Starting From Scratch
Custom Installations, Austin, TX – 2012
The Challenge
Design a full suite of custom, hand-built wedding elements – invitations, a photo installation, and reception lighting – for a venue with no existing infrastructure to lean on, including a patio with no lighting at all.
The Approach
Precision as the whole idea. The invitation suite folded the couple's story into its own construction: a tree silhouette with two lovebirds and the couple's initials carved into the trunk, accompanied by four cards – identical in width, each incrementally taller – that revealed more of the tree when stacked together. The concept only worked if every measurement was exact.
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A vignette, not a backdrop. A "family photo wall" gave guests framed cutouts to step into, as if they too were part of the couple's photos. In front of it, I placed pieces of my own vintage furniture, turning a photo-booth setup into something that felt like walking into someone's living room.
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Solving a real problem, not just decorating one. The reception patio had no lighting at all. I built a series of gilded, illuminated trees to line the railing, plus two custom chandeliers – one suspended over the courtyard, engineer-reviewed before installation, and another hung from a tree above the outdoor bar (which I later repurposed over my own garage workbench for years afterward).
Every element of the reception – the invitation, the photo installation, the lighting – was designed and hand-built from scratch, turning a blank, unlit space into a fully realized, personal environment.
