unfortunately, he’d run out of swipes for the day (an achievement Callie had never known was possible). He closed the app, hoping she’d still be there tomorrow to avoid paying a $2.99 membership fee.
Luckily for Jake, Callie saw Jake’s profile that same day and reviewed it thoroughly. While this wasn’t her typical “type,” he’d piqued her interest. Photos included him eating an eclair in SF — plus one for California and midday desserts; and a goofy expression wearing a bright yellow suit in one of the pictures — plus one for not taking himself too seriously. Hesitantly, she gave her first “yes” swipe of the week.
After a few weeks of online banter, we met for drinks at Hey Love, and then Callie breaking her “no dinner dates as first dates” rule — agreed to explain the rule over dinner at neighboring Canard restaurant.
We each found that conversation was just easy. We each had complex family health challenges at the time, and could be refreshingly open and honest about those while still laughing. That mix of candour and fun has been a cornerstone of our relationship.
Callie bills him $2.99 on Venmo occasionally.
When did you first realise that this was someone you’d like to spend the rest of your life with?
As Jake described it in his vows, it was a million small moments but crystal clear just a few months after they’d met. Jake’s brother, Xan, was in the ICU recovering from emergency brain surgery. With family hovering and medical staff in and out of the room, Callie heard Xan mention in passing that he was craving strawberry shortcake. She quietly slipped out of the room and returned 30 minutes later with a pound cake, 2 pounds of fresh strawberries, a can of whipped cream, and a single fork.
Callie knew when they’d made it through two tremendous losses, a pandemic, multiple 20-hour drives to Southern California, an evening of shared (and violent) seasickness in the Galápagos, and the Australian shepherd needle-toothed puppy stage — and still liked spending time together.
Was there a proposal? Tell us a little about it…
We’re not the most traditional couple when it comes to a proposal. We’d decided to get married in 2022, and in early 2023 were planning the wedding: rings were designed and purchased, we’d locked in a venue, and a handful of vendors well before Jake got on one knee. During the discussions about a wedding, Callie wanted to simply sign some paperwork and, at most, a dinner with friends. Meanwhile, Jake had visions of a very large tent filled with 200 people and a live band. In trying to find a “happy medium” between nothing at 200 people, Callie and her sister, Cassidy, visited a mid-century home in the hills overlooking the Coachella Valley with expansive views of the valley. It was stunning, but the “no amplified music, ever” rule that made it a no-go for the wedding itself — Cassidy suggested Jake quietly bookmark it as a proposal locale.
In April of 2023, Jake, Cassidy, and her husband, Nathaniel, suggested they go get ice cream in Palm Desert and check out that spot Callie had liked. Callie was hesitant to get out of the car because it was a private residence and was mortified when Jake and her family stomped into someone’s backyard. Then, she caught a glimpse of a man with a camera hiding in the brush and realized what was happening. The homeowner was in on it and did tequila shots with us to celebrate — even letting us jump into the pool.
Tell us about the vision you had for the mood or style of your wedding.
We wanted our guests to feel like they were on a vacation punctuated by a party: Lounging by the pool, hiking the Coachella Valley, biking through the neighborhood to check out the Mid Century Modern homes, eating great food, and making new friends.
We listened to an audiobook called, “The Art of Gathering” by Priya Parker on a drive from Palm Springs to Portland, and kept coming back to some of the theories outlined in the book about creating an intentional space for the people we love. Having a shared “thesis” on how we would make decisions about the wedding creating a really helpful guidepost, especially as we started getting outside pressure.
With this in mind, we made a couple of decisions pretty quickly:
- Hotel buy-out: we wanted to host a wedding weekend at a small hotel so that every guest could get to know one another. We had a group of friends dub it Camp Wine Harwood because the events, shared meals, neighbouring ‘bunks’, playing in the pool, and the buzz of energy felt like the first day of summer camp. When we first toured the venue, Jake had visions of our 80-year-old friend Chris finally getting to meet his high school friend Firas and my Aunt Laurie – something that would never have happened if not for a wedding with everyone in the same space.
- A Party First: we really enjoy entertaining in our home, and wanted the meals to feel like a large-scale dinner party with long sweeping tables; the welcome reception to feel like house party with our “dive-in” movie screening by the pool; and for the reception to get a little wild.
- Authenticity: we wanted every detail to feel like us. For Callie, that meant (often lengthy) handwritten notes for each guest on the reception table. For Jake, that meant feeding friends and family great food and welcoming as many heartfelt toasts and speeches as we could possibly schedule.
What was one element you were happy to splurge on?
We’re really glad we splurged in the 11th hour to move the reception to Palm Springs Surf Club. About 6 weeks before the wedding, Callie learned that the waterpark from her childhood had been reimagined into a luxe spot with cool architecture, great restaurants, and an event space.
