There are some things that you can only do barefoot. Eloping to Hawaii, of course, is a must!
Morgan and Josephine frolicked barefoot for a few pictures in Kahana Bay. But not before exchanging lei & saying “I do” on the beach, as per Hawaiian tradition. Morgan explained why they chose to elope.
We quickly realized that we were not planning the wedding of our dreams and we couldn’t justify spending a lot of money on an expensive wedding.
Then they switched gears to plan a colorful wedding (a bright suit and blush gown – so much fun!) The couple wanted a small, intimate wedding. If you have wedding planning blues, then Chelsea Stratso may inspire you!
Our Love Story
Morgan was completing his degree. We worked together as I was the pharmacy checkout supervisor. It was not love at first sight. Morgan was a real pain in the neck. Morgan would make errors on the register, which I had to fix. He said he did it to spend more time with me, but I am still skeptical.
After our Christmas party at work, we started to like each other. Morgan was no longer the annoying checkout guy. We began to hang out after work, and in a few weeks, we were dating.
In 2016, we traveled the globe for three months. On the 18th of March 2016, we hiked in the mountains between Lauterbrunnen & Murren, Switzerland. The weather was sunny and clear with blue skies, but it was cold enough for the snow to be on the ground. We stopped at a park table that overlooked the mountains for morning tea. Morgan quickly knelt and said: “Josephine, I love you, and I want to live the rest of my days with you.” “Will you marry me?” I was asked and stood there, thinking that I was joking. Morgan said, “It is your turn to speak,” I immediately replied, “Yes,” pulling Morgan out of the snow.
Dress & Attire
I tried on many wedding dresses but never felt I knew the one. One day, we went shopping for dresses on my lunch break with a friend. My friend and I went to Review, where she chose an affordable full-length blush dress. I was skeptical because I had been looking for a tea-length dress, but I decided to try it on anyway, and it was just perfect. It was perfect for me. I knew it right away. The dress made me feel elegant and beautiful, and I loved the blush color.
Morgan, a regular suit wearer to work, wanted to find something classy that was not just a suit. After shopping in the city for a while, Morgan found a light-blue three-piece case that matched my dress. The claim perfectly reflected Morgan’s personality, which had a fun and vibrant color while maintaining a classy feel.
The Florals
My bouquet for my wedding was a bright, beautiful bouquet with red ginger, song-of-India, cymbidium, and white and purple orchids.
We also had two leis in white and a beautiful bunch of orange, pink, and white flower petals, which we threw into the air for a photo shoot.
Favorite moments
The entire day was full of favorite moments. We loved the beautiful scenery; our photo session was full of laughter and fun, Our pastor laughed with us as we exchanged vows, and the beautiful music played during the ceremony.
Morgan’s first look at me as his future wife and bride was a moment that I will never forget. I was walking down the beach when he turned around to see me. We were the only two. It was just us. Morgan was the only one who could see me. I didn’t worry about the many eyes that were on me.
Plan Your Elopement
We quickly realized that the wedding was not what we had envisioned. We couldn’t justify the cost of a large wedding when we were trying to save money for our first house. We wanted a wedding that was simple, stress-free and intimate. It would be just us, committing to a future together.
We hoped they would still be ready to celebrate our wedding when we returned home, even though family and friends were not there. We love to travel and thought an elopement would be a great way to get married on a budget. It also gave us the option of an intimate, small wedding.
Destination and Style
Morgan and I both love the beach, but we have different tastes. Finding a place that suited our needs was not easy. We found Kahana Bay with the help of an old friend who lived in Hawaii. Kahana Bay was everything we wanted for our wedding. We tried to find a quiet, tranquil place to enjoy our wedding.
You can tell by the colors of our outfits (pink and navy) that we chose bright, non-traditional colors. Although we didn’t have a specific color scheme in mind, we were happy with our choice of colors. The bright colors of my bouquet, paired with our outfits and the gorgeous scenery, made our wedding day a romantic and fun memory.
Couples Advice
As we did, you need to think about certain things if you plan on eloping without telling anyone. There will be hurt feelings, I won’t lie. Some people will be upset because they could not join you in celebrating this special day. I have to say that no matter how you plan your wedding, I believe that someone will be upset.
I would advise couples planning to elope to consider the potential harm this may cause and remember that it’s your wedding. We felt that we were planning everyone else’s wedding, and this feeling convinced us to elope. Eloping was an excellent way for us to focus on our relationship.