Viking Says "I Do"

Photography: Amber Procaccini, Dress: Posh Bridal,
Styling: Faith Brue, Crown: Ingebretsen's. Flowers:
Carra Otten, La Petite Fleur, Cake: Cakewalk, Northfield 

Love has been in the air recently, and the Viking team has been busy planning a wedding. From cakes to flowers to accessories, we've been finding fun ways to combine Norwegian heritage with modern style. OK, maybe no one actually got married, but our bride looked every bit the part!

All these wedding details added up to a photo shoot for our upcoming July feature, "Tying the Knot in Nordic Style." Art director Jill Adler wanted a location for our shoot with plenty of natural light that was near our Minneapolis office, so she chose Soltvå apartments in the north loop. In the building's party room (boasting plenty of modern Scandinavian style on its own), there was plenty of room on the "big day" for an art director, two editors, a photographer, a pair of florists and a couple of stylists to gather and create the wedding of our collective dreams. Just think: all the creativity and fun details, with none of the stress of a real wedding!

If you're a long-time Viking reader, you may recognize our "bride," Kara Eliason, from the magazine's masthead. She's a former associate editor who has also worked as a proofreader and writer on our team. Now she can add model to her list of contributions to the mag.

When it came to dessert, we turned to Cakewalk of Northfield, who didn't shy away from a request for a rosemaling-inspired wedding cake. They also created a traditional kransekake (almond weath cake) for the occasion. Instead of a traditional bride and groom cake topper, we went with fresh flowers arranged by Carra Otten of La Petite Fleur.

In addition to the photos we shot that day, we're including wedding photos of four couples who have tied the knot in Nordic style. We hope you're inspired by the stories of Nina and John, Denise and Tom, Riita and Ron, and Helene and Åge. Look for them in the July issue of Viking!

The crew discusses accessories. How much bling is too much? 

Photographer Amber Procaccini works with florist Carra Otten of La Petite Fleur
to get a perfect shot of the cake, created by Cakewalk of Northfield. 

Amy Boxrud is editor of Viking magazine. She lives with her family in Northfield, Minn., where she’s a member of Nordmarka 1-585.