An Autumn-Inspired Wedding Amid the Sweeping Landscape of Texas Hill Country

When Alie and Andrew swiped right on Tinder in 2015, they chatted for a few weeks before Andrew ghosted her. Sometime later, he sent her a ghost emoji, and she decided to give him another chance. They spent their first date at Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas, so when Andrew invited Alie there for a date in March of 2021, she began wondering about a proposal. She grew even more suspicious when Andrew made up an excuse and asked her to meet him there. When she arrived, Andrew had left a handwritten letter at the front desk with a map showing her where to find him in the botanical gardens, where he was waiting on one knee to propose. After six years together, the couple was excited to begin planning their wedding.

Alie and Andrew knew immediately that they wanted to tie the knot in Texas, and they chose to host their wedding on Halloween weekend, one of their favorite holidays. "Andrew is a native Texan, and I’ve been in Austin for over 12 years," Alie says. "We both wanted to showcase the beauty of the Texas landscape in our wedding with a natural element while also having a clean, modern design that we could customize and build our vision around."

The couple enlisted Lauren Field of Lauren Field Design to plan the wedding. Field incorporated her degree in architecture to help Alie and Andrew create a wedding day that married design and structural components while highlighting the guest experience for their 150 attendees on October 29, 2022.

The Duplex Design Invitations

Alie and Andrew sent matte ivory invitations with taupe letterpress ink, vertical juniper-colored belly bands, wheat-toned envelopes, and gold foil stamps. The color palette for the wedding was pear green, juniper green, tawny, ivory, brick, and black, so the stationery incorporated some of those tones. As a nod to the autumn equinox theme the couple was planning around, they incorporated a custom wheat flourish design with tarot-card-inspired illustrations like Roman numerals. "There was a custom sun-like monogram that was used as a return address foil stamp that was incorporated into the day-of branding and dance floor," says Field.

The Bride’s Ceremony Look

Alie bought four wedding gowns because she kept looking at Instagram and falling in love with a new dress. "That was a very expensive mistake!" she says. She ended up choosing two dresses—one for the ceremony and another for the reception.

Her first dress was a timeless A-line off-the-shoulder Suzanne Neville corseted crepe gown with an extended train, buttons down the back, and bows on each shoulder. She accessorized her ceremony look with a veil from Blue Bridal Boutique in Austin, earrings from Shashi, and shoes from Bella Belle. "I also held handkerchiefs from each of my grandmothers and a Russian ruble my grandmother took with her from Ukraine and made into a necklace for me," Alie says.

The Bridal Bouquet

Alie held a small organic bouquet of sculptural florals in deep orange, brick red, and aubergine mixed with blooms in soft ivory and blush tones. Her beloved dog Bentley passed away while the couple was planning their wedding, so she wrapped his collar around her bouquet for the ceremony as her "something blue."

The Groom’s Ceremony Attire

Andrew wore a classic black Hugo Boss tuxedo for the ceremony with a boutonniere made with deep aubergine ranunculus and orange and taupe foliage tied with a purple velvet ribbon. During the ceremony, he also carried coins that were family heirlooms.

The Groom’s Accessories

Andrew accessorized his tuxedo with Turnbull and Asser mother-of-pearl cufflinks that were a gift from Alie.

The First Look

Before the ceremony, the couple shared a first look on a long pathway between the ceremony and reception sites. "I am so, so glad I did a first look because the second Andrew and I saw each other, all my anxiety went away, and I felt like I could finally take a breath and enjoy the day," Alie says. "Afterwards, I was so much more relaxed and happy versus being nervous about everything going perfectly."

The Ceremony Decor

Guests were escorted through a grove of trees to the ceremony space, where the aisle was lined with color-blocked floral installations and covered in blush petals. The ceremony arch was covered in flowers in marigold, deep red, and shades of pink and positioned in front of the sweeping landscape of Texas Hill Country.

The Walk Down the Aisle

A string quartet played the music for the ceremony. After Andrew walked down the aisle to a string version of ACDC’s "Thunderstruck," Alie walked down with her father to "Fist Day" by Blink 182 as a nod to one of the couple’s early dates seeing the band in concert.

The Ceremony Details

Alie and Andrew exchanged vows in an emotional ceremony that was completely customized to include personal elements of their story. "We also customized our vows to make them feel authentic to both of us as two individuals who never thought they’d get married!" Alie says. "We also included vows that we responded 'we do' together, as that represented our partnership and blending of two lives." The ceremony also included two readings: one by Mark Twain and another by Laura Hendricks.

The Recessional

Once they were pronounced husband and wife, Andrew and Alie walked back down the aisle together to “You Make My Dreams Come True” by Hall & Oates.

The Bridesmaids

After the ceremony, Alie and Andrew took some photos with their wedding party. Alie’s bridesmaids wore forest green floor-length chiffon gowns with varying necklines. "It was important for me that the bridesmaids got to choose their dresses and that they felt comfortable in them," the bride says. They held petite bouquets tied in hand-dyed marble silk ribbons and wore elegant skull earrings as a nod to the Halloween weekend spirit.

