I think this was the most difficult decision of all the wedding giveaways I’ve ever hosted! We had so. many. great. entries! Thank you to everyone who entered the contest. The worst part of the giveaway is having to tell amazing couples that they didn’t win. After poring over the entries for hours, we finally narrowed it down. And then we made a decision based on who checked the most boxes from our bonus point list of things we were looking to see in the entries!
Winners:
Krista & Chris
Wedding Location:
Firehouse Restaurant
We are inviting around 70 people. It is mostly friends with some family since coordinating out-of-state family visitors is not ideal during covid. We plan to have an outdoor gathering the following weekend back in Michigan to celebrate with family who is not able to attend in Portland.
Chris and I both love foraging mushrooms and plan to incorporate this into our wedding theme. I have been collecting cool pine cones and am crocheting yarn mushrooms to help decorate the already lovely Firehouse space. I am also making some embroidery mushrooms to hang. I have purchased some cute little red mushroom string lights as well. I may also make Japanese moss balls (kokedama) to decorate.
I am getting my mother’s 1981 wedding dress slightly restyled to wear at the wedding and plan to incorporate my grandmother’s homemade wedding dress into the decorations as well.
Our ceremony will be a standing ceremony on the patio of Firehouse with a dear friend and published poet officiating. We are not having a bridal party.
We will have wigs, light up glasses, and other fun items for people to wear while we dance and party during our reception since these are items we often use when having parties at home or out camping.
We plan to use a playlist for our music to stick with a low-stress, low-cost event. We will listen to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon during dinner as it is our favorite album.
Like most modern romances, we met via Bumble and went on our first date to Beech Street Parlor (RIP) in NE Portland in March of 2016. Per Portland standards, our second date was brunch in Sellwood. After brunch, we went for a walk around the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Gardens where we were nearly attacked by angry geese. Later that evening we listened to the bugs and frogs in the wetland outside Chris’s home while pondering our existence.
In the following weeks we had fancy picnics at both the secret spots on the Sandy River and Salmonberry River, complete with fun glassware, fancy beers and champagne. By then it was late April and we were falling in love.
We continued to adventure together, going white water rafting on the White Salmon, soaking in Bagby Hot Springs, and hiking Silver Star Mountain, Mt. Hood Mazama trail, and Triangulation peak. In between our outdoor adventures, we cooked classy dinners and drank wine in our Portland rentals. We also enjoyed long soaks in the jacuzzi tub with champagne while watching movies or reading books to each other.
By the end of the year, we decided to move in together and were joined by our best friend, and lived as a happy throuple for years of unparalleled fun.
In March 2020 we branched out and purchased our first home together.
6 months later on September 9th, 2020, Chris completely surprised me with an antique engagement ring (English 1900’s) while we camped and fly fished for steelhead on the Klickitat River. Chris had hidden the ring in with the fly fishing flies and had tried to get me to open it the night we arrived at camping but made the fatal flaw of offering me some very shiny glittery flies in glass tubes first. I then declined to look at the ones in the fly box because I had found one I liked. Chris waited patiently until the next evening to try again to get me to open the fly box and was successful. I was so surprised, my mind did not even understand that the ring was for me. After I realized I cried and said yes. I luckily had some cute lipstick in my coat pocket and put it on before we took a couple of pictures of our engagement.
We love to camp, backpack, fly fish, mushroom hunt, ski, and cook. I also enjoy tarot cards, rock climbing, mountaineering, knitting, and singing karaoke. Chris is a far better fisherman than myself and also enjoys playing both electric and acoustic guitar.
We would be honored to showcase the talents of 3 local wedding vendors and think ya’ll would have a fun time with us. We are interested in having a stress-free, full-of-fun wedding where we can focus on celebrating. I think that ambiance can really set the mood and enhance the enjoyment of an event. I’m hoping that if we win, we can build a beautiful ambiance with the flowers by Alana and a lovely cake from sugarhouse that embodies our quirkiness and feels cozy, welcoming, and like we could party all night.
We also want to make sure we capture some of the lovely moments for ourselves to remember and to share with our family who does not get to be present for our ceremony and reception.
We would be very honored to win this giveaway and are thankful for the opportunity to be considered. We are really looking forward to having the chance to celebrate our love with those we also love.
Crystal Genes is a fun and colorful wedding and elopement photographer based in Portland, Oregon. She specializes in vibrant and natural photography for happy people in love. Always available for travel. LGBTQ+ friendly. Love is Love - Inclusive to all. Est. 2005 | ©2021
Contact
info@crystalgenes.net
704.280.4242
studio : 215 SE Morrison St. Portland, OR 97214
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