Q. What are your day jobs?
A. Steven is a recruiter at an IT staffing company and is working toward a career in sales. Ashly is a student at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising and will pursue being a buyer after graduation.
Q. Where did you both grow up?
A. We both grew up in Odessa, TX.
Q. How did you meet?
A. When we were about 10 years old, Ashly’s friend lived in my neighborhood and would come over to hang out. We grew up hanging out with the same friends and went to high school together. We both went to separate colleges after graduation, and then started dating during our freshman year. I moved to College Station and joined Ashly at Texas A&M. We have been together ever since.
Q. Tell me about the proposal?
A. Ashly asked for a trip to San Francisco for Christmas this past year. So she planned the trip for us and one of the events was a New Year’s Eve cruise. I had been designing a ring and trying to think of a good time to ask and thought this would be perfect. On the cruise, I asked one of the waitresses to come out and take a picture of us on the deck and filled her in on my plan. We posed for a couple of pictures and then I turned to her and asked her to marry me.
Q. How did you choose your venues: The Driskill Hotel
A. My wedding coordinator, Johnell Huebner, had venues lined up for me to look at one day and The Driskill Hotel had the vintage look and ambiance that Steven and I were looking for. Plus everyone there was so kind and attentive from the very beginning.
Q. Describe what inspired your decor and how you chose it?
A. I am obsessed with all things that are, I guess you could say, “gatsby vintage”. I envisioned lots of gold, classic, antique decor. I told Johnell what I was envisioning and she turned it into the masterpiece that it was!
Q. Tell me about your attire – who designed your dress and where did you buy it?
A, I bought my ceremony dress at Alfred Angelo. I am honestly not sure about the designer, it may have been designed by Alfred Angelo? I bought my reception dress at BHLDN.
Q. What shoes did you choose and what jewelry did you wear?
A. I wore my great grandmother’s pearl necklace and some pearl earrings that Steven got for me. My dad also surprised me with a rose gold/diamond bracelet that I wore. I wore Badgley Mischka flats for the reception and just wore little ivory David Bridal heels for the ceremony.
Q. Who designed the bridesmaids dresses?
A. I also got them from Alfred Angelo and I believe they were Alfred Angelo brand.
Q. And your groom – tell me about his look – who was his suit designer? Any other significant accessories?
A. His suit was designed by Vera Wang. We wanted his look to go along with the classic vintage theme also so we had the men in bow ties, suspenders, and the classic black and white suit.
Q. Why did you choose me, Jenny, to be your wedding photographer?
A. I did a lot of research to find the style of photography that we wanted and your photos really stuck out to me. I thought you did a great job of capturing the emotions of a moment and still making it stylish and grand looking. Then once I was able to talk with you, I felt very sure that you would be able to execute exactly what we were going for. Your sweet, fun personality also made me very comfortable during all the shoots we had.
Q. What was one of your favorite moments from your wedding day?
A. There are so many! I think the moment I saw Steven when I was walking down the aisle was my favorite though. I had been anxious and nervous all day and all that turned into pure joy and excitement when I saw Steven. It was a moment I’ll never forget.
I also loved the time I got with just my dad before we walked down the aisle. It was such a big moment for me and I’m glad I got to share it with him.
Q. What was your favorite image from your wedding day?
A. As in our favorite photo that you took? Both of our favorite image is the one of us in front of the mirror having a “sexy time” moment. 🙂
Q. Did any of your other vendors go above and beyond for you?
A. ALL of them!!! The Driskill Hotel was absolutely amazing and catered to our every need. They made sure EVERYTHING was how I wanted it to be on our big day and they did a great job of it. Loved them for a venue. Johnell Huebner from Clearly Classy Events was absolutely amazing. She was very knowledgeable about decor and what vendors to use and she made the whole day go by SO seamlessly! I can’t say enough good about Johnell. Also-David Kurios decor and florist arrangements were spot on, Candlelight Films blew me away with the perfect video of our day, and Makeup Therapy (Tara Dowburd & her team) did everyones hair and make up just how we had all hoped! I hope I’m not forgetting anyone because everyone seemed to go above and beyond for our day.
Q. Do you have any tips to share with other couples?
A. Enjoy the day and don’t fret over little details because that won’t be what you remember later. Also, make sure you work with vendors that understand your vision and that you can trust. All our vendors were amazing and I think that’s what helped our day go by so seamlessly.
Wedding Planner and Event Designer: Johnell Huebner – Clearly Classy Events
Ceremony Venue: The Driskill
Reception Venue: The Driskill
Florist: David Kurio Designs
Cake: The Driskill
Band/DJ: Texas Professional Disc Jockey
Catering: The Driskill
Hair Stylist: Make-Up Therapy
Makeup Artist: Make-Up Therapy
Videographer: Candlelight Films