FROM THE PLANNER:
When our bride Kayla came to me she was right in the middle of calling off her large scale wedding plans. She was looking to do something unique and something that her friends and family would not expect. We had about two weeks to get everything together for her elopement and lucky for us the bride gave us full control and let us work our magic! On the day of the wedding she was completely surprised with the ceremony design and florals we had come up with for her and it was just amazing to see the look on her face!
FROM THE BRIDE:
WHAT WORDS WOULD YOU USE TO DESCRIBE YOUR WEDDING?
Intimate, romantic, FUN!
THE PROPOSAL:
We were heading to an event in our home town and while waiting outside a photographer from a local magazine asked if he could photograph us for a story on the event. We started walking to get a good shot and were discussing poses when Steve got down on one knee and asked how I like that pose! It took me a minute to realize he was proposing and not just being silly and that he had actually hired the photographer and he wasn’t really shooting us for the magazine! It was so special to be able to have those photos and then our friends knew and were waiting to celebrate with us inside the event.
THE VISION:
Whimsical and easy going, we definitely did not want anything too formal or stuffy.
THE PLANNING PROCESS:
Our planning process was… unique. We were engaged for 8 months and spent 5 months heavily planning a large wedding in Las Vegas. Venue, photographer, florist, food tasting, dress, even save the dates already sent out, when we decided we wanted to elope. We had originally wanted to invite 150 people and after sending save the dates to 250 people and realizing there were still going to be people left out and how stressed we were from the whole process we decided to just scrap it all and run off just the two of us! We had already paid non-refundable photography and floral deposits so we decided to still go to Vegas and utilize those things. Plus, what better place to elope than VEGAS!! Our vendors were so wonderful and accommodated our last minute changes and, together with our amazing elopement planner, they made everything come together and created the perfect day for us! 2 weeks after we made the decision to elope we were standing at Red Rock Canyon being married.
YOUR OUTFITS AND ACCESSORIES
By some miracle the wedding dress that I picked out for my big wedding actually came in early and barely needed to be altered so I was able to wear it for our elopement! Steve wore his tuxedo and some Texas cuff links that are special to him. We wanted part of the “vibe” of our elopement to be a little edgy since we were running off and ditching the traditional wedding so we both changed into a second look after the ceremony. I wore a white jumpsuit with ruffled legs that had a very Elvis vibe with a black leather jacket and Steve put on dark jeans and a corduroy jacket. We can’t leave out my amazing flower crown!
MEMORABLE MOMENTS
Since we were by ourselves we both felt comfortable saying our own vows to each other. That is definitely something I will cherish forever. One of my favorite moments and some of my favorite photos are of the two of us getting ready in the hotel room before. We did not do a first look, we did everything together. The pictures of him helping me into my dress and buckling my shoes for me are so special and intimate. It really portrays how we were stepping into marriage and life as a team.
ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES
There is no one size fits all for life. Some people love their big weddings, but if it doesn’t feel right to you don’t feel like you have to do it!! My advice for anyone eloping is to still make it special and memorable. Especially make sure you photograph the day because you really will cherish those photos forever!
Photography: Gaby J
Floral: City Blossoms
Beauty : Paper Bag Beauty