The Marquardt Ranch

60th Wedding Anniversary

2011-05-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

At The Marquardt Ranch, we celebrate not just the beginning of love,
but the everlasting of love as well.
Just a few weekends ago we were lucky enough to share in
Harvey and Daisy's 60th Wedding Anniversary.

Romantic Wedding Cakes

2011-04-20T12:29:00.001-07:00

Recently I've noticed a recent return of romantic wedding cakes. These cakes vary from simple to extravagant, but evoke a nostalgia for purer times. Below are some photos of really unique wedding cakes that I absolutely fell in love with!

Amy Atlas' blog is known for her outstanding dessert table arrangements and always leaves you feeling inspired. This design offers a terrific alternative to the basket-weave or lace designs while still looking intricate. Beware though, that is ALOT of frosting!

Eyelet is making a huge comeback this summer, as I'm sure you've seen in the stores. It won't be long before we see this trend show up in wedding decor in a big way! Case in point, your cake! These beautiful cakes show how the design can be incorporated in everything - even your cake.

While quite a bit more elaborate, the two designs featured here still have a quiet, dreamy feeling. The left photo is from Style Me Pretty's Blog, and the cake on the right is on Martha Stewart's wedding website.

2011's New Color - HONEYSUCKLE!!

2011-02-02T09:27:00.000-08:00

And no its not a yellow!

While doing research for the new "it" color trends for 2011 we kept seeing this subtle hint of a new color called honeysuckle. Its a warmer, and more red/orange color than the traditional pinks or even corals of the past. We decided to run with it for our booth this year. Lots of neutrals with a hint of honeysuckle!

Well it turns out we were spot on!! Istockphoto.com just released a new article about this hot new color and how its expected to be huge this year, not only in the fashion world but on web designs, print ads to home designs! Check out their article here to learn more about this wonderful color, how versatile it is, and get inspiration on possibly incorporating it into your wedding color theme!

Video Highlight Clip

2011-01-27T10:44:00.000-08:00

Brandon Hammon's just posted the video highlights from Krystal & Jame's wedding from this past summer. Its a terrific video and really shows what weddings at The Marquardt Ranch are like!

Krystal + Jimmy Wedding Day Highlights from brandon hammonds on Vimeo.

Decemeber Wedding

2011-01-27T10:16:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Vivianna and Norbert!
They booked The Marquardt Ranch with only a couple of months until their big day, but this didn't put a damper on their joy and thrill of getting married. They were both so relaxed and mellow, it really made working with them a pleasure. Norbert's boys were his groomsmen and they were all such a good looking and entertaining wedding party!
Special thanks to Ginger Diaz Photography for sharing some of the photos she captured.

Let them Eat Candy

2010-12-12T12:15:00.000-08:00

If you're going to spend some money on favors, you want your guests to enjoy them. And let’s face it; no one is going to keep that cute little monogrammed trinket that you so thoughtfully picked out. They will, however, devour their own and their neighbor's, editable favors.

And what a cuter favor than a mini replica of your wedding cake made out of chocolate! The Little Candy Cake specializes in personalized chocolates that are handcrafted for your special day. They come in 1oz, 4oz, 8oz, and 14oz, sizes and couldn't be more unique.

I always suggest for my brides to place their favors on the guest tables instead of in a basket at the sign in or gift tables. It completes the look of the tables and makes your guests feel more special that you have something just for them. Far too often when brides put their favors in one location, most either don't see them or don't take them and you're left with a bunch of wedding favors afterwards.

More September Weddings

2010-11-01T13:14:00.000-07:00

Begining of Fall Weddings

2010-09-17T12:58:00.000-07:00

I am severely over due on an update!!! Its been a busy time around here and we are all finally coming up for air, just to dive back into it next month.

Last weekend began our fall weddings. Gina had clear visions of how she wanted her wedding to look and I couldn't have been more thrilled with her color choices. We did all of her arrangements which consisted of a variety of orange flowers with a hint of chocolate and ivory roses. Everything looked so beautiful, especially Gina!

Special thanks again goes out to Mark Thomas Photography for sharing his perfect photos and the amazingly fast turn around time on them!!

As a side note: as a coordinator nothing bothers me more than having the perfect first kiss photograph be ruined by the minister standing behind them! This minister is so well hidden that the only way you can tell she's behind them is the little teal blue that looks slightly out of place! WAY TO GO minister and to Mark for having the right angle for the shot.

Congrats David & Gina Sept. 11, 2010!

Featured Engagement!

2010-07-30T12:25:00.000-07:00

Our very fun bride and groom, Michael and Pamela, were chosen to have their engagement featured in the latest issue of San Antonio Wedding magazine!
Check out their story here on page 274 or you can purchase your own copy of
San Antonio Weddings at local bookstores all around town!

Brides Against Breast Cancer

2010-07-21T09:15:00.000-07:00

Join us for a unique opportunity to find the gown of your dreams at a remarkable price, while helping make wishes and memory-making events come true.

Attend our Power Hours and be among the first brides in the San Antonio area to browse through hundreds of exquisite name brand and designer wedding gowns at the fraction of the price. Your Power Hour admission entitles you to an early shopping spree where you can try on and purchase your dress ahead of the crowds. (click the photos above for the link).

San Antonio Wedding Consultants has more information on their blog about additional events, which are FREE, if you'd like to go to the general admission times vs the Power Hours.

July 4, 2010

2010-07-20T11:18:00.001-07:00

Our first couple to be engaged here at the ranch just had their beautiful Sunday morning wedding this past weekend. If you didn't get a chance to read about how Chad proposed on a very cold day by the Guadalupe River below our bluff, you can check it out here and see some photos I snapped for them.

The Marquardt Ranch did their flowers for their wedding. Cris, the bride, was looking for simple and delicate bouquets with a touch of indigo blue to match her 8 bridesmaids' dresses.

Their ceremony was at 10:30am therefore we set up the location a little differently so that the whole ceremony was in the shade against the morning sun. It was a beautiful day!

Photos by West Vita Photography www.westvita.com

2010-07-16T13:56:00.000-07:00

While photos are being edited, photographer for our June 11, 2010 wedding, Amelia Tarbet has shared with us the slide show she's put together for Kendra and Matt. (Click the photo above or the link here.) I love all the bright bold colors that Kendra used. Very fitting for a June wedding! Hope yall enjoy this along with their video that was posted earlier!

Weekly Advice

2010-07-13T12:54:00.000-07:00

I'm going to start a new weekly advice section to help our brides during their planning processes.

Hopefully yall will find this pretty helpful!

THE BIG SEND OFF
My advice for this week is for your BIG SEND OFF at the end of the evening. First and foremost you do NOT need to purchase enough for your entire RSVP'd guest count. Only between 1/3 and 1/4 of your guests will stay until the very end. Of course this average will change depending on if most of your guests are from out of town and staying nearby.
Many venues have restrictions on items that you can and cannot use, especially if you're within the San Antonio city limits. Fortunately for us, The Marquardt Ranch is not so we don't have to hold our brides to those special city rules. We do however have items that cannot be used for the following reasons.

