A couple of months ago, Abby (the proud new owner of Margot Hill – a beautiful, modern-meets-French-chic wedding venue in Malakoff) reached out to me about photographing a styled shoot she was planning in the hopes of showcasing her recently obtained “fourth child,” as she lovingly calls her venue.

Margot Hill, previously known as Venue 31 under previous ownership, was certainly a “God thing,” as Abby says, for her sweet family of five. Abby and her husband, Logan, used to live in France (he’s an MK who grew up in France) and ran a bed and breakfast there for a period of time. “When we came to Texas, we always dreamed of combining our love of the French culture and scenery with our love of Texas through a wedding venue,” Abby told me at our first meeting. “So when we were presented with the opportunity to become the new owners of Margot Hill, obviously we knew this was a God thing. This has been our dream for so long, and it’s finally happening!”

When you talk to Abby and Logan about this venue and all of the vision and potential they are creating for it, their faces light up with joy, and you can really feel the passion they have for making it perfect, not just for themselves, but for every couple who chooses to celebrate their wedding day there as well. Their vision for this particular styled shoot was to showcase the venue and its potential, including its multiple ceremony sites, a beautiful reception setup, possibilities for a lounge area, and the numerous beautiful photo-ops all around the property.

BUT, this is Texas. And true to typical Texas behavior, the weather was not in our favor on this day. (Or so we thought.) Abby, with the help of Taryn (a design GENIUS – definitely check out her info at the end of the post!), had planned this whole elaborate shoot, down to every intricate detail, with a handful of extremely talented creatives from all over Texas bringing their skills and expertise to the shoot as well. At the last minute, the weather decided to downpour all around East Texas, and Abby and Taryn quickly rearranged everything and rethought the whole outdoor setup! Looking through these photos though, you would’ve thought THIS setup was the plan all along… They did such an amazing job being so flexible and resourceful at the last minute, and the best part? Brides can now see how beautiful their wedding day at Margot Hill would be even in the rain.

The rain did eventually let up, and upon seeing that opportunity, we grabbed our newlyweds Laura & Dylan and hurried out to the field for some incredibly gorgeous photos in the natural scenery, which was great for all of us because we were able to breathe, relax, and have some candid fun together without worrying about the weather. Kate, our crazy talented florist, repurposed the centerpiece from the reception setup and gave us yet another beautiful opportunity for ceremony-style photos at the outdoor site, which was such an unexpected surprise for us to be able to get photographs of!

All in all, despite COVID and the weather and everything else that was thrown our way, we created some freaking magic with these photos. I am so excited to share them all and thrilled to have gotten to meet and work with some familiar faces and some new friends, too! Be sure to check out everyone’s work on Instagram and leave them some love! Also be on the lookout next month for another insanely unique styled shoot out at Margot Hill, shot by one of my photog faves, Tara & Ryan Photography! It’s going to be stunning!

Photographer | @alisonfaithphotography
Design & Rentals | @eventandcompany
Hair & Makeup | @teasetopleasehairandmakeup
Jewelry | @ellenmote
Florals | @katemcleodstudio
Paper | @sincerelyaddison
Cookies | @missypsweets
Cake | @_cake.brake_
Venue | @margothillvenue