Real Weddings |
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Sometimes Two Weddings are Better Than One
Summer Hutchens & Will Colgin
Written by Heather McLean Wiederhoeft
Photography by Tomas Ramos
March 11, 2007 and March 17, 2007
 Houston wedding planner Summer Starr Hutchens turns her brides’ dreams into reality by helping them create the perfect wedding.
But when it came time for her to marry attorney William Madison Colgin IV, Summer was faced with a unique challenge: planning two weddings that would take place in the span of one week.
“Will wanted a destination wedding and I couldn’t imagine getting married without my grandparents there,” explains Summer. “So we decided to have two weddings instead of one.”
Summer and Will worked with Jim Gray at The Houstonian Hotel, Club & Spa for their wedding on March 11, 2007. Knowing that even an extraordinary wedding planner needs help for her own ceremony, Summer called on colleagues Karen Brown and Lindsey Smith to help handle the many intricate planning details.
Invitations by Papercraze set the tone. The ceremony had a “garden chic” feel, with the altar and aisle entrance decorated in a sea of spring greens and pinks, accented by spherical topiaries in wrought-iron column cages, by Lee Capetillo of Darryl Murchison Design. Guests sipped honeydew punch and strawberry lemonade as lilting strains of Mendelssohn and Bach performed by Avalon Music filled the air. Meanwhile, family and friends posed for pre-wedding Polaroids that later appeared in a photo album for guests to inscribe.
For dedicated dog-lovers Summer and Will, the wedding ceremony would not have been complete without Radley, the couple’s two-year-old cocker spaniel, who was stylishly outfitted in a pink-and-green collar-and-leash set that held the couple’s wedding rings in an attached pouch.
At a deeply personal double-ring ceremony, penned by the bride and groom themselves, Summer, in a couture gown from Weddings by Debbie, held a bouquet of green hydrangea, Bells of Ireland, pink sweet peas, and West Texas cotton to represent her hometown of Lubbock, also from Darryl Murchison Design. The bride’s mother added to the romantic atmosphere with a heartfelt reading by E.E. Cummings. The elegant, yet family-oriented, reception took place in the Houstonian’s intimate Hearth Room, where champagne flutes filled with chocolate truffles complemented gilt-edged chargers at each place setting.
Reception highlights included a delectable cake from Edible Designs by Jessie and music by DJs Unlimited, and the couple exited under a shower of flower petals.
While most couples anticipate the alone-time that typically follows a wedding, Summer and Will relished the idea of being with family and friends, who traveled to Cozumel to relax with the couple prior to their second ceremony a week later.
The site of their March 17 wedding, Pancho’s Backyard in Cozumel was also where Will had proposed to Summer a year earlier. The bridal entourage arrived in horse-drawn carriages after a meandering tour through the streets of the seaside town. A 10-piece mariachi band and a selection of margaritas and tequilas welcomed guests before the minister began a sunset ceremony that incorporated various cultures.
That night, guests dined on the same dishes Summer and Will had enjoyed on the evening of their engagement. In recognition of its locale and date, the reception had both a Mexican fiesta and St. Patrick’s Day feel, as family and friends sported green-and-white balloon hats and offered tequila toasts to the newlyweds. Tomas Ramos and SAM’s Video were on hand to capture the couple’s second ceremony, just as they had been for their first.
“I know that marrying Will was the best decision I have ever made,” declares Summer. Her advice to other brides is to hire a wedding planner who can recommend reliable and talented vendors and keep the bride worry-free on the big day.
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Our passion and dedication to the craft of film-making and visual storytelling is what sets us apart from standard video weddings.
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Courtyard on St. James Place holds a magical combination of style and intimate surroundings.
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Elegance and charm are apparent to anyone who visits our Club, you are at a place where serenity and grace abound.
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