The Bride Wore a Family Heirloom Veil for Her Wedding at a Historic Los Angeles Mansion

As for what to wear for the ceremony, Meg says: “The vision was Botticelli, so there was only one choice: Vivienne Westwood.” She went with the brand’s Nova Camille dress. For her wedding shoes, she wore Manolo Blahnik Hangisi white satin slingbacks that she bought on a mother-daughter trip to Paris. She changed into white satin slippers from Le Monde Beryl for the ceremony, to avoid her heels sinking in the grass, and ended up wearing those for the rest of the night.

To complete her ceremony look, she wore a veil that is a family heirloom, worn by many women in her family on their wedding days. “My grandmother’s aunt, Mary Jane Fetzer Bryant, first wore it in 1948. She and her parents bought it in Europe in the late 1930s. My grandmother then wore it in 1949. Her cousin Peggie Hart also wore it to her wedding in 1977,” Meg explains. She worked Susan Ruddie of The Wedding Dresser to restore the veil. “A rogue family member added velcro to it in the ’80s or ’90s, and it required a delicate removal. Luckily, it was a success!” Meg says.

For jewelry, the bride wore her engagement ring by Ashley Zhang, her wedding band by Maiden Voyage, and a vintage diamond and sapphire bracelet from her grandmother for her “something old, something borrowed, and something blue.” She also worked with makeup artist Chanel Cross, going for a natural glam that met her goal to “look exactly like myself, but yassified.”

John worked with the couple’s friend, the stylist Ryan Young, to create his two looks for the wedding weekend. On Friday night, he wore a black turtleneck, a Caruso double-breasted tuxedo jacket in truffle, and Caruso cream pants. For the wedding, he wore Richard James, paired with black dress shoes from Suit Supply. His ring—a rolling ring in white gold and gold—was designed by Meg’s friend Mia Hariz’s parents, at Bridal Rings Company in Los Angeles.

John’s cousin Anahita officiated the ceremony, which included Persian elements in honor of John’s Iranian heritage. “At the last minute, we decided to sit at a Sofreh Aghd that was adorned with symbols of love, sweetness, prosperity, and commitment. John’s Aunt Margaret kindly lent us her termeh for the ceremony,” Meg shares.

“Our female family members and best friends rubbed cones of sugar over our heads, showering us with sweetness. In a traditional Persian wedding, the officiant asks the bride if she consents to the union twice before she finally responds after the third ask. This is meant to symbolize the bride has thought carefully about the marriage and is not rushing into it,” Meg says. “Two of my best friends, Zoe and Remi, bravely shouted out excuses for me the first two times, including that I was busy reading a book. Our other best friend Ellen was our honey girl, holding the honey that we dipped our pinkies into before feeding it to each other. Erotic!”

“During the ceremony, we snuck a kiss before ‘the kiss.’” John adds. “I’m the type of person who usually gets stage fright, but I felt totally at ease during our ceremony. I loved going off script in that moment. I wanted to kiss Meg, so I did. It was easy and felt like us.”

The wedding ceremony also included a special touch in honor of John’s mother, who passed away in 2018. “I wanted to designate a space for her at our wedding,” John shares. “I wanted to feel like she was with me, walking down the aisle, and watching. She always loved flowers, so I had a special bouquet made that I placed on a seat reserved in her honor. I later found out that one of our guests spotted a hummingbird above us for the duration of the ceremony. Since her passing, she has visited me in the form of a hummingbird. I know that was her.”

After the ceremony, the couple walked out to “All Star” by Smash Mouth, then held a cocktail hour, dinner, and dancing. “I remember running around, flitting by all the tables. I desperately wanted to gossip with all my friends!” Meg says. “We eventually made our way into the ballroom and danced and chatted the night away, fueled by espresso martinis poured via ice luge. We cut the cake (we had two flavors, pumpkin and chocolate almond cherry), but I sadly didn’t eat any until the next day.”

The newlyweds danced their first dance to “Sea of Love” by Cat Power. Guests took photos in a vintage photo booth, which held extra meaning for the couple because they have a collectsion of photo booth pictures they’ve taken over their years together. After a night of dancing, they kept the party going with an impromptu after-party at 4100 Bar. Meg ended the night “in white silk pajamas and double-fisting beers,” she says. “It was a perfect wedding.”