They had barely opened to the public, and unfortunately, the only events they’d done at that point were two (albeit celebrity) birthday parties, so it was a bit of a gamble to be their first wedding. It was great fun to have a little surprise for guests after we’d been on the hotel grounds for everything that weekend, and evidently, one guest from NYC had heard about the Surf Club and started yelling, “OMG, DO YOU KNOW WHERE WE ARE?!” as the bus pulled into the parking lot. He was absolutely HYPED — and when the rest of our guests caught a glimpse of surfers catching waves as the sun set over the mountain, they were hyped, too.
This venue and our vendors really allowed us to lean into elements of fun and sort of challenge what is “supposed” to happen at a wedding.
Did anything happen on your wedding day that you laugh about in hindsight (even if it was stressful at the time)?
Oh my god, two main things:
- Because we opted to change the venue so late, and were unknowingly getting married the night of the local school district’s prom — there were almost no options for transportation from the Villa Royale to the Palm Springs Surf Club. We were relieved to find a bus company, but WOW that panned out poorly. They’d written down the wrong timing so they held our guests hostage in front of the venue for an hour despite our coordinator pulling up documentation and asking them to depart — it cost us an hour of the reception with our guests, put us WAY behind schedule, and really dampened the magic of the surprise second location.
- A bridesmaid slipped in the grass during the ceremony twice — she didn’t fall down but when her heel got stuck a second time, Jake ran down the aisle to escort her the rest of the way. It was the perfect way to demonstrate who Jake is as a person and brought some great light and levity.
Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, is there a story?
Jake’s suit was selected on a whim in New York City, we’d just finished buying fabric for Callie’s wedding dress and popped into the suit store. When Jake saw the palm frond lining option he was sold. The interior of the jacket is embroidered with the wedding date and his nickname for Callie.
Callie’s wedding dress was designed by Callie and made by her mom, Carol. Carol spent her career as a couture wedding gown designer, and it was really important to Callie that she wear something her mom created. They spent months exchanging sketches back and forth, looking for inspiration on pinterest, trying on dresses, and making prototypes. In November of 2023, we went back to the original idea: a simple, form-fitting skirt with clean lines — and a crop top, well, two. Carol made two different tops — a “fluffy” voluminous off-the-shoulder piece for the ceremony and a tank top (modelled after the top to Callie’s favourite workout set) for ease of movement at the reception.
BRIDE Callie Wine, @callie.wine GROOM Jake Harwood, @jaketookapicture LOCATION Welcome Party & Ceremony – Villa Royale, Palm Springs, California, @villaroyale_palmsprings; Reception – Palm Springs Surf Club, @thepalmspringssurfclub PHOTOGRAPHER Casi Yost, @casiyostphoto VIDEOGRAPHER Emma K Films, @emmak_films PLANNER Kayloe Bridal, @kayloebridal FLORIST Novella Floral, @novella_floral CELEBRANT Family friend ENTERTAINMENT Dart Collective, @dartcollective HIRE Signature Party Rentals, @sigpartyrentals CATERING Palm Springs Surf Club, @thepalmspringssurfclub CAKE Gelato Granucci, @gelatogranucci STATIONERY & SIGNAGE By the couple BRIDE’S RING Designed by the Bride with Malka Diamonds, @malkadiamonds GROOM’S RING Meteorite designed by Chris Ploof, @chris_ploof_designs BRIDE’S CEREMONY & RECEPTION DRESS Custom three-piece gown designed by the Bride and made by her mother BRIDE’S CEREMONY & RECEPTION SHOE Megan Strappy Sandal – ALDO, @aldo_shoes BRIDE’S CEREMONY & RECEPTION ACCESSORIES Vintage Diamond Tennis Necklace; Paper Clip Chain Necklace – Petit Anjou, @petitanjou BRIDE’S CEREMONY & RECEPTION FRAGRANCE Her late Father’s cologne – Fahrenheit by Dior, @dior MAKEUP Ceremony & Reception Beauty by Bueno, @beautybybueno BRIDE’S WELCOME PARTY DRESS Nalda Dress – Cult Gaia, @cultgaia BRIDE’S WELCOME PARTY SHOE Vintage red suede heeled sandals BRIDE’S WELCOME PARTY SWIMWEAR Left On Friday, @leftonfriday BRIDE’S WELCOME PARTY ACCESSORES Paper Clip Chain Necklace – Petit Anjou, @petitanjou BRIDE’S WELCOME PARTY FRAGRANCE Shower by Jones Road, @jonesroadbeauty HAIR Brianne Haug, @bbhaug SUIT Custom Green Linen Suit with Palm Tree Liner – Indochino, @indochino GROOM’S SHOE Jake’s late older brother, Xan GROOM’S ACCESSORIES Hematite bracelet – Handmade by the Bride GROOM’S HAIR Grateful Heads, @gratefulheads.salon GROOM’S FRAGRANCE Jazz Club, Replica by Maison Margiela, @maisonmargiela BRIDAL PARTY OUTFIT A mixture of custom-designed dresses by the bride’s mother; Purchased pieces from Neiman Marcus, @neimanmarcus
