There are two words that we don’t hear enough of but go oh-so well together – backyard black-tie.  This Laguna Gloria wedding is serving up elegance and style on the prettiest of platters with an intimate, casual vibe that makes us feel right at home.  Bethany Hanson of 36th Street Events did such a fabulous job combining the classic with the cozy and Half Orange Photography captured all the details in the most gorgeous light that us in total wedding dreamland today.  Click here to see it all!

Click here for the FULL wedding!

And don’t miss the incredible film by Waterloo Films…


From the bride… If we could give the style of our wedding a name, it would be “casual elegance.” We wanted it to be beautiful and timeless, but still have an intimate, “backyard” feel. Breck and I LOVE the outdoors, so Laguna Gloria was the most perfect setting for us to celebrate our wedding and show our guests the beauty of the Austin outdoors. The shores of Lake Austin created the most perfect backdrop for our ceremony and the twinkling string lights throughout the property gave us the intimate and backyard feel we were striving for.

We incorporated very classic styles, such as black and ivory in our color palette, hydrangeas and roses with casual and modern elements like pops of gray and yellow in our flowers, chalkboard signs, and a fire pit. I decided to use chalkboard signs through out the property to convey the casual feel we were going for. Creating these signs was one of my favorite DIY projects. I set out to thrift and antique stores to find old, ornate picture frames and painted the frame with silver foil and the inside with chalkboard paint. The frames were spread throughout the property and provided direction to the ceremony and reception, menu items, table numbers and a thank-you note to all of our guests. One of our most favorite aspects of our wedding had to be the fire pit, where our guests sat enjoying the warmth of the fire, socializing, and roasting marshmallows for s’mores. Planning our wedding was not always stress-free, but seeing all of our ideas and hard work transform into the most magical day was priceless and created a lifetime of memories for us and our families.

Some advice I would give to future brides would be to first consider hiring a wedding coordinator or a day-of coordinator. Bethany with 36th Street Events helped me focus and translate our style into our wedding. She ensured a seamless wedding day and allowed our families and us to enjoy the whole day from start to finish. A final piece of advice would be to research and splurge on your photographer and videographer. We spent lots of time researching both, and the outcome was priceless! The ladies of Half Orange Photography by far exceeded our expectations! Their personalities and attitude were contagious, and the style of their photography was incredible. Jorge with Waterloo Films seemed invincible as he captured every aspect of our wedding from the most creative viewpoints. Both captured our day perfectly and have provided us with a lifetime of memories from our wedding day.

Wedding Photography: Half Orange Photography / Wedding Venue: Laguna Gloria at the Austin Museum of Art in Austin, Texas / Wedding Planning + Styling: Bethany Hanson of 36th Street Events / Florist: Stems Floral Design / Wedding Cake: Tiffany Braymen / Wedding Dress + Belt: Enzoani via Blush Bridal Lounge / Wedding Invitations + Programs: Hodgepodge Design / Wedding Cinematography: Jorge Flores of Waterloo Films / Catering: Primizie Special Event Catering / Lighting: Ilios Lighting / Rentals: Marquee Events / Makeup: Rhea McCarter / Hair Sarah: Garner of Lather Salon

Marquee Event Group, 36th Street Events, Blush Bridal Lounge and Waterloo Films are members of our Little Black Book, Love what you see? Take a look at their portfolios.
Marquee Event Group

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36th Street Events

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Blush Bridal Lounge

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Waterloo Films

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