French Kiss Events
French Kiss Events, Victoria’s luxury boutique wedding planning and design firm, specializing in creating weddings and events that are personalized down to the smallest detail.

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Posts tagged pnw wedding
Real Wedding: Tiff & Levi

Over 10 years ago, 2 teenagers met while on summer vacation at a campground in Canada with their families.   They instantly became friends, and not long after that, started dating.  After over a decade of growing up together,  falling in love, and building an incredible life together, they decided to make it official in beautiful Victoria, BC!  And I'm thanking my lucky stars, as they chose FKE to bring their day to life, and oh man...it was a good one folks! Taking place at the 2 most iconic venues in the city, Hatley Castle and The Empress Hotel, their wedding vision was grand from the start of the planning, and we pulled out all the stops to bring it to life!  

One of my favourite things about this wedding, was the epic seating chart that we pulled together.  I've had this idea for a few years now, and we were just waiting for the perfect wedding to create it at!  As guests arrived to the ceremony, all of their pics were snapped at a portrait station (thanks Four Frames!) near the entrance to the Castle.  Those photos were then printed and turned into polaroids that we displayed at the couples reception, acting as the guests personalized escort cards!  It was a huge hit, and something that everyonewas blown away by.

The reception space was overflowing with luxurious details and we infused the couples impeccable taste all throughout.  The neutral palette of soft creams, greys & blush tones, helped transform the ballroom setting into a modern day take on the traditional space. The menu, custom designed by The Empress's chef, was served tapa style, inspired by all the couples favourite eats! Ranging from sushi to maui rib sliders, the food was a hit!  And as the lights dimmed, guests partied the night away to Side One's 8 piece band (always a favourite of mine), photo booth, Mojito bar and Popcorn station!

It was definitely a wedding to remember, and for sure the party of the summer!  One of the things I love most about weddings though, is no matter how much planning you do and how many incredible details there are, often the best moments of the day are the unplanned ones.  This was definitely the case for Tiff & Levi.  After dinner, the couple sneaked out with Ryan Flynn and Kismet Creative for some sunset shots down in the harbour.  A band busking in the harbour congratulated the couple, and then asked them what their first dance was.  The song was "Georgia" by Vance Joy, and without skipping a beat, the band began playing it for them, and they had their first dance right then and there, in the harbour, just the 2 of them.  Pure magic!  You can see this gorgeous day unfold below, and make sure to check out the incredible video by Kismet at the top! 

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of Ryan Flynn Photographer.  Video courtesy of Kismet Creative.

Planning & Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - Ryan Flynn Photography
Videography - Kismet Creative
Ceremony Venue - Hatley Castle
Reception Venue - The Empress
Florals - Verbena Floral Design & Thorn & Thistle
Stationery - Love by Phoebe
Band - Side One
Cake - Passion for Cakes
Linens - Faire la Fete
Hair - Conscious Hair
Makeup - Carly Flint
Photobooth - Four Frames Photo Booth

Year in Review: 2017
Photo by: The Nickersons

Photo by: The Nickersons

As I sit here writing this, with my 2 week old daughter in my arms (one handed typing is super slow fyi!), I am blown away with how much can change in a year.  2017 was definitely a year of change for me personally, and chugging along beside all that change was a business that I love more than I thought possible, and a crew that is making it possible for me to balance life and work.  This past year, we tore down our house and built a new one, found out we were pregnant (yay!) and welcomed baby Madison into the world, welcomed 2 new planners to the Heyday team, and worked with 11 amazing couples, bringing their dream weddings to life.  It was a big year, and a really really good one.  As I have over the past few years, I thought it would be fun to take a look back over the year that and share with you the highlights.  So, without further adieu, here we go!

The year started off as I like it to...nice and slow...We had a really cold winter in Victoria (which is super rare!), and enjoyed lots of cozy nights in and even a few snow days here and there!  A highlight though was seeing Mica & Nate's wedding featured on SMP here.  If you remember this wedding from last year, you'll remember how special it was, and getting to see it published was such a treat!  

