San Francisco Wedding Trends at #WereGettingMarried2017

While it may seem like “wedding season” just died down, professional wedding planners are currently gearing up for next year’s nuptials. Last Thursday we gathered our favorite members of San Francisco’s wedding industry for an exclusive event at The San Francisco Mint highlighting the trends we expect to see in 2017.

One of our model couples, dressed by JAKE, mingling with guests at #WEREGETTINGMARRIED2017.

Instead of a traditional (boring) wedding expo, we opted to recreate and condense the traditional wedding day experience into a two-hour luncheon. We replaced the ceremony with a wedding fashion show and planned a reception with plenty of stellar food, drink and entertainment. True to current wedding trends, we encouraged guests to use the #WEREGETTINGMARRIED2017 hashtag to collect the memories on social media.

A Global Gourmet signature cocktail in the making.

Some of the couples we work with are adding something special to their wedding processions and we just love it — a cocktail hour before the ceremony! We adopted this idea and tray-passed signature cocktails and hor d’oeuvres in The Mint’s gorgeous walled courtyard as our guests arrived. The Tokyo Crisp, a Global Gourmet classic, was the talk of the party and paired wonderfully with the champagne-based “Rehearsal” cocktail.

A couple of grooms in custom suits from JAKE.

We worked with Standard Party Rentals on a custom carpeted catwalk.

Once our “wedding party” had gathered, bells rang (not really) and our happy couples (paid models) walked down the aisle (a custom carpeted runway). We partnered with San Francisco-based JAKE to show their brand new bridal capsule collection and custom suiting.

JAKE’s custom tailoring is a local favorite for those who prefer suits with some flair. Customer demand for unique bridal attire evolved into a new line for brides with boundary-pushing style, and our guests got to see it early! The unconventional textiles and cuts in the collection call to a trend toward bolder wedding style next year, and the crowd released plenty of “oohs” and cheers as each couple hit the catwalk.

Lovely brides in a shorts suit and wedding gown.

Edgy sartorial choices are a signature for JAKE, and we loved the bold aesthetic for our event.

Rafael Campos, our in-house Event Designer, dressed The Mint with a bold mix of floral arrangements, furniture and linens to create an inviting, yet high-energy atmosphere for our event. His team even built the paper flower wall for our runway/”alter”/impromptu-photobooth backdrop! Standard Party Rentals provided furniture and Gatsby Entertainment provided the lights and sounds throughout. Mixed metals and rich colors caused every part of the party pop.

After the fashion show in the courtyard, we welcomed our guests back indoors for the “reception,” a networking lunch with an open bar in each room. Since interactive food stations are supplanting traditional seated dinners, we brought a team of exhibition chefs in to man our latest and greatest savory stations. Instead of a classic steak or fish menu, flavorful selections from our chef-composed Mini Plates station, Hand-Stuffed Ravioli and and our fresh new Poke Bar ensured there was something for everyone.

Our new Yuzu-Miso Hamachi Poke.

Our Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brussels Sprouts and freshly shaved Truffle.

Sommelier opening champagne with a saber.

Catherine Fallis, our newest team member, stopped the show with her sabering!

Catherine Fallis, an internationally recognized wine expert, was also on-hand for an incredibly fun champagne sabering performance — she opened a magnum of french bubbly with little more than a flick of her sword! We’re excited to see Catherine’s sabre skills more often, she just joined the Global team as our new in-house Master Sommelier.

Signature cocktails by Global Gourmet, custom marble and velum menus by Yonder Designs.

And at those open bars? We crafted a menu of signature cocktails starting with “The Rehearsal” and moving forward with the gin-based “Let’s Elope,” an apple cider mule called “The Ring Bearer” and “The Flower Girl,” a southern-style bourbon fizz with saffron. Fresh fruit and herbaceous accents drew all our cocktails together. Yonder Designs produced all of our signage and station menus, bound to marble with copper threads. Inventive, and tres chic.

Cold Brew Coffee from Dogpatch Brewers, Champagne, Flowers and a model having her hair and makeup done by a Stylebee stylist.

A sampling from the #TREATYOURSELF room.

On the other side of the party, our friends at Stylebee, an on-demand hair and makeup service, were camped (“glamped?”) out in the #TREATYOURSELF room after getting our models ready. Stylists were offering makeup tricks and touch-ups to our guests, alongside a sparkling selection from our Champagne Cart. We also put bottles of Cold Brew Coffee from our exclusive partners at Dogpatch Brewers on ice for anybody that needed a pick-me-up.

#CAKEBAR

Finally, for the bride in all of us that hates making decisions, we debuted our very first #CAKEBAR! Wedding cake tasting is fun. So is having a selection of six uniquely flavored and decorated “tasting” cakes available to you and your party guests. We included a classic Chocolate Hazelnut combination, a decidedly southern Sour Cream Cake with Caramel and Pear, and even added a gluten-free Pumpkin Spice Cake, because it ‘tis the season. Dessert bars were all the rage this year, and we can see that trend evolving into this more opulent idea quickly.

Our Executive Pastry Chef, Steven Cheung, brought the rich colors and metallic tones into his wedding #cakebar display.

It may have been early in the afternoon, but as the party wound down, our tray passers made the rounds again with Late Night Bites. We served up mini Bombay Dogs — delicious carb-forward munchies that pack a lot of bright Indian flavor. Our favors were edible too, of course — jars of Housemade Truffles, Biscuits, Jam and a Duck Fat Chex Mix made their way home in glittery bags with our guests, alongside a copy of Modern Luxury Brides California courtesy of our media partner.

“Tasting” sized servings of Chocolate Cake with Hazelnut Buttercream and Chai Spice Cake with Pistachio Buttercream.

We’re already incredibly excited for next year’s wedding season. It was lovely to touch base and mingle with some of the most creative and romantic minds in the business, we left the event even more inspired than we were before! We’d like to extend a sincere “thank you” to all of our guests and the incredible vendor partners that made #WEREGETTINGMARRIED2017 possible: JAKE, Standard Party Rentals, Gatsby Entertainment, Yonder Designs, Stylebee, Meg Messina Photography and Modern Luxury Brides.