This Colorful Wedding Full of Vintage Finds at Hotel Emma Captures the Essence of San Antonio

With a state as big as Texas, it was much easier for two Dallas locals to plan a “destination” wedding in San Antonio. Plus, Molly and Rob first met in their college years at TCU in Fort Worth, another connection to The Lone Star State. The two were singing karaoke with mutual friends at a campus bar, and as they put it, “One day in 2012, we started hanging out and haven't been apart ever since.” Ten years after their fateful meet-cute, they wanted to celebrate this decade of dating in a big way: a trip to Las Vegas.

“We brought the idea up to our friends, and all of a sudden, we had 30 people with Vegas flights and hotel rooms to celebrate with us! I had planned a party bus and dinner for our entire group on Saturday night, one of the stops being at the iconic Welcome to Las Vegas sign,” Molly says of this anniversary trip turned group vacation. The on-site photographer pulled the couple aside for photos of just the two of them, a moment Rob took full advantage of. He got down on one knee, and the trip took another fun twist by becoming their engagement celebration with their closest friends. Some who were in on the proposal and others who were just as surprised as the bride-to-be.

Having grown up in San Antonio, Molly’s vision of a wedding in her hometown was all about the perfect weekend getaway. She says, “We wanted to have a ‘destination’ wedding without it being too much of a destination… We loved the idea of sharing the vibrant and fun culture of San Antonio with of our guests!” And inside the historic Pearl in the city, they found their venue, the Hotel Emma. A mix of modern elegance with vintage charm, the space was perfect for their nontraditional wedding that put vintage finds and San Antonio’s essence at the forefront. The bride even incorporated elements of the Hotel Emma into the custom invitations and save-the-dates, using her side hustle skills as a calligrapher and wedding invite designer. “The envelope liner pattern for the save the dates is the same design as the Hotel Emma lobby floor tiles, and the design of the belly band is the same design [as] the original floor tiles of the courtyard at Hotel Emma. I used those same designs in several other aspects of the wedding, such as table numbers and bar menus,” she adds.

Throughout wedding planning, Molly and her sister scoured San Antonio thrift stores for their decor and struck gold with vintage postcards for the seating chart and Pearl Brewery bottles she repurposed as flower vases. Welcome bags for guests were also personalized with local goodies. Molly says, “We had a local pastry chef make Mexican wedding cookies, found an Etsy seller who made papel picado flags and gift tags right there in San Antonio and included local San Antonio beers and margarita mocktails for those who do not drink alcohol (and Bucees gummy bears—our favorite!).”

Holding their ceremony in Hotel Emma’s courtyard, the couple (alongside their vendors) wanted to showcase the natural greenery and lighting of the space by elevating it with small, colorful touches. Floral arrangements of lush yellow, purple and orange blooms decorated the altar space, and candles lined the floor by the spacious open windows. This vibrance played off the couple’s classic wedding attire wonderfully, and the bride even added pearls to her look, a subtle nod to the Hotel Emma’s location in the Pearl. “Being a very indecisive person, I was anticipating wedding dress shopping being more difficult than it was, but when I found the one, I knew it was the one,” she says of her sleek, sheath Chosen by Kyha gown. “I wanted to add a unique touch to my wedding day look, so I added a beautiful pearl cape to the back of my dress in place of a veil.” Her groom wore a traditional black suit and matching black tie, but added a touch of color with his green-framed glasses and a bright yellow floral boutonniere.

The couple had many nontraditional aspects to their day, like sharing private vows before the ceremony and a joint wedding party rather than separate bridesmaids and groomsmen. Rob and Molly celebrated with them before the ceremony, a special "first look and champagne toast" where everyone took turns sharing a toast to their friendships, reminiscing with stories and offering words of encouragement for the nearlyweds. During the ceremony itself, their wedding party sat at the ends of each aisle and tossed flower petals during the recessional. Molly’s sister served as the officiant, and since the couple shared vows privately beforehand, they recited some of the lyrics to George Strait’s “Cross My Heart” during the ceremony. Molly recalls, “The ceremony was everything I wanted it to be and more. I [also] had one of my best friends give us a blessing during the ceremony (as I had done at his wedding ceremony a year before), which adds to our memorable moments in our friendship.”

It was these close relationships that helped Molly, whose father had passed before the wedding, but his spirit was woven throughout the day. At the reception, an ofrenda-style remembrance table honored her and Rob’s loved ones who couldn’t be in attendance, with their florist decorating the space with marigolds as a nod to Día de Los Muertos and its traditions. And instead of a father-daughter dance, Molly, Rob and their families encouraged all of their guests to form group hugs. “Each of our guests played a part in supporting me over the past four months after my dad's passing—whether it be words of encouragement, bringing us meals, mowing our lawn [or] traveling out of town to my dad's celebration of life in June. It was incredibly meaningful to have all of those people in one room, embracing each other, and knowing they were all there for my family, Rob and I,” Molly says.

The night continued with heartfelt speeches and toasts before the dance floor opened up. And in true Texas fashion, guests wore light-up cowboy hats while the DJ played the newlyweds’ favorite tunes. Personalizing their day while putting a focus on the meaningful touches is part of what Molly and Rob love most about their wedding weekend. “I stopped debating on what font to use on our invitations, what napkin shape would look best at the dinner table, what frame for the bar menu looked best, etc. and started thinking about what I wanted to stand out in the day—which for me, included ways to honor and celebrate my dad, the first look/champagne toast with our closest friends, putting together curated welcome bags to reflect San Antonio and our family group hug to name a few,” the bride states. “I would encourage couples to take the time to reflect on what is most important in their day and not stress about the rest.”