Vermont weddings
A New Year’s Eve Wedding in the Green Mountains of Vermont
Elyse & Brian | December 31st
From the bride… When we got engaged, I knew that I wanted a winter wedding. I had dreamed about being surrounded by snow-covered mountains while wearing a simple dress with vintage touches and a fur stole. I knew what I wanted, but Brian took some convincing- he couldn’t picture getting married in the winter because he thought it would be too cold and people wouldn’t come. In the end, he realized that if I was happy, he would be happy.
THE DATE
Originally, we hadn’t thought about having a New Year’s Eve Wedding. We quickly learned that New Year’s Eve was one of the last dates the Mountain Top Inn had available for 2018. It felt like it was meant to be, so we canceled our second day of venue tours and booked our date 12.31.2018! Once we had the date and the venue finalized everything else sort of fell into place. Being that it was New Year’s Eve, I knew that I wanted everything to be very simple and elegant with just a hint of glitz and glam.
FINDING MY DRESS
My first (and last) dress appointment was on a Saturday morning in May. All of the important women in my life joined me to help me find my dress- there was 9 of us pulling dresses to try. I had thought I wanted a long sleeve dress, but once I tried starting things on, I realized very quickly that I did not like the dresses that had sleeves and went back to a strapless with a sweetheart neckline. I had thought I may have found my dress it was very, very, simple/ plain when my consultant said to me “Wait here one minute before you decide- I just thought of something!” She came back with ‘Katalina’ dress from Spring 2018 collection from ‘Blue by Enzoani.’ The minute that I stepped into the dress, I fell in love with the simplicity of it. My favorite part of my dress was the tulle at the bottom with the wide crinoline ribbon around the hem. I felt as though I needed to add a few details to the dress, so I had my seamstress sew a string of crepe buttons down the back along the zipper. She also sewed on an art deco inspired belt at the waist to add a little bit of glitz for the event. I also wore a vintage silver fox fur while we were outside for photos. My wedding look felt very classic and elegant.
THE BOUQUET
My elegant bouquet incorporated anemone flowers for a pop of darkness which really made it stand out from the rest of the white flowers. I loved the contrast.
THE BRIDESMAIDS
The silver sequin dresses perfectly blended with the snow, and they all looked like they had dresses made out of snowflakes. I gave all her bridesmaids necklaces with the geographical coordinates of the Mountain Top Inn and matching earrings.
THE CEREMONY DÉCOR
Brian and I wanted our ceremony site to feel warm and romantic, so we decided to use a lot of flowers and candles in our decor. The arbor had a beautiful flower piece on the top left corner with a smaller piece on the right side and my mom, Patty, had bought a very soft romantic feeling fabric that draped around the birch to soften it up a bit. On either side of the arbor as well as down the aisle we had white rose petals with several candles lit in clusters at varying heights- it was gorgeous!
THE CEREMONY
My Aunt Trixie was our officiant, and she knows me better than most people. She knew exactly what to do to personalize our ceremony so that it would be meaningful for us. Brian’s cousin Pete did a reading. My sister Sarah and Brian’s brother Scott assisted in a traditional “hand-fasting” ceremony (knot tying/blessing of the hands) honoring our Irish heritage. Most importantly, our parents were invited up to read us our vows to each other. Brian and I had not heard any of the speeches ahead of time and had no idea what my Aunt had planned. It was amazing experiencing it all for the first time at the ceremony at the same time that our guests heard it. The love we felt from everyone surrounding us at our ceremony was overwhelming- we could not have been happier in that moment!
THE MEN’S ATTIRE
Keeping with the elegant New Year’s Eve vibe, we decided to have Brian, and his groomsmen wear black tuxedo’s with black bow ties.
THE RECEPTION DECOR
We knew that we wanted it to feel elegant and decided to keep it simple mostly white with hints of silver and grey throughout. To add some warmth to the reception barn, we decided to use drapes around a lot of the wood posts- we didn’t have a huge wedding, so it not only helped to separate the space but also added a softness to an area that had a lot of wood details.
I loved our centerpieces- we incorporated mirrors for dimension with floating candles and white flower arrangements with a hint of greenery.