Bird Seed - We learned this the hard way after our 2nd wedding - bird seed is a SEED and seeds GROW. We battled the new sprouts until winter came and diedl off.

Rice - with all the wild animals and birds in our area, this is a very unsafe product for them to consume. It is also very difficult for us to clean up. ** SPECIAL NOTE** there is special rice called "Designer Heart Wedding Rice" that looks similar to rice but disintegrates when it is sprayed with water, and is okay to use.
Confetti & Silly String - these are both impossible to clean up.

Some very popular items to use for your send off at The Marquardt Ranch are:

Sparklers - If you plan to use these PLEASE get the medium sized ones (at least 20 inches). Smaller ones won't give your guests enough time to all light them and for you to get down the aisle before they burn out. If you miss getting them during the 4th of July or New Years Holidays you can purchase them online at BuySparklers.com. Even during a burn ban it is okay to use these because we keep the landscaping watered so well.

Rose Petals (only real) - Real rose petals are very pretty, inexpensive and are very environmentally safe for the local animals. You should budget about 1.5 roses for every guests (remember only about 1/3 to 1/4 of your total guest count will be there for your send off on average!)

Bubbles - Always looks great in photos especially if you have some mighty long winded guests =). You can usually get them for a great price at Hobby Lobby. Please please PLEASE don't waste your time tying ribbon bows on your bottles of bubbles. I've seen too many brides stress out about this the last week before their wedding. Not a single person will remember if you had a bow tied on them or not. We usually can't even place them out before the end of the event anyway because people will start to blow them inside. Soapy bubbles and our smooth floors don't mix well especially for guests in heels!

Being cheered on by your family and friends as you and your new spouse make your way to your get away car couldn't be a more joyous way to end your perfect wedding - no matter what is thrown at you.

Truely Unique??

2010-06-29T19:47:00.000-07:00

What can get more unique than your fingerprints.... on your wedding band?!

Okay I'm going to admit that I found this on another wedding blog...
so here's the link to the original post.

http://www.onestylishbride.com

New Video Highlights

2010-06-18T11:23:00.000-07:00

The awesome team at Elite Video Productions already has the highlight reel from Kendra and Matt's wedding up (June 11, 2010)!
Sam and Lisa are awesome fantastic to work with and always produce great work! One of the top notch vendors in the area!

The video will also be listed to the bar right hand side so if you want to reference it later you don't have to search through all the posts!

Enjoy!

Kendra & Mathew from elitevp.com on Vimeo.

Over Due March Photos

2010-06-13T13:13:00.000-07:00

I've wanted to post the photos from Sarah and Darius' Wedding for a while! Unfortunately, May caught up with me and this took the back burner. But I'm thrilled to share them with you now! Sarah was such an energetic bride who knew exactly what she wanted! Darius would just reply "what every you want baby" which always made me chuckle.

The Marquardt Ranch did all of her flowers while maintaining her look and budget. I love when brides - esp spring and summer brides - choose bright, bold colors!

Cat with Peacock Photography of Austin, TX did a fantastic job capturing the event. She and her whole crew were wonderful to work with and really open to new ideas!

Go to her blog to see the sneak peak she first posted and more detailed ceremony photos and wedding reception photos she posted later.

Letters of Praise

2010-06-11T10:08:00.000-07:00

We hate to toot our own horn (not really =). But this couple wrote such a sweet letter to us after her wedding I thought that I'd share it with yall.

"Amanda!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you for the perfect wedding!! We could not have done this with out you. Everything went so smoothly and the evening was just perfect. I loved the flowers and so did all of our guests. They turned out more beautiful than I ever imagined. Please thank Delores and whoever else helped for doing just an amazing job.

The ranch was beautiful as always and set up just perfectly. The whole night ran so smoothly because of you. My girlfriends who have been married commented on what a great wedding planner you were, and they could not believe you did my flowers too. :) I hope you are catching up on your rest after that busy wedding month, you deserve it!

But seriously thanks for everything you did, it was truly an amazing day, and we would not have changed a single thing. :)

Many thanks and have a great weekend,
Kendall and Jake"

Sneek Peek...

2010-06-05T06:46:00.000-07:00

... of our 5-29-2010 wedding with Jake and Kendall

compliments of their wonderful photographer

Francis Joseph Photography from Austin.

Check out the full sneek speak at his blog

Below picture was snapped with my Iphone... see the Francis' on his blog!!

Sneak Peaks From May Events

2010-06-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Below are some quick photos from my Iphone I snapped throughout our busy May wedding season! I'll be sure to post professional photos as they come in. But since those take a while to sort and edit so I thought you'd enjoy these for now =).

Terrific sunset view off our bluff over looking the river.

I love it when brides tell me that they check the blog often for updates and ideas. This past Saturday's bride was one such soul! She'd seen the idea/article of having a customized cake stand that matched her particular theme I'd posted on the blog months ago and loved it! I did too!! It matched the overlays that they had brought for their tables and is truely one of a kind!

This couple was so fun and adventurous! Their photographer, Josh Fowler Photography, took then out to our field where they'd just bailed some hay, and had them CLIMB ON TOP! They had a blast.

Both Bride and Groom were Texas Tech graduates. So as a nod to their almamauter the favors to their guests were none other than Texas Tech shapped cookies! Having something editable as your favor is ALWAYS a favorite of mine =).

Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

2010-06-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

GUESS WHO'S ENGAGED!!!

None other than our owner, boss man, Dru Steubing to Jessica Ford.

He'd been searching for the perfect ring for weeks on end. He finally found it in Dallas and couldn't wait for it to arrive. Meanwhile he put things into motion for the right time and place to "pop the question".

As a child he found a rock on the shore of the guadaulpe river that runs through his family's property and when he picked it up, it split clean in half!! He kept it at his grandmother's house for this entire time for exact purpose. He took this rock, drilled a small hole in the middle and carefully placed Jessica's engagement ring inside of it.

He later placed the rock down by the river for them to stumble upon while taking a walk one late afternoon. He'd gotten his sister Kerri to hideout near where he'd placed the "rock" in an attempt to take some photos without Jessica seeing her. It worked perfectly and they have some amazing photos as a result!

Dru & Jessica on a nature walk.

The Big Question!! Looks like she said "YES"

The Happy, Engaged, Couple!

In House DJ - Mike Lavender

2010-05-20T21:17:00.000-07:00

One of many nights that I've had the pleasure of working with our now In House DJ - Mike Lavender!! Finally remember to get some pictures at work. He ALWAYS has a big crowd on the dance floor and tonight... a Thursday night wedding, is no exception!!
(left - bride making a special song request)

12-27-2009

2010-04-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

Wonderful photos from our 12-27-2010 wedding. Thank you to Alan Rose Photography for sharing! It was a pleasure working with them again!

That little white dot in the sky was the moon.

It looked alot bigger in real life. =(

Remember you can see the photos bigger by clicking on them.

December Weddings

2010-04-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Well it seems that I've been a bad blogger and haven't updated you all in a while! I promise to be more up to day in the future. In the mean time I'm going to play a little catch up since our last post! Below is our wedding from 12-20-2009 which was an indoor ceremony and reception. Their photographer, Arol with AJH Photography has been out here several times and was super kind to share a couple of photos from their wedding day!

