Sam Ushiro of the blog Aww Sam has been dazzling the world with her love of color and vintage style for years, so it’s no surprise she and her now husband Kyle had a vibrant and unique elopement! These two met on Tinder and became inseparable pretty much immediately. Kyle proposed while they were on a trip to Maine, and although they were living in Brooklyn, NY at the time, they quickly realized they wanted a west coast vibe for their wedding.

Ever the non-traditionalists, Sam and Kyle knew a big classic wedding just wasn’t their jam. They decided to do a private city hall ceremony in NYC to make things legal with a fun elopement in Las Vegas as the real celebration. The cornerstone for the elopement vision was a pink Cadillac filled with flowers – but as luck would have it, the car of their dreams was out of commission for several months on a movie shoot! Sam called around for ages and finally found a car near Palm Springs. Since Sam and Kyle also share a big love for Mid-Century fashion and retro style, Palm Springs ended up being the perfect fit!

I can’t tell you how ridiculously excited I was to capture these two on such a special day. My studio manager, Jennie, and I went to Palm Springs one day early to scout the exact location for the car and for other fun portraits. We specifically needed to find a spot that had a view of the mountains, was backlit by the sun, that allowed us to safely park the car, floralize it, and photograph for a semi long period of time. Not an easy feat, but we found the dream spot!! I honestly love that part of the planning process because it’s like a treasure hunt. Along the way we found some amazing pink door backdrops and an entire pink house that would exactly match the car’s paint color. JACKPOT!

These two were already dressed and ready to go when I arrived at their Airbnb – everyone was eager and pumped to get going! We took some pics at their place and on their cute street before dropping the Cadillac off at the mountain location to be floral bombed by Wild Muse Floral. We had a friend drop us off at a random spot on the side of the road and then pick us up 20 minutes later for the car floral magic! Once we lost the light we quickly brought the car back to the all pink building for their cake cutting. We all closed out the day by eating cold cake (my fave!) with our hands!

Without further ado, here are the photos of this favorite day, also featured here on Green Wedding Shoes!

Absolutely one of my favorite days ever. Sam and Kyle have since moved to Austin, TX where they’re in the midst of renovating a house! Be sure to follow along with them on Insta!
Vendor Credits:
Photography: Mary Costa Photography
Florals: Wild Muse Floral
Wedding dress: Vintage 50’s Prom Dress from Etsy
Hairpiece: Vintage Floral Headscarf from The Fine Art of Design in Palm Springs
Hair stylist: Sandra Robles
Groom Attire: ASOS and Custom Print All Over Me Button Down
Aroom’s shoes: ASOS
Cake: Alana Jones-Mann
Car: The Antique Pink Cadillac
Featured on Green Wedding Shoes!