Alyse French Photography | Houston-Based Wedding and Lifestyle Photographer

We were four when we first met. Our moms made quick best friends, and we naturally followed suit. We spent much of the next 20 years under the aliases of Anne Shirley and Diana Barry, forever fantasizing that our Gilbert Blythe’s would be twins, or at the very least, cousins. (Figuring that would increase our chances..) I still remember acting out our mock wedding processionals in the sweet pea fields by my grandmother’s house. And spending hours practicing A Whole New World in anticipation of singing in each other’s ceremonies. Because nothing says romance like a little Aladdin. I mean, seriously…

And the story continued.. Somewhere down the line, I became a wedding photographer, and Hannah became a florist. But not just any florist. MY florist. Hannah so beautifully and meticulously designed all the floral for our wedding, AND she was one of the five girls standing to my right for our ceremony. :)

Which brings us up to last weekend, and a collaborative project spearheaded by Hannah with all of her glorious floral design/event styling prowess. An antique garden in Cooperstown, NY provided the perfect location for a full set up of neutral-toned floral, vintage silverware and candlesticks, antique rusted wrought iron benches, and some of the most beautiful models around. So brides, consider this a small taste of all the beauty that could be your wedding. ;) You can email Hannah at hannahelissa711@yahoo.com. And now… The rest of the story!

Hannah made and hand-painted this super sweet sign I absolutely fell in love with. I’m telling you, she didn’t leave a detail un-awesome.

Enter: Two of three adooorable flower girls. You can also see the “ceremony” set-up to the right.
Han used ALL of my favorite flowers. Peonies, hydrangea, ranunculus, garden roses, sweet pea? Be still my beating heart… LOVED the succulents used in the ring bearer boutonnières… As well as the ranunculi used in our groom’s! Sweet little Lucy. She was just the best! Miniature bird-nests took the place of the more-traditional ring bearer’s pillow. One of my favorite parts about working this shoot was how involved Hannah’s nieces and nephews were. Are they not the absolute cutest bunch? Lantern-lined aisle. LAWVE. Hannah was also the mastermind behind this small dessert table. Antique polished silver photographs so well! Reception time! Enter: The table set-up. Complete with mix-matched wooden chairs, homemade pedestals for two gorgeous urn arrangements, and the most exquisite antique garden to frame it all.  Meet our bride and groom: Martha Swann and her man, Rob Long. They did an amazing job! These pink willow dishes had me at hello. Etched glassware. Soo pretty! :) One of the most incredible centerpieces I’ve ever seen. This girl constantly out-does herself… Portrait time! But first, a quick tangent… Martha (also a photog) and I had been communicating via email for a solid few months before meeting face-to-face at this shoot. She actually wrote about the experience and interviewed me (over the de-LISH open-faced reuben served at Doubleday Café) for her blog HERE. :) Rob has got to be one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. And Martha, one of the sweetest girls I’ve ever met. They are quite obviously the per-fect match. And both Hannah and I are SO thankful for their lending us their beauty and sweetness. Lastly, the HUGEST thanks ever belongs to Hannah Elissa Floral Design & Event Styling. You made this shoot what it is. Down to every last detail. Love you!!

Happy Friday! XOXO!! :)