A Worldly Wedding in San Francisco

The grooms incorporated traditions from Vietnamese culture and nods to their life in London.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

For Sam and Thinh, the wedding (and the journey leading up to it) was a worldwide affair. The two grooms met in London, where they currently live, and said I do in San Francisco, and that meant that guests traveled from around the globe—including Thinh’s family, who came in from Vietnam—to be part of the celebration. When they tied the knot, they wanted to incorporate traditions from all of those important places. “Bringing together and honoring both of the grooms’ backgrounds and cultures through food, traditions, and other special elements was a huge part of the overall vision,” shares wedding planner Kelsey Connely of Downey Street Events. “It was important to incorporate several traditions from Thinh’s Vietnamese culture, as well as nods to the couple’s life in London and love of travel.”

The worldly scene was set at San Francisco’s James Leary Flood Mansion. “From the very beginning, the couple wanted the wedding to feel elegant and understated, while incorporating clean lines,” Kelsey says. “Flood Mansion was the perfect fit. Situated at the peak of the prestigious Pacific Heights neighborhood, its Beaux Arts architectural design, marbled floors, painted murals, and coffered ceiling tied the design together. We wanted it to feel both masculine and feminine and really add to the existing beauty [of the space].”

Read on to see all the gorgeous details of Sam and Thinh's August 6, 2022, wedding, planned by Downey Street Events and photographed by Meg Messina Photography.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

The vibe was “modern, sophisticated, and artistic,” planner Kelsey Connely says. “We worked with Lotus and Ash to create a beautiful save-the-date that highlighted a topographic map of San Francisco on the card and a topographic map of London on the envelope.” The invitation suite featured white leather cording as a nod to kintsugi, an ancient Asian pottery technique in which broken pieces are mended with gold to create something new and beautiful.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Sam and Thinh went classic in navy suits with light pink ties, brown shoes, and silver tie clips.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

“One request Thinh had was to use orchids in a subtle yet thoughtful way,” says florist Jenny Rinzler of This Humble Abode, “so we made sure that both the grooms and all of the bouquets used orchids. Each boutonnière varied a bit from the other, but Sam and Thinh each had a mini cymbidium orchid and fragrant tuberose blossoms.”

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

The wedding party wore navy to match the color palette, but each selected his or her own attire. “Each person’s style and background shone through,” Kelsey says.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

The imposing arched doorway of Flood Mansion served as the perfect backdrop for their ceremony. “The real showstopper was the impressive floral installation, which surrounded the door and trailed down the steps of the altar,” Kelsey describes. “A true labor of love, it took many hours and many team members to complete. Roses, white alstroemeria, Roseanne brown lisianthus, and dendrobiums were the featured flowers."

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

The grooms were escorted in by their mothers to classical music, then exchanged personalized vows at the altar.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

“To honor the Vietnamese custom of gifting the couple with gold to wish them good fortune in the marriage, we asked guests to place delicate gold flakes into two vases, each containing a different colored sand,” Kelsey shares. “During the ceremony, Sam and Thinh combined the sands to symbolize the unity of two families.” They also incorporated a wine ceremony, during which the grooms offered a sip of Vietnamese wine to their parents.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

For cocktails and reception, guests entered into the mansion’s Grand Hall, where enormous windows look out onto the San Francisco Bay. As they sipped wine from Frank Family Vineyards—the couple’s favorite—guests left their mark: “Thinh and Sam collect postcards, so we displayed them and had guests sign postcards as a form of a guest book.”

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

“We mirrored the textural elements from the invitation suite in the tabletop design by adding velvet and leather accents,” Kelsey says of the reception décor. “This, along with artistic floral designs throughout the venue, allowed us to achieve the perfect combination and balance of masculine and feminine.”

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Likewise the place settings incorporated unique textures: tortoiseshell flatware, seafoam green ceramic chargers, and black velvet napkins on glazed plates.

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

Rather than a first dance, Sam and Thinh began the reception with their cake-cutting—and tapped Jasmine Rae Cakes to create something worthy of the special moment. “The cake was a masterpiece of its own, serving as an artistic focal point for the reception,” Kelsey says. “Jasmine Rae Cakes took Sam and Thinh’s abstract idea of weathering through difficult times and being each others’ rock—in conjunction with kintsugi—and created a statuesque and sweet concoction. To make it feel like an art piece, we had our stationery artist create a placard like you would find in a museum.”

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

A live poet served as additional entertainment during the reception. “Guests had the opportunity to tell the poet a bit about themselves and their backgrounds, and she used a typewriter to type up a custom poem for them on the spot!”

Photo by Meg Messina Photography

The evening was sealed with a worldly kiss: Each guest was given a custom favor box that included Ghiradelli chocolates from San Francisco, organic jackfruit chips and dried mango from Vietnam, and English breakfast tea from London to capture the three sections of the globe most important to the couple.

Wedding Team

Venue James Leary Flood Mansion

Wedding Planner and Designer Downey Street EventsOfficiant Brian Bajari

Hair and Makeup April Foster Bridal

Floral Designer This Humble AbodeInvitations Lotus and Ash

Place Cards and Signage Yonder Design

Music Ceremony and Dinner: Synchronicity Strings; Reception: Dart Collective

Live Poet The Poetry Store

Catering Componere Fine Catering

Cake Jasmine Rae Cakes

Rentals The Ark Rentals; BBJ La Tavola; Theoni Collection; The Vessel Rental Co.Transportation Corinthian Transportation

Valet Peninsula ParkingAccommodations Intercontinental Mark Hopkins San FranciscoVideographer Hitmaker FilmsPhotographer Meg Messina Photography