Catie and Steven’s gorgeous rustic Montana wedding was absolutely amazing. Taking place at the end of September, it allowed for the use of lovely late summer/early fall items like pumpkins, sunflowers, rich oranges and bright blues. They said their vows in front of the Yellowstone River in front of family and friends. Congrats Catie and Steven and sending you much love!
Catie & Steven
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How did the two of you meet? The honest answer is that we met online but we typically tell people we met at a bar which isn’t completely untrue because we did finally meet in person at this little dive bar. That little dive bar became a great part of our story. The staff there stayed the same from the first night we spent there, celebrated with us the night Steven proposed, and we even ended our wedding festivities with those same great ladies at this little bar.
Describe your engagement: Our proposal was simple and straightforward, typical of Steven. During our engagement we not only planned our wedding but accomplished many other goals as well. We were busy but it helped us grow together.
Personal or handmade details: Honestly, almost everything in our wedding was either made by me, friends, or created by an amazing Etsy shop. I didn’t want our wedding to be full of just decorations that were there for a day, every single thing I chose had a meaning. The colors represented our favorite football teams (Montana State Bobcats/Denver Broncos) along with our favorite time of year. I had a friend help me hand paint signs with lyrics from one of my favorite songs which I intend on using in our nursery when we decide on starting a family. We used a window for our wedding program. It was pulled out of an old barn and we painstakingly put on the vinyl cut names by hand. On that note, my bridesmaids and family are some of the very best, we did all sorts of crafting and always enjoyed a bottle of wine and had the best time!
When we first started dating, I made Steven an “adventure book” from the movie Up! for Christmas. I wanted to incorporate this same concept of adventure and the love story of Carl & Ellie in our special day but I didn’t want to over do it with too many different themes. The way it all came out was amazing! Our bridal party walked down the aisle to the theme song from the movie, we were able to take pictures with colorful balloons that turned out so fun, our cake topper and other details had a nod to adventure. It means so much because that is our goal in marriage to face it all together as an adventure.
Describe your wedding flowers: I really wanted sunflowers so that was the core of our flowers. I also really wanted them to be kind of in a loose wild arrangement and tie in the other colors of fall. We used some red roses, orangish spray roses, some really fun flowers like blue thistle and yellow craspedia, and tied it all together with seeded eucalyptus. .
Memories and Stories about the Day: I have always been a daddy’s girl. He has taught me so much about life and he jumped right in on making my wedding day both special and fun. He agreed to do a fun father daughter dance with me and with very limited practice, we pulled it off! It went so well and the pictures captured of this moment are some of my very favorite..
Your first dance song: It’s Your Love by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill
The thing that we would have done differently is? We would have definitely hired a day of coordinator so that I could enjoy the day even more because it truly does go so quickly and there are moments I wish I could have been more present in rather than being worried about details.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: One of my dearest friends was diagnosed with cancer throughout our time being engaged. She was able to read at our wedding ceremony and share advice from her twenty five years of marriage, it was so special and it is a memory we won’t ever forget. We also wrote our own vows and didn’t share them with each other until that moment in the ceremony. It was really fun and emotional to hear the promises we were making to each other for the rest of our lives.
Your advice for other plus size brides: Remember that your wedding is about you and your husband! Wear a dress that you love, shoes that are comfortable, and be with people you love, no matter what trends or other people say!
Three adjectives that describe the day: Emotional, Celebration, Beautiful
What has surprised you most during the first few months of marriage? How much is still the same but different all at once. It has been wonderful to start diving into planning the future together as a couple.
Photography: Sara Jeanne Photography | Venue: Oscars Park | Hair and Makeup: India Richey of Dandilu Hair & Makeup | Bridal Gown Designer: Maggie Sottero from Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow Bridal | Rentals and Linen: Party Time Plus | Caterer: Blue’s BBQ | Flowers: Gainans | *some links are affiliate links
