About UsAbout Us
ChrisChris
Groom
Chris was born in San Ramon, CA and grew up in the Bay Area with his younger sister, Shannon. He graduated from Monte Vista High School and attended San Diego State University where he studied art and tuned his eye for photography, fashion, and music. He worked in IT for 6 years post college and built a music studio that he would later bring down to Los Angeles to start Sixth Street Studios in Downtown LA. After touring 1 year of full time van life in Southern California he moved back to the Bay Area where he landed a job at Nordstrom while he was busking in front of the store. Chris met Sasha here, and years of experience watching his favorite show, The Office, made him believe that work-place-romance could be a real thing! After leaving Nordstrom, Chris now works in sales and education for Sonora Guitar Intensive. He plans to continue studying and start a new career in tech where he can merge his years of experience in IT, sales, and creative direction to create a family and travel the world.
SashaSasha
Bride
Sasha was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine. As the only child of her parents, Oleg and Natalia, Sasha matured quickly and would later seek more independence when she moved in with her Grandma during High School. She recalls walking home from school where the paper white walls of the city would later inform her aesthetic and visual language. Watching her mom change outfits and hairstyles, on trips to the beaches at Crimea inspired Sasha to start a clothing line. As the founder and creative director of Tonké, she managed design, production, and digital sales of women's boutique clothing while she earned a degree in both International Relations and Nursing. Her happiest moments are when she is traveling. She left her hometown and moved to California when she met her host mom, Sara. That allowed her to start building a new life when she began work at Nordstrom and met Chris. Now she is leveraging her creative expertise as a photographer and wedding planner for Earth & Events to rebuild Tonké and create the lifestyle she envisions for her family.
