After spending the last hour or so gazing longingly at this beautiful Mercury Hall affair from Briana Purser Photography (my job rocks), one thing has become perfectly clear. I will never ever get enough of this wedding. From the breathtaking ceremony under that amazing oak tree to the stunning florals from Last Petal to a bride and groom who are seriously the epitome of happy (they exude pure joy), it’s like everything I adore about saying “I do” wrapped up in one sun-filled party. And I’m in love. Click here for more.
From the Bride… My husband is a musician in a cajun band and I am a photographer, so needless to say the music and photos were the top priorities. I found our wedding photographer, Briana Purser, through a friend and immediately fell in love with her work. I knew we would be a great fit when I suggested we take our engagement photos in Bastrop State Park (which had recently suffered from a devastating forest fire) and she was as excited as I was.
There really was no other choice for the band other than Dale Watson. He is the quintessential Austin musician and we couldn’t have asked for a better band. Old country mixed with a classic crooner – he created the most wonderful soundtrack to our reception and kept everyone dancing and singing
My Mom and I found my dress on the first shopping trip – we walked into Unbridaled (the most amazing bridal shop in Austin) and I rattled off a list of adjectives – lace, vintage, light-weight, comfortable. Living in Texas, there was a strong possibility that it could be 110 degrees at the end of September and I was under no illusion that layers and layers of tulle or a heavy structured dress would be the practical choice. I wanted it to be lightweight and I wanted to be able to dance in it. We bought the second dress I tried on.
The venue was Mercury Hall, which is an amazing chapel that was built in 1904 in the town Mercury, Texas and was transported to South Austin and restored in 1997. We were married in a private family ceremony under their giant oak trees in the yard and held the reception inside the hall which spilled outside to tables under a tent lit with festoon lights. Essentially, we had a backyard wedding and the party in the church.
The flowers were designed by the WONDERFUL Melanie Tipton of Last Petal. I basically told her I liked bright pinks and oranges and would be on board with anything she wanted to do – I don’t know anything about flowers so why not let the professional do her job? She did a fantastic job. My favorite detail she provided was the giant wreath with flowers that served as the backdrop to our ceremony, that was then moved inside and hung over the cake table.
Rosemary’s Catering made some mouthwatering food. My favorite part was the Groom’s Cake – my husband LOVES chocolate chip cookies, so in lieu of a cake Rosemary’s provided freshly baked cookies and shots of milk kept cold with a custom ice sculpture.
We hired Katie Netherton at Something to Celebrate to coordinate the day-of details and I honestly don’t think we could have pulled it off without her. She kept the show running while also dealing with last-minute disasters (busted water pipe onsite two hours before the ceremony) without us even knowing. I cannot stress enough how important it is to have someone besides yourself or your family in charge the day of the wedding… life savers.
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Wedding Photography: Briana Purser Photography | Wedding Venue: Mercury Hall in Austin, Texas | Wedding Coordinator: Katie Netherton from Something to Celebrate | Floral Design: Melanie Tipton from Last Petal | Catering: Rosemary’s Catering | Band: Dale Watson | Wedding Dress: Unbridaled