Shelby & Alex // Moorpark Hilltop Wedding

A few years back, during their senior year at ASU, Alex’s best friend and Shelby’s best friend devised a plan. Alex’s friend knew Alex wanted to meet Shelby after seeing her online (creeping on Facebook) and thinking she was beautiful. Shelby’s best friend knew Alex through her boyfriend and had a hunch that Shelby would like him. Initially, Shelby’s best friend told her that her boyfriend’s buddy “Bacon” was interested in her. Shelby immediately dismissed the idea thinking that, because his nickname was “Bacon,” he was “greasy.” LOL.

Well, one day, Alex & Shelby’s best friends put their plan in action and brought both parties to the gym strategically at the same time so that they’d meet one another. Shelby says that from that day forward, they were best friends. When they graduated, Alex went on a trip to Europe with his guy friends. After that, instead of flying back to Arizona, he flew to California to see Shelby. And he never left.

Alex proposed last year on the beach, and Shelby was on her way to #BecomingABacon.

Alex and Shelby’s wedding was situated atop a beautiful hill in Moorpark, CA, at her father’s home. The sprawling views and the miraculously glistening sun (it was overcast and humid the day before) created the perfect setting for a romantic, wild, exciting, and emotional wedding.

To summarize the craziest part of the day: when I arrived at the wedding around 2:00pm, Shelby did not have a wedding dress. To make a long story short, Shelby went to pick up her dress the day before, saw it was altered incorrectly, immediately went to meet with two designers, and picked a new dress. The designers hand sewed the details of the dress until they were in the car on the way to deliver it. They stayed awake through the night to make sure the dress was perfect.

Even without a dress, Shelby was cool as a freakin’ cucumber all day, joking about the ridiculousness of the situation and telling me “this dress is even BETTER than the original!!!” About two hours before her wedding, the designers ran through the door, and we snuck away to a back room where she was finally able to put her gown on with her mom & sister. Luckily, it fit her PERFECTLY, evoking tears from a very relieved bride…and everyone else in the room. The custom gown blew her (& everyone.. especially her groom) away with its unique detail and design. We were able to rework the photo schedule and make sure every important photograph was captured, and Shelby walked down the aisle looking like a 12/10 in her custom dress.

Shelby & Alex’s wedding was so, so special for MANY reasons, but the clear love, joy, and support of their family and friends stood out at every corner; it was obvious how STOKED their loved ones were to see them get married. Shelby’s bridesmaids were crying or laughing the ENTIRE day, and Alex’s mom was beaming—a beautiful megawatt smile plastered on her face from the moment she saw her son, through their iconic mother-son dance, all the way to the end of the night grooving on the dance floor. As Alex walked down the aisle, the crowd hollered and cheered. As Shelby walked down the aisle, both her mom & Alex’s mom wiped tears from their eyes. After the ceremony, I overhead the groomsmen saying “OUR BEST FRIENDS JUST GOT MARRIED!!!” and high fiving each other.  The love and outward excitement of their best friends and their families set the scene for their perfect wedding day. Alex and Shelby were giggly, calm, romantic, and fun with each other through the afternoon and evening—their compatibility and the joy they bring one another was and is undeniable.

*Also, Shelby gained 100 points in my book when she took my cake-peer-pressure to heart, grabbing a fist full of cake and smashing it in Alex’s face. I couldn’t love her more.

It was such a beautiful and exciting celebration to be a part of. Being a fly on the wall at this wedding filled my heart to the brim & made me SO grateful for my job and for the opportunity to play a small role in some of people’s “best days.”

I could rave about the Bacons and this wedding forever, but I’ll let the photos tell the rest.

Congratulations to Shelby & Alex—may your lives together be as filled with as much love, joy, and fun as your wedding day.