Six Ways to Add Vintage Touches to Your Wedding

Vintage weddings are something we are very familiar with at the Hotel Boulderado. Our hotel opened in 1909 and we have worked very hard over the years to preserve the period nature of the building, including the function spaces where wedding receptions take place. If you are planning a vintage or retro themed wedding, here are six ways to add vintage touches.

Invitations 

Get the theme going as early as your save the date cards and/or invitations. The biggest thing to remember when you add a theme a wedding (or any event) is to keep it consistent. When you say "vintage," do you mean '50s rockabilly? Victorian opulence or steampunk? '60s era glamor, a la Mad Men? Keeping your theme clear, consistent, and omnipresent will help you make decisions along the way. To illustrate, here are three unique invitations that tie back to different "vintage" eras.

Transportation

When you are deciding on vendors, ask if they can add anything to your theme. For example, does your transportation company offer any fun, vintage alternatives? If you are getting married in the Boulder/Denver area, we recommend Boulder Denver Limousines, who can provide a Rolls Royce dating back to 1939 on your special day. Another fun retro transportation option is a VW bus, especially if it can be decked out in "Just Married" writing and tin cans.

Dress You Up in My Love

Outfits are one of the most visible ways to bring retro into a wedding. It could be just the bride and groom, or the whole wedding party. For lots of extra fun, you could even request your guests get in on the vintage vibe with their attire.

Hair, Makeup, and More

Another very visible way to add vintage flair to your wedding is through the bride's hair, makeup, and accessories.Again, keep consistent with your chosen vintage era. Cat-eye eyeliner and lush red lipstick would be fabulous for a '50s era bride. Cameo jewelry would be a great touch for a Downton Abbey-inspired wedding.

Wedding (Cup)Cakes, Brownie Pops, and Candy, Oh My!

Every wedding cake is as unique as the couple who chooses it. And some couples are so unique they don't even choose a cake. Here's four examples of how you can bring a vintage flair to your wedding cake -- even if the "cake" is really cupcakes, brownie pops, or a candy station.

Table Settings 

 If everyone is sitting down to dinner at your vintage-inspired wedding reception, try bringing your era straight to the table. This can be accomplished with your floral centerpieces, accents, and even the flatware and silverware your guests will be eating off of.

Top 5 Floral Trends of 2013

Flowers are one of the easiest ways to customize and personalize any event, whether it be a wedding, party, or business-related social gathering. While there are always an endless supply of options, there are some trends that we see being big in 2013. Here's a recap of what we think the top five floral trends of 2013 will be.

Succulents
Succulents are not new to the trendy floral scene, but they also aren't going anywhere. They are versatile enough to be used as an accent on tables, as seen in the photo on the left (succulent provided by Brighter Day Flowers, photo by Jenna Rice Photography), or used in place of a traditional bridal bouquet, as seen in the photo on the right.

Deep Purples and Other Jewel Tones
Striking jewel tones, especially in purple, will be big this year. Again, this is a versatile enough trend to be incorporated into a bridal bouquet or a table arrangement for a business dinner or a purple-loving young lady's bat mitzvah.



Ombre 
Ombre styling has been popular in fashion, hair, and nails over the past couple of years, and it is working its way into the floral industry. This is another versatile trend that could be used in a wedding as well as other gatherings. The photo on the top would be stunning at any party, while the arrangement on the bottom would look equally at home in a simple vase at any social event.

Hanging Flowers
We've seen a big push towards hanging decor items recently. Everything from lights and lanterns to umbrellas and chandeliers have been seen at events, and now the trend has moved into the floral realm. Hanging flowers like the ones you see in this photo can make a stunning backdrop and addition to any event needing a little extra "oomph."



Wearable Flowers
Flowers aren't just for wrists and lapels anymore. They've been spotted on hats, skirts, and even as crowns, as you can see in this photo. While this would be adorable for a casual, bohemian bride, a floral crown would also work for a recent graduate.

A Look Back in Time: Victoria, Victorians, and Weddings

We have been so busy with all the Boulderado weddings this season that we have been neglecting our poor blog! To make up for it, I wanted to share a bit about how the Victorians have influenced our modern-day weddings. They are more closely connected than you might think. The Victorians completely reinvented weddings in their time, as they did most customs, and many of today's traditions stem from that most Victorian of all the Victorians, Queen Victoria.

When Victoria married Prince Albert in 1840, she single-handedly created the "white wedding": white flowers, white icing on the cake (dubbed "royal" icing because of the expense), and even the iconic white wedding dress can all be traced back to Her Royal Majesty's wedding. The white dress marked a dramatic departure in wedding fashion; up until then, a woman would be married in the nicest dress she owned, while a white dress was a symbol of wealth, extravagance, and status. But Queen Victoria wasn't all pomp and circumstance, as she had her wedding gown re-styled for later use. (Apparently the custom of only wearing the wedding dress once didn't appear until the mid-twentieth century.)

