Happy Campers

Summer-camp vibes infuse a love-filled Gambier Island wedding weekend.

by Stacey McLachlan | photographs by Shari and Mike Photographers

ALEXANDRA TEED AND MAT BARKER

SEPTEMBER 29, 2018 | CAMP FIRCOM, GAMBIER ISLAND, B.C.

“He was super off-limits,” laughs Alexandra of her now-husband, Mat. He was her brother’s best friend growing up, so she kept her crush from afar, but when they ran into each other in their 20s, it turned out the feelings were still there... and mutual.

Alexandra is an artist and Mat works as an environmental engineer, which made them the perfect pair to plan an elaborate and artful wedding weekend after Mat’s Kits Beach proposal. “We collaborated so well: I drew everything out, and he put it in a spreadsheet and dealt with the logistics,” says Alexandra.

They booked Fircom summer camp on Gambier Island to be the setting for their moody, West Coast fall wedding, and when the weekend came, it was all hands on deck to set up the remote 122-acre boataccess-only waterfront property. The bridal party came early to help set up the decor and kegs, and as guests started to arrive, they all began pitching in, too. “They helped with everything from tagging luggage to welcoming people off the water taxis,” says Alexandra. “Everyone was stringing lights and hanging lanterns.”

PURE ROYALTY The bridesmaids were asked to source their own floor-length dresses—several came from LULUS. Mat had a custom suit made from INDOCHINO. The groomsmen’s navy suits came from BLACK AND LEE. Alexandra had detachable sleeves added to her dress from BISOU BRIDAL to suit her style. AIMEE COX of PUNCH STUDIO and KELSEY DICKSON did hair and makeup, respectively. The velvet floral ribbons were from HONEY SILKS.

The weekend kicked off with a Friday night taco fiesta, where Alexandra and Mat gave their heartfelt welcome and thank-you speeches and new friendships were formed. “Having a weekend wedding where the first night was full of activities and time to hang out made the ceremony and reception extra-special because acquaintances had a chance to become friends before celebrating the big day,” says Mat. “It was really amazing to look around and see friends and family who, before the weekend, didn’t know each other and were now sharing a beer, playing a game of Spikeball or jamming together around the campfire.”

While planning the wedding, Alexandra and Mat were torn: “We wanted it to be intimate and private, but we still wanted to celebrate with everyone,” says Alexandra. So in the end, they did both. Mat’s uncle performed a ring ceremony in front of their 150 guests, but after dinner the couple snuck off with just the maid of honour and best man in tow to a candlelit gazebo on a cliff to meet their legal officiant, Jeremy Postal. (“He was such a good sport to take a boat at 9 p.m. and hike in the dark!” says Alexandra.) There they signed the papers to officially finalize their marriage, away from the crowd, before returning to the party and hitting the dance floor.

THE DRESS Though Alexandra’s mom passed away before the engagement, Alexandra knew she had wanted to buy her a wedding dress some day. So when she heard her mom’s favourite song on the radio as she was trying on a layered, crocheted dress she’d at first been skeptical of at BISOU BRIDAL, she took it as a sign. (Other, more practical considerations: it happened to fit perfectly off the rack and was deeply discounted.) When the big reveal to Mat came on the wedding day, in a field of ferns, it turned out Mom’s pick was exactly right. “There is nothing that can compare to seeing my wife for the first time in her dress,” says Mat. “I’m not typically an outwardly emotional person, but that moment made a big impact.”

Of course, no wedding day is without a few bumps—on the Saturday, they woke up to gale-force winds that thrashed the florist’s boat around so much that half the flowers showed up broken, and the day-of coordinator got lost in the woods on her morning hike—but the couple took it all in stride. “Weddings are about rolling with it,” says Alexandra. After all, no matter how much planning you do, you just can’t predict everything... and that may even be a good thing, says the bride.

“Even though I drew pictures of how the ceremony was set up, down to where the candles would be, you just can’t design how 150 people’s love is going to feel.”