Photo by: AMERIS

Photo by: AMERIS

Come February, we took our annual trip over to Saltspring Island with some really good friends, and enjoyed 4 days of games, hikes, wine, runs & really really good food.  We also met up with AMERIS in February to take some new team photos for the site.  A whole lot of hilarity ensued (as it usually does with them), and I loved getting to update the site with Paula & Nick added on, as they are both so instrumental to FKE! With the arrival of Spring, weekends were completely filled with meetings, mockups, site visits, and full on prep for the upcoming summer of weddings.  

Photo by: Lauren Kurc Photography

Photo by: Lauren Kurc Photography

In April, I had the opportunity to team up with some seriously inspiring ladies, and put together a styled shoot that was totally out of my comfort zone.  The results were drop.dead.gorgeous., and I can't wait to share the images with you all very soon!  Stay tuned...  Paula & I also signed up for a Modern Calligraphy class taught by the wickedly talented Kate Campbell, and our obsession with wedding signage grew that much more!  In the middle of the month, Nick & I escaped to the Okanagan with some friends, for the Easter long weekend, for a much needed vacay before the craziness of wedding season began.  And let me tell you all this: the Okanagan is AMAZING!  Go there immediately!  So much delicious wine (obviously!) and food!  And the wineries...so many beautiful spaces!  I would absolutely love to start planning a wedding or 2 there each year, and so I am putting it out into the universe for 2019.  Any couples out there that love wine country as much as me?  Take me with you!

IMG_2811.JPG
Photo by: Jesse Holland

Photo by: Jesse Holland

After a really relaxing Winter & Spring, $*%t got real in May: We tore our house down and found out I was pregnant (all within the same week, just in case you were curious lol!).  Wedding season was just around the corner as well, and our sister company, Heyday, kicked off the season with a stunner at Starling Lane Winery.  This wedding was featured on SMP (woohoo!!).  And at the end of the month, we helped to gather all of our favourite people in the Victoria wedding industry at the annual Meetup.  This time, Toque treated us to an incredible sit down feast, and I honestly don't know how we are going to top it in 2018!  

Photo by: Taylor Roades Photography

Photo by: Taylor Roades Photography

Photo by: Ryan Flynn Photography

Photo by: Ryan Flynn Photography

June kicked off the FKE wedding season, and once it got rolling, there was no stopping until October.  This season was also the season of live music (woohoo!), which is hands down, my favourite part of weddings.  Our first 4 weddings all had bands, which kept the parties going well into the night.  We stayed close to home this year, celebrating at a family farm, an English estate, a winery, and some of the most iconic spots in Victoria (hello Empress!), just to name a few.  In June, I also took the leap, and started to take guitar lessons!  Random, right?!  I've wanted to learn for years, and finding out I was pregnant was the final straw that got me to the music school.  In my mind, I'm going to be able to play like this within a year, but in reality, we all know that is never going to happen lol!  

Photo by: Katrina Massey Photography

Photo by: Katrina Massey Photography

Photo by: Amee Nijjar Photography 

Photo by: Amee Nijjar Photography 

In July, Nick & I escaped to Vancouver to see Jack Johnson (#bucketlist), and then also managed to take off to Saltspring Island again for our dating anniversary.  We seriously love that place!  Upon our return, it was back to weddings!  There were some seriously stunning ones this year, and as the galleries come in, I'm reminded how lucky I am to work with such amazing couples, and equally amazing vendors who help me pull off these wicked celebrations! 

Photo by: Blush Photography

Photo by: Blush Photography

Photo by: The Nickersons

Photo by: The Nickersons

August & September took us to another farm, an Inn by the sea, an Island resort, a Castle, and back to the Empress (twice).  I also did a little happy dance when this wedding was published in Real Weddings (#pinchme).  

Photo by: Luke Liable Photography

Photo by: Luke Liable Photography

Photo by: Christine Pienaar Photography

Photo by: Christine Pienaar Photography

In October, feeling insanely pregnant (hello third trimester!), Nick & I headed off on a baby moon to our absolute favourite place in the world....you guessed it...Maui! Our days were spent debating whether we should go to the beach or pool (tough decisions!), eating a lot of delicious food, and really soaking up the last few moments of it being just the 2 of us.  Upon returning home, life started to move at warp speed. Our house was nearing the finish line, all things baby prep officially took over, and we were so honoured to have an incredible baby bash hosted for us by Laura!  I was also stoked to add Bonnie  to the Heyday team, and made it official with a new team shoot for the Heyday site!

