Love At 8000 Feet at Northstar’s Zephyr Lodge

Sarah and Garrett were married at Zephyr Lodge at Northstar California earlier this summer. Their wedding was a gorgeous mix of stunning flowers and amazing views. Scott and Dana of Weddings By Scott and Dana captured the day and Holly Turville of Holly Fleur created the most amazing bouquet we have ever seen! Sarah shared with us their love story and how they created their dream wedding with the help of their vendor team.

Their Love Story

Never did I think that moving from the suburbs in Michigan to a small beach town in California would lead me to find the man of my dreams. Although our first encounter at a local dive bar in Santa Barbara was far from romance novelesque, we still love to think back to how we first locked eyes at a place called the Wildcat Lounge. The rest is history.

We were engaged in Hawaii in the most romantic way, Garrett even hired a photographer to capture the moment! When we began to plan our wedding Garrett and I agreed that what we wanted most out of this day was for both us and our guests to have an amazingly fun time. We wanted people to have delicious drinks, a tasty dinner, and to dance the night away. We knew that this was a special day for us, but it was just as special for our family and friends who traveled from near and far to join in the celebration. Luckily for us, all of our vendors truly helped to make our hopes for a perfect day a reality.

Garrett and I had looked at several venues in the Tahoe area, but the moment we got off the gondola at the Zephyr Lodge at Northstar California Resort, we knew we found our place. The outdoor ceremony site is simple as to not compete with the stunning view of the valley and mountains that it overlooks. The lodge is a perfect amount of rustic, with a wall of windows that lead to an outdoor patio showing off the same gorgeous view as the ceremony site. It is breathtaking, and we were immediately hooked.

In all honesty, we did not plan a specific theme for our wedding. We knew we wanted it to be somewhat rustic with a hint of elegance. We wanted it to feel light, airy, and simple. The elements that we chose really spoke to this.

Our bridesmaids wore pale rose-colored dresses and the groomsmen wore light grey suits. Garrett wore navy, which complimented my ivory dress. My bridal bouquet was one of my absolute favorite details of the wedding. It was a large mix of gorgeous pop color summer flowers.

Zephyr Lodge has beautiful wooden tables and chairs so we highlighted them with a delicate lace table runner and pale pink napkins for a subtle hint of color. This allowed for our floral centerpieces to be the center of attention. Our florist Holly Turville did an amazing job of mirroring the look of my bridal bouquet by using a mix of pop color flowers to create these vibrant arrangements.

Bridal Wisdom

My advice to future brides would be to try to truly enjoy the planning process. It can be chaotic and overwhelming at times, but once the day comes you are going to be so proud of what you planned and accomplished. Oddly enough, one of the best pieces of advice I was given was told to me by the woman who did my pre-wedding spray tan! She pulled me aside before I left her salon to say that no matter how busy the day gets, to take one moment alone with my new husband. To stand together, take a deep breath, and let it all sink in. It was such a sweet piece of advice for her to give, and we made a point to do just that.

The Vendor Team Of Our Dreams

Our vendor team was a dream come true. Our florist, Holly Turville of Holly Fleur created gorgeous table-top arrangements for our reception, as well as beautiful bouquets and aisle displays for our ceremony. The bridal bouquet that she created for me was one of my favorite things about the entire day. It was strikingly colorful with a mix of summer florals that popped against the ivory of my wedding dress.

Our photographers Scott and Dana of Weddings By Scott and Dana were amazing. They were so helpful and attentive during the entire planning process and were quick to answer emails to address questions or concerns. On the day of the wedding, they were detail-oriented and were able to keep things running seamlessly. Garret and I chose not to hire a Wedding Coordinator for the day of our wedding, so having photographers who were so organized was more helpful than we expected. They were the perfect mix of professional and fun and were so lovely to be around. Not only were they all of the above, but the photographs they took turned out to be stunning. They are truly talented, and we appreciate their talent that has given us photos we will cherish forever!

Our DJ Eli Fresh Modekept the party going on the dance floor until the final moment of the night. He played a mix of songs that everyone could enjoy. He was so great that at one point we had a dance floor going both inside the venue and outside on the patio!

Flour Girl Wedding Cakes baked a variety of mouth-watering desserts, all of which were devoured by our guests within less than an hour. They were amazing.

Sarah and Garrett’s dream wedding day was gorgeous and brought together an amazing vendor team. Congratulations to Sara and Garrett on a stunning wedding day!

Sources