Special Thanks to the Following:
Coordinator: Jessica Moore, Something the Celebrate
Church: St. Mary’s Cathedral
Caterer: Primizie
Cake: Simon Lee
Florist: Last Petal Floral Studio
Videographer: Mason Jar
Band: Buzz & the Blue Cats
DJ: Altared Weddings
Lighting: ILIOS Lighting
Cigar Roller: Bobalu Cigar Co.
Hair and Makeup: Pearl Hair & Makeup Studio, Samantha Denby, Adore Makeup Salon
Getting Ready Hotel: AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center and Hotel
And a few words about the Bride and Groom:
What are your day jobs?
Alex just finished school and will be pursuing an MBA while working as a free lance financial consultant. Jess just graduated with a masters degree in speech language pathology.
Where did you both grow up?
Alex grew up in Austin and Jess grew up in New Jersey.
How did you meet?
We both went to Boston University!
Tell me about the proposal?
We went to the Finger Lakes in upstate New York to celebrate our 4 year anniversary. July 4th was when he made his first move out of a pretty deep seeded friend zone on the roof of his fraternity house. I pretended to not notice him going in for the first kiss and he totally called me out. We were dating a month after and living together 6 months later.
How did you choose your venues: St. Mary’s Cathedral and Alex’s Parents Ranch (does it have a name)?
-The church is sort of an interesting story… Aside from the church’s in the area filling up quickly, Alex is not Catholic so we had a really tough time finding a church in the Austin area that would marry us even if they did have weekends in the fall available. The only Church that had any availability or would marry us was St. Mary’s and the only date they had was Halloween. We had some serious discussions about sharing our anniversary with hordes of children in costume. This was solely Alex’s concern since I’m obsessed with the holiday. Needless to say, we got married on Halloween (thank God!).
The ranch was an easier decision. We were willing to battle each and every challenge building our venue presented (bathrooms, electricity, kitchens, water, tents, bussing everyone an hour away) to have our shared favorite place be a central part of that day. That ranch is home; there was no other choice. Besides, which couple enjoys having a stranger tell them that they’re night has to end or that the groom can’t shoot off fireworks?!
Describe your decor and how you chose it?
-Our (my mom and mine) overall theme was rustic glam with a subtle homage to our (Alex’s and mine) love of wine. I would be a pretty awful Jersey girl if I didn’t have some serious sparkle at my wedding.
Why did you choose me, Jenny, to be your wedding photographer?
-Your photo gallery blew me away. I loved how you captured natural moments in such a sharp and rich way while also capturing gorgeous glam shots without the “cheesiness.” Mostly though I connected with how so many of your couples also had natural elements and themes in their photos which made me confident in your ability to capture the ranch.
What was one of your favorite moments from the your wedding day?
-oh goodness, thats a tough one. The moment that always comes to mind is when the doors opened in the church right before I walked/ran down the aisle. I couldn’t walk slowly even if I wanted to; I had to get to him.
What was your favorite image from your wedding day?
-Another toughy considering I favorited 312 of them.. Honestly I think I loved the photos of my guests dancing the best. You did an amazing job capturing the exuberant tone of the night; the love and joy was over the top. But I also love the ones of me getting dressed with Maureen and Jennifer (MOHs) and my mom. Those 3 are so beautiful. And of course the photos of Alex and I in the woods. The saturation of color is so spectacular.
Did any of your other vendors go above and beyond for you?
Definitely the caterer (Primizie Caterers), the DJ (Altered Weddings DJ David), the videographer (Mason Jar Films), and THE BAND (Buzz and the Blue Cats). All of these guys took my sort of complicated and sometimes convoluted ideas and turned them into magic without flinching an eye. AND OF COURSE YOU!
Do you have any tips to share with other couples?
Too many, give em my cell 😉 But most important, make it your own. Do something that you can say, “that is all me and my husband right there.” I mean, really yours. Get your hands dirty and create your perfect day. I sort of OD’d on that idea…