A Retro-Style Bridal Luncheon Followed by a Birthday Welcome Party With Disco Balls and Florals
For the former college neighbors turned friends, Ansley and Jonathan’s love story evolved after a last-minute invite to a fraternity formal. And not long after getting engaged, the two decided an 11/11 wedding was the perfect date for their one-of-a-kind weekend. “Honestly, I knew from the get-go that we wanted to have a really guest-forward experience at our wedding,” Ansley says. “Coming from a background in PR & events, I found it important to consider the flow and diversity of experience for our guests.” That meant kicking off the event with an intimate bridal luncheon at the Music Room in Austin’s Soho House.
Hosting their wedding weekend in Austin was important for the couple. “Jonathan is from Houston and has definitely ingrained a sense of authentic Texas into our lives. (I'm 8 years now in Austin, which feels like an honorary Texan, but I'll let others be the judge of that),” Ansley says of their shared love of the state. Incorporating a lot of Southern elements was easy for them, with many guests bringing cowboy hats and boots to wear for the occasion as well.
“Food and drinks are my love language, so I knew that was going to play a key role in guest experience,” Ansley says of mixing her Georgia roots with Jonathan’s Texas upbringing for a Southern-inspired menu. The family-style brunch included avocado toast, chopped salad and Tuscan chicken kale for a lighter start to what would be an eventful day. The Music Room, with its retro vibes and pops of teal, needed little in the way of decorating, but the couple’s planner incorporated autumnal garden roses in simple, low centerpieces with vintage dinnerware.
The bride-to-be wore a white dress from The Bar with a custom tanzanite choker, a meaningful touch that played an important role throughout the wedding journey. Ansley says, “The through line of Tanzanite is no mistake. 13 years ago, my family went to Africa and my father purchased raw tanzanite in different forms with the intention to make my mom and [me] gifts throughout our lives.”
The decor was heavily inspired by vintage themes and a bit of whimsy, with playing card save-the-dates giving an Alice in Wonderland feel and a mix of unique fonts to stand out on the menus, signage and more. “The mix of textures and colors from the rentals and flowers really captured the spirit of maximalism that I was going for,” the bride adds. That continued in the events later that night, at the rehearsal dinner/birthday party to celebrate Ansley turning 29. With 800 Congress as their venue, Jonathan and Ansley’s vendor team pulled out all the stops for a retro bash with maximalist style and jewel-toned florals taking center stage.
Guests entered the space through a funkadelic orange tunnel with chrome, golden walls and asymmetrical floral displays. From silver and gold fringe backdrops to match the shimmering disco balls and velvet lounge furniture atop a checkered rug, the vibe pulled from the ‘60s and ‘70s, including the bride’s attire. She wore a white Nadine Merabi lace and sequin flared suit with a playing card clutch and cowboy boots that her friend Maggie had custom painted with the lyrics “Cowboy take me away” by The Chicks. After making an appearance in this outfit, she changed into the perfect dance party look. “I chopped my mom's wedding dress from 1989 (no alterations required other than [the] length of dress and veil being altered),” she says. “The dress was handmade by her mom, my Grammy.” She finished off this outfit with rhinestone pumps and lace socks to “evoke a little Madonna energy.”
Entertainment included a performance of roller skaters and a band that especially held memories for the couple. They say, “The Spazmatics on Friday night were a no-brainer... not just from genre, but in our first years of living in Austin, it was the thing to do to go and see them on Wednesday nights at this bar called Speakeasy.” Their loved ones enjoyed an array of treats from a food cart, including cupcakes, chocolate-dipped pretzel sticks and vibrant orange jello cups with fruit to match the decor. There was even a disco-tastic birthday cake, in all silver chrome with matching, twisted candles.
Their friends and family danced the night away under the disco balls, and the kickstart to their wedding weekend was a memorable occasion that Ansley and Jonathan felt immensely grateful for. “We were really present and aware going into wedding planning that this is a privilege and gift, so doing it right for our family and chosen family felt just as important as having the weekend be an authentic representation of our relationship,” says the bride.