A little (okay, a lot) of rain couldn’t damped the spirits of Heather and Darren on their wedding day! The couple said their ‘I dos’ in the stunning Maroon Bells Amphitheater in White River National Forest surrounded by 12 of their nearest and dearest. After the ceremony, they had a fantastic reception at the The Limelight Hotel filled with gourmet food and a game of giant Jenga.

Thankfully, Teresa Woodhull Photography was there to capture this breathtaking wilderness wedding.

Heather, 28 & Darren, 31

Location: Aspen, Colorado, USA

Wedding Date: August 8th, 2017

Number of Guests: 12

Wedding Cost: $6,000

Wedding Ceremony Location: Maroon Bells Amphitheater, White River National Forest

Wedding Reception Location: Limelight Hotel, Downtown Aspen, CO

Why did you have an intimate wedding?

A few reasons…we didn’t want to be burdened by the cost of a big wedding, since we knew we wouldn’t have much help from family. Additionally, we had already been engaged for a year and talked about getting married without bothering with actual planning. Being frantically excited to become husband and wife and disastrous with logistics, we decided to set a date for two months later. Only our immediate families and a couple close friends were able to travel to Aspen on such short notice.  Lastly, I fell in love with this gorgeous sub-alpine location (and several others like it) that are operated by the U.S. Forest Service and have strict guest limits.

What are some of the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding?

My now-husband felt distressed about inviting some people and not others, but only because of the perceived formality of receiving wedding invitations. We had almost all of our best people there with us the day of the wedding. Ultimately, it worked out great, because a smaller group of people is easier to coordinate extra-wedding activities with, like hikes and happy hours. Another obvious challenge is money. While our ceremony location only cost $200, the reception was at a hotel with food/beverage minimums. If you decide to use a professional venue like a hotel to host your event, you may still spend more than you think for a small party. Regardless, I have nothing but tremendous things to say about The Limelight Hotel in Aspen. They were dog friendly, moved us to a covered patio to accommodate the rainy weather, set up all of our decorations and a slideshow projector, and the food/bev was outstanding. We didn’t have to worry about a thing while we were there. The bill, while expensive, was straightforward with no surprises and matched the quality of service we received.

What were the highlights of the ceremony?

It literally poured sheets of rain throughout most of the ceremony. The pictures are crazy beautiful and added an element of authenticity to the summer mountain setting. One of my dearest friends officiated and spoke beautiful words of union. It was secular, sweet, and she taped her script to the inside of Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species. Having our dog B with us (in his adorable blue bow-tie, aw!) made it extra special.

What were the highlights of the reception?

Well, the food for starters. The Limelight Hotel does not mess around. The slideshow of pictures of Darren and I growing up as kids was a huge hit. Giant Jenga was also fun. Someone (everyone) fed our dog B too many appetizers and he barfed on the party patio. Getting drunk around the fire pit and having too many pictures taken of my happy-ugly cry face was hilarious. We all regrouped for an after-party at the Wildwood Hotel, somehow. It was a fantastic night.

What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding?

We were able to do extra activities with our guests, like hiking, mountain biking, hot tubbing, and meeting up in town for food and drinks. It was pretty low stress overall, the antithesis of most large weddings I’ve been to.

Vendors:

Photography: Teresa Woodhull Photography

Reception Venue/ Food & Drink: The Limelight Hotel 

Ceremony Location: White River National Forest 

Guest Transportation: Colorado Mountain Express

Bride’s Dress & Shoes: David’s Bridal

Groom’s Suit: Express

Accommodations: The Westin Snowmass Resort 

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Are you planning a destination wedding? Your guests will be happy to get off to any exotic location once they receive any one of these fabulous invitations. From modern invitation suites to clever passport invites, these 10 destination wedding invitations from Etsy will help set the tone for your big day.

These cute and clever boarding pass invites are from aLITTLEsmallTALK.

If you like the invites pictured above, you’ll love this invitation suite from PixieChicago. Your guests will be delighted to receive such unique mail!

Set the tone of your tropical wedding with these gorgeous invitations  from oakandorchid.

Aren’t these the cutest wedding invitations you’ve ever seen? These message in a bottle invites from KseniyaRevta are perfect for your beach wedding.

These beautifully illustrated invitations from LovePaperWishes will set the scene for your fun tropical wedding day.

This colorful invitation suite from JPstationery is a lovely choice for your destination wedding in Mexico.

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These palm leaf invitations from PioroWedding are simple and elegant. Your guests will love them!

If a modern look is what you’re after, you’ll adore these botanical invites from sweetdatesprints. The rose gold accents are stunning!

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Katherine and Michael weren’t originally going to say their vows atop Black Balsam Knob mountain. The original location, Craggy Pinnacle, was closed due to bad weather just days before their wedding date. Fortunately, their photographer, Meghan Rolfe, came to the rescue with this stunning location. The couple said their ‘I dos’ 6,000ft up, surrounded by miles of breathtaking mountain landscape.

Thanks to Meghan Rolfe for capturing this beautiful elopement!

