Vintage Colorado Mountain Wedding

Ruffled’s three year birthday week couldn’t end any better than with a gorgeous intimate wedding in Colorado shot by none other than Sean Flanigan. Christina perused Ruffled during her engagement and is here today to share her wedding with us. Congrats Christina + Nathan! Be sure to check ALL images in the gallery – and sit back with your latte, because there are plenty images to gush over.

We wanted something simple, intimate, calm, beautiful, natural, vintage, & a setting representative of the mountain town we live in. It was important that the wedding fit both our styles. I wanted a setting that Nate felt comfortable in, rather than something pink & overtly feminine.

We had an extremely hard time finding a venue for our small party as any conventional wedding site charged the same fee whether we had 20 or 200 guests. We also looked at a number of parks, retail shops, VRBO’s, and even considered decorating our garage at our most desperate moment! Then a friend heard about our dilemma and offered that we could get married where she lived (Crystal Park in Manitou Springs, Colorado, a gated community on a mountain). We went to see the location and were completely blown away by the view. We were immediately smitten and knew it was the right spot for us. We were the first people to get married there, which just made it all the more special!

We made our own plates using Make-A-Plate children’s kit, & kept them for our dinnerware. I painted the simple wooden cake toppers to look like Nate & I. We searched at thrift stores & antique shops to find unique favors for each guest. Each female received a vintage handkerchief & brooch. The men received things like a pocket knive, geodes, old postcards & even an accordion. Our decorations were either found at thrift stores or were things already used as decor in our apartments.

See Also

Vail Mountain Wedding With Pheasant Feathers & Pops of Red

Any advice for brides planning their weddings now? A number of married women have told me that they had wanted a small intimate wedding themselves, but due to expectations they went the opposite route. Weddings can be done traditionally or non-traditionally. What’s important is that the feel of your big day fits you and your fiance.

Wedding Songs:
Processional: “The Cascades” by the Fleet Foxes

Sean Flanigan. Christina perused Ruffled during her engagement and is here today to share her wedding with us. Congrats Christina + Nathan! Be sure to check View all images in the gallery

Wedding Vendors (Manitou, Colorado):

Ceremony and reception venue: Crystal Park in Manitou Springs / Photographer: Sean Flanigan / Second shooter: Sergio Mottola / Wedding Dress: Tadashi Shoji / Veil: DIY by the bride / Wedding Shoes: Macy’s / Jewelry: two jade bracelets (one from bride’s grandmother one that the bride bought when she lived in Hong Kong) / Groom’s suit: Nate wore a light grey dress shirt (The Gap), gray pants (Kohl’s), Tom’s shoes, vintage bow tie, my grandfather’s suspenders / DJ: We had a record player & some of our favorite records. The guests could choose a record and change it as they wished / Caterer: Front Range Barbeque / Wedding Dessert: Peach Cobbler & Berry Cobbler with vanilla ice cream from Front Range Barbeque) and homedade almond poppyseed cake for the cake cutting.