Photo by: Jesse Holland Photography

Photo by: Jesse Holland Photography

At the beginning of December, we moved into the house!! Woohoo!!  The timing couldn't have been better, and our incredible builders, Philco Construction, worked their butts off to make sure we were in the house before baby came!  The rest of the month was spent unpacking, settling in, and working as hard as possible on all of our 2018 weddings before baby arrived.  And on December 23rd, our whole life completely changed, with the arrival of Madison Elizabeth Walker.  We are head over heels in love with her, and she has already stolen both of our hearts in a big way.  Basically the best way to end this incredible year, and I have no idea how 2018 is going to top it.  But...I am up for the challenge, and can't wait to see what the new year brings!

Photo by: Tegan McMartin Photography

Photo by: Tegan McMartin Photography

Real Wedding: Mica & Nate

Today, I am completely, ridiculously, head over heels excited to see the wedding of Mica & Nate  F E A T U R E D on Style Me Pretty!  All throughout the planning, Mica & I had a running joke of whether design ideas were "SMP" worthy, and so to see their beautiful day published on this blog, is a true honour.  Definitely check out the feature right here to see all the stunning highlights, as well as read the story behind this day.  

This was an incredibly special wedding, for many many reasons.  I wrote a lot about it on SMP, and so will let you read the full story over there.  I will say though, that this wedding was a career highlight for me, and I have no doubt it will be in my top 3 favourite weddings of all time for a long time to come.   And I can honestly say that I have never witnessed love like I did on this day.  There wasn't a dry eye between the guests and vendors, and the joy and happiness that surrounded the couple was infectious.  There was so much love for Mica & Nate, and witnessing that kind of love really makes you realize what this is all about.  It may sound cheesy, but as I look through these beautiful photos by The Nickersons and see the emotions pour out, I can't help but be transported back to this incredible day.  These two are the strongest people that I know, and I consider myself truly blessed to have gotten to know them and to have been a part of their wedding.  

I have no idea how I was supposed to choose what images to share, as they are all not only beautiful, but tell the story of the day perfectly.  But I did my best, and have included below some of my favourites.  Enjoy. xo

**Make sure to scroll to the bottom for the complete list of all the kick ass vendors that helped make this day so incredible!  All photos courtesy of The Nickersons.

Planning/Design - French Kiss Events
Photography - The Nickersons
Floral Design - Verbena Floral Design
Venue - North Arm Farm
Hair/Makeup - Denise Elliot
Catering - The Collective Kitchen
Cake - The Flour Pot
Invitation/Paper Goods - La Happy
Furniture Rentals - Bash Specialty
Rentals - Rental Network, Flock Events, Sabre Rentals
Ceremony Music - Trish Jamieson
DJ - Pemberton DJ
Dress - Truvelle
Transportation - Whistler Glacier Group
 

Year in Review: 2016
Jenna & Tristan

Jenna & Tristan

Cheers to the new year!  Another year has come to an end, and to be honest, I think I'm ok with it.  Don't get me wrong: it was another fantastic year, and I feel seriously blessed to have the life that I do!  I get to share it with an incredible man, and am surrounded by a truly inspiring tribe.  But, 2016 was filled with both highs and low's for me.  It was a year of wedding's that will top my list for years to come, but also a year of working myself to pure exhaustion, and enduring some personal struggles that I am still recovering from.  12 months is a long time, and a lot of things can happen;  It's been quite the journey, and I am really looking forward to reflecting back on it all.  We tackled 15 weddings, 7 events, and made it onto Vogue (eek!).  We got to work with some of the industries best, and started to spread our wings a bit further beyond this lovely Island of ours.  We launched a sister company to FKE, Heyday Events, and started to focus more on nurturing and training of young planners.  These year end reviews can put so much into perspective and I am so grateful to have you follow along!

I kicked the year off with a mission to be the healthiest version of myself possible.  I joined a half marathon run clinic, and instantly loved the connections that I made through the running community.  Planning for the upcoming weddings was going at full tilt, and the rest of January was spent doing what basically everyone does in January: a whole lotta nothing.  

