Diana & Brian |  September 5^th | Paonia, Colorado

From the bride:
We wanted a day to share with our friends and families our love of the beautiful valley where we live, with its incredible views of the West Elk mountains, its orchards, wineries, and wonderful fresh foods.  We both love the outdoors, fishing, and gardening, and we wanted a simple, real, but still very beautiful event that reflected our tastes.  Our goal was a Locavore wedding – we tried to use as many local resources as possible!

Photography by Vendla Stockdale

Our ceremony was simple: we set chairs in a cleared spot in the orchard, had a simple arch decorated with white fabric and flowers, and my teenage boys walked me down the aisle.  The views of Mt. Lamborn behind us were breathtaking, and the weather was perfect.In the orchard between two rows of trees, we set long tables end to end, and covered them with pale green tablecloths.  We rented fine china, silver and glassware, which looked especially elegant in the rustic setting.  We strung white lights above the tables from the tops of the trees.We picked fresh flowers and sage from our garden and put them in jelly jars down the center of the table.  Between the flowers, we laid pretty rocks that we had gathered on our various fishing trips together.Our menu was all local food: my husband caught all of the trout and delivered them to the caterer. We served local beef brisket.  The rolls were baked by a local Mennonite family, and the potatoes, vegetables, and fruits were all grown right at Delicious Orchards.  We also served wine from the nearby Alfred Eames winery.  And for each guest we had home-baked, heart shaped cookies iced with our names and the wedding date.After dinner, our guests grabbed baskets and strolled off with their children through the orchard to pick their own apples and peaches.From the groom: My main job in preparing for the wedding was to provide the fish.  What a drag for me!  I spent a couple of weeks leading up to the wedding catching, cleaning, and quick-freezing enough trout for our 40 guests.   The fish were caught in various locations between Blue Mesa, Curecanti, and the North Fork of the Gunnison (and maybe one or two secret locations that I’m not mentioning).  Some of the fish were large enough that they fed more than one person.  We had our caterer stuff them with butter, herbs, and local vegetables, wrap them in foil, and steam them on the grill. It was nice to be able to go out and catch the food that fed our family and friends, and it made our wedding day even better. Recommended Vendors
Photographer: Vendla Stockdale  //  Venue: Delicious Orchards  //  Caterer:  Bid-U-Well Guest Ranch