My Destination Wedding At Prospect House (Part 2)

The Full Gallery of My Destination Wedding In Texas

Kari Dirksen-Smith of Feathered Arrow Studio getting married in a winter destination wedding at The Prospect House in Texas

Hey there, friends! I’ve been teasing this for a while and now it’s finally here: the full gallery of my destination wedding in Dripping Springs, Texas! I shared a sneak peek of my wedding at The Prospect House, but I couldn’t wait to post all of the photos and give more details about my big day!

Customizing Our Ceremony

When creating our ceremony, we wanted to find ways to blend traditional elements with a personalized touch. All while keeping the ceremony flowing and relatively quick. (We wanted to get to the party, after all!) For starters, we asked my brother to officiate our wedding, which was extremely special. I also knew we wanted to have our dog, Dublin, be a part of the wedding. Thankfully, Prospect House allowed our pup to be present but I know not every venue allows animals. (If you need ideas on how to include your fur family into your wedding, check out this blog post.)

To include all of our guests in the ceremony, we passed around our wedding bands to each guest. We asked them to hold the rings and give their blessing before Jeremy + I exchanged rings. This moment was so emotional + beautiful and I remember it every time I look at my rings. Lastly, we skipped a confetti toss to support an eco-friendly wedding ceremony, and instead added small bells to every guest’s chair. The bells represented a Celtic tradition that ward off evil spirits and grants well wishes to the couple. The chiming sound from all our family + friends during our first kiss and as we walked down the aisle was incredible!

Planning A Destination Wedding

Planning a wedding is a massive undertaking – planning a destination wedding is a whole other world. My first piece of advice when planning a destination wedding is to get a wedding planner. I know it sounds biased, but even as a wedding planner myself, I knew that I would need additional help. I brought in two members of my team to lead the day and also leaned on the on-site venue coordinator for the details. Trust me, a planner is indispensable and will help you keep track of everything! To find our venue, we were fortunate to visit the Prospect House before signing a contract and had attended another friend’s wedding there in 2019. I absolutely recommend trying to see the venue in person, but if that’s not possible, a lot of venues now have virtual options. Lastly, for any vendor I didn’t bring in from California, I worked off the venue recommendation list, friends I knew in the area who had recommendations, researched, and read reviews.

Thanks to everyone for all of your love + support! I’m 6+ months into marriage and I have to say, it just keeps getting better and better! For more of my wedding planning journey, be sure to check out our intimate rehearsal dinner, my Cabo bachelorette party, + PNW engagement photo session!

Love the idea of a destination wedding? Contact me on my homepage here + I’ll walk you through every step!

Vendors:

Planner/Designer: Feathered Arrow Studio

Venue: Prospect House

Photographer: Lauren Parr Photography

Florist: Poppy Hill Flowers

Rentals: Whim Hospitality

Flatware Rental: Dish Wish Events

Music: Dart Collective

Grazing Table: Graham and Graze

Espresso Cart: Luna Espresso Cart

Bartending/Waitstaff: We Tend Bar