Real Wedding: Alison & Jon

San Diego or romantic English garden? It’s tough to tell with this charming real wedding held at Twin Oaks Garden Estate in San Marcos.

Alison and Jon met just three weeks shy of their graduation from the University of Vermont and after a very love-at-first-sight connection, the pair moved to San Diego, where Jon is now pursuing a PhD. On New Year’s Eve 2012, he popped the question after a night spent making risotto and dancing in the kitchen.

Alison admits that she had a hard time defining her wedding style and instead focused on incorporating things they both loved. That meant all things timeless, elegant, and beautiful with a touch of whimsy. The venue especially embodied those qualities. “We fell in love with Twin Oaks immediately,” she says. “We loved the greenery, the trees, the flowers, the old schoolhouse, the vintage bar, the fountains, and all of the twinkly lights. I tried to weave the vintage and garden-y feel throughout the wedding, with beautiful and delicate flowers, lace, floaty bridesmaid dresses, and vintage vases and vessels I found myself. The fact that my grandfather, who officiated our wedding, is an avid gardener made the day even more special.”

Check out their lush, pastel-hued real wedding below: