denver life weddings fw2013_real wedding
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92fall/winter 2014 T dlmweddings.com
Jen & Kevin Zaloudekestes park’s flooding provided this couple with
a story to tell for a lifetime.By a l i s o n r ot h
Planning a wedding is difficult enough without an added battle against the elements. extreme flooding made 2013 an especially difficult year for Colo-rado brides. Jen and Kevin Za-loudek were one of many couples scrambling, days before their big day, to completely relocate and re-plan their wedding due to the extreme floods.
“i had reached the point where i’d finished the last bit of planning and we were just waiting,” says Jen. Originally from Texas, she moved to denver about nine years ago, and met her now-husband, Kevin, on an eHarmony date in 2010. Jen and Kevin, a littleton native, heard about the flooding in estes Park, and quickly realized that it might affect their rapidly approaching wedding. “My heart sank, not necessarily for me, but for the people of estes Park,” she says. “i was really optimistic at first. never in my wildest dreams did i think the flood waters would wipe out the roads.” little did she know that their wedding planner, Mark Christopher of Mark Christopher weddings & events, was already working on a plan B. “we started seeing aerial footage of the roads on TV, and that’s when i knew our wedding was in trouble,” says Jen.
From the moment they got engaged on a rainy 10-mile hike near grand lake, the couple knew they wanted to wed at The stanley Hotel in estes Park. “after about a month of planning on my own, i realized i was completely overwhelmed,” says Jen. “That’s when i hired Mark to help get me on track. i didn’t want anything to fall through the cracks.” so when The stanley Hotel released Jen and Kevin from their contract due to the severe flood conditions, Mark found the last two venues available within a five-hour radius of denver and helped Jen completely re-plan the wedding in 48 hours. “i was contemplating getting married in
a school gym or backyard!” says Jen. “But Mark found a church for the ceremony, and luckily one of the available venues was The Ritz-Carlton, denver.” From the décor to the food, The Ritz’s wedding planners quickly accommodated Jen and Kevin’s vision, and Jen got to work helping wedding guests find new accommodations. “Mark kept me calm,” she says. “He had plan B in his pocket and i didn’t even know.”
all of the vendors came together to help Jen and Kevin achieve their dream. “i’ve always been inspired by old art nouveau advertisements and architecture with swirling lines and soft color combinations,” says Jen. “so we picked cream, gold and dusty shades of pink for our wedding colors.” as the wedding day unfolded, Jen and Kevin ap-preciated how everything came together. “it was such a magical day,” says Jen. “never once did i think this is not the wedding we wanted. it just happened to be dif-ferent than i planned.”
One of the couple’s favorite mo-ments was when Jen met Kevin at the altar. “i was so nervous walking down the aisle until i faced Kevin,” says Jen. “Then everyone disap-peared; all my nerves went away and i felt warm and calm.” Jen wore her 100-year-old family veil, which was purchased in Brussels by her great-great grandmother. “all my life i knew when i got
married that i’d get to wear this veil,” says Jen. “i was the fourth generation to wear it.”
now Jen and Kevin appreciate the difficulties they experienced during wed-ding planning. “The whole thing was truly a life lesson,” Jen says. “You get so caught up in the details and you almost lose sight of the big picture. and when everything i’d dreamed of was taken away, the most important thing to me was getting married to my husband, which is truly what mattered in the end.”
something borrowedJen wore her great-great grandmother’s veil, which she restored with help from
the denver art museum prior to the wedding.
“ It was such a magical day,” says Jen. “Never once did I think this is not the wedding we wanted. It just happened to be different than we planned.”
color clarityJen brainstormed many trendy color combinations, but wasn’t ready to commit until she found inspiration
in the color gold, with soft shades of pink and cream.
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RESOURCESPlannER:
Mark Christopher
Weddings & events
PhOtOgRaPhER:
elevate photography,
katie Walker
CEREmOny VEnUE:
good shepherd
CatholiC ChurCh
RECEPtiOn VEnUE:
the ritz Carlton, denver
FlORalS: Bare root Flora
linEnS:
Chair Covers & linens
BakERy: intriCate iCings
PhOtO BOOth:
red door photo Booth
tRanSPORtatiOn:
denver liMo
StatiOnERy SUitE:
reaves engraving
CalligRaPhy:
evette goldstein oF
pretty wrItINg.com
makEUP: steele the spotlight
haiR:
the ritz Carlton salon and spa
FaVORS:
ChoColate laB denver
DRESS:
oleg Cassini
lost & foundit was important to kevin that he and Jen wed in a
church, so Mark found one in downtown denver that fit their elegant wedding.
“ my heart sank, not necessarily for me, but for the people of estes park,” Jen says. “I was optimistic at first. Never in my wildest dreams did I think the flood waters would wipe out the roads.”