An Iconic SLO Valentine’s Wedding Shoot

What do you get when you combine Valentine’s Day, vintage glam, and two of San Luis Obispo’s most iconic locations? This timeless romantic styled shoot designed by MDL Events, of course!

Telling a story when designing and creating a styled shoot can help get the creativity flowing and unite the details into a seamless overall vision. For this retro-inspired Valentine’s shoot, Rachell decided to base the Groom’s “character” on a musician friend from high school, imagining that he and his bride-to-be would infuse their love story with rock-and-roll and vintage elements, and set their celebrations amidst show-stopping venues.

The first step was finding elements from two iconic San Luis Obispo landmarks to emphasize in the design. From The Madonna Inn, Rachell pulled a gorgeous pink, peach, maroon, and green color palette to work with. Then, she and her watercolor artist created the perfect custom floral painting to draw those colors together and to celebrate the unique floral design elements found throughout the Inn. The arch shapes of the invitation reflect the swooping, swirling Art Deco ceiling of the Fremont Theater. For the save the date, Rachell wanted something that would preview the uniqueness of the event to come. In order to re-create the famous sign at the Fremont Theater, Rachell digitally traced and imported it into her design software. The save the dates were die-cut along their scalloped edges to preserve the sign’s signature shape and truly do the recreation the justice it deserved.

With the other elements in place—the perfect pink dress, a vintage cherry-red convertible, lush florals—this shoot was brought to its retro perfection! We were so happy to be invited to join in something so fun & creative and to pay homage to some of San Luis Obipso’s most beloved landmarks!

Full wedding credits:

Photography & Videography: @slotownstudios
Invitations & Graphic Design: @rachell_rae_designs 
Coordination & Florals: @_mdlevents_ 
Venues: @fremontslo & @madonnainn1958
Vintage Car:  @avowceremonies
Groom’s Fashion: @heygorgeousformalwear
Beauty: @bellizzimobeauty
Bride’s Fashion: @untamedpetals
Bride’s Shoes: @pashionfootwear