Raise The Cake - Literally!

2010-03-17T19:06:00.000-07:00

Stumbled upon this charming website and idea for cake stands. This former wedding coordinator, who was tired of being stuck with the standard silver stands, started the company Raise The Cake to offer brides an alternative to the traditional. Its also a great way to add extra fabulous-ness to your wedding! Below is my favorite stand, but be sure to check out all of her other ideas!

December 2009

2010-03-04T13:58:00.000-08:00

What a way to end 2009. We had several beautiful weddings in December with wonderful brides. What's even better is the sunsets that these great brides were given by mother nature!

The first wedding was December 5th with Casey and Robert. Their photographer, Melina from Alamo Photographic, was so nice to share with us the photos she effortlessly took that day including the flowers that The Marquardt Ranch arranged!

Tall centerpieces, red poinsettias white hydrangeas with red and white roses
and curly willow and roses inside the vase.

Bride's Bouquet. White and Red roses with Red Hypercium berry accents

Shorter centerpieces that match the taller arrangements.

Amazingly special photo through the wrought iron of our front doors
of the Bride dancing with her Grandfather.

Featured Wedding!

2010-02-02T11:51:00.001-08:00

Our wedding on October 24, 2009 was featured on SanAntonioWeddings.com
Check out the link to read the article and see photos from this wedding.

The Knot Best of Weddings 2010 Pick

2010-01-21T12:28:00.000-08:00

We are extremely proud to announce that
The Marquardt Ranch has been rated by local brides and voted
The Knot Best of Weddings 2010 Pick.

We were one of ten venues to receive the award in all of South Texas - spanning from San Antonio to McAllen to El Paso!! We couldn't be more excited to have received this award and are looking forward to continued excellence and outstanding customer service!

2010 Wedding Fair Show

2010-01-15T11:41:00.000-08:00

Thank you to all of you who came out to the 2010 Wedding Fair Show this past Sunday at the convention center. We had a great time meeting so many potential brides and their families. A special thank you to all of the vendors who helped in creating our booth this year. Linens and draping from Cover That Up and the photos shared by Alamo Photographic, Team Exclusive Photography, Whitney Lee Photography, The Smile House, and Kerri Carpenter.

On The Coldest Day

2010-01-08T12:25:00.000-08:00

I was contacted by a future bride earlier this week regarding the facility and available dates. They really wanted July 4th 2010, but they weren't officially engaged yet. Cris didn't want to do things out of order, get her hopes up, etc, by booking a facility before receiving a ring. Understandable.

Her future fiance, Chad, then contacted me and explained that he is proposing as soon as the ring is finished being made at Bull Green Jewelery. They made an appointment to come and visit the facility today to just "look". Chad emailed me this morning, the ring was finished. So we put together a plan to for them to go down to the river where Cris' father was baptized, and there is where Chad proposed!! I hid in the trees on the edge of the bluff and snapped a couple photos for them to take home and share.

So on the coldest day in Boerne in a very long while, a local couple were engaged at the same place as their coming wedding!

Sneak Peak!

2009-12-06T16:40:00.000-08:00

Hey loyal readers,
The photos I took on my iPhone will have to do
until we get the professional photos from Alamo Photographic.
If my iPhone can do this, imagine how unbelievably perfect their photos will be!

The Marquardt Ranch did all of her body flowers, centerpieces, and ceremony arbor.
Because Casey lives out of the state we did everything,
even her consultation, via phone and email.
She loved every piece of it!!

It was 45 degrees outside so she opted to have her ceremony indoors.
Something that her guests and bridal party dearly appreciated!

The bride and bridesmaids bouquets.

LOOK AT THAT SKY!!! We couldn't have timed the bell tower photos any better.
FYI for those planning weddings this time next year,
this photo session was between 5:30-6pm.

October Nature & Wild Flowers

2009-12-06T13:15:00.000-08:00

October was a crazy busy month! We had a wet beginning to the month.
Nature's making up for the terrible drought we had been through.
But that didn't damper our excitement and good times with our weddings.

With the changing of the season comes a change in how our brides are decorating their weddings. Out with the bright bold colors of Spring/Summer and in with the classic colors of Fall. This October Bride choose to decorate with wheat, candles and a touch of burgundy colored napkins against ivory linens.

They had Mariachi's for the cocktail hour!

Wild flower theme wedding later in October used blues, oranges, greens, touch of lilac wax flowers. The bride was ecstatic at how well Shavaun was able to create exactly what she had envisioned. Left is one of the alter arrangement's and to the right is the flower girl's halo of flowers.

2009-12-03T19:59:00.000-08:00

Shorty after my last post I received a call from Monica with Dos Chicas Weddings with news.
Ruby Muza from Ruby Muza Photography came through with photos and Tomas Chavano with Infinity Video shared their video from our September 12th wedding!I am so glad to share professional photos and videos with you all as my point and shoot camera does not do this wonderful event justice! As always the video will be posted to the right for a while for extended viewing!

Be sure to check out the video around the 11 minute mark as you'll see all of The Marquardt Ranch staff, Dos Chicas' Staff and Casa Sol Catering staff working to get the "change over" done in a timely manner. I was stoked at how well everyone worked together to do this change over from the church type ceremony to a seated dinner for two hundred and fifty guests in 30 minutes!

Special tent brought in with tables, lounge furniture, lanterns and up lighting!

They had the dance floor on the side which was a nice touch to off set the tent/lounge area.

Lighting does incredible things for a venue, even if its beautiful to begin with =)

Just Can't Wait

2009-11-30T12:06:00.001-08:00

I just can't wait to post photos from the last couple of months any longer.
These are some photos that I was able to snap of our Sept 12, 2009 wedding. Monica Saenz of Dos Chicas Weddings as always did an outstanding job of bringing the bride's peacock theme to life with total class. The bride wanted to have an indoor ceremony and dinner dinner with an outdoor cocktail hour and reception.

Indoor Ceremony with our "change over". Close up of ceremony area.

outside tent for cocktail/reception time. * sorry snapped this before the tables were dressed*

Baby Blue and White Wedding

2009-11-12T09:07:00.000-08:00

Brandi and Brent were a very sweet and quiet couple. Brent is Hawaiian and the incorporated subtle nods to his heritage with the use of orchids and a "Mahalo" photo which they used on their thank you cards cover. Special thanks to Alamo Photographic for sharing their photos with us!

Special photo that bridal couple love to take before the ceremony!

Brandi in the bridal suite.
Brent and Brandi playing peek-a-boo on the roof.
Super cute!

I love her bouquet.

Summer Time Purples

2009-10-14T20:03:00.000-07:00

I recently posted a new video that Team Exclusive Photography was kind enough to share with us last month. Purple has been the dominating color coming up for spring flower orders and it is very exciting to see how brides are using varying shades of purples to fit their own unique personality, style and wedding day vision. I am really looking forward to posting some photos of our weddings coming up this spring!

In the mean time here's a preview of purples used at The Marquardt Ranch this past June. The ceremony took place at a local church in Boerne and the reception was held at the ranch. My favorties parts of the video? Where the bridesmaids bouquets open up to Jordan and Kyle kissing, and the last dance dip infront of the cross with the uplighting!!

