What do you get when you combine two lovebirds who also happen to be architects with the event planning geniuses at Calluna Events? Give up? You get this beyond gorgeous, casually elegant Colorado soiree complete with lots of bold graphic touches, soft feminine florals, and a simple and refined color palette of grey and white. Top all that off with pretty images by J-Anderson Photography and you’ve got yourself a totally swoon worthy, totally SMP wedding. Click here for even more!
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From the Bride…Nick and I met in our first year of graduate school at The University of Virginia. We attended most of the same classes, as we had both entered the same architecture program, so it was perhaps inevitable that we’d notice each other, and eventually we began dating. Upon graduation we decided to start fresh in a new city. We landed in Boulder, Colorado. After living there only a few months we knew it was the best decision we had made. The mountains, trails, skiing, snowboarding, and all of the adventurous activities in our new backyard proved to be our cup of tea. It was a no-brainer: We would be married in our new hometown…six years later!
I am not one of those girls who knew exactly what she wanted her wedding to be like since the age of 5 and it was a bit intimidating to start the planning process. I felt a pressure to make this one day the ultimate expression of us as a couple, as it would forever be captured in hundreds of photographs. Luckily I had no problems deciding on my dress. It was the third one I tried on and I was in love, though it made me a bit nervous to pick my dress without knowing our wedding venue. It wasn’t until a couple of months later that we had the church and reception venue secured, and upon this decision everything else seemed to simply fall into place. Now it was a lot easier to envision how the whole day would unfold.
Both of us are architects, so we knew that we were going to be designing the wedding ourselves from top to bottom. This strategy made all of the little design elements and details that much more personal and unique – but not without a bit of blood, sweat, and tears. I think we got the most enjoyment out of designing the invitations (5 times over!). This was done very early in the planning process and it really set a guideline and aesthetic tone for the design, decorations, and the day in general. We found old frames and fashioned them into large chalkboards – even today they are hanging in our house! Our aim was simplicity and thoughtfulness in décor, as our backyard reception venue was already well-appointed with some very strong red awnings. As a complement we chose white and gray to be our primary colors for a simple, classic look. In a bit of serendipity, our borrowed getaway truck (a classic 1964 International Harvester Scout 80) was nearly a perfect match for the orange-red door of the church!
We had help from Calluna Events to help pull the whole day together, and both of us could not be happier with the way things turned out. I never really expected to have THAT much fun at my own wedding – I thought there would be more stress or obligations to tend to that would get in the way – but it truly was the best time ever.
Wedding Photography: J-Anderson Photography / Floral Design: European Flower Shop / Event Design: Calluna Events + Bride & Groom / Event Planning: Calluna Events / Ceremony Location: First Congregational Church / Reception Location: Koenig Center at the CU Boulder / Invitations: Bride & Groom / Caterer: Catering by Design / Cakes: Indulge Bakery / Ceremony Music: Scott Martin / DJ: Mike of Pure Sounds Production / Hair: Sarah Robinson of Voodoo Hair Lounge / Make-up: Jill of MAC