A Vibrant Outdoor Wedding Weekend At The Vintage Estate Yountville Complete With A Hot Air Balloon

Real Wedding
Written by
Lainey Dow

Shruti and Kush's wedding celebration in Napa Valley showcased beautiful design elements, a vibrant color palette and an outpouring of love. The couple originally met through a mutual friend and later got engaged in Buenos Aires. The two hosted a traditional Punjabi wedding with many traditional elements and various modern twists after falling in love with the atmosphere of Napa Valley.

From the bride and groom:

"The wedding morning for both the bride and groom began being surrounded by their individual friends and family as they prepared for their big day. Shruti and Kush exchanged letters that were delivered to each other by their nephews. A team of professionals were brought in to hand tie turbans on the groom, his groomsmen and all male family members participating in the wedding festivities from both families. The groom’s family and friends assembled for the traditional Baraat, a parade which was led by music and live dhol (drum) players as the groom’s guests danced joyfully with parasols in hand and onlookers watched in awe. The groom and his father both rode horses and made their way to the Milni welcoming ceremony where the groom’s family meeting the bride’s family. Normally, the groom rides the horse by himself, but Kush wanted his father to ride alongside him, an ancient tradition that has become less and less common. This was such a big moment; the local newspaper featured the Baraat on their front page the following week.

The couple’s traditional ceremony took place under a Napa-style wooden structure flanked with cascading large florals in ivory, blush, and peach and soft blush/pink silk draping at the end of the lush green lawn of The Vintage Estate, Yountville. The fresh creeping florals and greens created for a rustic natural spread. Four large flowers atop wooden pedestals served as aisle markers along a brick walkway with scattered petals. The bride walked in with a garden style cascading bouquet, and the couple exchanged pink and white rose floral garlands, vows and rings during their Hindu wedding ceremony as their family and friends looked on and ultimately erupted in cheer.

After the ceremony, Shruti’s family walked alongside her for her Vidai. This is considered one of the most emotional parts of a Hindu wedding ceremony as it is the moment a bride bids farewell to her family and joins her husband for their new life together. The couple was escorted to a vintage Volkswagen Beatle with customized license plates with their hashtag and last name, as they drove off to their reception. And now, it was time to party. The evening began with cocktails on The Vintage Estate’s Groezinger Lawn where guests enjoyed appetizers and live music of the Golden Bell Brass Band. The band stunned guests by fusing their jazz routes with popular Indian songs to offer attendees a unique musical experience. Guests also had an opportunity to pose for photos in a beautiful customized large gold standing photo booth frame with two flower bouquets designed by Anais Events with various photo posing challenges orchestrated by Napa Valley Photo Booths to keep the crowd engaged.

As guests transitioned to the outdoor East Pavilion for the dinner reception, they were to find their tables listed on a large frame categorized by red and white wines instead of traditional table numbers. The couple opted for elegant tables with a mix of centerpieces of towering gold stemmed florals and greenery and low beds of greenery with candle clusters setting the patio aglow. The sweetheart table was a rectangular glass table with greens and florals along the top and sides and a spread of floating candles. The cake was four tiers with glamorous gold foil, green sprigs, and cascading white aligning with the garden style Napa theme. Shruti and Kush joined the party for their first dance, cake cutting, and a mix of fun, embarrassing, and some slightly inappropriate speeches by the bride and groom’s fathers, best man and made of honor. The couple did not forget their commitment to philanthropic causes. Each guest received a note at their seat sharing that in lieu of a favor, the couple was making donations to the CADE Foundation and the Innocence Project, two causes very close to the couple’s hearts.

The lights went down, the music turned up and all danced the night away in the Barrell Room. Meanwhile dessert bars and a live Jalebi station offered something sweet for the guests and a taco truck parked on the outside lawn was there in case guests were still hungry at the end of the night.

When people gave us advice while we were planning our wedding they always said ‘Enjoy it. It goes by fast.’ They were absolutely right. The smiles on the faces of our family and friends will never leave our hearts and we couldn’t have imagined a more perfect start to our life together. We had a blast!"

Kush + Shruti from The Wedding Cartel on Vimeo.

City State:

Yountville

WEDDING PRO TEAM

Photography
Bridal Attire & Groom's Attire
Bridal Shoes
Venue & Bartending
Caterer
Decor & Florals
Hair & Makeup
Transportation
Transportation
Videographer
Wedding Planner
Henna
Hot Air Balloon
Caterer
Groom, Groomsmen's & Family Male Turban Tying & Sword