After meeting at a potluck during their very first month at University of Colorado in Boulder, Mandy Lyne and Matthew Whalen started dating — casually. “I was too footloose and fancy free to settle down yet,” says Mandy. After remaining friends, the two picked up where they left off during their senior year of college — and this time, it was serious.
The pair, who moved to Austin together after college but have a love for West Texas, were engaged last November during a hike in Fort Davis. Mandy, a jewelry antiques dealer at Uncommon Objects, was shocked when Matthew proposed with a Georgian ring she had lost out on from one of her favorite antique jewelry dealers in England. “Turns out he was the one who outbid me,” she says.
On June 4, 2016, Mandy and Matthew married in front of 185 guests at Prospect House in Dripping Springs. The beautiful, golden Hill Country light inspired much of the wedding style, with gold serving as a driving force of the aesthetic. Originally, Mandy imagined wearing a gold dress instead of traditional white, but when no gold dresses fit quite right she settled on a white Nicole Miller dress and had her bridesmaids dress in gold instead, in whatever "sparkly number their heart desired." As she puts it: “All my golden girls ended up sparkling by my side.”
Instead of flowers, the pair opted for greens, the other central color of their wedding. Monochromatic green bouquets by Animal Farm Permaculture Center and a stunning green chandelier installation by Events with Heart helped capture the “Midsummer Night's Dream” vibe Mandy was hoping for — “relaxed and magical” she explains.
After the ceremony, guests enjoyed a family-style dinner and cucumber-lime tequila cocktails from Contigo Catering before hitting the dance floor. The whole day, says Mandy, “really felt like magic.”
Ceremony and reception venue:Prospect House
Wedding planner: Events with Heart
Floral:Animal Farm and Events with heart
Photographer:Rick Cortez
Invitations and paper products:Minted
Cake: Tiny Pies
Band: William Sterling Steffen put together a band with many members from Sometimes a Legend
Catering:Contigo Catering
Bridal gown designer: Nicole Miller
Bridal gown alterations: Ace Tailors
Bridal shoe designer: Chocolate Blu
Makeup: Jourdan Dudgeon
Hair:milk + honey
Ceremony music: Processional: Townes van Zandt, "If I needed you"; recessional: Merle Haggard, "I Think We're Livin' in the Good Old Days" and Dolly Parton's "Gettin' Happy"
The bride with her "golden gals," who each wore a sparkly golden dress of their choosing.
