The raw beauty of the B.C. wilderness provided the backdrop for Jakub and Jane’s summer elopement. The couple, who value spontaneity and creativity, had never visited Horby Island prior to arriving for their elopement.

” … we managed to explore the island and find everything we needed in the three days we had available to us prior to the wedding,” says Jane.

After saying their vows in a simple forest ceremony, the couple found a perfect spot for a sunset picnic on the beach.

“Right from the start of planning our elopement, it was liberating to have the freedom to do exactly what we dreamed of,” Jane explains.

Judging by the photos from photographer Jennifer Armstrong, the elopement was nothing short of magical!

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Jane, 31 & Jakub, 35

Location: Hornby Island, British Columbia, Canada

Wedding Date: July 21, 2016

Number of Guests: None (only 3 witnesses, 2 of whom we met for the first time only a half an hour before the ceremony and the other being the photographer Jennifer Armstrong).

Wedding Cost: $ 3,500 CAD covering most of the wedding essentials, but it’s hard to say what to include, as we incorporated the elopement into our holiday.

Wedding Ceremony Location: Helliwell Provincial Park, Hornby Island, British Columbia, Canada

Wedding Reception Location: None, though we had a picnic on the beach at sunset at the location above.

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Why did you have an intimate wedding?

We wished for a special day that would be truly unique and memorable, yet intimate and stress-free. As much as we love our families and friends, we couldn’t picture ourselves having a big formal or traditional wedding.

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What are some the challenges that you faced planning an intimate wedding?

There weren’t really many challenges apart from keeping it a secret from everyone around us for nearly a year and a half. But in fact, this challenge only made it even more special in the end, so was worth it by all means.

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Was it difficult to pare down the guest list?

No, since it was only the two of us, this actually made it quite liberating.

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Did you have any ‘issues’ with the small guest list from friends and family? If so, how did you address them?

We kept it a secret from everyone, so no issues at all.

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What were the highlights of the ceremony?

Reading out the vows and all the nice things we had written about each other. Loving the atmosphere of the moment, since it was just the two of us to completely focus on one another.

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What were the highlights of the reception? 

Well, we didn’t actually have a reception, but the picnic we had on the beach at sunset was truly magical.

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What was the best thing about having an intimate wedding?

Right from the start of planning our elopement, it was liberating to have the freedom to do exactly what we dreamed of. We both have an independent nature and love an element of spontaneity and creativity in everything we do. Therefore, the idea of an intimate wedding gave us the opportunity to incorporate most of the detail at last minute. We arrived on Hornby Island with a marriage licence and our wedding outfits and rings in our backpacks, having booked a photographer, a marriage commissioner and accommodation in advance. Despite this being our first time visiting Hornby, we managed to explore the island and find everything we needed in the three days we had available to us prior to the wedding Hornby-Island-BC-elopement-Jennifer-Armstrong-Photography-52

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What advice do you have for couples who are considering an intimate wedding?

You’ll have lots of flexibility to play with, so have fun being creative and make sure to incorporate enough time throughout the wedding for just the two of you. Also, it’s great to leave some element of surprise in the air, so you don’t have to plan everything to the last detail. Trust your gut feeling, play along with the atmosphere of the moment, enjoy yourselves and you’ll have an amazing day!

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Vendors:

Photographer: Jennifer Armstrong Photography

 Location: Horby Island

Guest house: Cute Cozy Cabin

Flowers: Alina Milek

Wedding dress: Kelsey Genna

Bride’s shoes: Selected

Groom’s shirt, belt and shoes: Ted Baker

Groom’s trousers:  Next

 Groom’s bow tie: Fox & Brie

Bride’s hair styling: Arlene McIlroy

 Rings:  Glasswing Jewellery

Mead: Middle Mountain Mead

 Pottery and all other goodies from Hornby Island.

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