Nature Chic | Grey & Yellow: Real Wedding

Nature Chic | Grey & Yellow: Real Wedding

This couples wedding blows. me. away. For one, their chosen location is Yosemite National Park!! The contrast of contemporary styling against the natural breathtaking surroundings is gorgeous and the use of grey and yellow  accent colours… er. wow. such a chic & modern colour combo! Our striking couple, Nicole and Casey put loads of personal details and thought into making the day extra special, so please enjoy! I’m sure their wedding will leave you feeling very inspired indeed.

Casey and I lived in Fresno for about a year, which is located just over an hour outside of the park. During this time, we travelled up to Yosemite regularly, spending time together hiking, and growing our relationship. After we moved back to San Diego, where we both originally met, we had planned a camping trip in Yosemite, with the intent to hike Half Dome.

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The day we were supposed to hike, rain and thunder clouds rolled into the valley, but we decided if we hiked extremely quickly, we could make it to the summit before it started raining. We had no luck, and instead, ate lunch at the top of Nevada Falls, overlooking Yosemite Valley. Casey continued to ask me if I was SURE we wouldn’t be going any higher.

With the threat of rain and thunder/lightening (which makes it impossible to summit Half Dome), I told him, that yes, there was no way I was going higher. He fumbled around with his backpack, dropped to his knees, pulled out a ring, and asked me to marry him.

I was completely caught off-guard, but replied, “YES!” The trail had been somewhat busy that day, but in that moment, we were all alone, over-looking the park where we had spent so much time together. It was perfect, and we knew that was where we had to get married.

I love fashion and shopping, but when I started trying on wedding dresses, I hated every one. I never had a “Say Yes to the Dress” moment – I felt like they were wearing me, instead of me wearing them. I also wanted to keep my dress under $1,000.

I’m all for extravagance, but to spend so much money on something I would only wear once seemed absurd. A friend told me about the Nicole Miller bridal line, so I went to the nearest boutique to try on some dresses.

Immediately, I knew I would purchase my dress there. I loved the simplicity of the gown, while still looking like a wedding dress. The material and cut fit me perfectly, left room to add accessories and fit my budget. I love Nicole Miller!   

I’ve never been a fan of veils, and this was the first thing I cut when I realized I got to do whatever I wanted!     

Just a year before the wedding, my dad underwent a serious surgery, and I was so grateful to have him there, walking me down the aisle.

I walked down the aisle to In My Life by the Beatles. I’ve always loved the song, and thought the message resonated well for our wedding; we were surrounded by so many important people – that had gotten us to where we are now – but all I was looking at walking down the aisle was Casey.

One of our favorite design elements from the wedding was the guest book. We ditched the traditional book, and instead, spent a year collecting new and vintage Yosemite National Park post cards. We asked everyone at the wedding to write a note to us, detailing their favorite memory while visiting the park. Casey and I read them a couple months after the wedding (when we finally had time!) and laughed and cried through the collection. We both look forward to looking back at them throughout the years, and one day, showing our children

In addition to creating our wedding bouquets and centrepieces, our florist, Natalie helped with our wedding design, set-up, and a countless number of ideas. When I become worried that the reception chairs would clash with the wedding colors, she found a chair cover company in our price range. Natalie went above-and-beyond her role of florist, and we are very grateful!

I spent about a year collecting vases for our wedding – searching everywhere from thrift stores to ebay. I love the eclectic feel it created, and we worked with Natalie to find flowers that went with the nature surrounding our venue, the vases and our personalities. She created a wide range of flowers – each varying slightly in color (yellow, green and white), creating unique corsages, boutonnieres, bouquets and centerpieces.  

Emik and Yana our wedding photographers were great!

They were always professional and responsive, open to our ideas, and creating their own. They were a perfect balance of going with the flow, while having a plan (if that makes sense). 

Working with a husband/wife team made our day easy – we were sure every moment would be captured, from the boys’ room to the bridal suite, and they went above and beyond our expectations.  idropPHOTO works to capture genuine photos in the moment they happen, and we wholeheartedly recommend them.

Like most couples, we couldn’t have planned the day without the help, love and guidance from our families. We had a wall of photos from each of our families, showing some of our favorite, our parents favorite, and our grandparents favorite, memories from Yosemite visits. We had photos on display from our grandparents young years, to our wedding proposal in the park, only a year prior. It was special to see our family photos throughout the years at the place we were married, in our wedding reception.    

Inside our reception venue, there is a huge fireplace, and we chose to display our cake there, instead of starting a fire. In everything we did for our wedding, including the cake, we wanted nature and our venue to shine. The cake was frosted, creating a textured effect, and Natalie finished it with fresh flowers. It was perfect!

Casey loves Frank Sinatra, and chose Fly Me to the Moon for our first dance.

If I could impart any words of wisdom for future brides? I recommend organization to any bride planning her wedding! I used a Google Doc to plan everything, from our guest list to budget, and frequently consulted The Knot wedding timeline (although you will always be behind). The day, and our lives together, is so much bigger than organization skills, but if you decided to take on a wedding, then make sure you know what you need to do next! And hire a day-of coordinator!

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