MY ADVICE
Enjoy every second of it together, have fun, and try not to sweat the small things! Find a venue and vendors that will help to guide you through the process. Our planning was a breeze, and we owe most of it to our vendors for keeping in touch with us throughout the entire process and sending reminders when certain deadlines were approaching.
THE WEDDING TEAM
Photographer: Idena Beach Photography
Venue, Lodging, Caterer, Flowers: The Mountain Top Inn & Resort
DJ: Top Hat Entertainment
A Vermont Mountain Wedding
Gina, Vermont’s favorite fun loving news anchor, and Nathan had the most stylish rustic wedding with barn elements, tons of candle light, and modern glitz and glam.
From the bride: We chose not to have a sit-down formal meal. Instead, cocktail hour went directly into speeches/dances and then throughout the night there were waves of food. We wanted to have a party that just flowed the whole night and didn’t stop.
We created spaces where people could comfortably hang out in between busting dance moves.
We elected to have the band start during the cocktail hour, which was 7:00pm. As 10:00pm turned into 11:00pm, we transitioned into a DJ (the band & DJ traded songs in a kind of duel 3 or 4 times, which was cool) to keep the party going as opposed to offering an after party somewhere else. The night kept going until 2:00am!
Gina’s RECOMMENDED VENDORS
Photographer: Our Two Hearts // Event Planner: Storied Events // Venue: The Mountain Top Inn & Resort // Dress Designer: Jenny Packham // DJ: DJ Luis Calderin // Band: A House on Fire
A Modern Wedding in Vermont
From the bride, Abbie:
We knew we didn’t want the typical hotel wedding and weren’t really a fan of a Vermont barn wedding, when we saw Jay Peak Resort we knew it was perfect as the location provided many different options for lodging and lots of unique entertainment options. Our rehearsal dinner included a tram ride up to the top of the mountain and then a bon fire with s’mores at the base. The morning of the wedding, the guys and some of our guests golfed. And the day after most of the wedding party (ourselves included) spent the day at the indoor waterpark and bar. It was a different and fun way to relax! Planning wise, it makes it easy when everything can be at one resort and guests seem to love the mini-vacation that came with the wedding.
Erik and I worked together on everything. We wanted our wedding to reflect both of us. Erik is a graphic designer. He made all of the stationary for our wedding: save-the-dates, invitations, ceremony programs, and lots of signage. Everything coordinated. We had a consistent wedding logo and the colors and background design were carried throughout. Pretty much anything that we could do ourselves, we did. This helped keep the cost down and also made everything that much more special.
Our ceremony was at the base of the mountain. We lucked out with an absolutely beautiful, sunny, warm day.
We had Erik’s two sisters read a children’s book as part of the ceremony. It was something fun and different to carry on. We also started off with a something from Robert Louis Stevenson that my family usually reads everything Thanksgiving.
We had round tables with white table clothes and navy overlays. Each table had a simple white frame with table number signage designed by Erik and a lime/flower centerpiece. There were large white lanterns and smaller green ones.
Since we met while working at a local cinema, we had gourmet popcorn for favors. We ordered three different flavors from the Popcorn Factory and bagged it ourselves with the help of friends and family. We had personalized stickers put on each bag.
Looking back, I would not have stressed about what everyone else wanted/thought of things. At times I think we were both so worried about making everyone else happy that we forgot what the day was truly about.
My advice: Enjoy everything! As stressful as wedding planning might be, it’s all over so quickly! Also, don’t rush the engagement. You have all life to be married!
Abbie & Erik’s
RECOMMENDED VENDORS
Venue, Caterer, Lodging: Jay Peak Resort
Photographer: Letter 10 Creative. Jaime and Jamie are AMAZING. We knew them from two other weddings and they were the first vendor we secured. We picked a wedding date we knew they were available for. They take gorgeous pictures and pay attention to every detail – Jamie even had a safety pin when part of my dress broke when getting ready.
Florist: Centerpiece Florist // DJ: Top Hat DJ // Hair: Angela of Taiga Spa at Jay Peak Resort. She’s amazing!
Printed items: smartpress.com They were fantastic. We got great prices and fast service. When we weren’t happy with the initial quality of something, they replaced the whole order promptly, no questions asked.
Honeymoon Location: A mini-moon in Cape Cod. We’re headed to Australia and New Zealand this coming winter!
