Steampunk Wedding with Beach Ceremony and Brewery Reception

Jaalah and Nastacia’s wedding at Avila Beach in California may not have been what they had originally planned, but it was nonetheless absolutely perfect and an incredible reflection of their style and love.

“We were supposed to get married about two weeks before national shut downs happened in April, so it was an abrupt pivot,” says Nastacia. The couple was able to keep their original reception venue — a brewery that was a nod to their first date — but lost their original ceremony space. Because safety and comfort was utmost priority for their guests, they kept the list intimate and exchanged vows on the beach. “We're not super big on crowds of people, so we were able to use COVID as an excuse to keep it small,” says the newlyweds.

After a 15-minute beach ceremony and Ketubah signing, the newlyweds and their 25 guests — all encouraged to wear “steampunk formal” to go with the couple's theme — retreated to the brewery for food, drinks and celebration. Tables were topped with steampunk vignette centerpieces, curated by Jaalah's sister with Dollar Tree finds. “They were awesome! Also, we really liked how the venue style matched our theme,” says Jaalah.

Their “Taste of New Orleans” food stations allowed for proper social distancing and their Spotify playlist and open bar soon encouraged dancing that went into the night before sending guests home with skeleton key bottle opener favors (“Because it would be a travesty to be surrounded by all that beer with no bottle opener.”).

“I remember sitting at the reception and just watching our friends having fun. It's been a crazy year for everyone — most of us are frontline workers — so it was nice to have a few hours of almost normalcy ,” says Jaalah.