The Bride Wore Pink at this Palm Springs Wedding at The O’Donnell House

Weddings
Written By Vanessa Todd

You may already recognize they two sweet people from their blog post about their engagement photos at Griffith Observatory. It was at their engagement session that I first got to meet Madison and Charlie and learn the first parts of their love story. Charlie is British, and Madison is American. In a matter of fact kind of way, Madison decided she was going to continue her education in Britain. It was when she was there that she went on a date with Charlie, and the rest was history. I learned later on their wedding day in Charlie’s mother’s speech that the date went so well Charlie texted his mom from the bathroom to tell her so while he was still on it. In the years to come, Madison and Charlie would get married abroad and return back to the States where they started to build their life together, before throwing their formal wedding celebration in February 2023 at the incredibly breathtaking O’Donnell House in Palm Springs.

The O'Donnell House is a historic mansion located in Palm Springs, California, USA. It is situated on a hillside overlooking the Coachella Valley, and it offers stunning views of the surrounding mountains and desert landscape. In my personal opinion, it offers the best view in all of Palm Springs - nothing can come close. There are so many unique and special properties in the Palm Springs area for hosting your wedding, such as The Parker, Avalon, Casa Cody, Sands Hotel and Spa, Ace Hotel, and more - but The O’Donnell House quite literally, looks over them all. As it was built in 1925 and is nearly 100 years old, The O'Donnell House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is considered to be one of the most important examples of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in the Palm Springs area. My personal, favorite feature of the property is the bright and varying shades of pink bougainvillea stretched across the grounds and woven up the sides of the pale blue and yellow banisters of the property.

The week of Madison and Charlie’s wedding was forecasted for a 100% chance of rain on their wedding day. We all crossed our fingers that the rain would stay away as the O’Donnell House doesn’t have an indoor space to transition into. Many clear umbrellas were bought, rain ponchos prepared, and a tent was on standby - just in case! On my drive from Southern California over to Palm Springs the rain turned into snow before my eyes! It was snowing in Los Angeles and suddenly we all wondered, “will it be snowing at the wedding in Palm Springs today?!” Luckily, even though we were prepared all day for the rain clouds to win out, The O’Donnell House, nestled at the base of the mountains, stayed sheltered all day for the most part! Somehow the sun even poked out for the exact 20 minutes that the couple’s wedding ceremony took place on the lawn!

As for the wedding day itself, Madison and Charlie shared a beautiful day surrounded by as many friends and family as possible. While not everyone in Charlie’s family was able to travel from across the pond for the celebration, many close friends and family members did, and Charlie’s mother read out wishes from each of those who could not be present for the bride and groom to hear and carry into their marriage. The day was full of bridesmaids capturing oh so cute Polaroids at highlight moments, the beautiful bride herself wearing a soft pink tulle wedding gown, custom cocktails, pops of pink throughout the florals, ghost chairs at the dinner reception, and a white dinner jacket for the groom that made him look straight out of a James Bond film. You could see how loved both the bride and groom were by everyone in attendance and how much they believed in their marriage. It was such a beautiful wedding day to witness, to document, and to share in.

Photos taken on both digital and 35mm film

Vanessa Todd
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