I snapped this photo during the final walkthrough of our wedding venue just a few weeks before Jason and I tied the knot. I'm so thrilled that I had the opportunity to work on my wedding with this talented group — a.k.a. my dream team! For the record, when I say "dream team" I mean that literally and figuratively — each of these people not only does phenomenal work that I love and respect, each was also just an absolute dream to work with! As Jason and I pieced together our vision for the Big Day, they lent their expertise and guidance, assembled the ingredients and then made it happen with grace, style and conviviality!

Now that you know the players and you've seen some pictures from the resulting wedding in the current issue of The Knot (still swooning about that!!!), I'm taking things wayyyyyyyyyyy back to the very beginning. In the coming months, I'm going to blog about all of the oooh's and ahhhh's of the planning and design process for our wedding — from engagement to "I do" and everything in between! Andiamo!

Pictured above, left to right: Megan Grey - Honey & Poppies, Amber Cowell - The Love Riot, Jesi Haack - Jesi Haack Design, Daniel November - Heirloom LA, Nicole - Classic Party Rentals, Talmadge Lowe - Pharmacie, AnnaMarie Kostura - Villa at Sunstone Winery. Not pictured but still very much a part of the Dream Team: Annie McElwain - Annie McElwain Photography, Max Cutrone & Molly Jenson - Max & Molly Films, Erica Buekelman & Katie Mueller - 10.11 Makeup, Keith Brunsmann & Jonathan Wolper - The Lighter Side

After months of biting my lip and resisting the urge to Instagram, blog, post and tweet, I'm beyond excited and so incredibly thrilled to announce that my wedding has been published in The Knot magazine!!! If you can't wait to get to the newsstand, there are a few photos from our nuptials on The Knot's website too! Phew — so glad to get that out!!!

 As I settle back into the studio after a whirlwind holiday season that started with traveling back east to visit family and ended with a few quiet days with mio marito wine tasting and relaxing in Paso Robles (see photo above!), I’m excited with the possibilities that 2014 brings! With last year being such a grande anno, it’s going to be difficult to top… but I have a few things up my sleeve!!

Cincin!

For many months my brother meticulously planned his proposal to his girlfriend. They live in Las Vegas and he knew from the get-go that he wanted to take her on a helicopter ride to the Grand Canyon, pop the question and then, when they came back to the house, there would be a surprise party waiting for them. There were a lot of moving parts to this equation most of which involved coordinating the surprise party guests’ arrival from out of town. Needless to say, it all went off without a hitch! I’m thrilled that the cat is finally out of the bag because 1. we can celebrate!, 2. I don’t have to keep this plan a secret anymore (I was so worried someone would slip up at our wedding just 2 weeks ago!) and 3. we have another wedding in the family!! Felicitazioni, Dave and Keath!

I’m now officially a Mrs.!! Wow, what a whirlwind, amazing wedding weekend! I’m still digesting it all! Since it isn’t quite time for us to take off on our honeymoon, we’re taking a “minimoon” — a.k.a. few days to relax and catch our breath! This is our view (pictured above) from El Encanto — nestled in the hills of Santa Barbara. Not only is the view stunning but the food is spectacular and the spa is magnificent too! Couple all of that with a glass of wine and my new husband by my side… è perfetto!