“It took us almost a year of knowing each other at work before we started dating. We were both so cautious of the fact that we worked together and didn’t know how to navigate anything without making things awkward at work,” Stacy Horwitz reveals about her relationship with Justin Terbeek. Yet, the two were undeniably in love. Time passed, and Justin proposed to Stacy while vacationing in Antigua.
The Los Angeles couple decided to host their fall wedding less than two hours outside of the city. “I love the small town vibe of Ojai and the warm feeling we got when walking around [our venue]. It appealed to us that we could do all events at the resort and our guests would be able to stay in one place all weekend,” the bride reveals.
Over 150 friends and loved ones enjoyed warm cider and soup shooters as they arrived at the couple’s Jewish ceremony. “It was really important to Justin and I to have a Jewish wedding and to make sure we had a chuppah, ketubah, our parents stand in the chuppah with us, and an awesome rabbi,” she smiles. The pair exchanged their personalized vows with a stunning view of the mountains.
Stacy envisioned what she calls a “mountain chic feeling” for her wedding as a nod to her love of the landform. “Skiing, winter, and fall have always been my favorite things and time of year [so] really wanted to replicate that rich, warm, cozy feeling in our wedding,” she says. The décor showcased a warm autumnal color palette of burgundy hues that was offset by softer colors, fruit, greenery and candlelight.
Along with the cozy ambience, attendees loved dancing the hora with the newlyweds and partying to the sounds of a live band. “The one thing I told [our event designer Laurel & Rose] when we started planning was no matter what happens, I want a band and I want them to be epic,” the bride remembers.
When asked about the best planning advice she received, Stacy lists five tips in which she fully confides. “Don’t sweat the details; Enjoy it as much as you can because it goes by fast and you never have this moment again in your life; Take a moment to sit back and take it all in; Enjoy the engagement before jumping in to start planning; Something will go wrong, but it won’t matter.”