Desert Hacienda Wedding Inspiration at De Tierra Vineyards in Monterey

Feeling the desire to travel and get away lately?

I know I have, and since we couldn’t travel in 2020 leaving the country for a Mexico Destination Wedding wasn’t an options so we decided to bring a little bit of the beauty and feel of a Mexican destination wedding to Monterey, CA.

While we were all in lock down during the late summer of 2020 we all needed a little something to help us feel like a world away from our daily COVID stay at home lives. We thought a styled shoot could transport us to a another world with a dream wedding that was inspired by mixing California cool relaxed boho vibes with subtle nods to all things Mexico and warm sunny desert vibes.

Bride on balcony of the Hacienda house at De Tierra Vineyards

De Tierra was the perfect setting for this wedding editorial shoot. The intimate wedding venue is set amongst beautiful vineyards but also features beautiful olive tree groves, a stunning hacienda house, breathtaking wisteria arches and blooming cactus in every direction you look. The colors of the blooming prickly pear cactus and the giant agave plants inspired the color palette of the shoot and the mix of textures from soft, rough, metals, and more was also inspired but the gorgeous landscape of the property.

Wedding Ceremony at the Hacienda House at De Tierra Events in Salinas, CA

The moment I walked on the property I wanted to reimagine how we could do a wedding there that no one had really done in the past, despite having hosted tons of weddings. I knew we wanted to use the gorgeous Hacienda as the backdrop for the ceremony, its lush and has beautiful architecture that is often overlooked as a backdrop for the ceremony. The other spot on the property I knew we wanted to feature was the 14 foot high Wisteria arches that lead you from the Hacienda to the vineyards. They are stunning and have never been used as the setting for an intimate wedding dinner but I knew we needed to change that because it is a perfect spot to delight and surprise guests.

Bride smiling holding veil in a dress with feather details

To start the day we had the exceptional luxury hair and Makeup artist Kelly Jones of Kelly Jo Beauty help our real bride and model get ready for the shoot. We imagined a bride that wanted to let her natural beauty shine through and also she had multiple really incredible dresses from Epiphany Bridal in Carmel so we wanted to show of the really intricate features of the dresses.

Wedding Ceremony at private estate with hacienda style house and pool. De Tierra Events in Monterey

There Ceremony was set up with the main Hacienda house as the back drop. Seascape Flowers created an amazing floral and dried foraged palms installation to be centered between the towering cypress trees. The Pool and nearby pampas grasses and trailing vines made this a natural location for an intimate ceremony in the late afternoon.

Luxury Boho lounge with hacienda setting

We created a beautiful lounge that was inspired by the boho look and feel of the desert but made it a little more refined by using one of a kind pieces from the Copper Rose Collection. Their incredible Bent Sofa was the show stopping piece of the lounge which was the perfect place to enjoy some incredible drinks made by Pour Girl Bartending. I don’t know about you but I can’t dream of Mexico without simultaneously dreaming of amazing margaritas!

Intimate wedding dinner table with hangin lanterns and modern boho luxury details

For the reception we worked together to create a stunning table filled with lush bright flowers under the green wisteria arches. Above the tables The Copper Rose hung their stunning mix-matched woven lanterns and we filled the table with salt rock votives to help create the most romantic evening glow. Complete with touches of stone on the chargers, leather on the place cards and menus created by Heart Paper Soul , and bronze metal flatware we embraced that cool boho chic feel giving it a luxury wedding twist to help transport guests from Monterey California to another world for one evening.

For dessert Blue Aces Bake Shoppe created a massive sweet grazing table that was filled with cakes, cupcakes, tarts, french macaroons, cookies, and so much more. She really is a sweet genius. All of these goodies to be enjoyed by guests while sipping on wine and strolling the vineyards or relaxing by the large pool.

All of these incredible details were captured by Amandarose of AGS Photo Art, a film and digital hybrid photographer and Hugo Films, a film and digital videography team.

For a full vendor list including details and rentals please see the end of post. I hope this incredible wedding editorial shoot serves you as inspiration for your own wedding. If you want to plan a unforgettable, well-designed and beautiful wedding in Monterey, Carmel or Pebble Beach, stop dream and let’s start planning, contact me now!