Real Wedding: Emily + Colby’s Rustic Sundance Wedding

Today’s lovely wedding was photographed by the talented Ben Blood. I just love his cinematic photography style. I also love when I get to share readers weddings – Emily + Colby found lots of inspirations for their day on Green Wedding Shoes, so I’m happy I get to share their day today. Emily was sweet enough to send some details about the day, thanks Emily!

Colby and I wanted our wedding to be full of family, friends, and nature and with every decision regarding our wedding we asked ourselves if it coincided with that feeling. All of the decorations were a collaboration of family, friends, and Colby and me. Colby made dozens of vases out of trimmed branches from neighboring birch trees as well as the cake stands and the pillars of branches we were married under. I felt like it added so much to our day knowing how many people helped out.

When Colby and I first saw each other, I presented him with his wedding band. He hadn’t seen it and didn’t know anything about it or what it was going to look like. He was so surprised when I told him that his father wanted him to have his ring. I wrote Colby a letter expressing how honored I was to give him his dad’s ring. We shared such a special moment–and I think Ben did a great job capturing it.

The groomsmen’s vests were from Forever21. We replaced the buttons on the vests–each groomsmen was able to pick their own set. Then Josh, one of the groomsmen, and a talented artist (he was responsible for the chalkboard art), screen printed the front of them with the motif from our invitations as well as a bucking bronco on the back and some extra stuff on the inside, which he drew. With some help from my mother-in-law, we made some hankies that the boys put in their vest pockets in place of boutonnieres. Each guy had a different fabric. We asked them to wear dark jeans and cowboy boots and whatever shirt they wanted. I think they looked great…

Our Favorite Memory From The Wedding

The whole day was full of moments I will always remember, but an especially favorite moment was when Colby and I exchanged our vows. It was sprinkling rain and a bit chilly, but we were so in the moment that I didn’t notice anything other than what Colby and I were saying to each other. I also loved, loved, loved our first dance. We danced to “I Should Have Known Better” sung by my maid of honor and Jeremiah James. It was such a beautiful moment for us to share together.

I had all of the bridesmaids pick out their own dresses–they just needed to be brown. Some were made, some were bought–all were beautiful.

Colby’s vest was designed by him and then made by a seamstress in Boise, ID. He was especially excited about the fabric he chose for the inside of the vest. It was reminiscent of an old pair of cowboy pj’s… The seamstress also embroidered the motif from our invitations onto his vest. He looked so amazing. His jeans and hat were Diesel and his shirt was Seven Diamonds.

We made all of the burlap tablecloths for the tables and the floral arrangements were put together the morning of the wedding by family and friends. We wanted them to look like fresh, wild flowers. We borrowed a bunch of blue and green mason jars from a family friend and they were a perfect addition to go along with our other pops of turquoise throughout the decorations.

Our guestbook was a large piece of wood with a large cut-out of the swirl design from our invitations. Colby painted it turquoise and then roughed it up a bit to make it look old. We had people sign it with a copper pen and it turned out great.

Our wedding was such an expression of our relationship and who we are. I couldn’t have asked for more. We had a blast dancing the night away with one of our favorite local bands and it was so wonderful to share the night with all of our closest family and friends.

That last photo is so dreamy + amazing!

Our Advice To Those Planning Now

Have fun with it! Don’t let anyone tell you that you shouldn’t do something. If it feels right, and it’s an expression of the two of you, then do it! But, with that said, don’t waste time debating whether or not you should do one thing or another. Ask yourself, “does this really go with our theme or represent us?” If it doesn’t–move on. Also, don’t be afraid to ask friends and family for help. I was really afraid of this at first because I didn’t want to bother anyone, but I soon learned that people WANT to help and they will be more than happy to if asked. And it is a lifesaver!

We also LOVED the surprise party for Colby the night before the wedding (also on Ben’s blog). It was such a great way to celebrate while all of our friends were in town.

Vendors
Venue: The Rehearsal Hall at Sundance Resort in Sundance, Utah
Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier
Hair: Lunatic Fringe, Makeup: friend of bride
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell
Hairpieces: My hairpiece and the hairpieces for the bridesmaids were a last minute project made by one of my bridesmaids the day before the wedding and they were so great!
Event Planner: Colby and I did most of the planning, but we had some help from the Catering Manager at Sundance
Floral Design: My bouquet was made by Trifecta Desi
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in Salt Lake City and we picked up a few bunches of dahlias, renunculus, mums, and roses from them as well. The bridesmaids’ bouquets, and all other boutonnieres were made by my mom and her friends and they turned out better than I could have imagined.
Invitations/Paper Goods: I designed all of the save the dates, invitations, and all other paper goods.
Cake: The cakes were made by my sister in law and they were delicious! Colby made the awesome stump cake stands.
Music: Jeremiah James Gang

Thanks Emily + Colby for sharing your day with us – it looked like such a fun, wonderful celebration! Check out even more photos from their wedding here on Ben’s Blog.

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