High Fashion in the Forest: An Enchanting, Earth Tone Wedding In Canada

Aaron + Nathan’s Canada wedding was the enchanted forest high fashion moment we had no idea we needed. 

Aaron is an architect. Nate is a menswear designer (you might even have some of his Lululemon, Arc’teryx, or Adidas pieces in your closet). And these grooms combined their creative genius to plan one of the most artistically expressive, runway-ready weddings we have ever seen. 

“Our wedding was held at the beautiful nature conservation site at Cheakamus Centre in Squamish, BC,” the couple remembers. “The venue checked all of our boxes in marrying modern architectural elegance with the opportunity to stay overnight in cabins and continue the celebration the following day at a brunch held by the venue.”

With a crystal-clear design vision and the planning help of Sauvé MacBean, Aaron + Nate brought tailored silhouettes, earthy brown tones, bubbles, bows, and designer fashion to the ethereal + densely green woods of the Pacific Northwest. And their care for each other and for their chosen crafts was evident in every single element.

“The wedding was a true celebration of our love, shared passions, and creativity,” say the grooms. “We poured our hearts into designing and handcrafting many aspects of our special day.”

We cannot wait to show you the Vogue-worthy shots that Tedi Jean snapped throughout the celebration. 

Let’s check it out!

The grooms complimented their light and dark brown wedding day looks with shoes from Dries Van Noten and these amazing Jaquemus mini-bags.

“Fashion was at the forefront of our minds when creating the vision for our wedding,” says the couple. “The grooms’ long trains were inspired by the Prada Fall/Winter 2019 collection.”

Love that Aaron + Nate got each other ready! So romantic!

“Using his skills as a professional menswear designer, Nate sewed long trains to match our wedding suits for the Ceremony,” says Aaron.

Is there anything sweeter than a wedding party first look? Seeing your whole crew’s faces light up at the sight of you in your wedding day look: totally priceless.

The wedding’s elevated, tailored wedding party style definitely called for some bridesmaid shoes as chic as these Prada heels.

The Ceremony

“Some of our favourite moments from the day came from the Ceremony, which was inspired—in true love of fashion and design—as a runway experience,” Aaron + Nate say. “Guests were faced at an angle toward the central “runway” as the wedding party + couple entered and walked. The music was carefully curated with introduction songs (in which no one would walk), and runway songs to build up anticipation.”

So into this unique take on the traditional ceremony procession! “Instead of flower girls, bubble guns were provided to Nate’s nieces to use down the runway (which in turn became a huge hit throughout the day during the Reception!).”

The wedding party’s amazing cummerbunds? Those were a Nate creation!

And a gorgeous moment honoring the beauty of Mexican ribbon braids…

“Loss for Words” by Jordan Klassen played to get Aaron + Nate’s guests ready for their ceremony entrance.

And “Ceremony” by Chromatics featuring Glass Candy played as they came down the runway/aisle.

All of this leafy greenery. The earth tones. The design-forward approach to the day. It’s reminding us of this immersive floral Chicago wedding.

“One of our favourite memories came from taking our rings out of our Jacquemus ‘Le Chiquito’ bags during our exchange in front of everyone,” Aaron + Nate say. “Pulling out the rings from such tiny (albeit stylish) bags was such a fun moment for everyone!”

The grooms got their wedding rings from Ethos Myth Jewelry & Design.

Also, we spy some brilliant bow wedding nails.

Aaron + Nate’s incredible Jacquemus mini-bag ring reveal has us thinking of this Jaquemus-inspired California wedding and its high fashion design approach.

“At the end of the Ceremony,” Aaron + Nate recall, “guests were ushered one-at-a-time to walk the runway themselves as they exited to compile photos of each guest and their outfit.”

An Editorial Photo Shoot

Okay. We’re going to let this absolutely spectacular spread of editorial wedding party photos speak for themselves:

Aaron + Nate’s wedding day style still has us speechless. “Our suits were custom-made by Modernize Tailors in Vancouver, BC,” the couple says. “We really wanted to support them as the one of the only remaining tailor shops in Chinatown after 100 years of business. Their attention to detail and beautiful craftsmanship in taking our vision to the next level was so key to our special day!”

A Traditional Tea Ceremony

The grooms kept their light and dark color coordinated looks consistent with these bright and deep red looks for their Chinese Tea Ceremony. Love that Nate rocked a pair of cherry red Doc Marten 1461’s and Aaron a pair of red Homme Plissé Issey Miyake pleated trousers and matching mesh ballet flats. Both also adorned necklaces from Melanie Auld Jewelry.

“While we did not feel it necessary to honour traditional wedding rituals, we wanted to have a Chinese Tea Ceremony,” the couple says, “to serve tea to our family members and pay respects to them.”

“It was a very intimate time to receive well wishes and gifts as an act of welcoming the grooms and unifying both families.”

Another Earth Tone Look

For the reception, Aaron + Nate wore brown suits covered in black and tan bows. “The bows,” the couple remembers, “were inspired by Tanner Fletcher’s designs.”

And the bows? Those were a Nate creation, too!

The Reception

Aaron + Nate have some words of wisdom to share about how their combined approach to their reception florals and their wedding guest favors: “For couples planning, we also recommended going with the concept of ikebana for our flowers. These served as beautiful, minimalistic highlights for our wedding that did not require us to purchase many expensive bouquets.”

“Each ikebana set was placed into a custom-made ceramic centrepiece for the wedding (crafted by the talented Kat Pino who has created pieces for Michelin-star restaurants in Vancouver). These ceramics were also stamped by us and distributed to family members afterwards as a keepsake and for functional use as bowls for dining.”

“This recurring theme of multi-functional opportunities would be our second advice for any couples planning their wedding,” the grooms say. “For example the 8 ft. x 8 ft. wedding arch that we created to serve as a soft backdrop during the ceremony was also designed in a way that it would be disassembled and re-assembled easily on site so that it could be brought inside for the photobooth area.”

Aaron + Nate gathered blooms for their DIY ikebana arrangements—those beautiful calla lilies, for example—from Uptown Florist.

Crisp white linens, long banquet tables, and other rented elements from Lonsdale Event Rentals and Koncept Event Design embraced the minimalist wood-and-glass architecture of the venue.

“The meticulously planned wedding favours were also handmade + screenprinted by us with the help of friends,” say the creative grooms.

“As bibs, they served multi-functional purposes for the dinner, as a mean of wayfinding for the guests’ table seating, and as a beautiful token from the wedding of the couple’s love and care.”

Snag a champagne tower set to create Aaron + Nate’s celebratory bubbly moment!

Those hanging pendant light fixtures above the head table? Nate handcrafted those, as well!

“Another favourite moment was the wedding cake created by Sydney Southam,” the couple says.

“Inspired by my favourite cake (i.e., the tiramisu cake at Whole Foods),” Aaron explains, “Sydney went above and beyond to recreate the flavours in a gluten-free version of the cake to accommodate Nate’s celiac allergy. In fact, I had the actual Whole Foods cake the day after the wedding (as it was my birthday), and the wedding cake version may have ruined the Whole Foods cake for me… in the best way possible!”

And before we end the feature, we had to share a closer look at Aaron’s wedding flipbook. The couple shares, “A huge part of our wedding and planning included this booklet which combined all of Aaron’s architectural and organizational skills to ensure that every moment was executed flawlessly and allow us to fully immerse ourselves in the joy of our celebration.”

OK, we are amazed at this level of detail!! So impressive Aaron!!

Congratulations Aaron + Nate! We are absolutely in awe of your high fashion wedding in the forest. Best wishes to you both from GWS!