I mean, we encourage elopements of all kinds, but there is something very special about getting married on the shore of Lake Superior. And how does one go about doing that? What does it look like? Just like this. Celie and Justin gave us GPS coordinates to a remote cabin, where Northwoods preacher / poet M. Bartley Seigel (recently named the Upper Peninsula’s Poet Laureate) met them, discussed their expectations, reviewed poetry, drank whiskey, and well… got them married.

Elopements strip away all the extraneous elements, so there was no discussion or logistics around catering, seating charts, what songs the DJ would play, drunk speeches… and I love all of that. It’s the color, the adventure, and the personality of every wedding. But when that’s absent – you’re left with your partner, and the simplicity of choosing wherever you’d like to get married – and whenever. This summer we’d literally walk along a beach with a couple until we were all like… “this feels right. Let’s do this right here.” And Saturdays? Mine became free (psh, thanks COVID), and my Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays were booked with elopements (thanks COVID!) And on this particular Tuesday, we were witness to Celie and Justin’s joy at being married just they way they wanted. Now, maybe not how they originally planned when they got engaged, but elopements have definitely been an upside.

When we started making the switch to an elopement model for our pandemic clients, we partnered with our friends at Protea Floral and the Vault Hotel to give our Keweenaw peninsula clients a boutique hotel and a designer florist as part of our wedding services. We take care of the details for you, and even find a good poet who can also sign as your officiant. Everyone has been through so much, we wanted to make it easy. And as we saw no signs of returning to 2019, we’re continuing to offer this to our clients. Let us know if you want details.

And with that I’ll stop talking and let the photos speak for themselves. Enjoy, stay safe, kiss someone, and wear a mask.

(Full disclosure, this event was photographed before masks were mandated.)