Wedding planner Sasha Souza makes the most of the region's seasonal splendor for a July fete in Napa, CA.
By: Rachel Griffiths
The couple exchanged vows under a frame draped with roses, orchids and calla lilies in summer citrus colors
A private estate was the setting for this stunning warm-weather celebration by Sasha Souza, author of Signature Sasha: Magnificent Weddings by Design. After the ceremony by the lake, guests adjourned to cocktail tables set nearby on a grassy stretch of lawn, some covered with a bold orange hummingbird-print linen, and others with a melon taffeta-crinkle cloth. Passed hors d’oeuvres included burrata pizzettes with tomato confit, crispy carnitas tacos with cilantro and lime, as well as lemongrass shrimp with sriracha dipping sauce.
A cocktail-hour table is topped by a riot of blooms in oranges and lime greens. Passed hors d’oeuvres echoed the wedding’s summery colors.
When it was time for dinner, guests took a lazy stroll along the lake and over a wooden bridge to a gorgeous two-story barn with its double doors flung wide. Sasha had seat assignments written on chalkboards. Intimate round tables, covered in a cream, brown and green leafy-patterned linen, were decorated with pedestal urns filled with seasonal blooms, while a stand of red-bark manzanita branches served as the head table’s centerpiece. Instead of a sit-down affair, the couple opted for an opulent buffet of farm-fresh food, including a salad of early heirloom tomatoes, grilled arrachera flank steak, crispy polenta, grilled asparagus and zucchini gratin. Food Network baker, Marian Sousa, a friend of the bride’s, created the wine country-inspired cake.
The bride’s bouquet embodies the very essence of summer. Intimate round tables were set with low pedestal urns filled with orchids, roses and summer greens.
As the sun began to set, guests got up to dance on a floor glowing with a rosette pattern. Sasha projected the same pattern against the barn, eliciting a collective gasp from guests as they came outside to wave the newlyweds off in a 1945 Packard limousine. “It was a great, easy summer wedding. Summer is the best time,” says Sasha.
Citrus-hued blooms make a midsummer day's dream for a California couple.
Photography by Kate Webber Photography
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