Jessica & Pete – San Francisco City Hall Elopement

Jess and Pete's Love Story

Pete and Jess met in June 2013 and their first date was at a French bistro in Brixton Village in London, which is where they currently live.

Nine months later, they moved in together and Pete popped the question in September 2014 during the encore of a First Aid Kit gig at the Royal Albert Hall. Jess suspected nothing as they'd booked the tickets months in advance and Pete told her the upgrade was an early birthday present! (Her birthday was three days later- well played!)

Jessica and Pete elopement San Francisco City Hall - ceremony photo

Initially, they planned to have the wedding in Melbourne, Australia (where Jess is from). They even sent out save the dates! That all changed in May this year when they decided that planning a big wedding from half a world away, and already knowing that some close friends wouldn't make it, wasn't what they wanted. Instead, they decided to hijack a family holiday already being planned by Jess' family and get married in San Francisco. Luckily, Pete's immediate family live in Vancouver and were able to fly in for the big day too.

One thing they agreed on quite early was that they would keep the change of plan a secret from everyone else in their lives so that they could focus on creating the perfect intimate celebration rather than worrying about convincing other people it was a good idea.

Jess and Pete San Francisco City Hall elopement wedding photo

Everything was organized via email or Skype- a private San Francisco City Hall ceremony in the North Gallery (the most stunning space), photography by Red Eye Collection and dinner in the test kitchen at Flour+Water on Harrison. They still had all the details of a big wedding- Jess even carried her dress all the way from London- they just didn't have the stress of catering for 100 guests! Instead, they had 12 very special people join them for a day celebrating family, love and our marriage. Everyone agreed that it was absolutely perfect.

Jess and Pete elopement San Francisco City Hall photo - Golden Gate Bridge

All of their family and friends completely supported their decision and respected that an elopement was right for them. Everyone loves the story just as much as they do!

From Jess and Pete: "We have no regrets, only great memories."

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