Author: AS Manager Admin

This past weekend we hosted some true-blue Dallas Cowboys Fans!  The groom’s cake sure gave it away.

The bride’s cake was even prettier.

 

 

The flowers, provided by Bouquets of Austin (our vendor partner), were gorgeous.  Adding table runners of Dallas Cowboy blue under them was a nice touch.

Due to the possibility of poor weather, they choose to be married inside our ballroom.  We are so glad that we can offer a great “Plan B” for weddings.  But the story that I heard from a family member is that there have been several weddings rained out in the bride’s family, so they planned for the indoor ceremony from the start.

 

As always, we enjoyed hosting the family and friends for such a special moment in the bride’s and groom’s lives.  Chelsea’s Mom, Kandy, also sent us a nice note:

Norma, Anthony, and Amy,

The wedding and reception was so beautiful and perfect! Everyone was SO impressed with the venue, vendors, etc.

Thank you! Thank you!!!

Kandy Mayes

I’ve heard this expression before, but Michele and Joseph really took it to heart.  Both the bride and groom are local police officers, and they used the term as a theme for their wedding.  Each table had a blue runner on it.  And look closely at the centerpieces – they are filled with spent bullet casings!

I love it when brides are willing to personalize their wedding decor with something special to them and a little off-beat (pun intended).

Their cake also had a toper that continued the peace officer theme.  Both the bride and groom are armed.

My advise to brides-in-planning: BE BOLD.  Make the wedding your own.  Your family and friends will enjoy seeing your personality exposed in your choices.

Here’s a unique idea that is sure to help make your reception unforgettable –seat your wedding party at a King’s Table .

This works especially well if you are planning to have a large wedding party.  The dramatic style of a long King’s table allows your entire wedding party to sit with you, and the shear size of it allows you to really get creative with the décor.  This bride used candles and a floral arrangement amid a cloud of red created with an additional tablecloth.

 

The bride and groom were seated at one end of the table, which afforded them a  wonderful view of the dance floor and other guest tables.

 

 

 

 

Not all venues can accommodate a large table like this.  The ballroom at Angel Springs, with it’s high ceilings, makes this option look great!

One of the reasons my wife, Norma, and I got into this business is because we enjoy seeing the fun that people have at weddings.  A few weeks ago we were privileged to host the wedding of Erin and Evan.  The weather was picture perfect, and our photography partner sent us some pictures of the ceremony on our lawn.

Carol, Erin’s Mother, was nice enough to send us these notes:

Hey Anthony and Norma,  Thank you so very much for all of your expertise, efforts and counsel.  The wedding was great.  Norma,  Thanks for your special touches and advice.  Anthony, thanks for all of your counsel about the practical issues.  Amy was great . . . showing up at very critical times with just the right solution (i.e. just when I realized that I had miscounted boutonnieres, Amy walked up with one for my Dad . . putting the finishing touches on as she approached).  Everything worked out just as you both said, which is huge considering we were so out of our element.  Again,  Thanks.  You went above and beyond our expectations.  Take care,  Carol D.

Debra [from Everafter Images],  Thank you so much for everything.  We knew that we could count on you for memorable photos, but you provided so much more.  Your expertise and advice was appreciated.  Your willingness and ability to take on the extra (i.e. slipping in the photo op for my dad and his new bride and recording special moments) was above and beyond what we expected.  Again, you and Raymond and your whole crew were huge in making the evening special. . . Thank you.    Take care,  Carol D.

As you can see from Carol’s notes, we’re having even more fun because of the great team that we’ve put together.  Erin and Evan chose to take advantage of one of our custom packages, so we had lot’s of our wonderful professional wedding partners there to help.

Congratulations again, Evan and Erin.

Some brides definitely march to a different beat.  Alissa recently married Daniel, and she wanted to make sure he had a wonderful surprise.  Apparently, Daniel is very into dinosaurs.  So Alissa ordered a cake from Judy at Simon Lee Bakery (our vendor partner) to look like one.  She said that she wanted it to stand out on the cake table, even if her bride’s cake was not as prominent.  I’m happy to report that the bride’s cake looked great, and as you can see from this picture, the dinosaur looked awesome.

