Anna and Ian were married in early June at Alaska Heavenly Lodge in Cooper Landing, Alaska.

The town of Cooper landing is wedged between the soaring Kenai mountains and the deep green glacial Kenai River.

Near the town epicenter, the great Kenai lake narrows into the legendary salmon-filled Kenai River. Guide services and old cabins are tucked into woods along the highway.

Alaska Heavenly Lodge is perched above the highway with the mountains at it’s backdoor. Gorgeous and stately cabins occupy the property along with a charming main lodge.

The outdoor space for weddings is an open lawn between the cabins and the lodge. Guests face the mountains to the southeast, with the lodge at their backs.

Delivery and set are easy here as the drive goes right up to the ceremony lawn.

Anna and Ian set up a large tent to cover their farm-style table, welcome area and dance floor.

Weather can be inclement all over Alaska so always be prepared for rain, wind or sun. Summer weddings are always better outdoors but I highly recommend having a backup plan for bad weather.

While the main lodge could be the back up ceremony space at Alaska Heavenly Lodge, a tent may be a better option.

For Anna and Ian’s wedding, they chose to put the caterer in the lodge kitchen. In addition, the lodge is small and would only fit a very small wedding quest list.

The flowers I chose for Anna and Ian’s wedding were bright and light: the perfect shade for a spring/early summer celebration.

Early June still feels like spring in Alaska so our local choices were limited. Even so, I was able to source tulips from Gardenkeeper Blooms, a small scale urban farm in my neighborhood.

Meg, the owner and operator worked in our flower field for a season before starting her own growing operation. I love being able to buy from her. She’s an expert grower, master gardener and her blooms are always perfect.

We arranged a full length tablescape with a full garland made of spruce, eucalyptus and more that tapered to single stem trailing greenery.

All throughout the tablescape were candles, bud vases and larger arrangements in a white footed compote. The larger arrangement is pictured above.

Above you can also see the beautiful yellow double tulips from Gardenkeeper Blooms.

A common refrain from my booking couples is that “Alaskan nature is so beautiful, so we don’t need much”. And while depending on your ultimate aesthetic, this may be true, I encourage folks to use floral to complement the surroundings.

Big floral pieces look stunning with a background of green.

And when thinking of a floral palette the best photos have bright or light floral colors. They stand out and really pop against the dark green or often gray backdrop of Alaskan scenery.