This is one of my favorite proposals of all time! Levon hired us to plan his engagement to his girlfriend, Kat. He told me she loves art , bold colors, nature, she was about to take her sommelier certification test, and they were coming to Vail to attend the Vail Wine Classic festival.
As soon as Levon told me about the festival, I knew that would be the perfect place for the proposal! My idea was to set up a tent for Kat and Levon to stumble upon among all the other tents at the festival! Team Player Productions was the company throwing the event, and when I told them my idea, they were into it, and said yes! I was pretty surprised because as a proposal planner, our elaborate out of the box ideas get rejected by venues all the time!
The first thing I had to do was find the rental company that was providing the rest of the festival tents, and add my rental order to the same truck. Colorado Party Rentals was the second company I called, so that was easy! They really helped us out by accommodating all our rentals, and setting them up for us with such short notice! There was no picture of the festival tents on their website, so I didn’t know what I was getting, and when the tent came it was perfect for a festival tent, but not acceptable for our proposal, so I called our local Event Company , Event Rents, and they hooked us up with tent liners and draping. Our friend, Sarah Siegel, at Eventique Productions let us borrow some pretty fabric too. I’ve never draped a tent before, so it was pretty funny seeing my team and I struggle with that! We figured it out, and the tent turned out really pretty!
We did the rest of the set up in the morning before the festival. Levon wanted the design to be personal , not cliche like Instagram, so we framed a lot of pictures of he and Kat. We also got a custom art piece made from a local artist, Natalie Pritchett, to show their personalized hashtag, #Wildlyfulfilling. It was so cool! Earlier that week, I went to Annie’s in Vail and found beautiful crystal champagne flutes, and then I brought them to Summit County Signs and Engraving to get etched with their wedding date 4.3.21. They picked the wedding date before getting engaged! I hope they use the champagne flutes at their wedding, and keep them forever! We got a champagne bottle from the festival. Sweet Pea created two modern and colorful floral arrangements. I rented a barrel top table and some side tables for elevation, and an aisle runner for an extra special touch.
Kat and Levon enjoyed the festival. It looked really fun! Next year I want to go as a guest! Especially since the Team Player Productions staff was so nice to us! Toni Axelrod, our photographer, was taking pictures of everyone at the festival as if she was the photographer for the event, so she wouldn’t look suspicious! We kept the tent closed until it was time for the proposal. Then we opened the tent, rolled out the aisle runner, and I grabbed the champagne bottle and invited the couple into the tent for “a wine tasting.” Then Levon Proposed and Kat said yes! I forgot to mention Levon wanted a private proposal, but the tent was literally right next to the stage, so they had an audience and lots of cheers! It was great!
Meanwhile we rushed to their room to do the rose petal turndown. Levon’s family members sent me congratulations messages, so I edited a video, and we played it on the tv in their room. (That’s why I placed the remote control in the middle of the heart on the bed).
KIND WORDS FROM LEVON:Stephanie did a phenomenal job helping my coordinate my surprise proposal in Vail. She was very collaborative during the planning process and executed on every detail. Our communication during the week was punctual and quite frankly reassuring. At the end of the day, she helped create a memorable experience for my fiancé (she said yes!) and me. I have said it to her time and time again, but it bears repeating…Thank you Stephanie!
LOCATION: Betty Ford Alpine Gardens VENUE/ FESTIVAL MANAGER: Team Player Productions PLANNER: Party Girl Events PHOTOGRAPHER: Toni Axelrod Studios ARTIST: Natalie Pritchett FLORIST: Sweet Pea Designs RENTALS: Colorado Party Rentals RENTALS: Event Rents RENTALS: Eventique Productions CHAMPAGNE FLUTES: Annie’s GLASS ETCHING: Summit County Signs and Engraving
