Madeleine + Jake by Klaui Varadi

Playing into the landscape and the natural colours, with evergreen and notes of dark plum florals.

Tell us a little about yourselves, what you do, what you love…

Madeleine – I am a Recruiter, born in Canada and raised in Southern California. I love travelling, my family, all pets, but especially our two dachshunds, Barney and Rufus, reading, and the beach. Jake and I have connected so much on our shared love for travel and experiencing new cultures. Fortunate to live a block from the beach, we lean into the slow, chilled lifestyle that Seal Beach provides.

Jake – Works in sales for his family business, also raised in California. Jake loves sports- especially baseball and is a big Angels fan. He also collects Records and Baseball cards. Loves trying new restaurants or the random hole in the wall you’ve driven past thousands of times. Loves travelling as well and researching the best spots to go to.

How/where/when did you meet – and what were your first impressions?

We met at Chico State University in Chico, CA, in the fall of 2018 at a random run-in at a party. So cheesy, but I swear, when I walked into that party, his eyes were the first I locked on to, and we have been together since. Friends described us right away as the male and female versions of each other because of how much we had in common. What started as just a random run-in turned into us being inseparable, quickly studying dates in the library, coffee deliveries to class, and homemade dinners, which turned into a seamless relationship from the start. Bonding as well as two Southern California kids being in Northern California together and experiencing so many firsts together.

What styling and visual elements worked best for you? (could be things, the florals, particular hire products or your marquee, etc., something the stylist created or simply just the scenic beauty of your location or the existing design of your venue).

We both love Palm Springs and have so many fond memories of the area, either separately from childhood or ones we have experienced together, like many Coachella adventures or weekend getaways. We knew from day one of wedding planning that the desert would be the location. When we found Emerson Estate, we fell in love with the expansive estate grounds that left an endless amount of possibilities, the beautiful French chateau or Spanish Villa vibes the house gives. The perfect setup for a fall desert outdoor wedding. We didn’t work with a stylist; our planner, Megan, really helped our vision come to light. Playing into the landscape and the natural colours, with evergreen and notes of dark plum florals. We wanted the evening to feel like one big family party; long connected tables were a must, and the Italian family-style dinner helped turn strangers into family. We loved the traditional black and white checkered dance floor placed right in the centre, with the tables surrounding it, to keep the party the centre of attention. We kept florals also to a happy medium that allowed us to be playful with darker plum colours for falls, but also allowed the beauty of the surrounding palm trees, the expansive green grounds to be the focus as well

What did you enjoy most about the planning process, and do you have any tips for couples starting their wedding planning journey?

We truly enjoyed getting to bring our vision to life, being able to connect family traditions into special little details in the day, and curating something that felt authentic to us. We loved being able to blend Jake’s Italian heritage into the food and design, and paying homage to Madeleine’s Scottish roots with the tartan accessories. Our tips to couples starting the wedding planning journey would be one connecting with a planner that aligns with you, someone you truly want to talk to everyday and be bffs with and also trying to remember to enjoy the process, we had a longer engagement of almost 2 years where we were planning the wedding for a majority and we never got bored of the process and I think that is because we were truly intentional with every detail that we added to the wedding. We also had flexible expectations, not realising how stressful the wedding planning process is, having a planner to help rely on, let us focus on creating the small details that made the event feel more like us.

Tell us about your vendors. Were there any standout suppliers you would like to make special mention of?

We worked with such amazing vendors and were so thankful to have an amazing team surrounding us on our day; everyone was such a standout in themselves. We loved our content team, Riley, Klaui, and Bryten. Klaui photographed the day perfectly with her documentary style photography that authentically captured the day and highlighted the special moments, and captured those special hidden moments. Our decision to do a Super 8 wedding video was a very easy decision. After seeing Riley’s work highlighted from Klaui’s own wedding, we knew instantly that we also wanted her to be a part of the day. Again, this really tied into our family vision, making this feel like a homemade video that could have been your great-grandparents. Hopping on the trend of a “content creator” was also such an easy decision. Getting to also meet Bryten through Klaui, she brought such a lightness to the day and really just added such a special perspective to the day, not wanting to worry about our phones on the day was, of course, a highlight. These girls surrounded us with so much love, and looking back at how they were able to capture the day was truly spectacular. I think it is important to note that our content team has worked together before, and we truly feel like that shone through in the content. We loved working with our vendors’ recommendations, and that synergy was a major benefit. We also loved our dessert from Poul’s. We have the biggest sweet tooths, so the dessert was very important. Handmade Italian Millefoglie cake built by hand on the dance floor and hand-stuffed cannoli made in front of you brought the family aspect into the dessert portion as well.

