Elopements are about simplicity and focusing on what really matters to you: a commitment ceremony with your loved one, without the wedding logistics. But there is some planning required for a British Columbia elopement… it’s just different than with a wedding. My advice? Choose a small team to make it easy and meaningful–include a British Columbia elopement photographer to help you (and later your people) feel all the feels forever! Here’s Deanna and Kate’s BC Elopement experience.
1. Tell me about your thoughts leading up to your British Columbia elopement… How did it feel to make your choices and marry one another?
Life is crazy. Deanna is an ICU physican and has an internal medicine practice, Kate is getting back into the swing of full time work, and we have a toddler! But in the winter we thought that with the lack of normal life distractions thanks to COVID, we should make some time for us, and thought it would be a good idea to (finally) get married. Executing the logistics of a wedding with big families all over the continent as well as close friends all over the place, it was hard to envision a perfect wedding that would feel like us if everyone wasn’t there. And both of us being on second big relationships and now having our daughter, we felt good about just focusing on our immediate 3 pack and not missing the point of getting married by being overwhelmed with wedding logistics.
2. Why did you choose the spot you did?
There are so many beautiful places to elope in British Columbia but we’ve had fun with our greater family at Kokanee Creek Provincial Park, and with many friends which makes it easier for them to envision where we eloped, but mostly because it’s the playground for our daughter! We didn’t pick a spot until two days before because…well, you don’t have to when you elope! We also recommend having a Monday afternoon wedding. And coincidentally, the day we picked was Lesbian Visibility Day!
3. What was your favourite part of the day?
For Deanna, it was the moment we walked out onto the beach before our ceremony, it all just started to feel real. For Kate, it was when florry came up to us in the middle of the vows and said “I wanna go playground now” and then being totally pleased to hold the bouquet of flowers and wait for us to finish.
4. What were your favourite details and why?
FLOWERS, 100% from Bella Flora. They were so ridiculous we might have to order those every year on our anniversary! Again with the wedding logistics, we really didn’t want to buy a lot of stuff so Deanna found her dressed used – ethical designer Pure Magnolia from Vancouver. She wore her favourite Fluevogs and a Pyrrha necklace, also from Vancouver. Kate did her own recycled outfit by picking stuff from her closet. Her blue blazer is from Banana Republic and well-loved Sperry topsiders (Deanna is a maritimer). Florence (AKA Florry, FloRo, FloRida) wore a pinafor and knee high socks are from Petits Vilains (Canadian) her unicorn shoes are from Old Navy. Our rings were from Kolmel in Nelson.
5. How did you choose your BC elopement photographer?
We FIRST chose you, Bobbi, because of your style – the candid photos you take really feel genuine and authentic, and this seems REALLY important when you have photos taken so you can look back and FEEL what it was like! We have since had a few sessions with you and from the very first one, you instantly made us feel comfortable having our photos taken which seems like you must be able to move mountains (special skills)!
Another thing we value is that you have an inclusive public facing portfolio of clients and we feel that this, while we aren’t very public social media people, is really important. We feel you do an excellent job of balancing diverse families, relationships and individuals, and you curate your photos in a way that makes people feel included, celebrated and beautiful. We’re really grateful you helped us get this event started and then over the finish line, it was our perfect day and we really appreciate you and your talents! Also, who else would realize that our wedding was on the international day of lesbian visibility!??! Thank goodness you’re keeping us in our own loop.
6. Do you have any wedding advice for couples getting married in the future?
Monday afternoon! Seriously… there’s less people if you’re doing it in a public space. And don’t overthink it!
Get Bobbi to be your “wedding doula” and she will coach you on what works well, what to consider and how to get ready… and then saves the day with last minute check ins like… you need a marriage certificate!
Focus on what’s important – focus on what you say and the commitment you’re making to one another. We wrote our vows together and found this to be a very valuable (and meaningful) exercise.
Make time in your day to connect with your partner without distractions – they are the reason you’re doing this.
If you’re wanting to get married and have adverse reactions to planning and logistics, eloping might be for you… it worked for us!