Rustic Chic in Vermont
Lauren & Harvey | June 24th | Stowe, Vermont
From the bride, Lauren:
Stowe has the mot beautiful scenery in the world! The air is clean and the mountains are beautiful. Everyone just relaxed the second they got there and got to enjoy a whole weekend away. So many of our guests have returned to Stowe since our wedding because they loved it so much!
We had beautiful personalized welcome bags in a rustic cream stiff cotton for all our guests. Each bag included Vermont pure water, Vermont nut free chocolate bars, Vermont Cabot aged cheddar, a bag of Vermont specialty crackers and a small bottle of Robert Mondavi Wine.
My bridesmaids couldn’t decide on dress colors so I fired them all (in a nice way). They were actually happy they didn’t have to stand up through the ceremony or stress about the dresses. It was also way easier for me and for them. Everyone was much happier.
Our programs were a beautiful double-sided fan with a wood handle with small hearts carved in at the top. The program listed who was walking down the aisle, who was with us in spirit, the traditions of a Jewish wedding, a thank you to everyone for traveling to Vermont to celebrate with us and a note that a donation had been made in everyone’s name to the allergy and Crohn’s foundation. 
Upon arrival, guests were greeted with a country style rustic lemonade stand. Our signature Vodka Pink Lemonade was served in mason jars with twine tied around the top with different tags with cute tag lines.
The ceremony was held outside on the terrace facing the spectacular Mt. Mansfield.
The ceremony was very special to us. It was really casual and relaxed and filled with lots of laughter and joy. Saying I do to your soul mate with your loved ones around you in front of one of the most beautiful mountains is a moment we will never forget.
We had large torch candles along the curtain as you entered the reception.
The centerpieces were a cluster of flowers, jugs, wooden containers, and candles.
Our birch bark off-centered cake had the most beautiful handmade sugar flowers! 
The reception was very casual and the focus was on drinking, eating amazing food, relaxing and just enjoying being together! It was just a fun party!
We served Ben and Jerry’s ice cream in mini personal containers and we had a sorbet stand served in cones. Both were served with personalized wooden mini spoons with our own personalized quotes on them. We also had S’mores that were cooked outside at the fire pit. 
We had a firework show just for our wedding. The first time we came to Stowe as a couple, we saw a firework show on the mountain and we really wanted to recreate this for our guests.
My advice: We planned our wedding in 4 months. I did my research every morning and evening and I got a little bit done every day. There are so many resources at our fingertips. You don’t need years of planning in order to make it perfect. The most important thing is to find great people to work with that are creative and really understand your vision. They should be able to help guide you on the path to having your perfect dream wedding.
Lauren’s RECOMMENDED VENDORS
Photographer: Kathleen Landwehrle Photography. Kathleen is so amazing. Calm, relaxed, creative. We really didn’t give Kathleen any directions and we couldn’t be happier with our pictures. She just knew exactly where to take us.
Venue & Food: Stowe Mountain Resort, Spruce Base Camp. The venue has incredibly high ceilings with the amazing wood beams. The floor to ceiling windows looking at the mountains within the circular room are jaw dropping! Lacy Walsh was amazing. We really wanted our wedding to just be a happy casual party where people could walk around and interact with each other and just have fun. Lacy was creative, patient, friendly and made everything easy. My whole family, including myself, are huge foodies! We really didn’t want typical wedding food or a sit down meal. The food was one of our biggest priorities and Chef Aaron was so great and used all market fresh ingredients as local as possible. The way they set up the serving stations with the chalkboards, wood planks, etc. made it so rustic and chic. They really understood our vision.
Florist: Nancy’s School House Garden. Nancy is amazing at what she does. Our flowers and room décor was just out of this world. She understood exactly what I wanted. She was sensational and so easy to work with.
Cake: Vermont Sweet Tooth. Marion was so sweet and thoughtful. Not only was the cake the most beautiful and special cake I have ever seen, but it was allergy free and so delicious!
Guest Lodging: Stowe Mountain Lodge. Sensationally amazing! The entire hotel is spectacular. The façade, the majestic lodge style lobby, the gorgeous rooms and the incredible service. One of the nicest hotels in the world! Also a 10 second walk to our venue.
Invitations, Programs, Welcome Bags, Drink Tags: Andrea Abramovitch, Printcess Designs // Musicians: Vermont Symphony Orchestra, string trio.
