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This Yosemite Elopement Features Earthy Blooms and Amazing Views

January 6, 2020 | Junebug Weddings

Julie and Calvin’s bucket list included a trip to Yosemite National Park, so they decided on a Yosemite elopement to kick off their marriage on an epic adventure together! The couple spent over 10 hours with Rain and Pines and Henry Tieu Photography on the day of their elopement — and it’s one of the most incredible expressions of love of you’ll ever see. Julie, Calvin, and their rockstar team hiked and took in breathtaking views at every turn. It was a true sight to see and remember for the couple. Make sure to scroll to the end to see the totally rad GIF video Henry made for them! We now want GIF videos for every occasion!

The Couple:

Julie & Calvin

The Wedding:

Yosemite, California

We wanted to get married in Yosemite because it was on our bucket-list of national parks to visit. Calvin and I are both from the East Coast and before our wedding, we had never been to the West Coast. We talked about venturing out to California ever since we were sixteen. So when the idea came up, we thought, well how cool would it be to kick off our marriage by going on an adventure?

Have fun with it! Don’t overwhelm yourself with all the little details. Include your significant other in the planning process. Most people think that the bride makes all of the decisions for the wedding but husbands have opinions too. Also, your photographer is your most important vendor. Invest in your photographer! Find your photographer first. We found Henry before we even decided on a location, and actually, before we even knew that we were getting married, haha. We initially hired him for an engagement session, but then we threw our hands up in the air and said, let’s get married!

I will never forget the way the sky changed colors as the sun rose above the mountain peaks. I will never forget the stillness in the air and the sounds of the birds waking up with the rest of the world, as if to congratulate us. I will never forget the quiet moments we shared, soaking in those grand views of Yosemite for the first time ever as husband and wife.

Staying true to the vision we created together for our wedding day was most important to us. When you are planning a wedding, it is so easy to be influenced by others. At first, it was difficult to separate our own ideas from that of our friends, family and even the rest of the world. The pressure to achieve society’s expectations can really factor into your decision making, whether we wanted to admit it or not.

Making decisions together was easy because we both wanted the same thing: To celebrate each other and begin our biggest adventure as husband and wife by doing what we love most, getting lost in new places with views that will never forget.

On our wedding day, I surprised my husband with personalized socks that featured all three of our fur-babies. I will never forget the look on his face!

My favorite photo was one that our photographer took during our hike up to Taft Point. We were running around in the woods in full wedding attire and at one point, Henry told us to kick up dirt and then make out with each other. We did exactly as we were told and could not stop giggling. The outcome was far beyond what we could have imagined. In the photo, you could see the dust bouncing off of the light from the sun. Who knew that dirt could be so beautiful!?

Our photographer Henry was truly the star of our wedding day. His work is unbelievable. Because of Henry, we have the most incredible photos to re-live those moments all over again. Henry deserves all the credit because he also did a lot of the heavy lifting such as planning and logistics. Henry scouted the location, he drove with us for 8 hours, he spent the ENTIRE day with us, and not once did he complain or slow down. Henry is so energetic and fun, he made us feel so comfortable, which is incredibly important. We met our photographer the night before we got married, but he made us feel as if we had known him for years. He is more than just a photographer to us now, he has become a lifelong friend.

The Wedding Team:

Photography & Videography – Henry Tieu Photography
Event Planning & Floral Design – Rain and Pines
Ceremony Venue – Yosemite National Park
Reception Venue – June Bug Cafe
Stationery – Dear Darling Design Studio
Wedding Dress – Wtoo
Bridal Jacket – Dearly Threaded
Veil – Veils by Rebecca

 

Congratulations, Julie and Calvin! We’re forever grateful for your awesome team and Henry Tieu Photography who shared this epic elopement with Junebug! For more Yosemite inspo, we think you’ll love this Yosemite Valley Lodge wedding that pulled its color palette from the natural hues of Glacier Point.

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Whimsical Boho Oregon Wedding at Horning’s Hideout

January 5, 2020 | Junebug Weddings

When Shannon and Ian were planning their fairytale forest wedding, they took to Google to search for inspiration and fell madly in love with Horning’s Hideout! Shannon has a natural love for the environment, so it was important that the natural beauty of the venue shine through with minimal decor. Selva Floral Design did a magical job creating arrangements for the ceremony arch and reception area that complimented the enchanting forest vibes. If you love all things whimsical, we think you’re going to swoon over these photos by The Soft Season!

The Couple:

Shannon & Ian

The Wedding:

Horning’s Hideout, North Plains, Oregon

Wedding planning advice from the bride: Pick your memorable moments, everything else will fade over time so only focus on the things you want yourself and your guests to remember and highlight them in a way which resonates with you to make them uniquely yours and so looking back those moments will always bring joy. Additionally, have a vision and stick with it, by having a vision from the beginning it helped cut down on the stress. Lastly, love your wedding photographer and their style. Highly recommend using social media to your advantage and looking at different photography styles to narrow down what you would like.

