It’s that time again — time for another installment of our Local Wedding Guide! We’re selecting various locations to highlight the numerous resources available from our vendor guide members and their tried-and-true recommendations. First we tackled North Carolina, and next up on the list is Texas. Love their work but not in Texas? They all love to travel 🙂

Above images by Austin Photographer Taylor Lord

Austin, TX:

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Katherine O’Brien: Barton Springs!
Margaret of Three Apples Events in Austin: Any of the murals around town are always great! Or anywhere around Town Lake where you can soak in the fabulous views of downtown.
Shannon Cunningham in Austin: South Congress, East Austin, any of our glorious open, rolling fields, a fun bar/restaurant in town, any place in Austin that is special to the couple!
Heather Curiel: Any place outside with trees and water. Hamilton Pool, Barton Springs, check out any of the springs hike trails too.

Above images by Austin photographer Shannon Cunningham

What are the best places for out-of-town guests to stay?

Katherine O’Brien: Camp Verde
Margaret of Three Apples Events: Austin has the gamut of types of places to stay! We’ve got all of the big hotels downtown like the Hilton, Sheraton, Radisson etc which are all within walking distance of fantastic restaurants and our famous 6th street. But if you want a more unique experience while in town, there are tons of cool unique options as well like the historic Driskill Hotel or boutique hotels like the San Jose, Kimber Modern, or St. Cecilia.
Heather Curiel: Somewhere out of the ordinary! Try a hotel along South Congress or even the new Heywood Hotel on the east side. Lots of venues also have on site overnight properties. An excellent choice for guests who want to enjoy the hill country views.
Shannon Cunningham: Four Seasons, Hotel St. Cecelia, Hotel San Jose, Kimber Modern, SFA Intercontinental, The Driskill

Margaret of Three Apples Events in Austin adds: Austin has everything for everyone! From Hill Country venues with incredible views to grand ballrooms, historic mansions to wineries, your wedding can really be whatever you want it to be! And that goes for every vendor, not just the venues – your flowers, your cakes and other sweet treats, your paper goods – Austin vendors are able to pull off any style of event with amazing aplomb. We do vintage, we do rustic, we do classic, we do glamorous. And don’t forget that Austin is also the live music capital of the world! So music can be a huge part of any event and we’ve got every kind of band or DJ you could hope for! Weddings in Austin are truly unique and really are in a category of their own!

Images above by Dallas/Austin Photographer Matthew Moore

What is your favorite tip for couples for being photographed on their wedding day?
Matthew Moore: Katie and I feel that brides photograph much better when they forget about the camera and the photographer altogether. In fact we encourage them to forget about us and think about what’s actually happening, which is… drum roll please… GETTING MARRIED! We believe there are two types of brides: the self-conscious bride and the marriage-conscious bride and, inevitably, brides will fall into one of these two categories. The self-conscious bride becomes preoccupied with “looking good” for the camera, worrying whether or not they are “doing it right,” or pleasing the photographer. However, the marriage-conscious bride is simply relishing the moment and looking forward to what’s ahead with great hope and great anticipation. In our opinion, the latter makes for much more honest, natural, and sincere portraits. If ever there were a day when you knew that you look good, a day that felt like you could do no wrong, a day where a photographer wouldn’t really have to tell you to “smile” because you couldn’t stop smiling… that day would certainly be your wedding day! Remember that the photography exists for the wedding not the wedding for the photographer. So think about the wedding… Think about your spouse (or soon to be spouse) and all that you’ve gone through, fought for, overcome, and triumphed over to get to this point. Do that, and we guarantee you that you’ll come away from this with three-dimensional portraits that contain richness, depth, and soul.

Above photographs by Houston Photographer Ryan Price. See wedding feature here.

Dallas

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Lisa of Period Charm Rentals: White Rock Lake & the Bath House, Las Colinas Canals, the Cotton Mill in McKinney for engagements. Must see- Fair Park has some great architecture.
Stephanie Hunter: Anything with a natural or organic feel really does it for me…think open, rolling fields, wheat grass and massive trees and rivers. I always love vintage homes too – especially if they have picket fences!