Absolutely beautiful couple!

As usual the video is also posted on the right hand side for quick access once more posts are published. Enjoy!

Kyle & Jordan - The Wedding Highlights HD from Team Exclusive on Vimeo.

Autumn is here!

2009-10-09T09:51:00.000-07:00

With the cooler weather today it finally feels like Autumn is here. This is my favorite time of year at the ranch! Soon all the colors of the Hill Country will start to change and this prompted me to share an inspiration board with fall colors. I especially like the bouquets, each bridesmaid caring a bouquet of a single type of flower and alternating them. Very well done! Every Friday I'll post a new board and hopefully it will inspire you with your wedding! If there is something you'd like to see; colors, decorations, dresses, cakes anything at all let me know and I’ll try to find a board!

Credits: Sara Remington (3), Hollye Schumacher Photography, Jose Villa

Upgrading the Facility

2009-10-01T10:57:00.000-07:00

We've had our crew out for the last couple of weeks working to make the flooring on the bell towers (or roof of the suites) more attractive. They did a great job! Can't wait to see how they look in professional photos!

Mid-Week Weddings can still be Beautiful...

2009-09-15T10:33:00.000-07:00

... as demonstrated by Rebekah and Ahmed's wedding this past month. Let the photos tell you!
Thank you to Allen at Doberenz Photography for sharing your photos with us!

Wonderful table settings on your left
On the Right one of her pomanders and the
rose petals down the isle way right before her ceremony.

The uplightings behind her cake and around the facility made a big statement.
Uplighting is a very inexpensive way to make your wedding unique!

One of my favorite photos!

Thank You, and You, and You and You...

2009-08-30T20:45:00.001-07:00

Expressing your thanks

"After the wedding, you must give credit where credit is due. Here are the answers to the burning questions: Whom must you thank? What form is correct? How much time is allowed to send out the notes? How can you manage to get it done correctly and on time?"

Great rules of etiquette on writing thank you's after your wedding.
http://www.examiner.com

First in August

2009-08-25T14:01:00.000-07:00

I had a lot of fun working with Carrie. From the get go she knew she wanted Starfighter Lilies (yes they're not Stargazer as more commonly known) The Marquardt Ranch did all of her flowers of which I am quite proud. This is also the first wedding where I was able to use my SRL camera. Carrie and Matt were awesome and let me play with them and my new camera. Here are a couple of photos I was able to take. Enjoy.

Bride and groom koozies for their sweetheart table. Super cute.

My FAVORITE!

Such a pretty couple

I love this photo. Its made to look like a painting.
It's like we're peaking in on a private moment.

On the Bell Tower =).

In Door Ceremony

2009-08-20T14:34:00.000-07:00

This bride chose to do an indoor ceremony and reception with what we call a "change over". We had all of the chairs set up in rows just like a church would be, then afterward we "changed it over" into the reception. It went very smoothly and the bride was able to get some amazing photos thanks to Brian Sprayberry with Sprayberry Photography.

New Ideas

2009-08-19T09:48:00.000-07:00

During my endless searching on the web I ran across this blog post that I thought would be a nice change of pace from the 100's of photos that I post. I'll try to make a more equal mix of things I come across that I think you will enjoy and photos of weddings at the ranch.!

Feather Bouquet Inspiration

July Weddings!

2009-08-12T11:44:00.000-07:00

I'm slowly catching up, I promise!
I loved working for Delanya and Joey. They and their whole wedding party (all 19 bridesmaids and groomsmen!!) were super easy going. Their wedding was simple - no huge bins of decorations- but very classy. The Marquardt Ranch did all of the flowers and centerpieces for her wedding. Special thanks to Francis Joseph, who shot with the photographer Arol Horkavy, for graciously sharing his photos with us. Check out his blog to see more photos from this wedding (we're currently on page 3).

Photo in the door was taken right before the ceremony began.
They didn't want to see each other but were able to get this very popular photo.
I love these because it builds up the excitement of seeing
each other in just a couple of minutes at the ceremony!

They borrowed the arbor that Shavaun's husband and father built for their wedding last October.

I normally don't post photos of the inside after the reception begins as its always the same with people in there. But check out the front doors. The sun is shinning directly in through the cross making a perfect cross all the way on the floor up to the doors!

I love this sunset. Thanks again Francis!

A Different Eye - Cont.

2009-08-11T08:45:00.001-07:00

Lauren just sent the rest of her photos about 10 minutes ago. I just couldn't wait to get them on the blog! Thank you again Lauren for sharing your beautiful photos.

A Different Eye

2009-08-07T14:40:00.000-07:00

I sometimes love and sometimes very much dislike having a new photographer at the ranch. Some photographers need/want a lot of help getting good photos out here if they've never been here before. We're a very unique facility and there are tons of photo opportunities here. Being able to pick out the spots, do them well and quickly can be difficult.
This is one photographer didn't need my help at all! She definitely had an eye for the facility shots and for what Shalin and David were looking for. Lauren Angell with Memories by Lauren was fantastic and fun to work with! B.c the bride and groom are friends of mine, I was able to suggest some daring shots that they were more than willing to do. These are just teasers that Lauren sent, can't wait to show you more of the truly unique eye she brought to their wedding.

Right before the ceremony after she came from the bride's suite.
I love the grainy old time look to these photos.

Classic!

Yet again, Yellow!

2009-08-06T12:45:00.000-07:00

If you've been following our blog you'll notice a lot of bride have chosen to use yellow this year. This bride paired it with a very bright aquamarine teal and it turned out great! She used simple daisy centerpieces with ribbon around the rustic metal vase. Sorry for the quality of the photos.

The cookies were hand made by I believe an aunt of the bride. They were a huge hit.
The Bride's cake was also hand made by a friend.

I loved how the bright yellow flowers popped out against the blue/teal bridesmaids dresses. For those of you who like our arbor this was a very simple yet pretty way to decorate it.

1 Year & 1 Month

2009-08-06T09:56:00.000-07:00

A whole lot has happened at the ranch in the last year since my first blog. We've had over 5000 hits on the blog, we've done over 75 wedding and several non wedding events. Thank you for continuing to visit the website and blog. Many of you come back often to see the new and interesting ideas for here at the ranch. Be sure to comment on things you like!
Here's to the next year!

New Video/Slideshow

2009-07-31T08:50:00.000-07:00

Johnny from Team Exclusive photography was awesome enough to put together a slide show from our July 3rd wedding. Emilee's wedding was originally scheduled for September 4th, 2009. She called us about 2.5 weeks before July 3rd, and very calmly told us they had just received word that her fiance was going to be deployed soon than expected and the only weekend the service would let him have off between now and then was July 4th weekend. Turns out July 3rd was open and our July 4th bride was kind enough to change her rehearsal time to help Emilee and her fiance. Later we find out that Matt doesn't even get the whole weekend off. He had to report to base on Saturday, the day after their wedding.

