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A Winter Wedding Wonderland

Modern Wedding Posted: August 17, 2016

O L I V I A   +   A N D R E W

As the sun set over Lake Tahoe Andrew stood with Olivia on a pier overlooking the water and asked his beloved a very important question. Needless to say she said yes! The couple were married atop a snowy mountain in Colorado and exchanged I Dos in front of a small gathering of very close friends and family.

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F R O M   T H E   B R I D E

We first met…

We met in February of 2012 while I was visiting friends in Atlanta for my birthday weekend as well as interviewing for a new job. While out and about, we crossed paths, hit it off and exchanged numbers. The next Monday I was traveling back to Savannah (where I was living) and Andrew called to say that it was nice meeting me and when could he see me again…moments later, the company I interviewed with called to offer me the job contingent that I move to Atlanta in three weeks. The Friday after I moved, we had our official “first date” and the rest is history.

We knew it was love…

Andrew would say that he knew it was love after I friend requested him on Facebook! Because our initial encounter was memorable, but brief, I was nudged by a friend to find him on social media. I reluctantly added him but am so glad I did because Andrew said the second he looked at my pictures; he knew it was “love”. I had a gut feeling about him right away. Once I got back to Savannah from my weekend in Atlanta I, tongue-and-cheek, told my sister that I met the guy I was going to marry… little did I know that my comment would become true.

The engagement…
Every year since we began dating we’ve travelled out West with friends for an annual ski trip. In January of 2015, we visited Lake Tahoe for the first time. We arrived a day earlier than our friends and used this day to explore. Andrew is a great planner so I usually follow his lead and ask little questions. He suggested that we watch the sunset over the lake and drove us to a great spot that had a pier overlooking the water. I probably should have known a proposal was in order, but I was absolutely clueless and assumed we were just being tourists like usual! As the sun began to fade behind the mountains, we walked to the end of the pier to take a picture… it was here that he took a knee and asked me to be his wife. I was stunned!

As if that surprise was not enough, once we got back into the car, he began to “take me to dinner” but pulled into the Ritz Carlton instead. They had a beautiful room reserved for us with chocolate covered strawberries and champagne… it was the most romantic ending to a perfect night.

T H E   W E D D I N G

Our photographer…
Andrew and I knew from the very beginning that we wanted to forego first-look photos. Because we also wanted a 6:30pm wedding, many photographers saw this as an obstacle and pushed us to do “first look” pictures even though we hated the idea. During my initial phone call with Lisa, owner of Lisa Marie Wright Photography, she instantly made me feel at ease! Lisa agreed that seeing each other before the ceremony would take some of the magic away and promised the pictures would be stunning. She could not have been more right. Our wedding pictures captured the emotion and natural beauty of our surroundings perfectly. Lisa was so vibrant and wonderful… I wish we were closer and I would have her shoot all of the important moments in our life!

Dream wedding style…
We live in hot Atlanta, but share a love for skiing and snowy weather. For this reason, we wanted to exchange vows on top of a snow-filled mountain in Colorado. I wanted deep greens and crimson for our colours to offset the bright white of the snow. We also wanted plenty of candles to go along with the intimate and romantic theme.

Ceremony…
The ceremony was held on the deck of the highest restaurant in North America, Alpino Vino in Telluride, CO. The sun was setting and the snow was dumping! The venue only allows for a guest list of around 25 so we had immediate family and closest friends in attendance. Our family and friends were troopers and didn’t budge as the snow piled on top of their heads and shoulders during our vow exchange.

Reception…
The reception was held indoors at Alpino Vino. The venue has a very rustic cabin feel, but it was beautifully decorated and dressed up with candles and flowers scattered across every table. For the dinner, we had a five-course Italian meal with wine parings.

Pre-wedding celebrations…
We rented an outrageously stunning cabin on the side of the mountain to stay in for the days leading up to the ceremony. Because of its size, most of our family and friends were able to stay in the house with us. The night before the wedding, we had a meal catered in and danced the night away!

The bridal party…
Due to the small guest list and price of getting to our remote destination, we chose not to have designated bridesmaids and groomsmen. The friends and family who were there with us are our favourite people in the world so we let them wear whatever they wanted and asked them to just be with us and enjoy the weekend.

The groom wore…
Andrew had a beautiful navy suit made out of warm wool for our wedding. He wanted to surprise me and break away from the traditional tuxedo and looked more handsome than I ever could have imagined.

The gown…
My wedding gown was a sample designed by Anya Bridal Collection. Not only is it the only one in existence, it was the very first dress I tried on and fit me like a glove. I was fortunate enough to have zero alterations and felt like the “Frozen” princess. It has lace detail around the neck and back and fit snug throughout my natural waist. The back was open and the bottom has dozens of layers of tulle and fabric. To stay warm, I also had a white fur shawl made to cover my arms.

The flowers…
For my bouquet, I wanted crimson roses and leafy green plants. Our florist nailed it and made a bouquet that was whimsical but so beautiful.

Reception decorations…
Simple, yet romantic. We had white tablecloths with dozens of candles, bouquets of white roses and succulents scattered throughout.

Bombonniere…
Yes, we gave our guests a bag of goodies that included hand-painted cookies, winter socks and cinnamon whiskey.

Memorable moments…
We knew there would be snow, but we had no idea it would be falling on us leading up to and during the ceremony. When my dad walked me down the snowy aisle and flakes were landing on our lashes, I felt like I was in a movie. For the ceremony, Andrew and I decided to write our own vows … we both cried like babies but I am so glad we said our own words.

One of the most spectacular moments was after the ceremony, we all went inside to warm up. After a few minutes, the snow miraculously stopped and the clouds parted… we went back outside to see the most stunning sunset ever imagined.

Wedding soundtrack…
One of our good friends is known for being THE DJ. He choose most of the tunes for the night but two of the more memorable ones were after we were introduced as husband and wife, we danced down the aisle to “You Make My Dreams Come True” by Hall & Oates and then ironically danced our first song to “I Don’t Dance” by Lee Brice.

M A R R I E D   L I F E

The honeymoon…
We honeymooned on the very remote island of Little Cayman. It has so much untouched raw beauty. We rented a house on our own private piece of the island that overlooked the ocean. Because there are only a few restaurants and not many tourist attractions, it forced us to relax and enjoy the natural splendour around us.

Future plans…
Laugh, love and enjoy spending life not only as husband and wife, but as best friends.

In 40 years you hope to…
Be retired, travel the world and spend time with a bunch of grand-babies!

Words of wisdom on how to enjoy…

The engagement
Don’t rush it!! Being engaged is wonderful; allow the excitement leading up to your wedding day to build.

Planning
Your wedding day should be all about you and your significant other. So many couples plan their wedding according to what everyone else wants…and what will make everyone else happy. This day should be about celebrating your love and nothing else!

The wedding day
Hold off seeing your bride/groom until you walk down the aisle – you won’t regret it! Also, spend time with each other at the reception… this sounds simple, but I’ve seen so many friends spend their entire receptions talking to guests and never get special time with their new spouse. Have seats reserved for the two of you so that you can enjoy a meal together and relish in the excitement.

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Flowers &Decorations New Leaf Designs  Photography Lisa Marie Wright Photography Venue Alpino Vino Cake The Butcher and the Baker Wedding Dress Anya Bridal (Atlanta, GA) Makeup Tiffany Barnes, Stella Blu Cosmetic Boutique

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