The best kind of details? Those that are intangible. The traditions, the sentiments and the whole love that a wedding day is comprised of. They lie in a mother crafting a veil and sash for her daughter, a best man building his friends a communion table and a bride and groom-to-be spending an afternoon in the park discovering their vows and setting goals for their marriage. All the palpable pretty? This day is chock-full of it in THE VAULT thanks to Rachel Whyte. But the best bits live in the love that’s woven in.
From Rachel Whyte… As a photographer, Katie and Keller were ideal clients. Their love for one another was contagious and Katie has great taste. Their wedding was on a perfect, crisp (Texas) December day. They were both so gracious and kind on their wedding day and I now count them as friends.
From the Bride… Our favorite part of wedding planning were the sentimental details that guests probably didn’t notice! My mama made my veil and my sash, and I wore a fur stole that belonged to Keller’s great-grandmother (also a Katherine!) At our “legacy table,” we had wedding photos of our parents and grandparents, my grandma’s Chinese lace table cloth, and a silk bouquet that Keller’s grandma made by hand. Also, Keller’s best man built the small table we took communion on, and we got our vows engraved on the bottom. We brought it to Kentucky with us, and I love having such a meaningful part of our wedding day in our home.
We’re both writers, so writing our vows together was a really meaningful part of wedding planning. We spent an afternoon at the park, looking through scripture and talking about the way God describes the foundation of marriage. Once we did that, we wrote down goals for our marriage, and structured our vows around that. It was one of our favorite afternoons of engagement, and we both loved reading them on our wedding day.
We had our dream ceremony: outdoors, chilly December weather, all our best friends and family, a Civil-Wars-esque band playing (for real, they were unbelievable) and a powerful message about the gospel. We also took communion together and I walked down the aisle to “How Deep the Father’s Love.”
Our barn reception was so cozy and candle-lit! The hill country vendors were all unbelievable, and the best part was that they were all so used to working together, so it made the day-of prep a breeze for us. I had a lot of trouble choosing colors at first, because I didn’t want to be too Christmas-y in early December. I decided on a more muted palette of navy, gold, evergreen and ivory, with lots of mercury glass and richly colored flowers. Rustic and elegant are difficult to accomplish at the same time, but my florist and day-of coordinator did it perfectly.
Our planning advice? We knew getting married in Austin would be tricky since we would be planning almost all of it from a distance. First of all, be sure to choose vendors that you really trust! I tried to surround myself with really calm, low-key people that I knew would get the job done, even though I was states away. Also, don’t be afraid to use people who are new to the wedding industry! We saved a lot of money by using a new designer for our paper products (she’s SO talented), a friend who’s a film student (also SO talented), and by using a band from my college town who doesn’t normally play at weddings. It’s really fun to have a mash up of different people.
Soak up everything you can and then soak up some more. It’s overwhelming to have everyone you both love in one room, celebrating your new covenant with your favorite person in the world, but it’s the best kind of overwhelmed! Details matter so much less than you think they do, because you’re way too busy having a blast on your wedding day to even think about anything else. Also, sleep, vitamin C and water will be your best friends during your wedding week.
Wedding MVPS: Our sweet mamas, my photographer, Keller’s groomsman who flew in from London just for the wedding ceremony, my hairdresser/make up fixer-upper/the one who kept my nerves calm all day, my day-of coordinator, and Keller!
Photography: Rachel Whyte Photography | Videographer: Greer Stanley | Coordination: Jaime Dydalewicz | Floral Design: Petal Pushers | Wedding Dress: Watters | Cake: Simon Lee Bakery | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Macy's | Catering: Verde's Mexican Parilla | DJ: Tristan Tully | Ceremony Music: The Union Revival