Emilee was so calm, working with Shavaun, throughout the whole process of moving her wedding up. I especially enjoyed how she and her father walked down the isle, "princess style", b.c her dress was just that big! The wedding couldn't have turned out any better and they have the photos to prove it! The video/slide show is posted below and to the right of your screen.

Matthew & Emilee @ The Marquardt Ranch from Team Exclusive on Vimeo.

Bridal Portrait Session

2009-07-28T11:15:00.000-07:00

These are my favorite from Laura's Bridal shoot here with Whitney Lee Photography. Her wedding was June 11th so we're now able to post the photos for all of our brides to enjoy! They took some really uniuque shots while here at the ranch. They had to use a lot of black and white b.c other than the facility grounds everything has died b.c. of lack of rain. This didn't stop them from getting some truly great photos.

down by the Guadalupe river

so candid, i love it =)

looks like it belongs in a magazine....

or fairy tail! Cinderella looking for her Prince Charming

can't leave the Hill Country and not get a photo with haybales =)

June Weddings

2009-07-28T10:24:00.000-07:00

June was an extremely busy month for us here at the ranch and thus the reason for my delay on any updates. This is from June 13, 2009. Wonderful team at Sprayberry Photography shared these amazing photos with us. There were so many good ones it took me forever to just pick these out! The color theme was deep purples, which went so well against the browns of the facility (besides purple being my favorite color) =).

extremely colorful centerpieces. mixture of tall and short adds great drama to simple centerpieces and makes the entire room look visually appealing.

Bride and groom's cake. Yes that is a deer blind, feeder and hay bales =)

just had to put theses in here. Just before I opened the doors to introduce the bride and groom the little ring bearer came around the corner. I tried to keep him from running in and possibly ruining the photo ops, but I just couldn't stop him. Thought the picture was hilarious!

Intimate moment on the grounds.

They had a great sky for photos that evening!

Bride and groom's first dance. And of course
b.c. they graduated from A&M... the war hymn was played.

their Big Send off.

Colors of Summer

2009-06-12T09:18:00.000-07:00

Summer is here and so are all of the beautiful, bright colors that come with the season. The Marquardt Ranch did all of the flowers for Jenna, who had chosen coral with orange, lime green and yellow accents. The bride and her mother were fantastic to work with and everything went extremely smoothly!

A big big thank you to Alamo Photographic for working with us and getting
these great photos to us so quickly! Anyone who needs a great
photographer/videographer, you need to visit them!

Remember you can click on the photo to see them larger and in better detail!

the bride wore cowboy boots down the isle!

Love this "come get me" pose!

We did tall centerpieces with coral and orange gladiolas
in the vases, and low centerpieces that matched.

Pomanders that matches the bride's bouquet
for the girls and a pillow for the boys.

Colorful alter pieces framed the ceremony area and made
a great backdrop to photograph this beautiful couple!

What's in a Name?

2009-05-27T20:44:00.000-07:00

This bride and her mom were great to work with! The bride had a built in theme that they wanted to incorporate but it was tricky. Her groom's last name is Peacock, but including that color and theme could turn out looking like a circus! I know, I had a similar color scheme! We were able to add touches here and there for a very subtle look and it turned out great! Josh Fowler of TiMachine Photography was very kind (and quick) to share photos with us so we could share them with you! They are a great company and we certainly look forward to working with them again!

the bride's bouquet with bridesmaids in the background, in their containers waiting to be picked up by their owners =)

The fan/programs on the patio just before guests head down to the ceremony area.

Dashing groom with groomsmen in the field across from the ranch.
Bride and Bridesmaids on the bluff striking a pose.

Picture Perfect Couple!

Photo taken from the Bell tower. Sashes make a big difference on the chairs!

First Kiss.

Bride and Groom together in the field. A little "alone" time.

First Dance.

Groom tossing the garter!
The photographer provided a "photo booth" with tons of fun props! Its was a BIG hit!

Big send off. The Groom's face is priceless!

And this is what he was gawking at =).

Looking for a Place to Stay?

2009-05-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

Rock Harbor Lodge is just the place! The very charming bed and breakfast is just a mile down the road from The Marquardt Ranch and is perfect for family members, bridal parties or for a very special evening for the bride and groom the night after the wedding! Visit their website and blog for more information and photos http://www.rockharborhillcountrylodge.com http://www.rockharborhillcountrylodge.blogspot.com

Shabby Chic

2009-05-12T14:50:00.000-07:00

This bride was a hoot! The week before her wedding, she changed her linens completely and didn't really tell anyone about it. Once we found it it was going to be burlap, I think most of us silently quivered. =) But this bride had an idea and it turned out wonderful!!! The flower choices and table settings added the glamor to the tables while the burlap brought in the country feel. here are some photos that I was able to snap. Enjoy!

Sweetheart table Wishing Tree

Two of the smaller table arrangements

The beautiful larger arrangements! I love the box which ties in the linen with the flowers.

I had never seen a ceremony arranged the way the bride choose to arrange people. She had the bridesmaids and groomement stand a good distance from them so they could get photos with just the bride and groom. Then the pastor stood infront of them and to the side so that their guests could see their faces as they said their vows. I really liked that idea!

WE BROKE 3000!!!

2009-05-06T07:22:00.000-07:00

In just 46 days we have had 1,000 visitors to our blog! We are super excited that you all are visiting and coming back often to see the updates! We will certainly keep it up and if there's anything that you'd like to see photos of or topics discussed let us know! info@themarquardtranch.com

CCC Mixer

2009-05-05T13:42:00.000-07:00

April 30th we hosted a fiesta themed Comfort Chamber of Commerce mixer!
Shavaun and I had fun coming up with the table designs and making Mexican paper flowers. Sashes, donated by The Wedding Connection, helped add the splash of color on each of the tables. We also used our up lights to wash each wall in a different color. Casa Sol Catering provided many dishes that you'd find during Fiesta, along with traditional drinks like watermelon and cantaloupe aqua frescas.

Mr. Steubing, Dru Steubing and Shavaun.
Shavaun and I arrived as twins for the evening. Not planned at all!

Example of the lights and how the just grab at the rock walls.

Green Color Themed Weddings

2009-05-05T13:11:00.000-07:00

We have YELLOWS in March and now in April and early May we're having GREEN weddings. Both are beautiful colors here at the ranch. This wedding was coordinated my Tina Humphrey with Diamonds and Dreams. Tina and the bride only had a couple months to put everything together, and there was a threat of rain again. But the weather held out and everything was very smooth! Tina had some great ideas about the floor plan; putting the cake table along the french doors and the sweetheart table in font of it, which made a nice backdrop for pictures. Here are some pics I took. As soon as we get professional pictures I'll be sure to post those as well!

Very Unique Bride's and Groom's cakes.

Sweetheart Table in front of the cake table.

The French Connection

2009-04-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

If you've watched Who's Wedding is it Anyway, as a lot of brides do, you should be familiar with our own local celebrity wedding planner, Tracy French with The French Connection. She planned our April 11th wedding and it was beautiful! The weather didn't cooperate so they brought the ceremony inside. A lot of photos to share so I'm going to make them smaller. Just click on the photos to see them larger.