Katherine, 35, & Michael, 39

Location: Black Balsam Knob, Asheville, NC

Wedding Date: November 2, 2017

Number of Guests: 6 (Bride’s parents, Groom’s parents, Mike’s twin boys—Katie’s new stepsons)

Wedding Cost: $17,000 (that included the elopement and the reception that was scheduled for a later date). Cost of elopement was just under $2,000

Wedding Ceremony Location: Black Balsam Knob mountain top in Asheville, NC

Wedding Reception Location: Brookside Farms, Louisville, OH (took place at a later date)

Why did you have an intimate wedding? 

I am one of six children and the last of four girls to get married.  I was very involved in helping my sisters’ plan their weddings, but I wanted the focus to stay on Mike and I.  I feel like sometimes that gets lost in all of the planning and details.  We wanted the day to just be about our love for one another.

What are some the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding? 

Our original location (Craggy Pinnacle) was closed down due to bad weather, so we had to find a new spot a couple of days before the wedding.  Luckily, our photographer, Meghan Rolfe, was amazing and helped us find the perfect spot to elope! It was absolutely beautiful. We live in OH so we expected it to be a bit of a challenge to plan from another state, but it was easier than I could have imagined.  

Was it difficult to pare down the guest list? 

We originally thought it would just be the two of us at the ceremony, but Mike has children and we knew we wanted them to be a part of our special day.  Luke and Brady are 9-year old twin boys, and were the perfect helpers during the ceremony.  Mike and I are extremely close with our parents, so it was important to have them there with us too.

Did you have any ‘issues’ with the small guest list from friends and family? If so, how did you address them? 

Katie comes from a big family with six siblings and Mike has two sisters, but luckily everyone was very accepting of the fact that we wanted to keep it very small. There were plenty of jokes thrown around from both sides of the family about “not being invited” but everyone was great and respectful about our decision to keep it intimate.  

What were the highlights of the ceremony? 

Having our parents and boys there made it the perfect day. The weather was absolutely beautiful, and the hike up to the mountain was really fun…for us, maybe a little tough for the parents but they were troopers! We wrote our own vows to each other, and that made it even more special and personal.  My Dad was able to give me away, and my Mom made me a beautiful bouquet.  We have a tradition between sisters where we pass down the garter with the bride’s new initials embroidered on it.  My Mom took the garter and wrapped it around the base of my bouquet along with my Grandmother’s pearls.  It was stunning.  The boys were able to be a part of the ceremony and brought up the holy water (we were both raised Catholic, so we wanted a small symbol of our faith).   Nick, our pastor, called Brady and Luke up before he pronounced us husband and wife, and we all held hands as a family.  The pictures that Meghan took were incredible.  I couldn’t be happier with how she captured our perfect day.  After the elopement, we celebrated at Rhubarb with a fantastic dinner.

What were the highlights of the reception? 

TBD, but I think it will be one great party!!! We will play the video from our wedding, so everyone gets a glimpse into what the day was like.

What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding? 

We did it just the way we wanted!  We didn’t have the stress of planning, and we were able to have our parents and sons there to celebrate with us.  I didn’t have bridesmaids or anyone else to worry about. The morning of the ceremony, we were completely relaxed.  I actually had time to just sit back with a glass of champagne because we were ahead of schedule.  I’m not sure how often that happens when you have a big wedding!  It was a day about simplicity and love.

What advice do you have for couples who are considering an intimate wedding? 

Do it!  If you are on the fence about eloping, go for it!  So much can get lost in the planning process.  Make it a day about you and your partner.  Don’t worry about all of the little things—just do what feels right for you. 

Vendors: 

Photography: Meghan Rolfe

Videography: Nine World Films

Makeup: Wendy Ballance from BLUSH Asheville

Hair: Amanda Hughes, Hughes Hair Design

Dress: BHLDN

Fresh flowers can be an added stress on your wedding day. You only have a short window to use them before they wilt. Enter silk flowers. The latest generation of silks look just like the real thing, and they last forever. These 10 stunning silk bouquets from Etsy are perfect for your walk down the aisle.

This navy, champagne, mint, ivory and white bouquet from Mlleartsy is completed with a macrame handle wrap, making it a boho bride’s dream bouquet. 

This breathtaking bouquet from braggingbags comes in all different sizes, so you can have all of your wedding florals match.

This luxurious bouquet from TresorParkStudio is a lovely option for a summer wedding. The lilac colored blooms are exquisite!

Girls just wanna have… fabulous bouquets! This breathtaking cascading bouquet is from PetalAndTwine.

You’ll be a picture of elegance if this timeless bouquet from BloomingGardenUA is part of your bridal look.

At under $100, this splendid bouquet from PosyandtheBloom spares ezpense, not beauty!

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It’s rare to find a bouquet this big & beautiful for under $100. Add a pop of color to your bridal look with this yellow bouquet from BabysBreathBySarine.

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This dazzling bouquet from TheFauxBouquets is bursting with color, and filled with unique blooms.

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