A Backyard Mountain Wedding at a Private Residence in Woodstock, New York

Sara Lugo (29 and a jewelry designer) and Zach Golden's (28 and a director) wedding was all about rustic simplicity. They were married in an intimate ceremony—only 31 guests—in a family member's backyard in the Catskill Mountains of New York. "We both love the Catskills, and had spent a lot of time there just before getting engaged," Sara says. "We tried to go whenever we had a free weekend, so it made sense to get married in a place that had such good memories attached to it." With the mountain greenery as a backdrop, the couple accentuated the natural beauty with wedding colors of white, light gray and green. Our favorite DIY touch? Sara and Zach were married under an arch that Zach built using branches in the backyard. The wooden arch was adorned with burlap and bundles of white and lavender roses. "We tried to stay as natural and true to the area as possible when deciding on decorations," Sara says. After the ceremony, guests were invited to an converted barn for a reception dinner and campfire. A tip from Sara: "Looking back, what stands out is the amazing time we had, and I think I wasted too much time and energy beforehand on some of the smaller things that didn't have a huge impact on the weekend as a whole."