Funny Story:
I was on a plane headed back home from Rome after a two-week vacation in Italy with Zach. We were sitting in the two middle seats of a four-seat section of the plane so that we each had an empty seat beside us.
"Excuse me, would you mind moving down a seat so I could sit next to my fiancé?"
I looked up and saw the most beautiful dark-haired, blue-eyed, angel-faced young woman I'd ever seen, accompanied by the cutest (sorry, Luke) baby-faced, tall, adorable young man I'd ever seen.
"Fiancé?" I asked. "Tell me everything."
And that's how our love story began. Kalina and I spoke for three hours on that plane ride, kept in touch on Instagram for a month or so, and then after a few failed attempts at planning a more traditional wedding, Kalina got back in touch with me to let me know that the Universe hadn't put us together on that plane (that they weren't originally supposed to be on) for no reason. And so, we started planning for a destination elopement in Colorado.
So before we go on, I just need you to understand that Kalina and Luke are perfect. They are human perfection. And they were also the perfect clients to work with so anyone reading this who might be considering booking me for their own wedding/elopement, just know that the standard is set very high.
I know there's been a shitton of text already on this post, but I have a lot of feelings about this elopement and these special people, ya know? Bear with me here.
The day started with hair and makeup for Kalina at an unreasonably early hour. I swear the glam squad never gets enough credit for the early hour they have to start sometimes so Kate and Angelica, you guys are rockstars. When we were all dressed and ready to go, Kalina and Luke had their first look in the backyard of their Airbnb before we headed over to Rocky Mountain National Park to do the damn thing. Once they got to the Alluvial Fan safely (Kalina had a slight hiccup when her heel got stuck in the bridge), they said their vows, exchanged rings, and shared their first married kiss with a stunning waterfall on one side of them and an insanely beautiful, majestic mountain range on the other side. Once the formalities were done, it was time for my favorite part of the day- portraits around the park.
See ya on the flipside
The Flipside being the arcade bar in downtown Loveland where we were staying. After the morning's formalities, Kalina and Luke took some time to be by themselves, change outfits, and nap. I can't really blame them. When we hooked back up in the afternoon, we went to a cute little barcade right in the middle of downtown that we got all to ourselves for a couple of hours. There were some intense games of pinball, Mario Kart, and skeeball intermingled with some very pretty pink, sparkly drinks created by the most kind, customer-service-oriented bartender I have ever come across in my life. Shoutout to Johnny the bartender.
It's like raaaaiiiiin on your wedding day
After the fun we had at the arcade, I left Kalina and Luke to have a private dinner at the Loveland Chophouse just across the street. I picked them up after they were done (perks of hiring me-I'll be your personal DD when you've been drinking) and we headed back to the AirBnb to finish off the day with a cute little cake cutting and first dance. The cake was as amazing as it looks- a chocolate devil's food with chocolate icing and raspberry filling. And their first dance quite literally made me tear up and that hardly ever happens- so you know it was heartwarming AF. Right as I was about to head out for the night, the storm clouds came rolling in and the rain came down hard and fast, leaving a warm, comforting glow to the town as soon as it passed. It was like a damn Hallmark movie, guys. And just like that, day one was in the books.
Doesn't everyone go to buc-ees after getting married?
Day two started at everyone's favorite place- a government building. Here, Kalina and Luke signed the paperwork for their marriage license and even asked me to sign as a witness which was SO SWEET because you know, the whole point of Colorado for them was that they could self-solemnize. So having my chicken scratch signature on their legal document means a lot to me. Remember when I said they were perfect?
Once the legalities were done, we did what any self-respecting group of adults would do. We went to Buc-ees.
Listen. I had never been to a Buc-ees and they were adamant that I experience this world wonder and lemme tell you, it did not disappoint. A quick lil tailgate lunch later, and we were off to our final stop together: Fallen Desires Tattoos and Oddities. Kalina and Luke had decided to get matching tattoos at the coolest tattoo shop. Seriously, it had such weird, random, awesome stuff in the waiting area like raccoon pelts and a preserved crow's foot. Kye was their tattoo artist and she killed it with their tattoos. The tattoo parlor itself was straight out of my jewel-toned dark-aesthetic gingerbread house dreams and it was super nice of everyone there to let me photograph this experience for Kalina and Luke.
I'm not crying, you're crying
It was legitimately sad when I had to give one last hug to Kalina and Luke before we went our separate ways. It had been three days of working together and I enjoyed every minute of it. While I was driving back from the park through the winding Colorado roads, I stopped and thought to myself how incredibly lucky I am that this is my profession. I get to photograph the most beautiful people in the most beautiful parts of the world and for that, I am eternally grateful.
Looking to do your own Colorado elopement? Get in touch- I'll spill all my secrets for making it as perfect as Kalina and Luke's, while making it uniquely yours.
Vendor Team
Photography: Danielle Ariadne
Hair: Angelica
Makeup: Kate S
Flowers: Parsley and Valentine
Wedding Gown: Casa Blanca Bridal
Wedding Gown Bridal Boutique: Amelia's Bridal
Shoes: Betsey Johnson
Elopement Location: Rocky Mountain National Park
Arcade: The Flipside
Tattoo Parlor: Fallen Desires Tattoos and Oddities
Tattoo Artist: Kye N.