Centerpieces

Special Flowers on the Chair of the Bride and Groom

Unique way to add drama to the room by using a few banquet tables. You can also see the up lighting used in the right photo.

Uplighting behind large beautiful Bride's Cake. The photo on the right is the groom's cake. Its all real and edible (except for the bottles of course)!

Ceremony area after we moved it inside.

Bride coming down from the bridal suite

Ceremony

Early March

2009-04-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

Andres Perez Photography shared with us a teaser photo from a wedding here last March. For more photos from this wedding please visit the album he created at

http://www.apgmediaweb.com/foto/wedding/mr.asp

Yellow

2009-04-02T14:54:00.000-07:00

Yellow seemed to be the theme color here in March. Of course not every one of them was yellow, but they did have some cool ideas. Since the professional photos are not ready yet I've just posted a few that we took. Enjoy!

We Broke 2000 !!!

2009-03-22T10:04:00.000-07:00

As of yesterday we had 2000 visitors to our blog website since August! (We probably did it last week or so, but our first counter went down and I had a low estimate of the original numbers). Thanks for visiting and be sure to come back often for more photos, updates, polls etc!

Night Wedding

2009-03-16T15:50:00.001-07:00

Another three wedding weekend under our belt (March 6th ,7th ,8th)!! The first wedding was with Carla and Robbie who were great to work with. Their vision was to have a wedding outside, AT NIGHT. My initial reaction at our Month of Meeting was basically massive internal panic. But they continued talking about how they planned to light up the area with big lights which they'd already hired. I was still skeptical but this is what my couple wanted, I was going to help as much as I could to make it happen. The day came around, the lighting crew showed up and as the sun set this is what we saw. Please excuse the bad quality of these photos... my camera is not equipped to take pictures at night.

View from Bell Tower

Zoomed in View from Bell Tower

It turned out beautifully!
I would highly recommend this to any couple looking to have an evening ceremony. You just have to take your day time couple pictures before the wedding or the next day.

RAIN RAIN!

2009-03-12T10:11:00.001-07:00

Thought it would be a cool idea to post before and after shots of the river now that we've gotten a couple inches of rain. The river is way up and flowing really fast!! Not sure if you can really tell from the photos... might need to click on them to see 'em bigger. Now all we need is for the sun to come out and green everything up.

Shot taken early February 2009
no water over the roots of the trees near the rock bed.

Today
water clearly over the rock bed and tree roots!

Today - closer look

From the Archives

2009-03-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

A couple photos from a few months ago that I wanted to share especially the ceremony photo. I haven't posted too many of the ceremonies.
Nachyelli Photography was kind enough to send these to me.

They also have photo from the ranch on their
San Antonio Weddings.com listing!

"Wood" you like to come?

2009-03-10T18:36:00.000-07:00

Everyone knows that "Going Green" has made its way as a trendy wedding theme. These invitations from Night Owl paper Goods take it a step further. Made of recycled wood these invitations are truly one of a kind.

And So it Begins....

2009-03-05T08:58:00.000-08:00

Wedding Season is here! And we have photos of our first one already!

Despite waking up to 40 mph winds this past Saturday the wind died down and it warmed up enough right before the ceremony to have it outside as planned. The bride and her whole crew were very great to work with especially when it came to waiting on the weather! Her colors were teal and yellow, very fitting for an early Spring (yes the last week in February can be considered spring in Texas).

Thanks to CE Something Different for sharing your photos with us.

Twitter

2009-02-26T21:31:00.000-08:00

The Marquardt Ranch is now on twitter!
Just click on the new button to the right to start following us!

If you haven't heard of or joined Twitter you'll want to soon. Its quickly becoming the newest way to connect with and stay in touch with people. To quote their site about themselves " In countries all around the world, people follow the sources most relevant to them and access information via Twitter as it happens—from breaking world news to updates from friends." You can "follow" anyone or any company that you may be interested in. Unlike Facebook where you need to know the person to follow them.

When we update the blog we'll also make posts to Twitter so you know that there is more for you to check out! Happy hunting!

Calendar

2009-02-24T12:32:00.000-08:00

I am happy to introduce a new feature on our blog, The Calendar! The Calendar can be found on the right hand side where it says Booking Calendar. This is a calendar of available dates for your wedding. If it says "wedding" or "event" on a particular day, that day is booked. This is not an official calendar but it can give you an idea. Remember that even if the particular date you want is booked (like a Saturday), always remember that Friday's and Sundays are great alternatives and have a much lower rental cost.

Winter Weddings

2009-02-19T10:07:00.000-08:00

Who ever said that you can't have a beautiful wedding outside in the Texas Hill country in the winter? With this bride's excellent taste and a fantastic photographer you too can have a wedding like this!
Big thanks to Laura Wootan with The Smile House

Gianina & Chris Bailey from Laura Wootan on Vimeo.

New Faces @ The Ranch

2009-02-17T17:49:00.001-08:00

We are very proud to introduce you to our newest face here at The Marquardt Ranch, Shavaun Steele. Her presence will allow us to offer much better customer service, which means you'll have a lot more interaction with your coordinator! So who is this Shavaun girl?

Born & Raised: San Antonio

High School: Madison - Activities: cheer leading

College: Texas State - helped take her team to the National Finals and WIN! First time Texas State all girl team has won a National Title

After College: 4 years as a flight attendant with South West Airlines. She has some amazing stories!

Married her husband October 2008, and yes of course at The Marquardt Ranch!

Fav food: Potatoes of any kind!

Fav TV Show: NCIS

Little known fact: She has an idential twin sister!

OCD about: Extra time left on the microwave and being organized.

We are so lucky to have snatched her up! I know you all are going to really enjoy working with her on your wedding!

Bridal Show

2009-02-13T12:10:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone enjoyed going to the Bridal Fair Show last week and was really inspired. We had a great time meeting all the newly engaged couples, their familes and friend, and new vendors. Here is Dru hard at work putting the finishing touches on our booth.

Can't wait for the next show, to do our booth bigger and better! For those that missed the show and want to go to the next one its June 28, 2009 at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center. http://www.weddingfairshow.com/

Unique Flower Girl Dresses

2009-02-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

Cutest Flower girl dresses I've seen! Just adorable designs from Smitherman & Barnwell.

http://www.banquetevent.com/wedding/misc/bande/2009/02/we-think-youll-love.html

Inspiration

2009-02-09T15:39:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone who attended the Wedding Fair Show yesterday was inspired. If you're still on your inspiration 'high' and want more... check out this blog by San Fransisco based Florist - Nancy Liu Chin - http://www.nancyliuchin.com/

Happy Browsing.

EXCITING NEWS!!

2009-01-15T09:19:00.000-08:00

The State finally came through and put up official signs marking Marquardt Rd on FM 1376! It will now be much easier to find our street especially at night!

Things to be Thankful For

2008-12-20T14:53:00.000-08:00

I have been so lucky in that my bride's lately have been so incredibly easy going, including this Thanksgiving weekend bride! She and her family visited the ranch on several occasions, showing people the facility and trying out different decoration ideas. It was always a pleasure to visit with her.

