A whimsical and personalized Real Wedding for lovebirds Alice and Irving, who celebrated their wedding in Hacienda del Lago in Texas. After a creative proposal the wedding day didn't disappoint...

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This afternoon we fly across the other side of the world for the whimsical and perfectly personal wedding of Alice and Irving, in Hacienda del Lago in Texas. After setting the bar high with a brilliantly creative proposal, the wedding day did not disappoint. Today's creative couple incorporated their cultures into a fabulous colour explosion of red, orange and yellow bursting through in various ways with DIY origami, Chinese lanterns, colourful buttons inspired by Alice's favourite movie Up, and sweets and treats as far as the eye can see! This is a wedding to make your eyes pop and your imagination fizz with inspiration, and we're delighted to be able to share it with you courtesy of the lovely Jenny Futography

"We met through a mutual friend, Irving and I went to the same high school, university and lived 5 minutes away from each other growing up, but the universe didn’t have us cross paths until years after graduating college. We first officially met at a happy hour when Irving said but a few words and was really more interested in his beef carpaccio than anything else. A few months came and went and we began to see more of each other at friends’ get togethers and around Austin. It was during the wedding weekend of another mutual friend that the magnetic energy grew stronger. The adventures of Alice and Irving began then. We share a love of travel and experiencing new locales and activities together from scuba diving in the Grand Cayman Islands to an almost-proposal trip in New Mexico at the Balloon Fiesta where hundreds of hot air balloons ascend daily. We are complementary in nature. Irving tells me I am the yin to his yang. I believe that is what will help us happily grow old and wrinkly together.

How did Irving pop the question... Plan A (as I learned later) was to propose in a hot air balloon on a trip with a few close friends to New Mexico. The weather prevented our balloon from lifting off the days we were there so Irving created a backup plan when we returned from the trip. It was one of the most amazing surprises of my life. I can still remember how much my cheeks hurt from smiling so hard all day.After weeks of having to hide a little box among his socks, Irving decided to combine Alice's love of buttons with our favorite Pixar movie, Up!After sourcing buttons and designing fabric online, I was ready to put together the most important art project of my life. I convinced the Wally Workman Gallery to allow me to hang the piece up among the other pieces of art and brought Alice on a day out to the gallery, she spotted the buttons straight away and saw my secret 'Will You Marry Me' message in the picture...you can see the full proposal here.

Alice's fabulous Vera Wang gown was chosen by our stylish bride because it had pockets and looked like paper! Alice added her grandmother’s ruby ring, her great grandmother’s pearl ring and a mix of hair pieces that were gifts from her friends.

How did you pick your fabulous venue...After a day of venue shopping, driving into Hacienda del Lago felt like reaching a serene oasis. For us, it was the perfect balance of outdoor scenery with comforts of an indoor venue. In many ways it was like having the intimacy of a backyard wedding, but with a really nice yard. What truly sold us were the owners -amazing people.

The bride’s “D2” (short for Dad 2) was the officiant of the ceremony. While not related by blood or marriage, he has known Alice since she was 4 and he crafted the most beautiful wedding message and ceremony.

Before the wedding Alice and Irving held a 'thank you' tea ceremony .A 'tea ceremony' is a private gathering with just the couples parents, the couple pay respects to both sides for all their support in helping them reach this milestone in their lives.

Alice gave her bridesmaids a color spectrum and asked the gals to pick something they were most comfortable in that made them feel pretty, the result is a mismatch of gorgeous gowns!

The boys added splashes of colour too...

The morning was zen, then rain clouds rolled in. There was scrambling and rearranging and it stormed 15 minutes before the start of the ceremony - but the show must go on!The sun came out during the vows and the rest of the night felt magical with the Austin breeze, lanterns lighting the mid-Autumn sky and high energy of all of the wonderful guests.

What were your priorities when it came to planning the big day...More than anything, we wanted the wedding to be inclusive and radiate the warmth and appreciation we have for our friends and family. It was important to us that the atmosphere be relaxed, sentimental and full of laughter. Tasty food, bottomless beverages and an amazing soundtrack for the day were our musts when it came to the planning. On wedding day though, we were prioritizing FUN!

There was plenty of fabulous decor at this wedding and it real was a team effort. From pinwheels and Chinese cloth lanterns picked up on a trip to Taiwan (the bride’s motherland), a wooden sign to display the drinks menu was built by the groom’s buddy and painted by the bride and groom, paper origami cranes folded by bride and groom were assembled into garlands, plus personalized rock escort cards and kids’ toy baskets assembled from $1 spot fun at Target!

Family and friends make the wedding day so special, Alice and Irving had family members travel from as far as Hong Kong, Toronto, Taiwan and Mauritius to attend their big day with some guests not having visited the States in 18+ years!

I absolutely love the colour palette of Alice and Irvings wedding, deep greys with clean white, with mixes of red, orange and yellow giving it plenty of punch! The Chinese lanterns, origami, buttons (Alice's favourite item) and gummy bears (Irving's must have sweeties) were used as decor treats around the venue bringing glimpes of the newlywed's cultures and personalties to the reception.

Love is sweet for Alice and Irving...

These creative newlyweds had a seriously on trend first dance...Our first dance transitioned from a slow rock and sway (as Irving puts it) to a Texas 2-step to a flash mob (yep, Gangham style. We think it was before it really peaked…!) ha I love it, well done guys!

What advice would you give to brides and grooms planning their day? Bride: There are no rules — make it your own. Have fun in the process and ask for help on the DIY details. We learned that last one too late!
Groom: Communicate! Happy wife. Happy life. (latter is a piece of advice shared by Bride’s father)

Congratulations Alice and Irving on a super fabulous Texas style wedding!

Of course a big Thank You Jenny Futography for sharing this colourful wedding day with One Fab Day. To see more of Jenny Futographywork pop on over to www.jennyfutography.com

The Wedding Details