When Love is Not Cancelled
Are you ready to get inspired by this intimate wedding at Homestead on McVey?
We can all agree, 2020 did a number on weddings. Gone were large weddings with unlimited guests, crowded dance floors, and mouth-watering buffets. The words ‘intimate wedding’ and ‘elopement’ became trending words faster than you could say COVID.
For Emily and Nathan, it didn’t matter. A large wedding was never what they planned or wanted. From the beginning, it was always about having a small, cozy celebration with their favorite people. With the quarantine restriction lifted shortly before their wedding and their event already under the maximum for gathering restrictions, their wedding could joyfully move forward as planned.
The Inspiration
The vision for Emily and Nathan’s wedding was a Southwest vibe with a modern farmhouse concept. It was simple, elegant and full of subtle, tasteful details.
I always like to start with two things when planning with my clients.
First, a Pinterest board. Sharing a Pinterest board with me is a great way to help me see your vision. Pinterest boards aren’t shopping lists. We won’t design your wedding by taking ideas straight from the board. Instead, think of your board in terms of inspiration – on the vibe, the feelings, the colors that you want to incorporate into your wedding.
Here is an image from Emily and Nathan’s original Pinterest board:
A disclaimer on Pinterest Boards: Pinterest is great and is one of my favorite social media platforms BUT it is really easy to get wrapped up in wanting exactly what you see on Pinterest. I promise you don’t want to do this. Use Pinterest as a starting spot and allow me to design a wedding that is unabashedly yours and yours own…. Not something copied from another wedding. The result will be an unforgettable event.
But I digress. Back to the planning.
From your Pinterest board, our conversations and my knowledge of the venue, I design a mood board that dictates more specifics about your wedding, making it personal and unique. I pull in all of the elements discussed to create a tool from which we can make decisions the rest of the planning experience.
From Emily and Nathan’s Pinterest board, I created a personalized mood board to help start the planning process.
A mood board is great because it is a stable foundation on which we can bring all decisions back to. Unsure about a color choice? Check out the mood board. Not sure if that idea will work? Refer back to the mood board.
I was thrilled with how Emily and Nathan’s mood board turned out and was truly excited to see how I could incorporate these elements at the venue.
The Venue – Homestead on McVey
Located in a pristine valley with panoramic mountain views, the Homestead on McVey offers a variety of locations for both ceremonies and receptions. The modern touch of the white barn is one of the most distinguishing features of the venue– as well as the large willow tree covered in string lights (the perfect spot for a cute picnic!).
Emily and Nathan choose to have their ceremony in a field overlooking the Bitterroot Mountains and their reception under the ancient willow tree. The venue also offers a fire pit which adds the extra flare of the cowboy culture that Montana is so famous for.
The Details
Tying in a Southwest theme with the Magnolia-esque vibe of the Homestead of McVey was fun and a satisfying challenge.
Inspired by their beloved Pendleton blanket (you can see it in the fire side images), Emily and I chose a fiery color palette of teals, reds, and burnt oranges to compliment the southwest theme. Emily’s florals, an eclectic mix of roses, dahlias, and ranunculus, were meticulously designed by Habitat Floral Studios and I thought that the teal linen ribbon was just the perfect touch to make her bouquet pop. In my opinion, you can never go wrong with color. It adds so much to the vision and overall personality of the celebration.
To further tie-in the Southwest theme, the ceremony site was simply, yet impactfully adorned with white clay vases of Pampas grass and other dried materials and the pedestals helped ensure that these details were kept close to the ground, in order to not obstruct the view of the mountains.
For the reception decor, the white picnic tables provided by the venue were the perfect element to the picnic element of the dinner. The tables are situated under a massive willow tree, whose branches are draped romantically with Edison bulb lighting. This adorable and quaint area of the venue was one of my favorite spots to decorate.
The tables, I picked a teal linen and speckled stoneware plates, in ode to the artistry of the Southwest. The copper votives on the table also added a touch of farmhouse flair. The favors, which were placed in white clay pots at each place setting, were, fittingly, succulent plants. Habitat Floral Studio added a bit of craft paper and twine to complete the look.
And then the food – awww…. The food. Emily and Nathan choose to have their favorite meal at the wedding – breakfast for dinner. Seriously. How could you not love this idea? From bacon to mini-quiches to chicken and waffles, it was truly one of the best personal touches. The couple decided on hand pies for dessert.
If I had to look back and pick a favorite moment from Emily and Nathan’s weddng at Homestead on McVey it would have to be the intimacy of it. So many people overlook the special feel of a small celebration. It is so much more laid back, relaxed and joy filled because the stress of a gigantic celebration is taken away. No matter the planning team, there are just so many less logistics that have to be worried about because it’s so easy for twenty people to “go with the flow”. Intimate wedding celebrations will always have such a fond place in my heart.
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