Above photographs by Dallas Photographer Caroline Joy. See wedding feature here.

What are the best places for out-of-town guests to stay?
Lisa of Period Charm Rentals: For those visiting downtown Dallas we have the W, the new Omni, Hotel Zaza, Hotel Crescent Court and the Hilton Anatole. If you are looking for something closer to the airport and midway between Dallas and Ft. Worth the Gaylord Hotel is a great bet in Grapevine. That hotel encompasses all parts of Texas and is also a great venue for events.
Stephanie Hunter: Hands down my favorite places are B&B’s & little inns. It’s a chance to really feel the Texas charm! There are a TON, but the one I’m submitting is “The Inn on Lake Grandbury” – great place for a wedding AND guests to stay (why not kill two birds with one stone)?!

Above images from Dallas photographer Stephanie Hunter

Image by Austin Photographer Heather Curiel. See this wedding feature here.

Texas Wedding Resources:

Venues:
Lytle Bend, Lytle Cove Cottage (Abilene)
Howell Family Farms (Arlington)
The Allan House (view portfolio) (Austin)
Barr Mansion (Austin)
Le San Michele (Austin)
Vintage Villas (Austin Laguna Gloria; Wild Onion Ranch; The Driskill
Edisons, The Filter Building (Dallas)
Vista West Ranch; Camp Lucy (Dripping Springs)
Houston: Agave Estates
Casa Rio de Colores (Liberty Hill)
Cotton Mill (McKinney)

Photographers:
Apryl Ann Photography (view portfolio), Dallas + will travel worldwide
Jonathan Ivy (view portfolio), Dallas + will travel worldwide
Kimberly Chau (view portfolio), Houston + will travel worldwide
Stephanie Hunter (view portfolio), will travel worldwide
Ryan Price (view portfolio), Houston + will travel worldwide
Caroline Joy (view portfolio), Dallas + will travel worldwide
Meegan Weaver (view portfolio), Wichita Falls + will travel worldwide
Christina Carroll (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
Taylor Lord (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
Heather Curiel (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
She-N-He Photography (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
Lindsey Shea (view portfolio), Dallas + will travel worldwide
Shannon Cunningham (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
Two Pair Photography (view portfolio), Abilene + will travel worldwide
Matthew Moore (view portfolio), Dallas + will travel worldwide
Katherine O’Brien (view portfolio), Austin + will travel worldwide
Clayton Austin (view portfolio), Austin TX + California + worldwide

Florists:
Z’s Florist (Dallas)
Unexpected Elements (view portfolio) (Austin)
Bows and Arrows (Dallas)
The Arrangement (Abilene)

Catering:
Pink Avocado Catering (Austin)

Above images from Austin photographers and design team She-N-He Photography

Bakery:
Frosted Art Bakery (Dallas)
Sweet Art Bakery (McKinney)
Layered Bake Shop (McKinney)
Society Bakery (Dallas)
Cupcake Cachet (Houston)
Central Market

Beauty:
Tisha Corcoran at TC Makeup Studio and Academy (Dallas)
Erica Gray (Austin)
Angel Parker with LucieMarie (Austin)
Mindy Orsak (Austin)

Planners and Stylists:
Unexpected Elements (view portfolio) (Austin)
Three Apples Events (view portfolio) (Austin)

Above images by Austin Photographer Katherine O’Brien. See past wedding features here.

Rentals:
Period Charm Rentals (view portfolio)

Stationery:
Southern Fried Paper (Dallas)

Calligraphers:
Marcy Feldman of Ink Pen Inc. (Dallas)
Rachel with Anibella Ink and Paper (Austin)

Registries:
Antiquaria (view portfolio) (Austin)

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If you are a vendor and would like to be considered in our vendor guide, please click HERE to apply. If you would like to recommend additional local resources to this list, please email us. We’d love to hear from you!