Elope with a Lakeside Wedding!

Photography by Joshua Denniston

Yeah, baby- that's what I said!
Me and my fiance of one year decided to stop messing around with the hmm-ing and ha-ing and just get married while on our annual South Lake Tahoe trip with his mom. Neither one of us are any good at making a decision and sticking with it, so at the rate we were going it was never. going. to. happen. So we dove in head first, made the arrangements and gave a few close family members a nice, long, 2-week notice. It was not the wedding that either of us had in mind, but after effortless planning and my fabulous fresh-off-the-runway STEAL...I wish we had thought of it all sooner.

The Dress
Here's a little advice for those of you who want a stellar wedding gown, but refuse to pay retail (this is where I break the cardinal rule of dress shopping). Visit all of those high-end boutiques you've been too scared to enter and try on ANY dress, no matter what those nasty little price-tags say! Find "the one", get measured, then go home and visit PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com. This is where I found my Spring 2011 Allure gown. Straight off the runway, unaltered and roughly $2,000 less that what it is to be sold for when it comes available to the general public. This site is any bride's dream...you can find designer label gowns from names such as; Vera Wang, Oscar de la Renta, Pronovias and even some vintage classics for prices so low that it makes you feel a little guilty by just looking at them. Some are from brides that wore it once, some are sample gowns, and then there are a few runway beauties like the one I scored. I worked with a wonderful woman from a boutique called, Send In The Gowns (preownedweddingdresses seller).



The Ceremony
Although we ALWAYS stay-and-play at Harvey's Lake Tahoe Casino, we fell in love with the elegance of the wedding chapel at Montbleu Resort & Casino- conveniently located directly across the street! Of course, I still opted to take the limo that came free with my wedding package...don't worry, I'll get there!

The VIEW

Though I wanted badly to have the entire ceremony at this heavenly place, I opted to just have the photos done here for fear of frostbite. It was after all, the first week in January. The hike wasn't easy in boots, let alone my double platform, stiletto boots- but it was all worth it when we got to the top and the view of Emerald Bay took our breath away.

Who did the work? Not me!

From the booking of locations, to the flowers, the photographer, limo and the licensing, Dorie from Lake Of The Sky Weddings took care of it all. After a few add-ons that we opted for last-minute, Dorie's bill came to only a little over $1,300. AMAZING!