A Fall Equinox Wedding at Ridgewood

Lauren & Ryan  |  September 22nd

 

From the bride… I’ve always wanted an outdoor wedding with a laidback vibe and a little bit of rustic charm. It turns out my Mom is basically Martha Stewart. She pulled off a lot of DIY crafts for the wedding. While I was busy trying to keep my head above water at work, my mom really came through with bringing a touch of Michigan all the way to Durango.

 

Bride Tribe with florals by Adela Floral, Durango Colorado

 

Beautiful flower bouquet by Adela Floral, Durango Colorado

 

Ceremony arbor floral spray by Adela Floral

 

THE VENUE

I only looked at two locations, Ridgewood Event Center being the second one. I absolutely fell in love with the reception building, the yard, the views, and the trees. And then when we saw the ceremony spot by the river with all the wooden benches, it completely sold it for me. Also, they only had one Saturday left, and it happened to be in September, which is what I was hoping for, so we put the deposit down that day and never looked back.

 

Ceremony at Ridgewood Event Center, Durango

 

 

THE CEREMONY

The ceremony spot was surrounded by beautiful trees that had all turned a fantastic yellow just in time for our wedding. Ryan’s Dad made our arbor, which we plan to keep in our yard once we find a more permanent spot. Because I knew it was going to be sunny, we had a couple of baskets filled with sunglasses and hand fans for our guests. Ryan and I wrote our own vows, and hearing his was my favorite part of the ceremony.

 

 

Durango couple reciting their wedding vows

 

THE RECEPTION

We had yard games set up, a small propane fireplace by the bar, and heaters along the porch. In September it gets cold when the sun sets! Ryan and I really wanted to be a part of our cocktail hour, so we did first looks and got a lot of pictures out of the way, so we didn’t have to do too many right after the ceremony and would have time to start enjoying ourselves and greeting people. I highly recommend this!

 

Wedding reception at Ridgewood Event Center, Durango

 

My favorite reception memory was my dads speech. September 22nd was the solar equinox and he talked about how Ryan and I balance each other out, which is so true.

 

Durango, Colorado wedding couple

 

FATHER-DAUGHTER DANCE

My most memorable moment was hands down dancing with my dad! It was time for the father-daughter dance, and we start dancing, and he’s already saying, “don’t make me cry, don’t make me cry,” and then, of course, I started crying so there we were up there crying while we danced. I’m pretty sure there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. We danced to
Charlene Soraia ‘Wherever You Will Go’ – YouTube

 

Durango, Colorado wedding couple

LOOKING BACK

We completely forgot to have any non-alcoholic beverages available. I don’t know how this never came up during the planning, but we talked about having beer, wine, and we had two signature cocktails (a Manhattan and a Paloma). No one reminded us that not everyone drinks….Whoops.

 

Beautiful flower bouquet by Adela Floral, Durango Colorado

ADVICE

I approached this wedding with three things I really cared about in mind: getting married outside, having my family there, and loving my dress. I left a TON of details up to the vendors. I found ideas on Pinterest, vibes I liked, pictures that inspired me- showed them to our vendors and let the experts think out the details because that’s what they do best.

 

Beautiful flower bouquet by Adela Floral, Durango Colorado

 

THE DREAM VENDOR TEAM

Venue: Ridgewood Event Center. I would recommend Ridgewood in a heartbeat!

Photographer: Illuminarts. The photography was one place that I really splurged on, and they delivered. I loved my pictures so much, and I am so happy I went with illuminarts. They not only took amazing pictures but really helped us think through our timeline and how the entire day would flow, which was incredibly helpful.

Floral Designer:  Adela Flora /  Hair & Makeup: Hair Fusion

 

Wedding inspiration from Southwest Colorado delivered to your inbox!

DURANGO WEDDINGS MAGAZINE

The wedding planning guide for Durango-Southwest Colorado highlighting LOCAL venues + vendors. 

Durango Weddings Magazine is a curated event planning resource guide, print magazine, wedding blog, and producer of the annual Durango Wedding Expo.