Anyone looking for camp-themed wedding inspiration? Shauna + John’s folk-filled wedding at The Hideout just outside of Tahoe is an enviable blend of laidback vibes, pretty details (the dress code was ‘mountain formal’), and gorgeous outdoor views—right down to these epic canoe portraits Melissa Gayle captured. Scroll through this adventurous wedding weekend to see how they pulled the whole thing off with 130 guests last September:
The story behind these incredible portraits… From the minute Melissa arrived, she was so excited about our venue and so easy to get along with. When we did our “magic hour” photo shoot, there was a platform in the middle of the lake that we were able to canoe out to and climb up on for photos. Melissa (who was pregnant at the time) was shooting us from the deck and just felt like the angle wasn’t quite right. So, she tucked her dress up and hopped into the lake in her undies to get The Shot. She actually got chased down by a water snake in the process, which she just laughed off, and the photos are beautiful!
Dying over this bohemian Daughters of Simone wedding gown. Keep scrollin’ to see why…
The bride and groom actually spent many an hour crafting these cute watercolor wedding invites—such a fun project.
See? So gorg. And would you believe that Gina of Bloom Generation was just starting her floral design biz at the time, and S + J’s was her first wedding? Girl’s got talent!
Obsessed with this jewel toned wedding party!
Shauna says, I stumbled upon The Hideout on a wedding blog post about summer camp themed weddings, and it looked perfect, but we didn’t want to get our hopes up. But as we turned off Highway 80 onto the 3-mile dirt road that led to The Hideout, I started to get excited. When we finally come through the final clearing and glimpsed the lake and the Big House, it really took our breath away and we knew we found the place. Tom and BJ Hoover (the owners) are so kind, so accommodating, and so laid back, they were a joy to work with. They have really turned their property into such a beautiful place, paying careful attention to make every single detail of The Hideout just perfect. I can’t imagine a more perfect place to get married.
Their bluegrass banjo band, Good Bad the Band, gave off allll the Western adventure vibes.
We wrote our own vows and each shared a love letter during the ceremony that I still can’t believe I said in front of all those people. Our best friends were our co-officiants and they did such an amazing job. When we said our vows, they had our immediate families come up and form a circle around us that was so special. I will never forget it.
They even strung up a huge disco ball (which may or may not have come crashing down by the end of the night…) over the dance floor for a big woodland dance party. And the bride + her mom collected vintage furniture and decor for the occasion.
We built our relationship in mutual love for the outdoors, and it only made sense to have our wedding in a remote mountain venue where we could connect with nature, family and friends. We wanted to create something a little different: a weekend-long mini-adventure where our family and friends could experience the life we’ve created for ourselves, filled with special love, laughter, games (axe throwing!), delicious food and drink, beautiful sunsets, and stomping our boots to a live band into the wee hours. We couldn’t have been happier with the results!
Lastly, a little advice from the bride on planning a whole wedding weekend in the woods… My biggest advice is to START EARLY and be as organized as you possibly can from the very beginning (Google Docs!). It will take longer than you think, and you will end up donating ALL of your free time for the last month or two to finalizing all the little details. Also, remember that it’s going to be so fun and it will all be worth it. Don’t let the little things stress you out, just have fun with it.
Cheers, you two!
Photography: Melissa Gayle / Venue: The Hideout at Kirkwood / Wedding Planner: Cotton and Oak / Florist: Bloom Generation / Hair & Makeup: Megan Cary Artistry / Dessert: Cookie Love SF / Wedding Caterer: Mother Lode Deli & Aimee’s Coffee Cabin / Beer: Sequoia Brewing Company / Rehearsal Dinner Food & Drink: WRP Catering / Rentals: Forever Vintage Rentals, Encore Events Rentals, Frances Lane, Botanica Events / Cocktail Music: Rolando Morales / Band: Good Bad the Band / Dress: Daughters of Simone / Shoes: Grey City / Groom’s Blazer: Amazon / Groom’s Pants: Daskalos / Boots: Nordstrom / Rings: Digby and Iona & Etsy Wood Works / Bridesmaids Dresses: Show Me Your Mumu, Lulu’s, Forever21, & Stone Cold Fox / Flower Girl Dresses: Arabella and Rose