Tell us about your main outfits, what was unique, and is there a story?

My bridal gown was an intricate multiple-piece gown that featured a lace long sleeve, silk wool laced corset with detachable pearl draping, silk organza overskirt with pickups, and silk wool underskirt, allowing Madeleine to create 3 wedding looks. The ceremony included the full outfit. For the reception, I took off the lace long sleeve and overskirt, slipped the wrist strap on the silk skirt around my wrist, and put on a lace neck scarf to keep the lace in play, and seamlessly transitioned into the reception. For the silent disco after party, the long skirt was ditched, and a mini skirt was added. I wanted a traditional look with a modern twist, and I think Saint Bridal effortlessly delivered what I wanted. I loved having the flexibility to create so many looks without having to sacrifice time to change. My jewellery featured all rubies, diamonds, and pearls. Wearing my grandmother’s ruby ring, ruby and diamond drop earrings also helped tie in my ruby wedding band.

Jake wanted to do a white tuxedo with black details, leaning into a classic Palm Springs era. He was also wearing a Scottish tartan bowtie and pocket square, paying homage to Madeleine’s maiden name, McDonald.

Tell us about your wedding and engagement rings.

Madeleine’s wedding band features emerald-cut rubies and diamonds in a bezel setting, and her engagement ring is a radiant-cut east-west ring with a half bezel. Jake designed Madeleine’s engagement ring with Frank Darling. Madeleine wanted rubies featured in her wedding band as that is her birthstone, but also her mother’s wedding ring featured rubies. Jake’s wedding band is white gold, which is a unique square shape.

What were one or two elements that were most important to you both that you were happy to spend a little more on? (food, photography, florals, the venue, your outfits?).

The most important elements for us on the day were the venue and entertainment. We wanted the venue to almost feel like home, somewhere where your family would gather for a birthday celebration. It was a large coming together of 160 guests, including Canadian and American guests, and we wanted everyone to come together and instantly feel like family. Having a cocktail hour in the front entrance felt like an open-armed welcome to the wedding, which seamlessly transitioned into the courtyard for the ceremony, then continued easily through the garden to the backyard for the reception, where we again fell in love with our venue’s ample space to host a large family dinner. No sweetheart table needed, we wanted to be surrounded by our friends, cherishing the night being surrounded by their laughs right next to us. We also knew we wanted our guests to have fun. The vintage photo booth was a fun touch that left guests with instant memories of the night, and also our live saxophonist, who joined the DJ on the dance floor after dinner. This truly kept the party going and had all ages on the dance floor.

Was there a favourite moment (or two) that you will treasure always?

An amazing moment will always be Madeleine’s eldest brother Nick marrying us. Again, putting our focus on family, having Nick standing there marrying us was a comforting layer to the ceremony to be guided to the next chapter of our relationship by someone who has witnessed the relationship blossom from the beginning. It was important to us that when Jake was walking down the aisle with our dog, he was to be met by a familiar face, and Madeleine, when being escorted by her dad, was to be met with that as well. Another favourite moment came from the reception during dinner, being able to look around the dance floor and seeing family and friends from all different phases of our lives sat together and sharing dinner family style, strangers becoming friends, old stories being relived, we truly felt so connected to our guests.

What does being married mean to you, and are there any special rituals you have that you would like to share?

Being married to us has meant adding a new, exciting chapter to our book. One where we not only continue to grow our love for each other and continue to support each other through every milestone, but also a chapter with a new, exciting set of shared goals to work towards together, expanding our family, continuing to travel the world and always being each other’s calm in the never-ending chaos of the world. We cherish our Pizza Fridays, passed down from Madeleine’s parents, who have been married for 34 years. Shared with either friends or just between us, it’s a quaint, set time to come together, no strings, just an easy evening.