Gianna and Patrick chose an intimate elopement in the mountains of Breckenridge, Colorado, with only their Chihuahua and a photographer with them as their witnesses. In Colorado, you don’t need an officiant to make it legal, so they decided to say their vows alone. They even got their dog got to sign as a witness with his paw print on the marriage license!

“We just wanted the wedding to feel like us,” Gianna said. “All we wanted was dark and moody photos, something romantic with an edge.” After sharing their vows, they sealed the moment with a unity joint and had a picnic in front of a waterfall.

Their photographer, McKenzie Bigliazzi, turned out to be more than just a photographer. She helped plan the entire day, from choosing the perfect waterfall picnic spot to capturing their vows. “She made everything so easy,” said Gianna. “None of it seemed challenging. We LOVE McKenzie!”

When it came to her wedding dress, Gianna struggled to find what she wanted, so she decided to take a different approach. “I couldn’t find a black wedding dress that felt just right, so I visited a prom dress boutique. I ended up combining the top of one dress with the bottom of another. It was completely custom, and it unintentionally saved me so much money! If we were doing this again the only thing I’d change would be to add more accessories.”

“This day is about the TWO of you,” Gianna concluded. “Don’t let your family or society get in your head. If you want to elope, DO IT! You don’t need someone to walk you down the aisle and ‘give you away’, and you absolutely do not need to take your spouse’s last name. You’ll be more disappointed you didn’t have the wedding you wanted than your grandma will be that she wasn’t invited! We were very lucky with our family so big shout out to them for encouraging us to have the day of our dreams!”