The Bride and Groom Married on a Southern California Mountaintop Surrounded by Fall Florals
Jourdan Sloane and Wells Childress met in what they now jokingly refer to as the “old-fashioned way”—on Raya. “It turns out it’s really hard to meet people organically these days,” Jourdan, who is a fashion influencer and model, notes. “We matched, and I thought, ‘Wells?! That’s a cool name.’” Wells, who is the founder of Banyan Motors—a company that specializes in restoring classic, vintage German cars—got her number immediately and invited her to be his guest for his best friend’s wedding.
“Sadly, flights were unrealistic, so we settled for a first date at the Santa Monica Proper Hotel,” Jourdan explains. “I showed up, and he stood to greet me, and I said, ‘Wow, you are so tall.’ He was probably the first guy ever to not lie about his height online.”
The two talked for hours that night, and it was easy for Jourdan to say yes to a second date. After that, they spent every single day together. “It just felt right,” Jourdan says. “We both had flexibility in our schedules with work as we are both entrepreneurs, so we began traveling together nonstop. We were inseparable.”
The couple eventually got engaged during one of their trips. They were in India for a friend’s wedding and to celebrate Wells’s birthday when he asked her to marry him on November 24, 2024. “He completely surprised me,” Jourdan remembers. “After the five-day wedding celebration, we retreated to the Amanbagh, one of our bucket list hotels, to relax for a few days.”
On their second day at the hotel, Wells disappeared for a bit to go to the front desk to “ask about activities.” Turns out, he was inquiring as to where he could propose that felt private and picturesque. “The concierge told him that there was a beautiful hike up to a lake that had unique wildlife that would be perfect,” Jourdan explains. “Later that afternoon, I put on my workout set, my hair in a bun, no makeup, and cluelessly went on the hike. My phone died mid-hike, it was so buggy, and there was a guide awkwardly with us. Wells decided it wasn’t very romantic, and aborted the mission.” When the couple got back to their suite, Jourdan somehow didn’t even see the flower petals covering the floor, the chocolate cake in the corner of the room, or the bucket of Champagne. “The hotel thought he had proposed during the hike,” she recalls. “Instead of looking around, I ran to plug in my phone, and when I turned around, there he was, down on one knee. A brilliant platinum pear solitaire in a box open in his hands. I absolutely blacked out. I then said yes and immediately started crying. I don’t remember anything he said. It was just us, no cameras, raw, special, intimate. We celebrated the next day with a safari where we had the pleasure of seeing a tiger, a leopard, and lots of exciting wildlife. It was the best trip of our lives.”
The wedding was held just under a year later in early October 2025 in Vista, California, just north of San Diego—and was a multi-day celebration that unfolded across the property’s historic chapel, hillside vineyards, and French-inspired l’Orangerie.
The planning process was led by Jourdan, and the end result was a wedding specific to the couple’s personal style. Jourdan collaborated with interior designer and mother of the groom Kara Childress, and the two of them worked with event planner Dani Blasena of HauteFêtes, who helped execute everything.
The first order of business was choosing a venue. “We went with Cal-a-Vie as it was the perfect pairing of old-world elegance and California charm,” the bride explains. “It’s a French-inspired sanctuary tucked in the rolling hills of Southern California, and the property feels like it’s been transported straight from Provence, with terracotta roofs, lavender fields, and 18th-century French antiques around every corner. The venue offers complete privacy and serenity, combining old-world European charm with California’s natural beauty. Every space, from the vineyard-view ceremony lawn to the candlelit stone chapel imported from France, feels intimate and cinematic”
Once the couple had selected their venue, they started to focus on how they wanted their wedding to feel. Words that came to mind were lived in, familiar, and homey. “We wanted it to feel as if we were hosting all of our closest friends and family at our home,” Jourdan explains. Wedding planning was a wild rollercoaster of emotions. “I had no idea what to expect in the beginning,” Jourdan admits. “There were highs and lows along the way. It doesn’t just happen—it was the biggest collaboration and a team effort between Dani, our families, and our vendors. Everyone carried out a certain role and showed up on almost every call. Wells’s mother Kara, who probably had 20 interior design projects and multiple global installations happening, would stay up until 4 a.m. some nights helping us meet deadlines, while Dani worked around the clock.” Rounding out the group, they entrusted floral designer Rachael of Siren Floral Co. to bring their vision of moody and rich fall-toned florals to life.