I was inspired by Disney fairytale princesses. I am obsessed with my wedding dress, it was magical and made me feel gorgeous every time I put it on. My bridesmaids all chose their own dresses in shades of fire and our groomsmen were in bespoke navy suits.


SHOP THIS LOOK:

 

I wanted a fairytale forest wedding so I googled forest weddings, found the most gorgeous inspiration, geolocated it, found the blog it was on where it was tagged, reached out to the property owner at Horning’s Hideout, and the rest is history.

We had so many fun personal touches, because there are a lot of traditional wedding elements which I felt didn’t resonate with us so we put our own spin on them. We had our own version of vows.

We found it very important to maintain our vision for the wedding. We wanted to create a unique interpretation of traditional wedding elements done in a modern way which created a better atmosphere and flow through out the event. This wedding was our opportunity to thank everyone in our lives who had played an instrumental role in helping us get to where we are so we wanted to take some of the focus off of ourselves and instead create a memorable intimate wedding where each of our guests felt welcomed and appreciated.

The WEDTalks! In lieu of toasts (which are usually the worst), we had organized WEDtalks. The rules were simple; no inside jokes, no telling us how great/amazing/etc we were (we were getting married, we know this), and instead talk about something you are passionate about and leave us with an inspired call to action. They could not have been better! We first heard from the bride’s brother with a powerpoint on Genetics and what our children would look like, when your speaker shows that your one year old goldendoodle puppy is destined to be your child, you know the bar is set incredibly high and the speeches are going to be incredible. This was followed by a speech on how to cure a hangover from our Resident MD and then a Maid of Honor speech on perspective. We wrapped our WEDtalk adventure with a FREDtalk from the CEO of Beck on family and friendship that left everyone buzzing about it for the rest of the weekend.

The Wedding Team:

Photography – The Soft Season
Second Photographer – Courtney Meili Photography
Event Coordination – J29 events
Wedding Venue – Horning’s Hideout
Floral Design – Selva Floral Design
Catering – White Pepper Catering
Cake – DreamCakes PDX
Bar – The Tiddly Trailer
DJ – Event Team Entertainment
Stationery – Polka Dot Paper
Makeup Artist – Lauren Maher Makeup
Hair Styling – The Beauty Briar, Morgan Roberts
Wedding Dress – THEIA Couture, Louvienne via Lovely Bride
Groom’s Apparel – Idlewood Bespoke
Rentals – Party Place, Classic Vintage Rentals

 

Cheers to you, Shannon and Ian! We’re thankful for The Soft Season for sharing these gorgeous images from Horning’s Hideout with Junebug! Searching for more forest wedding inspo? We think you’ll love this rustic chic South Carolina forest wedding!

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Copper and Ivory Greensboro Wedding Inspiration at The McAlister-Leftwich House

January 4, 2020 | Junebug Weddings

When Avonné Photography was planning this dreamy wedding inspiration at the McAlister-Leftwich House, there was no better couple to model than Diyashia and Jason, who eloped on a whim and never had wedding photos taken to celebrate. Although this was a styled shoot, it was 100% real for Diyashia and Jason. Tears were heavy as they read their vows to each other under the gorgeous ceremony arch created by FLORA, and wait until you see the gorgeous sweetheart table with copper and ivory decor. Pro tip: Thrifting vintage picture frames can be an inexpensive and fun way to add an interesting element to your reception decor! We love the touch of cheesecloth added to the frames thrifted from I’ll Second That Consignment! If you’ve been searching for cozy, elegant wedding inspiration, we’re sure you’ll love this one!

The Talented Team:

Photography – Avonné Photography
Event Planning – Seeded Events and Design
Venue – McAlister-Leftwich House
Floral Design – FLORA Wedding and Event Flowers
Cake – Sugar On Top Cakes
Stationery – Pretty Written Things
Makeup Artist – The Posh Palette Artistry
Wedding Dress – ASOS
Bridal Veil – Simply Stunning by Divas
Styling Pieces – The Styling Mat
Rentals – The Prettiest Pieces
Frames – I’ll Second That Consignment

 

Many thanks to Junebug member Avonné Photography for sharing this stunning wedding inspiration at The McAlister-Leftwich House! Planning an elopement at a historic home or Airbnb? These posts might help:

This Denver Airbnb Elopement Inspiration at Ramble Retreat is Cozy, Modern, and Impossibly Romantic

10 Tips for Planning an Unforgettable Airbnb Wedding

10 Tips for a Totally Awesome Zero-Waste Wedding

 

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