Honeymoon Location: Hawaii and L.A. – Four Seasons, Maui // Fairmont Orchid, Big Island // Grand Hyatt, Kauia // London Hotel, L.A
A Double Wedding in Stowe
Katie & Robert and Bethany & Jameson | December 10th | Stowe, Vermont
We’ve featured a few double weddings in the past, but never one with identical twin sisters! Katie & Robert and Bethany & Jameson shared a wonderful winter wedding day at Stowe Mountain Lodge. The twin sisters spent time helping each other plan their big days after their individual engagements. While in this process, they decided to share the day together. A total of 12 bridesmaids and 11 groomsmen accompanied the couples. The gentlemen got ready at the Lodge while the ladies got ready in the HGTV Dream Home overlooking Mount Mansfield. The twins stood as maid of honor for each other, sharing a bridesmaid gown and changing between ceremonies. With different ceremonies and cocktail hours, each couple was able to add their own personal details ending this special day with a combined reception. Truly a wonderfully unique wedding day with two fantastic couples.
THE VENDOR TEAM
Photographer: Kathleen Landwehrle Photography // Event Designer: A Schoolhouse Garden // Venue: Stowe Mountain Lodge
Winter in Vermont
Meghan & Ian | December 17th | Middlebury, Vermont
From the photographer, Mary Dougherty Photography:
A winter wedding, outside. It was a central decision to Meghan + Ian’s wedding planning. Now living in Virginia, they both had years of memories in snowy Vermont and it stood out as the place they would travel to and celebrate. After deconstructing the wedding day, they rebuilt it to be something of their own, a intimate weekend with family and friends in a snowy mountain town. With 17 guests in attendance it was an intimate day, shared with an inner circle of family and friends. The ceremony took place outside in the gazebo at the town square, and moved in to the Middlebury Community House for a reception that resembled a cozy Christmas dinner with friends. Handmade stockings were stuffed with treats for everyone to take home, and in the same fabrics, napkins and place settings were sew by the bride and her mother. Family Christmas cookie recipes were baked up by the dozen and enjoyed with hot cider and coffee and then brought home by guests. Both Meghan and Ian put their own mark on traditions of the day, Meghan choosing to add a handmade black velvet sash to her dress and fur boots underneath to stay warm while Ian braved the cold in a kilt. Their rings were custom made by Victoria Moore and sparked the actual wedding planning, setting their unique and personal day in motion.
A Celebration of Love in Vermont
Karen & Mike | February 14th | Stowe, VT
From the bride:
Our day was magical! We got married on Valentine’s Day, and everything was very romantic. Valentine’s Day has always been very special to us – it was the day that we began dating in high school, it was the day we got engaged, and it is our favorite holiday each year to spend time with each other and take an exciting weekend trip to celebrate. 
Many of our guests came up to Stowe several days before our wedding to relax and enjoy the many winter activities available there, such as horse drawn carriages, skiing, and shopping. We planned events in the morning and in the evening (like a Welcome Breakfast and Game Night). It was nice because our friends and family got to meet and create memories before the wedding. Many of our guests told us that this was “the best vacation” they have ever had.
The ceremony took place in a cozy log cabin that is a restaurant in the warm months, right in front of a beautiful fireplace. It was beautifully decorated with a long, bright red aisle that had scattered white rose petals. It provided a grand and dramatic entrance and there were beautiful views of the mountains, too.
We sat a small sweetheart table in the middle of the room with dramatic red and white drapery framing the table. 
Candles were everywhere, which provided a very romantic and intimate ambience. 
We named each table a city or state that we love, like “Paris” or “Bar Harbor, Maine”.
On each guest table we placed photos of us in our favorite places and a small description of why we love it.
We served apple cider and apple cider donuts from our favorite local place (which our guests loved). We also had s’mores and hot chocolate after dinner. 
RECOMMENDED VENDORS
Photographer: Eric Foley Photography // Event Planner: Storied Events // Venue, Caterer & Lodging: Stowe Mountain Lodge // Officiant: Greg Trulson // Gown Designer: Monique Lhuillier // Cake: The Cakery // Florist: Blomma Flicka // Videographer: IMR Films
Honeymoon Location: Switzerland