Tag Archives: About Emily

Why a Texas Wedding? From the Guy’s Eyes

I am a born and raised Texan. Emily is not. We met in of our less great norther neighbor states. Emily met Texas through me, and they became great friends very quickly. Texas and Emily were as meant to be as Emily and I. We would walk the streets of downtown Fredericksburg on our visits and she would declare to me, “This feels so much like home.” And so it became our home. We got married in the Hill Country on family land, and although Emily was a wedding professional before Texas, this was when her career as a Hill Country wedding planner began.

Having lived beyond the borders of our state, I can testify to the fact that some folks have a poor perception of it. Many a friend of mine hath declared Texas an ugly state having only experienced Amarillo or Dallas. When I would describe for them the hills and beauty of this area they scarcely believed me. In fact, I brought a friend to visit once from Kentucky who said it reminded him of Africa. An interesting comparison. The point being, the Hill Country is a beautiful and unique venue for a wedding. You won’t find a place like it, except Africa apparently.

So why get married in the Texas Hill Country? Perhaps we should be asking you the question since you have likely chosen our little heaven as your venue. Was it local for you? It fit your budget? Or was there a culture or a theme that you found here? Some of these features were true for Emily and I. In fact, all of them. But there are many more reasons why a Hill Country wedding, so we’ve listed just a few.

Weather: You will hear folks all across our nation gripe about Texas being hot. And, yes, they are correct- it is stinking hot. Depending on your threshold of heat, it’s only unbearably hot three months out of the year. And if you’re going to do an outdoor wedding in those months I would recommend a naked theme. But, for the most part, in the Hill Country you can get hitched outdoors in the middle of January, or in the middle of April, or perhaps October. Fewer people are getting married indoors these days. We loved saying our vows outside under and age old oak tree that has witnessed many generations of Burgess’. Texas has a lot of “availability” if you are seeking a day to conduct a big outdoor celebration.

Style: Along with the trend of outdoor weddings, the prominence of creative styles has become quite the movement. For a while we saw brides hiding flip-flops under their dresses, then it was converse all-stars. Good ole cowboy boots took the trend for a while (we still like that one). The rise of outdoor weddings has brought up the challenge of making a wedding fun and comfortable. For example, my groomsmen wore only vests, instead of suits with jackets. They looked awesome and they didn’t want to murder me for putting them in bondage to a tuxedo. This flies in Texas. Texas has very cool style. You see cowboy hats being worn in HEB, boots in church, and suspenders keeping us from seeing more of the old men than any of us could or should handle. Texas has style, and a lot of variety. Just drive through Austin if you doubt me.

Music: This was a big one for me. We wanted people to dance at our wedding. Weddings bring people from several generations together, so you may find yourself in a predicament for music, assuming your Granny Margaret won’t likely shake her junk to Kesha. Texas music on the other hand is easy for everyone to dance to. If you’re not from Texas you might think, well not everyone likes country music. Which is true. But if you have ever experienced two-stepping in Texas, it’s not a factor of whether you like country music or not. Two-stepping is beyond fun- and bonus, it’s likely that your uncles and aunts and grannies and gramps will two step right along-side the young-uns. Texas music makes a great backdrop for lots of folks to enjoy. I did my mother/son dance to Willie Nelson. It was perfect. In Case you aren’t super familiar with the genre of Texas Country, check out Wade Bowen, Cody Canada and the Departed, and Reckless Kelley- these are some of the newer faces and we love them!

The number one reason that Emily and I chose a Texas Hill Country Wedding was because it’s HOME. Family and friends made our wedding the beautiful memory it is for us. Maybe it’s not home for all of you. If you’re not a native, one little Texas wedding might sink the roots of your soul into the Texas soil so deep you won’t ever leave. It happens quite a lot around these parts. Share with us why you love a Texas Hill Country wedding. And for those of you who have found our little heaven in Central Texas, we will hope to see you out there, dancing under the wide open Texas skies.

Hi There…

I’m Emily Burgess, owner of Hill Country Bride. You’ve probably already gathered that if you have made it here to my blog page. However, since this is my first blog post, I thought it proper to introduce myself. If we were sitting together over coffee I’d probably be drinking a toffee-nut misto, or perhaps a chai.  I would be sitting with my legs crossed. I notice this about myself because I hear it causes spider veins. And yet, here I sit, legs crossed. I might be wearing a blue and white striped dress with a navy blue blazer and nude wedges, which happens to be the outfit that comes to my mind when I think of my favorite outfits lately. But since we aren’t in a coffee shop together, I’m sitting on my couch with my old faithful grumpy black cat, Rowdy, in my favorite band shirt, a white Switchfoot tee, and wondering who you are. Who are you Reader?

Writing my first blog post on this site feels a little awkward. But then again, aren’t a lot firsts a little awkward? First day of work, first time driving, first kiss… Need I say more!  I have long judged those who obsess over their Facebook, or share their lives to a world they will probably never meet. But here I am, hoping that I’m not that person, and that maybe, someday, I’ll get to meet you!

For starters I would like to tell you about how I got into weddings. The first wedding I ever attended was for a complete stranger. It’s true!  I was working for a photographer at the time, Phillips Mitchell, in a little town of Lexington, Kentucky. I was interning for him. He invited me to come help at his wedding that weekend, you know, carrying around his lights and being his second hands. I was about to be a sophomore in high school, just shy of 16. We were traveling in his Red Honda CRV when he pulled out of the back seat an enormous Canon camera that resembled a nuclear weapon, and said something to the effect of, “Get comfortable with that, you’re going to be shooting with it today.” Excitement and fear rushed through me. The rest of the day was a whirlwind. I remember it well.  The wedding was in this beautiful Cathedral and the bride wore a lace fitted dress with low bun. She was so beautiful. My job with this camera was to practice shooting the details. It was such fun! I fell in love with elegant ribbons playfully decorating bottled bubbles, the classic font on the program cards, the velvet texture of the flower bouquets, and the time-standing-still expression in the Bride’s eyes.

That look. So unique. So once-in-a-lifetime. It is a look reserved for a Bride who is truly in love. Her eyes glitter and smile all by themselves. You can see through those eyes that she feels like the most beautiful and special person in the world. In that moment when the doors are opened, and she emerges to see her groom, she takes a look at him. She often smiles shyly.  And then, almost every bride I have ever seen does this next… she looks down. Maybe she is looking to make sure her feet are still touching the ground. Such a feminine reaction. To feel so beautiful and to look at the man you are in love with, and when you feel his gaze, to have a little blushing moment. I imagine this is where they get the term “blushing bride”.

And that, my new friend, is how I fell in love with weddings. Because, not only are the fonts and flowers so pretty and fun, but even more so the people. What an amazing job, to be a part of the biggest day of someone’s life! I might be the one to fluff out their dress before they walk down the aisle. That dress will become a family heirloom, a symbol of pure love that generations will remember. How can you get more special than that?

I must stop for now. But just know, I could go on for pages and pages. And trust me, many more pages are soon to come!