Her photographer had great ideas for pictures and used the facility in ways I had never seen before. Like this one (the photographer was outside taking the shot in - I am on the inside)

Another example is this one. The bride and groom wanted to follow the tradition of not seeing each other before the ceremony. So the groom stood outside with his back against the door while the bride got into position on the other side. Then they just reached around and held each other's hand. It was so precious!

Photo of their head table.

Guest tables

After the traditional first dances the bride and all her bridesmaids performed a chorigraphed dance to I belive it was Thriller by Michael Jackson. It was a huge crowd pleaser.

November 22, 2008

2008-12-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

This bride was alot of fun. She took everything in stride and had a great time at her wedding! Her color theme was black, red and white. Sorry for the dark photos as they were taken during the reception.

Pictures in coordinating frames of the couple were placed on the sign in table.

Always one of my favorite ideas.

Red square candles on a imprinted black designed plate with red rose petals and votives were on each table. Simple centerpieces made a very bold statement.

Its getting Colder!

2008-12-04T15:27:00.000-08:00

November 15th, 2008's bride was among the first brides to book at the Marquardt Ranch. It is a little sad to be done with her wedding since we'd been planning it with her for so long. Her guests partied with them from 7pm when dinner was over until 1am! They had two bars outside on the patio who were later joined by a taco vendor who cooked taco's on site serving as a midnight snack!

This Bride choose to tie tope colored sashes on her reception tables. This is a great alternative tie which added a modern touch to the classic looking facility.

She had orded special colored napkins and hand made the napkin rings.

Photo of the room.

Short and Sweet

2008-11-06T08:26:00.000-08:00

Weddings don't have to be long drawn out affairs to be special and meaningful. This Sunday afternoon ceremony and reception lasted two hours. After the ceremony guests were treated to a wonderful chocolate fountain buffet and various cupcakes. Some of the photos below were taken by Christina Bell with Fun and Fancy Chocolate Fountains - so special thanks to her!

photo by Christina Bell

Special Cake on top was used for the "cutting of the cake"

Ceremony was beautiful with all the colors in the background!

After Ceremony Photo

Bell Tower Shot

Groom waiting on his new bride to change out of her dress before they leave.
photo by Christina Bell

The bride and groom left on their personal horse into the sunset!
photo by Christina Bell

The Beautiful Colors of Fall

2008-11-04T14:49:00.000-08:00

I have changed my favorite time of the year to the fall! Specifically the end of October and the beginning of November. Everything out here has changed colors into brilliant golds, copper, dark greens, just beautiful! The sunsets have also been fantastic, reflecting the colors of the changing season.

This bride lives in CA and brought her caterer in from Alaska! Everything went very well and I've captured a few things that I really liked about her wedding.

These champaign glasses were purchased at Hobby Lobby and the bride and bridesmaids hand frosted each one with a kit also purchased at Hobby Lobby.

The favors were hand made by the Bride's mother and her friends. Cookies are always a good choice!

Her centerpieces were various inspirational words that sat ontop of mirrors that the bride and groom purchased on a trip to Europe.

An example of the sunsets I mentioned!

Last of October Events

2008-10-31T13:30:00.000-07:00

We here at the Marquardt love each and every wedding that takes place here. We had been especially looking forward to this wedding however, because the bride and groom hired a well known Texas Country Music singer - Gary P. Nunn. We had to keep it under wraps tightly because we were concerned that uninvited guests would crash their wedding just to enjoy a free concert. Over the last year we had been able to get to know this couple pretty well and we'll miss them. We wish them the best of luck in their new lives together!

Two round tables connected with a 4ft sweetheart table made up the head table which sat right infront of the band. This table was later removed for more dancing room - they needed all the room they could get. The dance floor was packed!

I thought this was a really unique gift idea. It really fit their personalities!

View of the band from above.

Just had to get a picture of him.

The band stayed around at the end of the night to sign autographs and talk to the guests. Two guests actually got to come up on stage and sing with Gary. The whole night was a lot of fun!

Three for Three

2008-10-31T11:11:00.000-07:00

I wasn't able to get any photos of our second wedding this weekend so here is Sunday's Wedding.

This couple were totally made for each other. They were so nice to work with and never even had a stressed out moment (at least that I saw) =). They were a lot of fun, adventurous and took some really amazing pictures - especially on the bell towers. I was busy assisting them up there so I did not get any of those shots. We'll just have to wait for the photographer's images. =( I did get a few of her table decorations and unique ceremony structure.

Special guests were given little vases of wheat with their name listed in the window area. These were then used to "stake out" their seat at the reception before the ceremony began

The groom and the father of the bride built this ceremony structure together. It was a great idea and good time spent bonding before the ceremony. They were married in front of it and moved inside to light the unity candle. Note to brides - ALWAYS use taper candles for unity candle ceremonies. They used pillar candles and the bride got hot wax all over her hand, and almost lit her veil on fire while trying to light their main candle.

Three Wedding Weekend

2008-10-31T11:04:00.000-07:00

First of the three events took place on Friday. Pumpkins and Hay Bales were the theme of this wedding and the bride did a great job of putting the idea together. This is a view of the front doors to the facility. A similar set up was also done at the ceremony site.

This bride also choose to use silk flowers for her cake and bouquets. Each bridesmaid had a color bouquet that you see on the cake. The bride's flowers was a mixture of all 5 colors.

The happy couple right after the ceremony.

Fall is Here

2008-10-31T10:37:00.000-07:00

This bride and groom currently live in California. Several of her vendors were brought in from out of town to help her with her wedding. Her photographer, violinist, guitarist and soloist all came from CA and her wedding coordinator came in from Dallas. She had an extremely unique table runner idea which could be repeated in many different colors to get different effects.

She choose to do red linens with cream lace runners and yellow, orange and red flowers. This fit the season very well and complimented the look of the facility.

Outside centerpieces were the brides idea as well and they put these together with a candle in the middle surrounded by 5 other votive candles.

Sheppard's Hooks are becoming very very popular lately. They look great and dont' take alot of effort to customize and fit your color themes.
Low sheppard's hooks lined the entire walk way from the building to the ceremony area. They offered great color against the green lawn.

New Designs

2008-10-31T10:23:00.000-07:00

This bride had booked with us before we were even half way through construction in early 2007. She was a local bride and everyone in town seemed to know her and her family. Her brother is actually a police officer who frequently does security for us. It was a very busy day with about 250 guests. Despite the threat of rain her day was absolutely perfect. I was only able to get a couple of shots, but enjoy!

The brides mother hand made all 25 centerpiences with silk flowers. It took her about 6 months to complete them all. She was very well organized and it helped the decoration process a lot!

The cake table was placed in the middle of the room so it could be the focal point. After the bride and groom cut it, it was moved out of the way and that area became the dance floor. Certainly a first for us!

Southern Living

2008-10-31T09:16:00.000-07:00

I clearly remember when this bride booked with us a year ago. Our October dates were filling up fast and other people were interested in the date she was too. She was able decide quickly and we were fortunate enough to book her as one of our brides!

