This hilltop vineyard wedding in Malibu is everything sweet with a sunset-inspired color story, an outdoor ceremony, two glam dresses, and a night of dancing!
Nicole and Bernie’s gorgeous vineyard wedding took place at Cielo Farms’ hilltop Malibu venue surrounded by lush greenery and breathtaking views. With their original wedding delayed because of COVID, they were ecstatic to finally say I-do!
Their outdoor ceremony was intimate and everything they dreamed of. With 75 family and friends attending, they exchanged vows at sunset. They also incorporated spiritual and Black heritage wedding traditions such as taking communion, doing a libation ritual, and jumping the broom.
The pair wowed their guests with surprise second looks for their reception. Nicole slipped out of her Monique Lhullier gown into a Berta red-carpet dress and Bernie switched from his blue tuxedo into a fun tropical print velvet dinner jacket. A night filled with dancing, including a hip-hop and R&B violinist, a photo booth, and a silent disco party awaited them!
More sweet details on their love story and fairytale vineyard wedding below.
- Couple: Nicole Elizabeth Burns & Bernier Lauredan Jr.
- Occupations: Nicole is a Head of Strategic Partnerships at Stripe; Bernie is the VP of Business Operations & Finance at BloomTech
Quick Facts:
- Wedding date: October 1, 2021
- Wedding location: Cielo Farms, Malibu, California
- Bridesmaids & groomsmen gifts: Bridesmaids received getting ready robes, custom jewelry boxes, earrings for the wedding day, and wedding day makeup application. Groomsmen received monogrammed golf accessories.
- Gifts for one another: Pearl Earrings and Custom Golf Accessories
- Ceremony entrance song: The Groom entered to “Overjoyed” by Stevie Wonder. The Bride entered to “I Look to You” by Whitney Houston accompanied by violinist Dominique Hammons.
- First dance song: “The Closer I Get To You” by Luther Vandross & Beyonce
How they met…
Nicole and Bernie met at a pre-MBA conference the summer before they started business school. Bernie asked a mutual friend if she was single and quickly made his interest known!
They spent two inseparable months getting to know each other and exploring their favorite spots in NYC! Bernie formally asked Nicole to be his girlfriend at one of her favorite restaurants in NYC (City Crab) in July 2015.
They did not attend the same graduate school and continued dating long distance between Connecticut and New Hampshire. Upon graduating in 2017, Bernie worked his magic to transfer his full-time offer at Bain Consulting to San Francisco, where Nicole was beginning a career in tech at Google.
The proposal…
On December 29th 2018, Bernie asked Nicole to marry her in a beautiful waterfront garden in Charleston, SC. They were visiting Nicole’s parents in Myrtle Beach for Christmas and planned to spend several days in Charleston where Bernie’s family would meet them.
To Nicole’s surprise, Bernie hired a photographer and coordinated a surprise engagement with both sides of the family showing up to celebrate. After the proposal in the park and numerous fun photos, the families broke bread and enjoyed a beautiful private dinner celebration.
Navigating Covid…
Nicole and Bernie were supposed to be married on September 6, 2020 in Morgan Hill, CA. Covid postponed their wedding to October 1, 2021. Unfortunately their original wedding venue also had to cancel their reception, which required them to find a new venue.
They landed on Cielo Farms, a beautiful rolling hilltop vineyard in Malibu. The venue allowed them to have a fully outdoor fairytale wedding. Nicole always imagined having a midsummer night’s dream wedding when she was a little girl, so despite the complicated changes and planning during a pandemic, she was able to see her vision come to life at this amazing venue location.
Wedding style, attire, & shopping experience…
Nicole tried on over 100 dresses at bridal boutiques across several states including NYC where she is from, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. She finally met an amazing stylist, Shonna, at Bridal Galleria in San Francisco who was able to fully understand her vision and found her gown by Monique Lhuillier.
In 2019, she chose her first dress for a planned September 6, 2020 wedding. She also chose a second dress by Berta off the rack to make a grand second entrance. This dress was chosen for her original red-carpet themed wedding reception venue, but she decided to still wear it at the new venue and create a surprise moment for her guests where both she and Bernie would change into new attire.
Bernie shopped at the Knot Standard in San Francisco, CA, and chose a custom tuxedo that incorporated his favorite color blue and black. He absolutely loved working with the stylists at Knot Standard. For his second outfit, he found a fun tropical print, velvet jacket at the Black Tux.
Ready to say I-do…
Cultural elements…
Bernie and Nicole had a Christian faith-based ceremony, which included taking communion and participating in a sand unity ritual.
As part of their Black heritage, they did a libation ceremony, honoring their ancestors across the African diaspora. They also jumped the broom to physically and spiritually cross the threshold into the land of matrimony. Traditionally, jumping the broom was also a means of sweeping away all negative energy, making way for all things that are good to come into your lives.
Nicole is a member of the historically black Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She incorporated the Delta’s tradition of her sorority sisters singing a sacred wedding song to her and breaking out into a coordinated dance routine after.
The ceremony…
Favorite wedding day memories…
After a three-year engagement and a one-year covid postponement, meeting at the aisle and exchanging our sacred vows was the best memory. Even though we were surrounded by our loved ones, it felt like we were the only two people on the earth in the most quiet, most special moment where two became one.
Their first dance…
Portraits…
The reception…
Advice for other engaged couples…
Your wedding day will be a day that brings you and your partner magical, happy memories of a lifetime. Follow your heart and make decisions that are true to you and your partner.
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Vendors:
- Wedding Planner: A Monique Affair
- Photographer: Kanayo Adibe
- Vineyard Wedding Venue: Cielo Farms
- Officiants: Courtney and Corey Sankey of The Father’s House Oakland
- Floral Designer: The Best Day Ever Floral Design
- Makeup: Kimeko White
- Hair: Korey Sipio
- Pastry Chef: Nicole Redd-McIntosh
- Caterer: Tres La Catering
- Wedding Filmmaker: Paul Meredith
- Violinist: Dominique Hammons
- DJ: Chris White
- Photo booth: Pixster Photo Booth
- Rentals: Premiere Party Rents
- Stationary: Model Paper Design
- Ceremony Dress: Monique Lhuillier
- Ceremony Shoes: Jimmy Choo
- Bridal Boutique: Shonna at SF Bridal Galleria
- Dress: Berta Bridal
- Reception Shoes: Badgley Mischka
- Bridal Styling: Courtney Sankey
- Groom Tuxedo: Knot Standard
- Dinner Jacket: The Black Tux
- Bride Tribe Dresses: Amsale & Bella Bridesmaids
- Groomsmen Tuxedos: The Black Tux
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