A Mexican Hacienda Wedding

Within an 18th Century Mexican Hacienda, Alejandra and Marius exchanged vows amongst a dramatic installation of whimsical baby’s breath. Growing over timeworn walls and dotting the ceremony aisle, ethereal blooms and candlelight created a romantic setting steeped in personal sentiment.

Ask dusk fell, guests entered a magical reception space evocative of starlit skies. Inside, ceilings dripped with fairy lights, spilled with white blooms and flickered with candles.

Capturing Alejandra and Marius’s story was photographer Viviana Cardona.

Our Story

Names / Alejandra Ransom & Marius Lorenz

Wedding Date / July 22nd-23rd, 2022

Guest Numbers / 200

How We Met

Six years ago, we first met while studying in Mexico City. Ale was in her final year of MBA and Marius was doing a semester abroad in Mexico. After falling in love, Marius embarked on an exciting journey to live and work in Mexico City. Not only did we discover remote places in Mexico together during this time, but it also enabled us to grow our relationship.

Our Engagement Story

We got engaged in San Francisco, Mexico (San Pancho for the locals). A few days after NYE, we had just finished having lunch right at the beach with my family, and were getting up to watch the sunset. As we were walking along the beach, Marius starting acting a bit weird and kept telling me to walk further. I didn’t get why at the beginning because you could see the sunset at any point on the beach. When we finally got to a spot he liked, his hand was in his pocket, and I asked him “why do you keep your hand in your pocket?” He then kneeled down and asked me to marry him. I just nodded yes with my head, tears rolled down my face, and we kissed. There were people near us watching the whole thing and then started clapping. My family was standing close by as well so we walked over, showed them the ring, took pictures, and celebrated with a toast back at our place.

Marriage To Us Means…

A way to share our commitment to spending our life together.

The Setting

Wedding Location

We wanted a place with colonial Mexican architecture which we had fallen in love with in San Miguel de Allende so already had an Hacienda in mind. Because of Covid, we couldn’t travel from Europe so my parents were the ones that did the research and visited several Haciendas sending us pictures and videos. When we found the one, we loved it because it was beautiful of course, but it had many different locations/experiences in one including an entrance with a railroad, a cava (wine cellar) with mysterious hallways, a garden, and a chapel.

The ceremony was held in the cava and the reception in a tent in the garden.

Aesthetic

Upscale, elegant with a touch of minimalism.

Preparation

We had a very casual breakfast that morning with family and friends that were staying at the hotel. I started getting ready with my mom and later my bridesmaids and aunts joined for champagne in our pjs. During this time Marius didn’t take long to get ready and headed down to the hotel bar for some drinks with the groomsmen.

Photography

Viviana Cardona – It was super easy to work with her as we felt very comfortable during the sessions we had. Most of all, I love her style.

Style Notes

Ceremony Décor

I had seen a picture of a baby’s breath vine on some ruins in pinterest and shared this with the wedding planner. It was exactly what I wanted plus she added candles in the background which added an even more romantic feeling.

Reception Décor

I wanted it to be a bit of a starry night inside the tent which included lights all over. The dance floor was hand painted with black and gold tones. Table decoration was kept minimal with only 3-4 types of flowers and candles floating in water.

Wedding Planner & Stylist

The wedding planner was Paula Balderas. We only met once in person to share the kind of aesthetic I was going for, but my mom was the one that was constantly in contact with her and suppliers.

Flowers

Main flower type was orchid, but also included Hydrangea and smaller flowers aiming to keep white and small green tones.

Stationery

Everything was digital and created by us as I work in digital marketing.

Favors

When guests arrived at the hotel, we gave them a bag with a welcome card and Mexican candy

Cake

Our caterer included dessert with the menu, a red berry mouse.

Food & Beverages

After the ceremony, we had a cocktail in the garden with all different types of drinks including gin tonic with berries, paloma (tequila with grapefruit soda), and mojitos.

During this time, we also offered hors d’oeuvres including octopus and shrimp ceviche and Prosciutto with cantaloupe.

For dinner, guests were directed to their tables and started out with a mixed salad with goat cheese and a tamarind vinaigrette, followed by an . As main, guests enjoyed either beef tenderloin with mustard sauce or salmon with hint of basil, each with a side of vegetables.

Fashion & Beauty Notes

Bride’s Dress

My dress was custom made.

Bridesmaids’ Dresses

My bridesmaids dresses were different shades of pink. I wanted them to be happy with the dress of their choosing only making sure the colors/style was formal and cohesive.

Flower Girls & Page Boys

The flower girl wore a white tulle dress and pageboy wore navy pants, white shirt and suspenders.

Jewelry / Accessories

My engagement ring was a round diamond and the earrings I wore were a family heirloom from my late grandmother

I wanted a something borrowed from my mom, I used her Cartier watch.

One of my bridesmaids is Jewish and she gave me a pin with an eye as protection from evil. I wore it on my wedding dress slip.

Groomsmen

The groomsmen wore dark navy suits, ties in shade of blue and an orchid boutonnière.

Hair & Makeup

My makeup look was natural tones with a shade of pink on my lips and for hair a wavy, messy ponytail.

The Details

Transport

We each drove in separately as we had planned our first look before the wedding and had to avoid seeing each other before then.

Honeymoon

As we love the beaches and food in Mexico, we wanted to stay in the country and went to Puerto Escondido.

Gift Registry

We had an online registry to finalize mostly kitchen accessories for our apartment.

Entertainment

We had a DJ and tried to keep the music international & from a variety of time periods given our guests were from all over.

Our Advice

A memorable moment…

We wanted to do something special for our first dance so once we choose our song, we had a dance teacher help us out with a couple of dance moves. This was one of the most fun moments we had as a couple during our day.