Since we'd already had our Martha Stewart Bride, we decided to dub this bride our Southern Living Bride. She got her inspiration from Southern Living Magazines and actually ordered her centerpiences from their magazine. She had four different centerpieces - three of which were made of wroght iron. Her colors were fall themed and she carried that theme through out her entire event very well!
Below are some pictures I was able to capture of her event.

Orange roses added elegance and bursts of color.

The bride put together hand made notes and reserved signs to fit her theme. Instead of a traditional sign in book, guests were asked to leave the bride and groom a note on special paper slips with colorful markers.

Overview of her sign in table. Photos of the couple and from her bridal shoot are always good ideas for your sign in table area.

The bride made origami roses to adorn her cake.

The Grooms cake was four Chocolate Sunday Surprise cheese cakes. He is an avid duck hunter so that was the theme of this table.

Origami paper was wrapped into cones and filled with rose petals. These were given to guests as they lined up outside to wish the bride and groom farewell.

One of her four different centerpieces. Lots of candles and water made a perfect, romantic atmosphere in the evening.

Outside centerpieces and hanging Chinese lanterns.

These wrought iron candle holders handing from Sheppard's hooks lined the walkway in front of the building. They were beautiful and smelled like holiday spice. Keeping them lit was an impossible task - but the idea was good.

Back from the Dead

2008-10-27T22:04:00.000-07:00

I have been a terrible blogger this last month and I apologize. I do however have lots to update you all with! We'll start with where we left off, the end of September. Please excuse my point and shoot pictures. I'll post some professional pictures here soon.

This bride and groom were really fun. His family owns a pluming company.

As a nod to the groom, they had a very special grooms cake! Only the "lid" to the toilet seat was real, enough for them to ceremonially cut the cake. Cheese cakes from The Ultimate Cheese Cake store were served in "loo" of the groom's cake.

These very special vases, engraved with the Bride and Groom's name, were used as a sand ceremony. It is the same idea as a unity candle - once the two sands combine, you cannot separate the two different colors.

Specially made cake napkins.

This bride choose to have wine colored organza sashes on our chavari chairs. I really liked that idea as it added a touch of color to the facility.

Photo I took while on the bell tower!

Trick or Treat?

2008-09-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

Boy, do I have a treat for you. Team Exclusive Photography just sent us their high res. slide show from a fantastic wedding a couple weeks ago. I had posted some photos, but its great to see this wedding the way it should be seen - through the lens of a professional photographer, instead of my point and shoot =). Hope yall enjoy this as much as I did!

Photos from last weekend's wedding will be up soon, I promise.

Wagner Slideshow from Team Exclusive on Vimeo.

Early September Weddings

2008-09-16T14:06:00.000-07:00

Click photo to see them bigger.

Its been a while since I've updated the blog with photos. Here are some from the first part of the month!

This bride changed the date of her wedding THREE days before it happened. She decided to move her wedding up to Friday because it was thought that Hurricane Ike was headed right for us! Thankfully most of her guests were from the area and ALL of her vendors were able to change the date last moment. She was so calm though out the whole process! They ended up having a very beautiful wedding on the bluff and a huge turn out! Here are some photos I took.

The dance floor was in the middle of the facility. The sweetheart table sat on the stage in front of the wedding party. They had special draping behind the stage which was lit up at night (see below).

Beautiful centerpieces

Photo from above the cake table featuring the candle-scape.(left). The sign-in table with crystal strands highlighted by a fuchsia light that matched the brides color scheme.

Head Table lit up in the evening. - sorry for the bad photo

This bride and groom were married at a church in Boerne. They had a very formal event with a sit down dinner. The bride wore a dark ivory 1920's style dress. She and the bridesmaids all wore their hair up, again in a 1920's style which really fit the mood of the evening! Here are some photos I was able to capture of her decorations.

She had menus printed and placed inside the napkin and her jordan almond favors placed at the bottom. Simple little things like this make a huge difference in the appearance of your tables!

She had escort cards made that matched the menus and invitations. The groom is in the Armed Services and they cut the cake with his sword!

Outside tall cocktail tables with their centerpeices.

Videos!!

2008-09-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,
While playing around on the internet I came across several vendors who have posted videos and photo blogs of wedding at The Marquardt Ranch! Here are the links to the ones I've found.

http://elitevp.com/blog/

http://elitevp.com/blog/2

some photos

Photoworks by Zachary

Windfield Little Photography

Alamo Photographic

August 31,2008

2008-09-02T11:13:00.000-07:00

This bride really wanted her ceremony indoors - to have the church type feel. We did what we call a "change over"; after the ceremony we transformed the inside into the reception. It was very well and the bride and groom were very pleased. Here are some photos that I was able to snap during the ceremony!

August 30, 2008

2008-08-30T20:41:00.000-07:00

It’s been a while since I've posted updates and my apologies. I hope I can make up for it with my photos from this "Martha Stuart" style Wedding. The florist is a good friend of the bride, and all the brides ideas looked like they came straight from Martha Stuart Magazine! LOL, thus became her nick name.
This was a super sweet couple who met while working on a cruise ship! The groom is from Canada so we had many guests from up north who did not enjoy our unusually humid climate! Hey at least it was not 102 degrees and this humid. Talk about a Texas welcome.
Anyway here are some photos!

July 19, 2008 Wedding

2008-07-28T14:55:00.000-07:00

I loved this Bride's Cake. It came from Bumdoodler's. As always they did a great job!

The second shot is that cool feature I like to play with on the camera.

A unique shot from the grooms room. The photographer laid

on the ground below the girls as they looked over her.

The favors around the rose petals were a film strip of the bride and groom which gave

the guests details on where to view their wedding photos. To kick off the dance the

bride's grandparents led The Grand March. This picture is towards the end when they

make the "bridge". It was alot of fun to watch!

July Events

2008-07-26T19:56:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from some of our 8 weddings we've had in July!!

This is our July 12th wedding. The bride graduated from A&M so the song at the end of the ceremony that they walked up to was the Aggie War Hymn. It was quite cool I have to admit!

July 19, 2009 Wedding

Catch Up

2008-07-26T19:04:00.000-07:00

Just a couple of pictures from our June 7, 2008's wedding. The set up was simple but I loved the burst of colors and the little touches here and there. It really made the whole place look like a million bucks!

Centerpieces Sweetheart Table

Ceremony

Vail/Pierce Wedding

2008-07-09T10:04:00.000-07:00

Sunday was the Vail/Pierce wedding! I didn't get a chance to meet the bride until about a month prior to her wedding because she was living in Virginia working for a senator's wife! How exciting is that?! Tabitha and her mother were very pleasant to work with. Her color theme was yellow and ivory. She kept things simple but very classy.

Centerpiece
She had a beautiful four tier wedding cake. She also had two smaller cakes that she presented to two very special couples. Her wedding date fell on her older sister's 5 year wedding anniversary and her Aunt and Uncle's 30 year wedding anniversary. The bride and groom presented the couples with their individual cakes along with a special dance. The parasols were a very nice touch and they were fantastic for photos.

There was a threat of rain (finally) prior to her outdoor ceremony start time, but lucky for us it passed. You couldn't have ordered more perfect weather for a July wedding in Texas! Here are some photos that we took with our brand new high res. camera.

a neat filter we found on our camera!