A Boho Chic Desert Wedding in Palm Springs at Sacred Sands

This bride and groom's love story is proof that your soulmate can stumble on into your life at the most unexpected time and in the most unconventional way... and your love can grow into the most beautiful partnership for life. Christine & Josh's mid-century modern wedding in sunny Palm Springs was *just* as beautiful as their love! Amorology and Catalina Neal joined creative forces to turn their boho chic dreams into a reality. Pretty pops of light blue and yellow dance their way through this heavenly desert day. Check out the gorgeous photos from Sally Pinera and watch this magical day unfold below!

From the bride, Christine... Josh and I have an unconventional love-story. I met Josh during the busiest time of my life when dating was not a priority. I downloaded Tinder for pure entertainment, never expecting to meet “the one”. Knowing I wasn’t ready for something serious, on our 2nd date I told Josh I didn’t see this going anywhere, but I’d be happy to just be friends. Josh, being the genuine man that he is, said he’d be happy to be friends. As the year went on, Josh and I became closer. We occasionally met up for drinks, shared stories about design and tech, and even trained for a half marathon together after I jokingly challenged him to run it with me on our 1st date. Throughout our friendship, my friends got to know him and liked him and I came to realize that I liked him too.

Our fate was sealed 11-months after our first date, when I surprised Josh with a kiss one random night. We’ve been a happy couple ever since. When Josh proposed in 2017, we already knew what kind of wedding we wanted. Our vision was a beautiful bohemian chic ceremony, close to nature, in the California desert. It all started when we took a road trip through Nevada, Utah and Arizona in 2016. We instantly fell in love with the surroundings, the stillness, and felt so creative and free in the endless horizon. We were so excited when we found Sacred Sands, because it could not more perfectly fit that vision. It was important that our wedding conveyed key elements of us as a couple while also speaking to our individual style. We wanted to mix elements of mid-century modern and boho chic playing off the desert surroundings. Josh and I are both passionate about design and fashion, so planning our wedding down to the detail was so much fun and really gave us a chance to flex our creativity.

Our amazing wedding planner, Amorology, helped us bring everything to life. Our theme was “Run Away With Me”, based on the summer before we started dating. We spent lots of time together training for a half marathon, and eventually ran all 13. 1 miles side-by-side on race day. Our escort display featured the main title “Run Away With Me” while our dinner menu header read, “Don’t Eat and Run”. We also asked our guests to share their favorite details with us. A sign featuring Josh’s favorite quote: “Delight Is In The Details” alongside his vintage camera collection, accompanied 3 instant-film cameras for our guests to use. Our signature drinks were the “Spicy Girl Margarita”, based on a recipe from one of our favorite restaurants back home, and the “Shy Guy Mai Tai” inspired by Josh’s love of Tiki drinks. Our guests enjoyed drinks along with charcuterie and tray passed purple potato flautas and ceviche tostadas while watching a gorgeous Joshua Tree sunset on the terrace.

At dinner, we featured a southwestern themed menu of tacos with fillings including carne asada, carnitas, beer battered halibut and black bean with sweet potato. We topped off the night with a late-night nacho station and fresh churros drizzled with dulce de leche. Miho Catering did an amazing job ensuring our guests never went hungry. Since we don’t have much of a sweet tooth, we opted for cupcakes instead of a traditional wedding cake. Over The Rainbow Cupcakes, a local bakery, created an absolutely gorgeous mix of cactus and succulent cupcakes that perfectly fit our desert theme. Our tables were adorned with a mix of dried and fresh flowers, and potted cactus designed by Catalina Neal. The colors were inspired by earth’s natural colors and rust accents of the desert. We featured mix and match glassware, black plates and gold silverware to contrast with the neutral colors. We gave himalayan salt crystals as wedding favors to play off Earth’s natural elements. Despite being planned down to the last detail, our special day was also full of surprises. Josh surprised me by designing 4 custom Snapchat filters, including one that featured our Tinder profile photos and “It’s a Match!” at the top. After our first dance, I surprised him back with a custom rap on how we first met. I wrote lyrics to the beat “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem and performed it on our wedding day. My bridesmaids were my backup dancers and “lit up the dance floor” with lights in their bouquets. It was a great way to get the party started and to remind everyone how our love story began.

Photography: Sally Pinera | Videography: Atomic Tangerine Film Co. | Wedding Planner: Amorology | Florist: Catalina Neal | Cupcakes: Over The Rainbow | Catering: Miho Catering | Hair and Makeup: Luong Lasting | DJ: Dart Collective | Wedding Venue: Sacred Sands Bed and Breakfast | Cocktails: Barcon Cocktails | Furniture Rental: Folklore Vintage Rentals | Paper Goods: Four Things Paper | Tabletop: Hostess Haven