We love sharing photos of the real weddings and letterpress invitations that our fabulous Bella brides send us, but we especially love when we get to feature the wedding of someone we know personally! For today’s real wedding, we worked with Lin Logan of The Stationery Company in Denver and her daughter Jennifer for Jennifer’s letterpress wedding invitations, and we are so thrilled to share details from the big day! Jennifer chose our elegant Jolie design for her October celebration, and we letterpress printed her wedding invitations in pewter and champagne inks. Spencerian hand calligraphy accents by Debi Zeinert added a gorgeous touch of elegance to the sophisticated set, which included a festive reception card and a handy info card that let guests know about accommodations, transportation, and the couple’s wedding website. We are completely smitten with this gorgeous fall wedding — read on to learn about the inspiration behind this fabulous event!

Can you share with us a bit about your wedding and your inspiration for the event?

Our absolute favorite time of year is the fall, so John and I decided that we definitely wanted a fall wedding. With so many of our friends’ weddings taking place in the summer months, we felt like having it at this time of year would allow us to really be creative and different and also give our guests an evening they would never forget during a time when life seems to move at a bit slower pace.  That really served as our inspiration for the entire event. We wanted to find a venue that truly showcased the beautiful fall colors of Colorado while also conveying a sense of casual-elegance that would make everyone feel right at home. When we came across Crooked Willow Farm, we felt no other venue could have captured all of these things more perfectly…so with that decision crossed off the list, we then began planning the wedding of our dreams in a Big Red Barn in beautiful Larkspur, Colorado. What could be more “Fall” than that?

How did you choose your invitation design & ink colors?

I think that when most of us think of fall, we think of the traditional fall color palette of reds, oranges and yellows. Once again, trying to think a bit more out of the box, we came up with the color palette of charcoal gray and butter yellow.  We felt the palette was warm and inviting and best of all, DIFFERENT! Choosing letterpress on luxurious cotton paper by Bella Figura only enhanced our vision, and they worked with us on such a personal yet effortless level that I felt no stress with regard to the invitations.  Our initial vision for the invitation was achieved.  When dreaming about how this palette would be reflected in all aspects of our wedding…from the bridesmaid dresses, the flowers and of course, the invitations, we were sold on it immediately. From there we watched all the details unfold so beautifully in sticking with this color theme. We wouldn’t have changed a thing.

What surprised you most about your wedding?

What surprised us most was how quickly the day went. We wanted to hang on every moment of the day as long as we could but all in all, each moment passed along to the next so much faster than we anticipated. What also surprised me was how nervous I felt moments before I walked down the isle. And furthermore, I was also surprised by the immediate calm I felt just moments later as I saw John for the first time and was walking down the isle with our eyes locked on one another.

What advice do you have for couples currently planning a wedding?

I would say don’t get too bogged down in all of the little details (because most people won’t remember them anyway). What they do remember is the overall feeling of the day and the aura of love and emotion that is in the air. When you are marrying the person of your dreams, the little details of the day become secondary to reciting your vows and creating a bond that will last from that moment forward.

Favorite design element of your big day?

I think our favorite design element was actually how we decided to set up the reception hall where dinner was served. Rather than the traditional round tables that you so often see, we decided to play off the feeling of fall, and the togetherness of family and friends and use 3 very long farmers tables filled with flowers and hundreds of candles. The feeling of community this created was beyond what we even expected and people are still talking about the sense of drama that was felt when you walked in and saw the three dramatically long tables set for a feast no one will ever forget.

Favorite moments:

Bride: I have two favorite moments. The first was when I first entered the room and began the walk down the aisle. As mentioned earlier, the immediate calm that I felt when I saw my soul mate standing at the end of the isle was unlike anything I had ever felt before and more powerful than I would have ever expected. My second favorite moment was listening to my parents toasts. They had the entire reception howling with laughter at times and filled with tears of sweet emotion at others. It was priceless!

Groom: John’s favorite moment of the night was during the dance reception where the entire room was dancing to the sounds of Homeslice (our band).  There was a moment when one of our favorite songs came on and one of the groomsmen lifted me (the bride) up onto a large ottoman in the center of the room. All of a sudden it was like I was on stage surrounded by my favorite people in the whole world. For those who know me…I was clearly in my ultimate “element” as I danced “on stage” with my big feather boa while everyone danced and celebrated below! John claims that he just stood back in awe and will always remember that moment as one of his top highlights of the day.

Jennifer, thanks so much for choosing Bella Figura for your wedding invitations and for sharing your gorgeous wedding with us!

Vendors

Venue: Crooked Willow Farms, Larkspur, Colorado

Stationer: The Stationery Company

Florist: Flower Power

Photographer: Jared Wilson

Caterer: Gourmet Fine Catering

Band: Homeslice Band