The Groomsmen

The groomsmen matched Andrew in classic black suits with black ties. "We wanted the men to all feel very timeless," Alie says. 

The Cocktail Hour

Guests were greeted with trays of signature drinks and invited to explore the property during the cocktail hour. They served a blood orange margarita with a black salt rim, a spiced cherry old fashioned named after one of their dogs, June, and a birdfeeder cocktail with gold glitter and a strawberry rim named after their other dog, Mae. They also offered a premium bar so guests could order wine, beer, and other cocktails.

The Ukrainian Bread Ceremony

Alie’s grandparents emigrated to the United States from Ukraine during the Holocaust, and her grandmother recently passed away. The couple decided to have a special Ukrainian bread ceremony in honor of Alie’s Ukrainian heritage, where Alie’s mother presented the bread to the couple as they arrived at the cocktail hour, along with a shot of vodka to encourage good health.

The Reception Decor

Guests moved inside to continue the celebrations, where greenery was added to the chandeliers, and the ceilings were draped in sage and gold fabrics to soften the space. "We paid homage to one of Alie’s favorite art installations with translucent black draping so the colors would pop and the space would feel more grounded," says Field. A mix of long and round tables was draped in floor-length suede linens and paired with black chairs. The couple also brought in a custom fluted bar.

The Escort Display

Alie and Andrew invited guests to find their seats with a celestial-themed escort display featuring a custom monogram using their first initials and moody floral embellishments.

The Sweetheart Table

Alie and Andrew sat at a small sweetheart table in front of the dance floor, which featured the couple’s custom sun-like monogram. "The florals were at the top of the wishlist for Alie, and we had them at every turn in varying scales to bring the outdoors into the reception," Field says. They had a floor installation of tawny, mustard, and blush-colored florals in front of the sweetheart table. They also incorporated fabric backdrops throughout the space to create dimension and provide photo-op moments for guests.

The Place Settings

The centerpieces featured vibrant florals in black vases painted with aubergine and red taper candles in glass hurricanes. The place settings included gold plates and flatware, juniper-colored fabric napkins, and custom menus. Since Alie is an avid horse rider and Andrew is from Texas, Field incorporated leather and wood materials in the overall reception design.

The Dinner

Alie and Andrew enjoyed listening to toasts during dinner. They’re both big foodies, so they served a farm-to-table Southern family-style meal with baskets of buttermilk biscuits and jam, Texas-inspired meat cuts, and vegetables. They also served spooky fall-themed drinks to bring in the Autumn equinox theme.

The Cake

The couple chose a seasonally appropriate wedding cake flavor—cinnamon spice with cream cheese and apple filling topped with caramel buttercream. The taupe frosting was pressed with delicate flowers, and more flowers topped the cake. The cake was displayed on a table with a deep green-toned linen in front of an art-deco-inspired wallpaper.

The Grand March

Andrew’s mom’s side of the family is from the Czech Republic, and the couple chose to incorporate an Eastern European wedding tradition called The Grand March, where guests join hands and lead everyone through a series of dances culminating in a tunnel made by the guests to dance through. "Ours went on for almost 20 minutes, and every single person joined in!" Alie says. This ended up being a big highlight of the wedding for Alie and Andrew. Alie changed into an embroidered tulle Pronovias dress with batwing sleeves, an open back, and a circular chapel train.

The Last Dance

Alie encouraged Andrew to change into something fun for the reception, so he chose a glitter tux jacket from Modern Man and sparkly shoes. The couple shared a private dance to Zac Bryan’s “Sun to Me'' before heading through a sparkler tunnel and exiting in a vintage Mustang.

Sources

• Photography, Kristin La Voie Photography
• The Venue, Mae’s Ridge
• Event Coordination, Lauren Field Design
• Cinematography, Peyton Anne Frank
• Flowers, Bows and Arrows
• Linens, BBJ La Tavola and Nuage Designs
• Invitations and Paper Products, Hazel Wood Paper Co.
• Draping, Unique Design & Events
• Event Production, Strong Events ATX
• Bride’s Ceremony Dress,  Suzanne Neville
• Bride’s Reception Dress, Pronovias
• Bridal Boutique, Blue Bridal Austin
• Bride’s Jewelry, Shashi
• Bride’s Shoes, Bella Belle
• Bride’s Hair and Makeup, Billy Mercer
• Bridesmaids’ Attire, Azazie
• Bridesmaids’ Hair and Makeup, Crown of Glory Beauty
• Groom’s Ceremony Attire, Hugo Boss
• Groom’s Reception Attire, Modern Man
• Groom’s Accessories, Turnbull and Asser
• Catering and Cake, Contigo Catering
• Rentals, Moon Tower Rentals, Whim Hospitality, Loot Rentals, Table Manners
• Dance Floor, Ecografx
• Ceremony Music, Terra Vista Strings
• Reception Music and Lighting, DJ Adam Morgan
• Officiant, Spoken Heart Ceremonies
• Transportation, Around Austin
• Experiences, Mir Mir and Big Dog Pyro
• Painted Styling Surface, Madison Popkess
• Graphic Styling Surface, Milatoo
• Photography Backdrop, JRD Artshop