Another beautiful wedding ceremony under my favorite old oak tree at 4.0 Cellars in Fredericksburg. I LOVED working with Clare and Chloe and being a part of their special day! Even though we had never met before the wedding day, I felt like we were friends. Enjoy the photos and read the couple’s (very long distance) love story below.

How and when did you two meet? What made you fall for each other?

We met towards the end of 2014 when we were both writing online as a hobby. I (Chloe) certainly wasn’t looking to meet my special someone at the time. Clare and I became friends though, finding a very similar sense of humor in each other and just genuinely enjoying chatting to one another. Conversations soon became deeper and each of us soon became to realize there may be something more there. With hesitation, as long distance isn’t easy (especially America-Australia long distance), we began exploring the potential. Speaking for myself (Chloe), Clare was everything I wanted and needed so it didn’t matter that the timing or distance may not have been perfect. She well and truly won me over and I knew from our first in-person meet that I wanted to marry her. Her overwhelming generosity, patience, and displays of affection are some of the things I love most about her, and serve to remind me how lucky I am.

Describe the proposal?

Clare was visiting in Australia at the time, and it was about a year since we’d met. In the apartment we’d rented she set up a timeline of our relationship made from ribbon and detailed cards of significant points of our relationship. There was close to 200 cards in all and it only took about 5 before the tears started. It was a beautiful gesture and displayed such a deep thoughtfulness. Once I (Chloe) had reached the end of the timeline some of my favorite songs played through as Clare took my hand and led me in a beautiful slow dance. She had a few gifts for me but the best gift was watching through tear-stained eyes as the love of my life dropped to her knee, declared her love for me, and asked me to spend the rest of my life with her. It was perfect! It was unique to our relationship and I knew without a shadow of doubt that this was where my new, very happy,  life began.

About the wedding

We went simple, elegant but simple. We were constrained by time, given the overseas marriage and restrictions for visas, but we still wanted it to be special. Clare and I decided on a vineyard in Fredericksburg, Texas, as a dear friend had done not long before us. Making a weekend out of it we rented a cute, rustic cabin and invited Clare’s best friends to come bear witness. It didn’t matter that it was small, we had each other and this was going to be the greatest day of our relationship, regardless of anything else. We married outside, under a beautiful old tree, and this definitely made for wonderful photos as everlasting memories of our day.

How did the event unfold?

We arrived at 4.0 cellars early afternoon, giving us time to walk the venue and get ready. Planning a great deal of the schedule around the ‘magic hour’ for photos we had our small, intimate ceremony under the great big tree (still so in love with it) before getting to our stunning photo session with Svetlana. Coordinated in with these pictures we cut our scrumptious cake and indulged in a wine and cheese tasting (all on site at 4.0). Each element of our wedding was no-fuss and provided for an easy going afternoon/evening. We were so pleased with all our choices for the day.

Do you have any tips for couples planning their wedding?

Although I (Chloe) wish I could have had my family over for the big event, the quick timeframe for planning and execution made that difficult. Nevertheless, I don’t regret the small size of our wedding. You don’t need to spend extravagant amounts of money on one day. We were able to make a day that was beautiful and personal to us without going overboard. What brought everything together on the day was a great team. We still talk about how lucky we were to have the best of the best (in our humble opinion) vendors. They were what made the day seamless, memorable, and captured in photographic form forever.

How was your experience working with Svetlana Photography?

Svetlana Photography is the only reason we can still remember in great detail the real moments of our big day. She so stunningly captured the two of us, all the smiles, and each look of love. She was so receptive to our ideas, and when we ran out she had plenty of great ideas of her own thanks to some great experience. Svetlana exceeded our expectations, both personally and professionally. We feel like she was a friend there to celebrate us and our big day, even though we’d just met. Choosing her to capture our wedding was one of our greatest decisions (coming in second to Chloe saying yes to Clare’s proposal of course!).

What are your day jobs/hobbies?

 Clare works tirelessly as a Technology Consultant (another reason it was excellent to put our fate in the hands of a very capable photographer). Chloe had just finished her second university degree when she moved from Australia and looks forward to finding a job in the field of criminology when her work permit comes through.