(Photos courtesy Everafter Images)

I wish I could have tried a piece.  Judy’s cakes always taste great, and how often do you get to eat a dinosaur?

Last weekend is a perfect example.  We’ve gone so long without rain that we forgot what it was like, but Nicki and David managed to bring up a storm with their wedding.  Shortly after Nicki walked down the aisle, just us the ceremony started, there was a tremendous thunderclap.  Nicki and David actually high-fived each other because they were sure that the rain would miss.  Unfortunately, it didn’t.  Moments later the rain was pouring down, and everyone ran into the ballroom.  Especially impressive was Michael Morris of Angelic Strings.  He never missed a beat – actually continuing to play his harp even as he walked up onto the porch.   Jessica Moore (Something to Celebrate) performed her wedding coordinator duties as masterfully as ever, and in just a few minutes the ceremony continued in a much drier location.

After Nicki and David completed their vows dinner and cake  was served.  Judy at Simon Lee Bakery  provided the cake, wrapped with a ribbon on each tier that matched the wedding color of celadon green.  As usual, the cake was yummy!

 

 

Then the party really got going.  Their DJ had a incredible light show and had everyone jumping on the dance floor.

Congratulations Nicki and David!

Every once in  a while I just have to pass along complements from one of our brides.  Kayleigh and Christopher were married at Angel Springs on May 21.

Kayleigh sent us a nice thank you note:

Thank you guys so much for helping us get to and helping us have an absolutely wonderful wedding and reception.  Everything was perfect and we couldn’t have asked for more! 

Here are some more pictures that I copied from their wedding web site:

 

We have been working with an artist here in the north Austin area to develop a unique guest book idea.  Many couples at Angel Springs use a photo of themselves mounted on a large mat for their guests to sign.  The resulting collage of signatures is then framed and hung in their new home as a daily reminder of the wonderful friends and family that attended their reception.

If you are a little non-traditional, and want something a bit more fun than your standard engagement photo, why not use a caricature instead?  Here’s  a sample of what it might look like:

Our artist will create a unique piece of art with your faces!  The resulting print will be mounted on a 32” by 42” foam board for your guest’s signatures.

If you are interested in learning more, then give us a call at Angel Springs: 512-535-6584, or email us at info@AngelSpringsEvents.com.  If you are an Angel Springs bride we can add this service to your package. 

We had the privilege of hosting one of our other favorite photographers last month.  Stephanie and Joseph brought in Michael Hooks (www.hookedphoto.com) to photograph their wedding.  As you can see, he does beautiful work.

Sometimes its the little details that make a wedding special, like these shots of Stephanie’s shoes or the roses on the parents chairs.

Our lawn where we host the ceremonies always looks great in the Springtime.  Stephanie and Joseph are headed back inside for their wonderful reception.

Here’s a photo of their Spring-inspired table decorations.   (My photo, not Michael’s.  See "Professional Pictures" to understand why I point this out.)

I have just a few words about why I’m a “believer.” 

While growing up in the 60s and 70s, we always had a family member or friend of the family with a 35mm camera take pictures at family weddings.  That’s just the way it was.  We never even considered hiring a professional photographer.  I don’t know if it was the cost, or if they were harder to find back then.  But all of my experience with wedding pictures and albums was based on what I saw produced by amateurs.

Don’t get me wrong.  Some of the pictures were great.  But here was rarely a real album.  And only occasionally an enlargement. 

Then I got into the wedding business.  My eyes have been opened.  The combination of experience and professional equipment just can’t be beat.  Yes, as I was growing up, some of the pictures were great.  But photos I’ve seen taken by a professional are almost always better than the best ones I recall from my younger years. 

It’s not just the formal poses of wedding parties and families.  Even our family friend photographers got those.  It just took them longer to take because they didn’t have the practice in directing people.  Pros also know the best angles during the ceremony.  They know when to use a telephoto and when to use a wide angle.  And they have those extra lenses and other pro equipment.  Few family friends are going to have the same, expensive, latest equipment as the pros.

As an example, I’ll post a few pictures from the recent wedding of Valerie and Ryan.  I took the pictures posted in my previous blog entry about the same wedding.  I thought they were pretty good, but these from Everafter Images are really a cut above.  We also have a few of their sample albums that we can show you when you visit us at Angel Springs.