We're just going to preface this by saying we LOVED reading Monique's wedding story! There's just something so special about a wedding that is entirely made possible by a crafty bride, her friends and family--no wedding planner required! Monique and Arturo had a clear vision of a minimalist wedding that still featured romantic, classic elements. They created almost all of their decor themselves--I mean, how awesome is that?--and they did an amazing job, too!
Monique wore our Kaira ball gown, a perfect option for her minimalist traditional wedding. It features delicately beaded lace appliqués on soft tulle so it's just sparkly enough to make a statement! Scroll down to read all about Monique's love story and to view her beautiful wedding album, captured by photographer Clark Miller!
My husband and I met through Instagram, but we had mutual friends. We graduated same year and same district and had mutual friends but didn’t meet each other until our college years. We did long distance for the first 2 years of our relationship. When he moved back to Houston after graduating college he planned a trip to Cancun for us where he proposed with a romantic dinner on the beach just us two! We had dinner and champagne and a firework show afterwards.
We had a Catholic wedding, so when looking for my dress I knew I wanted something that would be traditional and elegant. Very different from our reception, since it’s the one time you can wear a dress like that so I wanted to make sure I felt special. I had tried on so many dresses, but as soon as I put on that dress I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. It actually wasn’t even one of my own picks, a family member had chosen it and placed it in my fitting room for me.
My family was so invested in my wedding I think they all knew what I was really wanted and saw my vision clearly for the dress. I felt so confident and beautiful in it and I cried, my mom cried, everyone cried! The lace was what sold me on it, it was so romantic, with the perfect mix “sexy” (for lack of better word) but still classic. All the bead work was beautiful too every move I made it would sparkle.
We had an outdoor reception. So we knew we wanted simple, modern but still romantic.
We didn’t have a color, everything was white, and lots of greenery. We also had a clear tent with string lights to show off all the trees in the background. Our style is very minimalistic and natural so the all white scheme and clear tent fit very well with our personalities. We also did most of it ourselves, the signs and décor. My grandfather even built us marquee letters that spelled out LOVE they were a big hit!
Our favorite memory from the wedding is that we enjoyed it with just our closet friends and family. We had a very small modest wedding, with a small budget. Our friends kept telling us how much fun they had and seeing my family so happy for us was honestly the best part.
To see everyone having the greatest time just celebrating us and our love and our new life together. We didn’t have to have a big Pinterest worthy wedding to have the best day of our lives and it was everything we could’ve wanted and more!
Congratulations, Monique and Arturo! Thanks for making us a part of your beautiful wedding.
Bridal Boutique: Brickhouse Bridal | Photographer: Clark Miller | Tent Rental: Pana Vasquez with The Tent Co.