Erich McVey Photography

Erich McVey Photography

In February, we managed to sneak away to one of my favourite places, Salt Spring Island, for a relaxing weekend with good friends.  I was also completely floored and incredibly honoured to be included on this list by Vogue, of the world's top wedding planners.  Talk about a pinch me moment! And I loved seeing this wedding featured on Wedding Chicks!

Jon Mark Photo

Jon Mark Photo

We celebrated everyone in the Victoria's Wedding industry in March, with another Meetup party!  And I was seriously stoked to see our Taylor Swift shoot from last year, featured on Inspired by This here and here.  At the end of the month, we took off to the beautiful Galiano Island and enjoyed a magical weekend at Bodega Ridge with friends over Easter.  If you take anything from this blog post, let it be this: go to Galiano Island immediately!  

Lillie Louise Photography

Lillie Louise Photography

April saw the start of the wedding season, and the first one was definitely a good one!  We also teamed up with a slew of talented vendors to host a Farmed and Foraged dinner, in support of the Nature Conservancy of Canada.  It was a beautiful night, and a meal I will surely not forget! Mid month, I took off down to Seattle for a weekend with Bash Specialty, to shop and hang with some other fabulous industry ladies.  

Kim Kalyn Photography

Kim Kalyn Photography

We were hired to plan a ridiculously romantic proposal (she said yes!).  And the month was finished off with a very special 1st birthday party we planned for one of our best friends daughter.  I mean, if you can't celebrate the big milestones like turning 1, what can you celebrate?

Taylor Roades Photography

Taylor Roades Photography

In May, we worked on an insanely gorgeous elopement, for some insanely wonderful Texans!  More of that to come in the new year...  We married a doctor & a runner, and I completed the Oak Bay Half Marathon as well!  Fitness goal achieved.  Phew! We also had our first ever Heyday Events wedding!  Paula, one of our fabulous planners, knocked it out of the park!

Erich McVey Photography

Erich McVey Photography

The Nickersons

The Nickersons

The Nickersons

The Nickersons

June is when the season really started to take off, and thus began the most intense 6 weeks of my career.  Before things got really crazy though, I helped completely surprise this lovely lady on her 30th birthday, and indulged in a night of charcuterie and wine.  Then, we went from Victoria's inner harbour, to Pemberton's mountains, to Salt Spring's coast, to Hatley Castle, to a sprawling field, and back to Hatley Castle, all in the matter of 6 weeks.  Man, I'm tired just thinking about it.  Amongst all that crazinesses though, were some pretty incredible weddings, and ones that I am beyond honoured to have been a part of.  We got to work with the insanely talented Erich McVey on one (another pinch me moment!) and witness love like we've never seen before.  I can't wait to share ALL of them with you in the new year!

Luke Liable Photography

Luke Liable Photography

Shane Deringer Photography 

Shane Deringer Photography 

EA Photo

EA Photo

In August, Nick & I managed to escape to Ottawa for a weekend and spend some QT time with some very good friends.  The rest of the summer was a beautiful whirlwind, and filled with a whole lotta pretty!  We got to bounce around a ton of different venues, and loved spending time with every single one of our couples.  

Jenna & Tristan

Jenna & Tristan

Sambajoy

Sambajoy

In September, we finished the season off with a couple more gems.  I then spent a week in Alberta visiting my brother and my 2 nephews.  They made my heart melt every. friggin. day.

Wendy Laurel Photography

Wendy Laurel Photography

October was spent in total recovery mode, and getting ready to escape to the sun, as we always do at this time of the year.  We spent 3 magical weeks in Hawaii, splitting our time between Oahu and Maui.  This years trip couldn't have come at a better time for us, and it was the perfect way to recharge.  Spending an afternoon with photographer superstar, Wendy Laurel, was a highlight for me, as well as celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary!  

The return to reality brought on a slew of meetings in November, and left me feeling ridiculously excited for all our 2017 couples!  As the holiday's quickly approached, I focused on spending as many relaxing nights cuddled by the fire, and preparing for Christmas.  On Dec 15th, on the eve of my 30th Birthday (#flirtythirties), I was given the ultimate surprise.  My amazingingly incredible husband, planned a surprise weekend in LA for me with some good friends!  I don't think I can ever complain about him ever again! haha!  It was the perfect way to ring in a new decade, and to reflect back on the year that was.  

Wendy Laurel Photography

Wendy Laurel Photography