Holly Nelson and Wally Phillips met in Sun Valley years ago, and chose Sun Valley to be their wedding spot because of the history the resort has for the couple and sharing everything the area has to offer with their family and friends. The wedding theme was "old-school skiing" and "simple elegance" which rang true when we saw photos of guests signing a pair of wooden skis in lieu of a guest book—our favorite sentiment written was "Love as hard as you ski". The wedding and reception was held at River Run Lodge, rounding out the skiing theme. Enjoy the details and photos from this beautiful Sun Valley wedding.
BRIDE AND GROOM: Holly Nelson and Wally Phillips
WEDDING DATE: August 28, 2010
REHEARSAL DINNER: Whiskey Jacques
CEREMONY AND RECEPTION LOCATION:River Run Plaza, River Run Lodge
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
Bride – Grew up in Sun Valley area
Groom – Pittsburg, PA
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE SUN VALLEY AS YOUR WEDDING LOCATION?
We met at Whiskey Jacques (on Dollar Night) seven years before our wedding. We chose Sun Valley because it is the place we first met and it represents our shared love for skiing. (Groom was here training with a SVSEF coach when we met. Bride was “home” for Christmas after graduating from college that December). We both love the Sun Valley area, the people, the restaurants and bars and wanted to share the beauty, friendly small town local atmosphere and all the other amazing things the Sun Valley area has to offer with all the people we love.
WHAT MADE YOUR WEDDING SO SPECIAL?
All our friends and family got a chance to see Sun Valley and fall in love with the area as we have—it was so special to hear how much fun people had on their trip. To this day, almost a year later, people are still telling us what a great “vacation” they had for our wedding. Also, my stepdad’s architecture firm, Ruscitto/Latham/Blanton were the architects who designed River Run Lodge where we got married. That fact made it a really special place for us to get married.
WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE DETAIL?
For one of our guest books we had some old wooden skis with leather bindings. All our guests signed them in silver pen. We have them hanging in the great room of our home and almost every day we get to remember our wedding day and read the words of love and well wishes from our guests. There are signatures on the skis with sentiments like “love as hard as you ski” and “always keep your tips up and downhill” along with more traditional best wishes for a long and happy marriage.
WHAT COLOR PALETTE DID YOU USE?
We used maroon, pink, yellow and orange for the bouquets, wedding party and ceremony on the lawn. Inside the lodge, we used green and ivory colors.
HOW DID YOU DECIDE YOUR MENU?
We picked the things we loved the most but remembered to have options, you can’t go wrong with Sun Valley Company’s chefs and banquet teams. We also tried to keep it as “Idaho” as possible, choosing a local Idaho wine and Idaho trout during the cocktail hour and Idaho fingerling potatoes with the dinner buffet.
DID YOU HAVE A THEME?
Old-school skiing, simple elegance and one great big party.
ANY D.I.Y PROJECTS YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE?
My friend and I printed the menus, table numbers and escort cards. We also printed a card for each table that described the two charities we chose to donate to in lieu of gifts and in loving memory of important people to us that we had lost during our relationship. The little cards describing the charities we chose—the Huntsman Cancer Institute and Animal Shelter of the Wood River Valley, were especially important pieces of our wedding because they shared some of the causes that are truly important to us with our guests. The cards, along with a sign on the escort card table, were also important pieces to us because they presented a thank you to our guests and a tribute to the people who were such an important part of us and our relationship that we lost along the way.
We also made a slideshow of photos. It started with photos of me growing up and then had photos of Wally growing up. Then we had photos from the beginning of our relationship through the seven years we were together and ended with the photos from our wedding website. We made sure to include as many of our guests as possible in the slideshow and it was a special experience to put together because we realized how similarly we were raised despite growing up on opposite sides of the country. For example, we both had lots of pictures of us skiing and doing other sports and lots of extended family vacations. Sun Valley Company played the DVD on the flat screens behind the bar. It was a really personal touch to have the people who came together to celebrate us showcased in the pictures.
WHAT WAS YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?
Coordinating details of other events from another town. The wedding day/reception were all handled wonderfully by Sun Valley Company, but I would suggest an in-town coordinator for other events.We had an amazing welcome party on Friday night, hosted by my in-laws at their vacation rental, and were lucky enough to find David Fox Catering to do the menu and bartending. If we hadn’t found him, the party would not have been such a huge success because I was so busy with the wedding day and being a new associate at a law firm, we had a hard time focusing on the other events of the weekend. It would’ve been great to have someone local to do all the leg work so I didn’t have to run around finalizing the details before the wedding. I grew up in Sun Valley and know the area well, if you are not from the area, my advice is to hire some help.
WHAT WAS YOUR BUDGET RANGE?
A) ON A SHOESTRING (5,000-20,000)
B) SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN (20,000-60,000)
C) WHAT BUDGET? (60,000+)
DO YOU HAVE TIPS FOR SOMEONE PLANNING A SUN VALLEY WEDDING?
Find a local (I had my mom and Nicole Ackerman from Sun Valley Company) to help you with details, picking up items, etc. Remember that the beauty of Sun Valley will accent your wedding day perfectly, all the venues are breathtaking for their own reasons so don’t try to hard to coordinate and decorate every little thing. The natural beauty of the area is the perfect inspiration and there is little need to do much more than accent what’s already there.
VENDOR LIST:
FLOWERS: Terra Bella Flowers
HAIR/MAKEUP: Sam at Dolce Vita Salon
WEDDING PARTY MAKEUP: Noelle Hodges
DRESS/SHOES: Allure Bridal Dress, Bride’s shoes: Antonio Melani for ceremony, Michelle D for reception. BRIDESMAID’S DRESSES: Alfred Angelo,
GROOMS ATTIRE: Men’s Warehouse Tuxedo’s
PARTY RENTALS: Barbara’s Party Rental – Linens
MUSIC: DJ MCCLAIN!! (McClain Balmer)
FOOD: Sun Valley Company / David Fox for Welcome Party / Whiskey Jacques for rehearsal dinner.
INVITES: Rexcraft (online)
PHOTOGRAPHER: EB and Jason Kauffman (highly recommend, they were amazing – EB’s idea’s for pictures and special moments made my day so much more special than I ever could have imagined). www.twobirdstudio.com
VIDEOGRAPHER: None, unless you count my dad’s camera being passed around on the dance floor late night.
OFFICIANT: Mathew Holmes, friend of the bride and groom
