This Cape Kiwanda elopement was one of my favorite days of 2019. From the very minute Amber & Russell's inquiry email hit my inbox, I lost my mind. I was so excited, I think I might have scared them a little? It was one of those lovely moments where it felt like the universe had connected us with our people, and Amber & Russell are definitely our people. Amber is an amazing, incredibly chill and stylish as hell, but also superbly caring and kind. Russell is quiet, but deeply hilarious once he comes out of his shell. They're both wonderful, kind, and they care very much about keeping things down to earth. They both love the outdoors, they have so many house plants it's insane, and along with their adorable german shepherd husky mix named after Princess Leia in Star Wars, they also have THREE cats. That, and they wanted to elope in one of our favorite places: the Oregon Coast. Like I said, Amber & Russell are definitely our people.
After talking about a couple of different places, they decided on the lovely Cape Kiwanda for their elopement day. Pacific Coast Floral Design made the world's most gorgeous ceremony installation, along with a stunning fall bouquet and boutinierre. Marina Haynes did a fabulous job on Amber's hair and makeup, and Amber looked incredible in her custom denim jacket and dress from the ever-so-cool Spokane bridal boutique, Honest in Ivory. Emily from Rooted & Wild made sure the whole day went smoothly and officiated their sweet ceremony on the beach, with their closest friends and family present.
They exchanged the sweetest of vows, planted a new house plant together for their unity ceremony, and then walked out to a shower of dried flower petal confetti (yay for earth friendly confetti!!!)
After their ceremony, we took Amber, Russell, and their sweet pup Leia up to Cape Kiwanda for some sunset photos and their first dance. That sand dune is always a short but surprisingly brutal climb, but we made it!! After hanging out and eating some pasta at their airbnb by the beach, we said our goodbyes, and then we saw them about a month later for their big reception in Spokane with a killer dance party, a second wedding cake (because duhhh), and had tons of fun. It's something really special to be able to work with couples on multiple celebrations over time, and it's one of my very favorite parts about this job!
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