Desiree Yazdanshenas and Amir Sharifi met through mutual friends ten years before they started dating. While Amir tried repeatedly to get Desiree to go out with him, the timing never seemed right. At his cousin’s engagement party, however, Amir requested to sit at the same table as Desiree; and after reconnecting that night, the two never left each other’s side.
“After two months of dating, he turned to me one night at dinner and told me that he wanted to marry me one day,” Desiree recalls. “I laughed because I thought he was joking, but then he looked at me in all seriousness and told me again, ‘I’m going to marry you one day,’ and I knew he meant it. I loved how serious he took our relationship, and it made me respect him and trust him even more.”
“AFTER TWO MONTHS OF DATING ,HE TOLD ME THAT HE WANTED TO MARRY ME ONE DAY”
Two years into their courtship, the couple was celebrating their anniversary over dinner at the Loft at Montage Laguna Beach. Once they finished dinner, Amir asked his then-girlfriend to take a walk and enjoy the sunset. “We started walking closer to the water when we turned a corner, and there was a lawn with roses in the shape of a heart. He pulled me over inside the heart, and right before the sun went down, he got on one knee and proposed.”
On the morning of the big day, the bride woke up early for a lovely breakfast in her bridal suite. With hair and makeup finished ahead of time, she could relax with her bridal party, without any stress or rush. After a “first look” photo session, the bride and groom returned to the bridal suite for some pre-wedding champagne with their closest friends before the wedding ceremony.
“The flowers were stunning and endless,” the bride describes. “When it was time to walk down the aisle, my breath was taken away by all the beauty. I had the most amazing violinist that was playing and leading me down the aisle. Seeing Amir standing at the end was a moment I will never forget.”
With a full-on hair, makeup, and wardrobe change for her second look, Desiree and her new husband entered their wedding reception for an epic celebration. Everyone cut loose and danced the night away to the music of live musicians, a DJ, and a daft player.
“At the end of our wedding day, we were so happy but also a little sad that it was over,” Desiree reflects. “There was so much time and effort put into creating such a special day, and we wish we could live in those moments forever.
WEDDING TALENT
Location and Cake: The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, CA; Caterer: Bahador Events, Tarzana, CA; Event Design and Planner: Events by Shideh, Los Angeles, CA; Floral Design, Linen and Rentals: Square Root Designs, Irvine, CA; Ceremony Dress: Monique Lhuillier; Reception Dress: Galia Lahav