Jacklyn and Mark were married in a traditional Catholic ceremony at St. Ignatius Church in San Francisco. When asked why they chose that particular church, Jacklyn responded “It’s big, its grand, its gothic. If you’re going to get married in a church, you might as well make a statement.”
After visiting many Northern California venues, Jacklyn and Mark decided on The University Club atop Nob Hill in San Francisco. Jacklyn spoke to her venue choice: “Finding the right venue for our vision proved to be extremely difficult in Northern California, where the go to wedding locations are at the local wineries. Mark is allergic to wine, and I hate being outdoors. It just wasn’t connecting. As soon as we laid eyes on the University Club, we just KNEW. It was dark, it was moody, it was classic. It has a library that I have dreamed of having since I was a little girl. And, the VIEW! It just felt so “us,” and seeing our friends and family light up and say the same thing when they walked in was priceless.”
The vision goal for their wedding reception was a dark, fancy, chic dinner party where the guests are well dressed, but will also rap along to 90s rap music at the top of their lungs. What was most important to them was that everyone had a great time, and that they stayed true to who they were and what they liked.
Jackyln’s father passed away, so she honored him by wrapping a locket with his photo around her bouquet. Both the bride and groom wanted to pay tribute to family members who have passed, so they created different buttons with photos on each button for guests to wear. The old whiskey box that held the buttons had a description of each photo. In Jacklyn’s words “My absolute favorite DIY detail were the button favors of my late father. It was as though a piece of him was with everyone, and being with everyone made it feel like he was with us.” Mark’s dad has a tradition of singing “Besame Mucho” at family weddings, so after toasts, Mark’s dad serenaded Mark, Jacklyn, and their wedding guests acapala style to Besame Mucho. The bride and groom have a neon lit sign that resides in their home reading “besame mucho”, which Mark proudly held up in the background.
To surprise his new wife, Mark led everyone into the bar after dinner to the big, grand piano. With Jacklyn sitting on top, Mark played the piano and sang N*SYNC’s “This I Promise You”. Mark joked very early on in the relationship that he would sing this on their wedding day, and he so he did!
Their first dance was to a Chet Baker song– when asked why they chose this, “The first record I ever bought Mark was a Chet Baker record, and he is a staple in our household. I think we enjoy the juxtaposition of a love song that sounds sad and melancholy. No one does melancholy better than Chet Baker.”
We are truly honored to have such an original couple grace the blog. James Moes Photography captured the images beautifully and special thanks to Kellyne from Hand & Hearts Events for the submission. This wedding was coordinated to perfection!
Vendor Collaboration
Photographer: James Moes Photography // Floral Designer: hand&heart events // Event Planner: hand&heart events // Design and Decor: hand&heart events // Jewelry: Anna Sheffield // Makeup Artist: Marlyn Valencia // DJ:Prodigee // Makeup Artist: Salt Spell Beauty // Event Venue: The University Club, San Francisco
Submitted via Two Bright Lights
