Reidie MacDonald, the founder & CEO of jewelry brand Short & Suite, and Pad Madigan, founder & CEO of startup Work Gauge, first met at their friends’ wedding in Vermont. She introduced herself to Pad and said, “Hi, I’m Reidie, like read a book,” and he responded, “Hi, I’m Pad, like pad of paper.” Charmed, the West Hollywood local casually suggested that Pad should be her “Venice Guy” and show her around his area of Los Angeles, when they returned to California. Pad immediately texted her the next day to set a date for that same week. The second date was the day after, and they ended up spending every day after that together.
During the pandemic, the couple lived at Reidie’s family’s lake house. During the doldrums of this period, they still tried to plan a date night for October 1, 2020. Reidie suggested they move it to the following weekend, but Pad insisted they should have a glass of wine on the porch. Before they could clink glasses and cheers, Pad descended onto one knee and asked her to marry him. Reidie’s father and de facto family photographer captured the moment on camera.
The couple knew they wanted to have a unique destination wedding. They tossed around possible locales, but no place seemed to intrigue them until Reidie browsed on Vogue.com. Elise Taylor’s article “The 23 Most Anticipated Hotel Openings of 2021” featured The Paradero Hotel in Todos Santos, and immediately enraptured Reidie—it was everything they were looking for. She called Pad and said, “I found the spot!” They were the first guests to stay at the newly debuted Paradero, and they booked the space right away for a springtime date. Reidie and Pad then turned to Nicole Sellers of Mother of the Bride Weddings to plan the rest of the wedding weekend in Mexico. They enlisted Liz Banfield to capture the priceless moments on camera.
The bride previously worked as the sales director of Brock Collection and became close friends with founder Laura Vassar. As soon as Reidie had an engagement ring on her finger, she called Laura. They began designing the wedding dress together. At first, they tried an all-lace gown but ultimately pivoted to embroidery with sleeves. Reidie accessorized with pieces from her jewelry brand Short & Suite, her Coady Culha “Reidie” bezel engagement ring, wedding ring, and custom Gigi Burris veil. Olga from Los Cabos Makeup styled the bride’s effortless hair.
Reidie’s bridesmaids all donned Daria Brock Collection dresses in an idyllic custom print that Reidie personally sourced with Patricia Voto and Laura Vassar. She additionally custom-designed all of the Short & Suite jewelry for the event.
The wedding weekend began with a welcome party at Dum with delectable Mediterranean cuisine. The rehearsal dinner was hosted at San Cristobal, where the bride-to-be wore a bespoke dress created by Patricia Voto of One/Of.
On March 5, 2022, guests joined the couple for a personal ceremony with musical accompaniment. Reidie’s childhood babysitter and her husband officiated, making Reidie and Pad feel so deeply loved. The couple shared their own vows before saying, “I do.”
“Speeches are my favorite thing on the planet,” Reidie divulges. “At the rehearsal dinner, I think there were about 40 speeches!” For the reception, the speech selection was drastically lower but nevertheless incredibly special. Reidie’s siblings, mother, and father spoke. Pad’s brother delivered another speech as the best man. Dinner commenced with a mariachi band in tow. Reidie and Pad soon cut into their red velvet cake from Taller 17.
The newlyweds shared their first dance to the beautiful “Believe” by Amen Dunes. Reidie will forever remember the exhilaration of being surrounded by their loved ones’ energy that night. She recalls, “It was magic!”
Mr. and Mrs. absconded to Las Ventanas in Cabo right after the wedding—a relaxing final stop on an endlessly entertaining weekend.
