Nicole & Camron

Please, tell us your engagement story.

We have known each other since Freshman year of high school when we were in honor's geometry class together. We started talking Junior year of high school in physics class. Camron asked me out on my birthday in January, and we have been together ever since, together 11 years before we got engaged in January 2021! With our friends living in CA, TX, and WA, we like to plan a snowboard trip every year so we can all get together. This past January, we planned our annual snowboard trip for everyone to come out here to CO and board at Breckenridge. I didn't think anything of it because, like I said, we like to have a trip like this to board with all our friends every year. So we snowboarded the whole day and had an absolute blast! The last run of the day, we decided to stop at the top of the slope where the chair lift drops you off to take pictures at the top of the mountain, since it was the first time at Breckenridge for a lot of our friends. We took turns taking pictures, and when it came time for our friends to take our picture, Camron got down on one knee and proposed! I never thought I would be the one to cry... But I started crying and I even hit him with my glove because I couldn't believe it was finally happening. 11 years together and I was still surprised! Our friends had mini champagne bottles to celebrate with, and a Breckenridge employee witnessed the proposal and congratulated us with a free round of drinks from the lodge, which was very sweet! By the time we got down the slope, my parents and our dog were waiting to congratulate us. It was so special having all our friends, my parents, and our dog there for the celebration! And we got married in July 2022.

What made you choose North Star Gatherings as your wedding venue?

We moved to Colorado from California in April 2020. A lot of our family had never been to Colorado, so we wanted to choose a venue that really highlighted the beauty our new state has to offer. I wanted a venue that was pretty on its own, so we didn't have to decorate too much. I wanted to keep things minimal, but still elegant. I was scrolling through the discovery page of Instagram looking for wedding venues and North Star Gatherings in Idaho Springs, CO popped up. It was perfect and everything we were looking for in a venue: a location not too far from the airport for all our out-of-state guests, private, small venue, situated on top of a mountain, indoor and outdoor space, and a balcony looking out over the mountain and beautiful canyon of trees below. Also, I loved the farmhouse style tables because I knew I didn't want to rent linens and the tables were beautiful bare. We actually toured this venue the weekend after we got engaged (Camron thought I was crazy for touring so soon after!) and booked it on the spot. It was the only venue we toured, but we knew it was perfect for us! We decided to book a July wedding because we wanted the weather to be the best for all our travelling guests, and we wanted to be able to utilize the outdoor space and have the doors and windows open all night! 

We love your color palette! How did you choose your style? 

Choosing bridesmaids' colors was easy for me! I am OBSESSED with burnt orange, and once we decided on a summer wedding, I knew it would be the perfect color. With the groomsmen, I always wanted some kind of tan suit. Camron's color, though, I went back and forth on a couple options for a while. I originally wanted a darker tan or light brown suit for him, because I was hoping to keep the color theme of the wedding more neutral. When I was researching brown suits, I couldn't really find anything I loved, and if I did find a brown suit I liked, it was either ridiculously expensive or in a thick tweed or wool material, which wouldn't have been ideal for our summer wedding.

Without any luck there, I realized might need to change colors and started looking at other options. Then I came across SuitShop, specifically the light blue suit. I have always LOVED Camron in blue. His eyes are blue/green, so he has always looked good in those colors. I found myself continually coming back to this color after weeks of searching, and I decided this shade of blue was "neutral" enough and that it paired well with both burnt orange and tan. When I showed the light blue suit to Camron, he instantly loved it! What was even better was that we were able to also buy all the tan suits for the groomsmen from SuitShop, too.

At the time, tan hadn't yet launched online. When we went in for Camron's suit fitting in February 2022, I had asked about a tan suit just in case, and I'm so glad I did! Our stylist, Megan, said the tan would be available at the beginning of summer, and that if they arrived on time, we would be one of the first weddings to have the new color. We took a risk with the uncertainty of knowing for sure that the suits would arrive in time, but it all worked out! The suits arrived to all the groomsmen at the end of June with plenty of time to spare, and the color was perfect!

The burnt orange dresses, light blue suit, and tan suits looked AMAZING together, and in the end we we so glad we went with a fun color for Camron. He really stood out from the others. And now Camron has a great blue suit to keep and the groomsmen have a good staple tan suit to keep!

Once we settled on burnt orange, light blue, and tan, I let our florist know the color scheme and let her get creative with it! The floral arrangements and bouquets turned out so beautifully. I am so happy we added some pops of color and let our florist have fun with it! To compliment it all, we did garland with baby's breath for the center of the guest tables, which turned out very pretty, especially when the candles were all lit.

We'd love to know more about your experience in working with SuitShop.

We loved working with SuitShop! Megan was so amazing to work with. She was very patient and took her time sizing Camron's suit to make sure he got the absolute best fit possible. She also provided great communication and updates on approximate arrival, shipping, and delivery of the tan suits. And when the tan suits were delivered to all the groomsmen, she was fast and responsive about helping with any exchanges to get them their best fits, too. Overall, we have nothing negative to say about our experience and we will definitely be buying all of Camron's future suit needs here! The fit of the suits are so nice and tailored, not to mention the amazing price. It was cheaper to BUY a nice fitting, tailored suit from SuitShop than it would have been to RENT a standard, basic suit from another store, plus you get to keep the suit! WIN/WIN!

Any advice for marriers-to-be? 

Plan the wedding you want to have! Don't let others' opinions and ideas sway your decisions. Make it what you want because it is your special day and it's about you both, not your family. Do your research to find vendors that match your style and that you connect and vibe with. You put a lot of faith in these vendors to listen to your wants and ideas and have to trust that they take that information to make your wedding day everything you envisioned, or possibly even more. Plus, you will spend a lot of time talking to and communicating with them during the planning process and will be with them on your wedding day. So I think it's really important to like the people and companies you hire! And with that, these vendors you hire know how to do their job! Sometimes the best thing you can do is give up control and just let them do their job! Yes, give them the "do's" and "don'ts," but if you give them that creative ability, things might turn out better than you envisioned.