Anna + Aakash

How did you meet?

We actually met while working at the World Wildlife Fund (the conservation organization) while we were both living in Washington, D.C. We’ve been together (over) 7 years, navigated long and short distance, two coasts, and over a dozen apartments. From DC, we moved to the west coast where my husband started his PhD program at Stanford and I started my career in software.

We’ve both grown so much in the last +5 years – we went from unsure twenty somethings to somewhat-more-sure thirty year olds, and I can’t wait to see how we grow in the next 5, 10, 15 years!

When did you know they were the one?

I hate to say it, but from the very beginning 😀

What are your three favourite attributes of your partner?

One is probably his goofiness. He makes me laugh so much

Who proposed and how?

Aakash proposed to me, in New York City along the High Line, in front of both of our families. I lived in New York for seven years (I might consider it my first true love, as cheesy as that sounds), so it was special that it happened in NY. I was truly completely surprised! And I think of myself as being very hard to surprise!

Where did you fall in love with your dress and why?

I had been wedding dress shopping for months – literally I had tried on over 50 dresses – but none spoke to me. I was seriously getting discouraged! Every dress it felt like was wearing me, more than me wearing the dress. I have a small frame and features, so I knew I wanted something simple, with a little bit of edge, that didn’t overpower me. I just wasn’t finding it until I saw a post online actually, and honestly when I saw it, I just knew. It was classic but a little bit modern and edgy, sexy and fitted, but not too low cut or exposing (I don’t have too much to expose if you know what I mean!). I immediately looked for it at a nearby boutique and went to try it on. The Archie and Georgie were just beautiful, but I fell in love with cowl back of the Archie.

What was the best moment for you at your wedding?

Oh gosh, it’s hard to choose just one! A few that stood out was definitely my best friend’s speech. She talked about my love for Speed (the 1994 action/thriller that starts Keanu Reeves), the shenanigans we got into as ten year olds, and, of course, why when she first met my husband she knew he was the one for me.
Other moments that stand out are our first dance! We did a mix of a traditional, two-step slow dance, and then surprised folks with some very fast, jumpy bollywood! My husband is Indian American, so it was important for us to represent the Indian side of his culture, as well as our shared American-ness. It was so much fun!

What were your favourite details?

Getting specialty glasses was important to me (for some reason!) so I rented really nice glassware with gold trimming and designs, and people were obsessed with them, as was I. They just added a decorative flare that was distinctive, and up’ed the game for our specialty cocktails. Our other decorations and florals etc were pretty simple, so having that touch was really nice.

I also made the all the table names California state and national parks that my husband and I have been to and camped or backpacked in. And I made the seating chart a board that read “Find your park.” It was super fun to place friends and family at parks that had significance to us.

What advice would you tell other brides?

You can’t over plan! And if you think you’re over-planning, you aren’t! Obviously not everything will go perfectly smooth the day of, but for someone like me, I like to feel like I’ve done my best to prepare beforehand.

I also would say, don’t let your hair/makeup person tell you how you should look! Yes it’s a special day but you also need to feel yourself! I don’t wear much makeup at all day-to-day, so I knew that I did not want a lot of makeup day of. I wouldn’t have felt like me. I also wear my hair back and out of my face most days, and I’m very glad I went with this look day-of. My hair back made it so that you could see the beautiful earrings that I purchased, and I didn’t deal with wind and hair blowing in my face while dancing, eating, etc. I absolutely loved my natural, sleek look.

Any standout vendors?

Otis and Pearl (where we got our glassware from) was amazing! My hair and makeup person was also great (Dakota Sisson, Makeup by Dakota). And I loved my photos (Brooke Lee was the photographer, and booking/editing was The Indi Collective). We stayed at Hotel San Luis Obispo which was such a lovely mid-century modern hotel located in downtown SLO. For anyone traveling to the Central Coast of California, definitely stop by Hotel SLO!