 Queen Victoria in Her Wedding Dress

Queen Victoria was not the only trend-setting Victorian. When her daughter (also named Victoria) walked down the aisle with the Prince of Prussia, she added choral music to her procession. (Up until then, it was tradition to just have music during the wedding reception, not the ceremony itself.) More familiar modern traditions like diamond rings and honeymooning also got their start in the Victorian era, as African diamond mines were discovered in the 1870s and travel became more affordable to the middle class.

If you happen to be a guest at a Boulderado wedding this summer, remember to raise your glass in toast to the Victorians!

Day 251 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Wedding Wishes Card

What better photo to share on the day of our annual Wedding Show than this antique card promising "A Wedding Wish For You."

Day 230 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Columbine Room

It's getting to be that time of year when the conferences outnumber the weddings again. Here is our Columbine Room all ready for your next meeting!

Day 209 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Sarah "Noe-tis"

Sarah Noe (now Sarah Danzl) has always been a fan of the Hotel Boulderado, and especially of our original elevator, Otis. So when it was time for Sarah to marry Jon, she knew there was no place better than the Boulderado. Sarah was kind enough to take time out of her busy day to pose for a photo with her beloved Otis.

Videos from the Oral History Luncheon

Back in September of 2008, the Hotel Boulderado hosted a luncheon in our Spruce Room. We invited a variety of people from the community to come in, sit down, and share a memory of the Hotel Boulderado. Here's a rundown of who we talked to and what they had to say:

• Dee Demmon remembers dancing in the lobby and getting her spiked heels caught in the tile floor
• Sandy Hume recollects his impressions of the original stained-glass ceiling -- "It contained every color in heaven."
  
• Don Hume tells stories of his visits to the Boulderado as a young child
• Betty Chronic shares what led to her first visit to the Boulderado dining room
• Virginia Patterson's connections to Boulderado weddings and the old barber shop
• June Howard remembers what it was like running the hotel in the 1960s, with her husband, Ed
• Gwen Winterberger and her husband, Louis, ran the hotel in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and Gwen took some time to call us and share some memories
• Dick Dorman recalled his involvement with restoring the stained-glass ceiling
  
• Frank and Gina Day, our current owners, remember how their relationship with the Boulderado began
  
• Sidney Anderson, our current general manager, and his impact on the hotel
  
• Laurel McKown tells us how she was hired to restore, photograph, and catalog the Boulderado's extensive collection of antique furniture
• Sandy Hale shares the multitude of parties she threw at the hotel
  
• Mary Ann Mahoney recalls the opening of the North Wing and the new meetings market it served
• Silvia Pettem shares her experiences as the Hotel Boulderado historian
• Dan Corson remembers when the hotel was named a historic landmark
• Dorothy Sage recollects a memorable holiday tea at the Hotel Boulderado
  

Check out our collection of videos on our website!

Boulderado Events Center

If you're familiar with the Hotel Boulderado, you probably know that there are two wings of the building: the historic section, which is the original structure that was built and opened in 1909, and the north wing, the two additions that were constructed in the 1980s.

When the second addition was made to the north wing, Frank Day planned to also add a new function space along with the guest rooms. This in effect doubled the Boulderado's capacity to host events with our nearly 3,000 square feet of space in what is now known as the Events Center. The space is flexible both in size and purpose; a seminar, boardroom meeting, and class can simultaneously take place during the day and then be transformed into a wedding's cocktail reception by evening.Here's a picture from the Boulderado archives of the Event Center still under construction:
And the finished product:

The Driftwood Room

Once upon a time at the Hotel Boulderado, the 2nd floor, or Mezzanine, was occupied with hotel rooms like the rest of the building. By the 1970s, a typical room might look like this:

(Photo Credit: Daily Camera)

But beginning in the late 70s and continuing into the early 80s, management started removing hotel rooms from the Mezzanine to open up space for events and parties. Eventually all the hotel rooms on the second floor were converted into an array of offices, a catering kitchen, function spaces -- like the Driftwood Room. Room #201 was renovated to become what is now called Driftwood Room, a popular site for small meetings and receptions.

(Photo Credit: Alison M. Fleetwood, Jr. Photography)

You may remember that the Driftwood Room was the site where Marie Garcia and her husband spent three months designing, cutting, and installing the stained glass for the current canopy ceiling over the lobby. Just goes to show you that when you book an event at the Boulderado, you're not just renting a room -- you're sharing in the history of a Boulder landmark.